Featured Artist

"Failed Attempts at Flying"


Q: Of course my first question is the most obvious, how did you guys come up with such a cool name?
A: We’ve definitely been asked this question a lot. There is this feeling that we associate to playing in front of a receptive crowd, very similar to a “high” or flying. At the time our band was first formed all of us were under 21, and were looking for an outlet to do our thing. As you’re probably aware, there isn’t much around the RI scene for bands that are not of legal age. So what was happening was we were basically being denied opportunities to play because of our age. Those rejections were literally our failed attempts at flying, and we thought it was good name. The funny thing we’ve noticed about the name is that it’s really hard for venues to get it right. We’ve been everything from Frequent Fliers, to Failed Temps Flying. It’s kind of funny in a way; it’ll be good for a scrapbook somewhere down the line.

Q: Your website has some nice photos, and some great info and gigs, lots of postings about news, but zip about who you guys are. What can each of you tell me about yourselves that would give your fans a clue about who you are? What makes you guys get up in the morning?
Mike: I am a man, not “the” man just a guy. I enjoy performing for people, there’s something about being up on the stage that drives me. It drives me to get up because the sooner I get my work done, the sooner I can start singing and playing and stuff. Yeah that’s the bottom line.
Greg: I’d like to think that I am just a normal guy, who really loves playing music. I feel already that we’re lucky just to be able to play for anyone who wants to listen to us. As far as my main motivation for starting the day, I just like to see what’s going to be out there today for me. I’m an observer by nature, and I love to watch things, and take things in, a lot of times that’s where some good inspiration will come from.
Chris: Mainly I get up because I have to get to work on time, but I like to solve problems and that’s what I do most of the day, in between surfing the web and reading.
Biggie: I’m no different than the average Joe. My father and I own a small business in North Kingstown. I see every kind of person you can think of throughout the day and some get to you more than others. Playing for FAAF is a way of forgetting about the annoying customers who know they are always right; hence the expression. I played football for 9 years from the 5th grade all the way through a season in Junior College. Playing drums for FAAF has been a real treat I must say, and it can only get better.

Q: Who does the majority of writing in the band?
A: All the songs typically start out with Greg writing a chord progression, and then we work from there. For the most part Mike is responsible for all the lyrics to the songs, but in the end we all make our own contributions. It’s a really relaxed and open writing environment; we all bring our ideas to the table. Usually things just work themselves out, and there haven’t been any “disasters”, yet.
Q: You guys sound like you have been out there playing a lot of gigs, and any musician who has done the “tour the state thing” knows shit happens. What have been those MasterCard priceless moments and/ or Spinal Tap scenes for you guys?
A: Wow, that’s a tough question; we’ve had some really weird experiences at shows in the past. I don’t know if this qualifies for the question, but there was one show we had on Halloween two years ago that has a pretty good story. When we booked the show we were told that there was going to be a party there and that we’d be the band in the front room and there would be a DJ in the back room. We show up and setup and the 2 busloads of college students came packing into the place. I should clarify it was 1 fraternity, and 1 sorority. We were all really excited at the point, cause we were still kind of new in the scene, and playing to this many people was going to be great. Unfortunately the DJ didn’t show up, and not too many of these people were digging the acoustic styling of Failed Attempts At Flying. As the night went on, and people become more inebriated some brave folks decided to rush the stage. This lead to some damaged equipment, and a group of our close friends making a human wall in the front of the stage.

Q: So is this a fun hobby or are you guys going for a Grammy?
A: We like to think of our music as our vehicle, and we’re along for the ride. If that means local success in RI and surrounding areas, we’re OK with that, but we certainly wouldn’t have any issues with being able to send our music out to a larger fan base. Wherever we may end up, we sure are having fun with it right now.
Q: So, I always like to ask the Featured Artist, What is in your CD player today?
Mike: Vertical Horizon – Go and Joe Arthur
Greg: Neil Finn – Try Whistling This and Neil Finn - One Nil
Biggie: Ween – All-Request Live
Chris: They Might Be Giants – Apollo 18 and Bleu - Redhead
Q: Finally, what is next for FAAF? Where can we see you? Do you have a website your fans can visit?
A: We’re constantly booking shows, and trying to get out there as much as possible. Though for right now our primary concern is getting the rest of our material sorted out for a full length CD we hope to release within the next year or so. There is still a lot of legwork to be done as far as that goes, but we’re getting closer everyday. Our fans and anyone reading this can check us out at www.faafband.com. We hope to see everyone out there.