THE MAINE ROCK THE GRAMERCY THEATER

The Maine will forever be one of those bands that make you reminisce about those good feelings of when you were young. I remember seeing The Maine when they were just starting out and immediately falling in love with their lyrics, stage presence and looks. Yes, they all happen to be very handsome. Gramercy Theatre was sold out on October 23rd for The Maine and their totally badass openers, US Royalty. In fact, when I sat down with Kennedy Brock (rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist for The Maine), he mentioned that he was so excited to be able to see them live. John O said the same thing during their set, too! Keep reading for the full interview with Kennedy. From composition all the way through production, US Royalty was pretty much perfect. They had awesome energy and reminded me of that California beach vibe mixed with psychedelic awesomeness. They easily might be my new favorite band.

How can I put this without sounding totally crazy? OK! The Maine is like that one boyfriend or girlfriend you just can’t say goodbye to. Six years later, you can still catch me and my friends at their shows; cherishing every second because we know it won’t last forever. This time was different though. They have this attitude and sound now that digs deep and magically finds your inner groupie. Especially when John O (lead singer for The Maine), says things like “Put your phones and cameras away for this one and just enjoy this. I’m sure you can watch it later on YouTube.” This show they performed on a more intimate level. It was raw. It was personal. It was Rock-N-Roll, baby! They played some of my favorite songs from their “Forever Halloween” album and even some older ones from “Pioneer” and “Black & White.” What really won me over though was when they started playing “We All Roll Along” from their first album “Can’t Stop Won’t Stop.” If you’ve never heard of them, check them out… seriously do it and if you’ve never seen them live, well, warning: you’ll want to relive that night over and over again.

Full Set List:

TAKE WHAT YOU CAN CARRY

LOVE AND DRUGS

LIKE WE DID

GROWING UP

INSIDE OF YOU

ICE CAVE

MISERY

WHEN I’M AT HOME

WE ALL ROLL ALONG

SAD SONGS

FUCKED UP KIDS

SOME DAYS

VANILLA

COLOR

DON’T STOP NOW

KENNEDY CURSE

BLOOD RED

RIGHT GIRL

RUN

FOREVER HALLOWEEN

P&W: “Am I really sitting down with Kennedy Brock from The Maine right now?”

Kennedy: “Yes, this is real life!”

*random loud country music starts playing*

P&W: “Yea! That’s not distracting.”

Kennedy: “It works!”

P&W: “Anyway….as a fan, I feel as if I was growing up while you were. I know the different phases you guys went through. Y’know like when you were considered “Pop Punk.” How would you describe your music to someone who has never heard of you guys?”

Kennedy: “Believe it or not I have to explain what our sound is quite often. Honestly, it’s Rock! Simple!”

P&W: “..and that is exactly why I love your sound. I actually read an article recently that says, “The Maine sound like a band who has finally found their happy place.” That must be such a great compliment.

Kennedy: “It is it is!”

P&W: “I know you guys recently had an acoustic tour. I’m still upset I couldn’t go to the one in NYC. How did that turn out?”

Kennedy: “It’s something we’ve never really done before. It was really close and personal. It turned out great.”

P&W: “Let’s talk about this Farewell, Forever Halloween Tour. How’s it been going so far?”

Kennedy: “God! Every show has gone well and we’ve all been enjoying it.”

P&W: “Farewell…. Does that mean we can expect a 5th album in the future?”

Kennedy: “It doesn’t necessarily mean we are saying goodbye to this album. We just felt it was right to play a few more songs off the album on tour before we start writing new songs. We have ideas and this tour is coming to an end so, we are excited to start working on new things.

P&W: “Well, we are all really excited for what’s in store! I’m going to mix things up a bit. If a movie was made about your life, what song would have to be on the soundtrack?”

Kennedy: “That’s a tough one. I have so many running through my mind. It really depends, but probably any New Radicals song.”

P&W: Can you name a band or musician, you’d love to see live?

Kennedy: “It’s funny you ask that because US Royalty is actually opening tonight and I’ve really been into them lately. One of the perks of being in a band is being able to set up/create tours because you can play with bands that you’ve looked up to. Like I remember when we got to play with Taking Back Sunday. That was really cool.

P&W: “Would you rather: Attend Woodstock ’69 or Woodstock ’99?

Kennedy: “’Woodstock ‘69! That’s kind of an obvious answer.”

P&W: “I know we didn’t have much time, but thank you so much for sitting with me. One last question before I go. Since I work for the coolest music blog in NYC, I need to ask you this very important question.”

Kennedy: “Anytime! I’m ready!”

P&W: “Do you like pancakes and whiskey? ”

Kennedy: “Yes and yes! My favorite drink is whiskey, Jack Daniels to be exact.”

Article by: Kayla Klein