The Glow
By A. Joseph Greenwald

I’m not out on a crusade to change music. I’m just making music that I want to hear. I had to start this band because I was sick of listening to the radio.
It’s Friday night in Boston and by the time THE GLOW leave the stage a crowd full of local punks and jaded hipsters will be left slack-jawed by the sheer display of raw power they’ve just witnessed. Their drummer, Mike “Kellzo” Kelly will be left bleeding from his hand, but it’s still an hour before he will even notice. Drawing comparisons to everyone from IGGY POP to ELVIS COSTELLO, SOCIAL DISTORTION and even THE SPECIALS, The Glow are undoubtedly one of the most energetic bands to explode onto the Boston scene in recent years…

How long have you been playing and writing music together?
Kellzo: Since High School.
Scoops: Ben, Kellzo, and I used to write punk songs with our friend Mark in high school. So I'd say off and on for about six years.
Ben: We all grew up together. We’ve been friends forever, and been in bands with each other for just as long. We started THE GLOW sometime around early 2002. When we started, it was just Kellzo, Chris [Scoops], and I. Kellzo was living in New York City, Chris was living in New Jersey, and I was living outside Boston. It was a logistical nightmare. We played on and off with a few different guitar players, but none of them seemed to work. After a few months of complete chaos, Kellzo and Chris moved back to Boston, and we started to play with Josh. Then it all just kind of clicked.
Josh: I've been in the band for just over two years now. The boys were looking for a guitarist and asked me since we're all old friends.

So you guys used to be in hardcore bands right?
Scoops: Yeah, I guess you could say that. I used to be a very angry person and I can blame most of that on MADBALL and BLOOD FOR BLOOD.
Ben: Kellzo and I were in a bunch. The only one that people may be familiar with was a band called Brando, but even that would be a long shot. We never played outside of the Boston area.
Kellzo: Brando was the shit.
Josh: I was never into the hardcore scene. I got my start in a high school ska band and turned to the nerd rock type stuff.

Who influences you guys?
Ben: Musically? Way too many to mention. I’d say either THE CLASH or RANCID more than any other, but I’d probably change my mind in a few minutes and tell you something completely different.
Josh: William Shatner.
Kellzo: EYEHATEGOD, SWANS, NIGHTSTICK, WU TANG, and "The Greatest Speeches of All Time" box set.
Scoops: Mike Dirnt [of GREEN DAY] is who drew me into playing bass…bands like TOOTS, THE POGUES… anything honest is what influences me now.

What drew you guys to playing this kind of music? Was it a conscious decision to do something different or did it just happen?
Kellzo: Benzo just writes good songs.
Ben: I think it definitely stemmed from a collective boredom with the music scene.
Scoops: Before we became THE GLOW we were playing stuff that sounded like it could be played at the Back to the Future prom. I guess it just eventually morphed into what it is now, but it was never a conscious decision.

Did you always know you could write these kinds of songs?
Ben: No, I think my songwriting gets better as I get older. I really don’t even like the songs that I wrote for the band when we first started anymore.
Scoops: Did you always know you could ask these kind of questions?

One of the words I keep hearing people use to describe your music is ‘fresh’. Is that weird for you guys considering many of your influences were popular over 20-30 years ago?
Scoops: Well, I've been told by quite a few people that I'm fresh, so it's nothing new to me.
Josh: I would say more like 40-50 years ago. While we are influenced by music from an era long ago, we’re not a throwback band, so when people say our music is 'fresh' it makes sense to me because I haven't heard any other band that sounds anything like us.
Kellzo: Josh is full of shit. He likes BEN KWELLER and SELF and pop bands with pop sensibilities. That's word to everything.
Ben: All music is derivative. I don’t care what anyone says. You find me a band that you swear is doing something that’s never been done before, and I’ll find you 100 people that will argue with you over who they’re ripping off and when they did it first. It’s just one big collective, progressing mess and it’s existed since the dawn of man, and it will continue to exist long after I’m gone. It’s hard wired into our brains. Every now and then humankind just changes the style a little and invents new instruments to play it on. The truth is, I’m not out on a crusade to change music. I’m just making music that I want to hear. I had to start this band because I was sick of listening to the radio.

