Gaining momentum
Remo Drive looks forward to hitting road ‘to get some new markets’
Erik Paulson recently finished practice in anticipation of the next leg of tour.
It’s a time of excitement and reflection.
“We’ve worked a long time to get to this point,” he says in a recent phone interview. “We’re looking forward to hitting the road and get to some new markets.”
Paulson and his brother, Stephen, make up the emo band Remo Drive.
The Minnesota-based band is signed to Epitaph Records, which re-released its debut album, “Greatest Hits,” earlier this year.
The band is touring in support of its Epitaph debut EP, “Pop Music.”
The Paulson brothers formed the band in high school in 2013 and were introduced to elements of ’90s grunge and classic rock to create their own dynamic and deeply catchy sound.
“It’s always going to be about loud guitars and big drums,” Erick Paulson says. “The best thing for us to do is not worry so much about aesthetic and focus on whatever feels natural with the overarching idea of being a rock ’n’ roll band.”
Paulson says writing music lately has consisted of him at his computer jamming.
“Then Stephen throws his bass on it,” he says. “He’s also my filter when I have ideas.”
Being able to tour the country with his brother, Erik Paulson says, is a pretty good setup.
“We’ve been brothers all of our lives,” he says with a laugh. “We’re pretty good at staying off each other’s toes. We can get on each other’s nerves. It’s not exactly an Oasis type of brother relationship yet. We’re still very much able to get along, and that helps tremendously.”
Paulson says he and his brother are both music lovers and don’t shy away from exploration of sounds.
“We like to keep it fresh for ourselves,” he says. “The writing process is wildly different for each track. Our life situations are a big variable, as well. Most of the time, everything starts with me and an acoustic guitar. From that point, we help facilitate different ideas.”
Being a fairly new outfit, the band attacks everything the same way, Paulson says.
“We are always trying to get better at our craft,” he says. “The only way to do that is to get out of Minnesota and perform every chance we get. Being signed to Epitaph now helps us broaden our horizons. It’s always great to get to a new market. Our hope is that we win over new fans and keep the momentum going forward.”