http://telltaleheartbreakers.com/
Rollercoaster
Video Link:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=44021124
Upcoming Shows:
11/18/09 Red Devil Lounge (San Francisco, CA)
11/21/09 Brookdale Lodge (Brookdale, CA)
Band Members:
Traci Hovnanian: Vocals
Ryan Rosprim: Guitar
Matt Eskew: Bass
Michael Smartt: Drums
Tech Industry Affiliations: PDI/DreamWorks
SVR: Tell us about your band. How did you get started? How long have you been playing?
Matt Eskew: It all started in late 2004 when then Deadutantes vocalist Traci and I were commiserating about the state of our current music projects and decided to form a new project. Former Kill Sister Kill guitarist Ryan Rosprim was quickly added to the mix and after spending nearly a year writing music, The Tell-Tale Heartbreakers hit the stage. Since then, we’ve worked on sculpting our own sound, and have been tearing through the post-punk music scene with tense guitar and bass-driven songs. Now, with the recent addition of drummer Michael Smartt, we’re busy working on our second record due out in 2010.
SVR: Who are your major influences?
ME: Siouxsie & The Banshees, Joy Division, The Cramps, Love and Rockets, The Damned, 45 Grave… just to name a few.
SVR: What’s your ultimate direction for your band? Are you seeking fame and fortune in the music business?
ME: We are going to take this as far as it can go. We just are going to keep playing shows and recording music. If fame and fortune come as a result, well, I don’t think any of us would hate that.
SVR: What are your day jobs?
ME: I’m a layout artist for PDI/DreamWorks. Michael Smartt is a physical trainer for Bay Functional Fitness (whose clients include Pixar Animation Studios). Ryan Rosprim is a store manager for Whole Foods Inc. in San Francisco. Traci Hovnanian is an art student with a focus on painting and photography.
SVR: How does your music influence your work or vice versa?
ME: Music is often used as an escape from our daily lives. We tend to use it as a branch of creativity that we don’t usually get to express during our normal work day. There is nothing better than a good practice or playing a great show after a long work week; it’s a great release.
SVR: Why is music education important?
ME: Studying music (and the arts in general) in school is an important part of a child’s growth process. It teaches kids structure and discipline that can be applied to the rest of their studies, and their lives in general. It is part of a whole, enriched education that can open doors for kids that they may not even be aware of. I can’t imagine where we would all be if we didn’t have these type of programs when we were in school.
SVR: What was your own experience learning music as a kid? Who flipped that switch in your brain?
ME: When I was a kid in the late 70s, we had a Simon game unit. It had these four large buttons, one each of the colors red, blue, green, and yellow, and each button would sound a different tone. I remember sounding out songs on that thing — totally not what it was meant for, but I loved hearing the “music” I was making. I guess that was my gateway instrument that lead to harder instruments in grammar school, like the recorder and the triangle (haha). I can’t say who specifically “flipped a switch” but I think that growing up in the Bay Area, with its crazy musical diversity, certainly helped to introduce me to a wide variety of sounds and styles, and my own curiosity and creativity just took it from there.