Tell me a little about recording The Ghosts Are Out…
Ben: It was a really good learning experience. It was really rushed. I didn’t have a lot of time to work on arrangements, and there are a million things that I would have done differently if we went around again. I guess that’s just a natural reaction though. Next time around, I’m really going to take my time with it.
Scoops: It was a god time. Dave age and Ducky Carlisle really hooked us up. Kellzo and I had little under a day and a half to track all the songs so personally I felt a little rushed.
Kellzo: Dave Age did the whole record; recording, overdubs and mixing. We did two short days of "basics" at New Alliance, which is near Fenway Park. All the overdubs were recorded over a long stretch of summertime at Ducky Carlisle's studio in Medford, MA. We kind of rushed through it, but took our time, if that makes any sense.

In “I’m Never Ready” I hear echoes of Jimmy Cliff’s “Many Rivers To Cross”. Did you write the song about a specific person?
Ben: Some people love change. They think it’s exhilarating. They look forward to it. Personally, I hate change. I put it off. I’m petrified of it. I hate changing jobs, I hate changing routines, and I really hate the feeling of knowing that I’ll never be able to do something, or see someone or something again, no matter how small and insignificant it is. It completely freaks me out. Anyway, I was thinking about death. Specifically, that one day I’ll die and never get to experience life again. All those things that I love, all those people that I care about, I’ll never get to see them again. Ever. So that’s what that song was written about, never being ready to let things go… and yeah, there is one person in particular that it’s meant for.

You guys have been getting a lot of love lately on the radio and in the press in Boston. Does it feel good to get embraced by your local community just for doing your own thing?
Scoops: It feels pretty good considering that Boston is a very "hip" city. Everyone is way too cool to like music.
Kellzo: I knew that some radio stations were playing our shit cause we did an interview on WFNX. That's pretty cool.
Ben: If you’ve never heard yourself on the radio before, I can’t explain it. It’s great.

What’s the one band from Boston that influenced you guys that no one outside Boston would know?
Scoops: I wish I could rattle off a bunch of bands to make myself look cooler, but I'm just not that hip. I guess if I had to name some bands I'd say POOR EXCUSE. The singer had the best stage presence. You never knew if he was going to try and fight the whole crowd.
Kellzo: Yeah, I love lots of bands that have come out of Boston. SSD, BLOOD FOR BLOOD, WILLIE ALEXANDER, THE CARS, GURU of GANG STARR, but I can't exactly say that ONE band from around here has been more influential than say, a BILLIE HOLLIDAY or a RANCID record has been. Ohhhh… BRANDO, no one knows about them. They fucking ruled and you ALL missed it.

What’s been your favorite place to play?
Kellzo: I love the Middle East in Boston, and Valentines in Albany. I like all ages shows though, I think they're a lot more fun, and fair, for everybody.
Ben: We played at this house party in New Hampshire a few weeks ago and I had more fun than I’ve had in a while. All we did was play really bad dub songs, but everyone was dancing and having a ball. Also, I love playing at Valentine’s in Albany because the guy who owns it is the man.
Scoops: The Fork In Hand Guys got us on a sold out show at Axis [in Boston]. That was awesome. It was probably like our third show so we probably sucked, but I'd like to take this opportunity to thank BIG D and KICKED IN THE HEAD for hooking us up.

Are people surprised at how intense your live shows are? Your guitar player has a nasty habit of flying into the crowd and knocking over drum kits.
Scoops: I'd say that can be blamed on the fact that Josh gets drunk off two beers.
Kellzo: I'd like to think that people are receptive to us when we play shows. I think that if a band is having a good time playing music that energy will easily translate into the crowd. For me, playing live is tough because I don't like to think that I'm playing a show to entertain people. I play for myself. I have my own standards that are hard enough to live up to… If I fall off stage or puke because I'm playing too hard, it's not a fucking gimmick.

What’s the deal with “THE GLOW” stenciling all over Boston?
Scoops: First of all, “Who’s THE GLOW?” Second, “What’s a stencil?”
Josh: Huh?
Ben: Yeah, we don’t really know who was doing that. It’s so weird…

For more on The Glow check out www.theglow.com. Their debut album, The Ghosts Are Out… is out now on BANKSHOT! Records. www.bankshotrecords.com