AD:  Congrats on your new single, “Gettin’ High,” mannn, those drums and breaks, and that Aerosmith kind of backup vocal thing, it’s kick ass. It’s  like a blend of the 80s and 90’s and 2000 rock classics thrown into Hard Rock boldly. Holy guitar shred, how the !@ did you guys get together? Serious musicianship going on here.

 

MM: The Lonely Ones is a rebrand. We were all together for many years in our previous band Bobaflex. My brother and founding member, Shaun McCoy, decided to retire to spend time with family. The rest of us didn’t feel like it was Bobaflex without him, so we renamed the band and started writing new music. It was very scary at first, but quickly became fresh and exciting. 

 

AD:  Very cool. "Eternal Sadness", the riff, It is hot. The lyrics, who wrote them? Drugs, addiction, suicide, who do you guys hang out with?!

JK,  but where and how and when was this written? 

 

MM: I wrote most of it in my head on long car rides of aimless driving sessions. Times were pretty dark for a while. 

A lot had suddenly changed in my life all at once, and I was lost. I showed up to Jake’s house with an acoustic guitar, some lyrics, and a melody. He grabbed the guitar from me and within 10 minutes the song was pretty much finished. Jymmy and Tommy loved it and gave it that swing. The idea behind the song was heavy, but I wanted it to feel like “ Hey, severe depression is cool. Everybody's doing it”. That way it has that 60’s kind of dance vibe. 

 

AD:  Yeah, depression has gotten to be even worse out there. Talk to me about the production in "The Lonely Ones" and who was the creative director of the production for how the tune ended up being recorded. The breaks, the chants, the hum, the cool guitar part where the riff sneaks in and then goes full on, who was behind those nuances?

 

MM: That’s another time where Jake, Jymmy and I sat in a circle with an acoustic guitar and passed it around. I had the chorus, melody and lyrics, and in about 10 minutes, the song was entirely finished. 

 

AD:  Those are the best ones usually. From "We Will Rock You," to the tune "Stroke Me," to "American Authors," bringing it back in the 90’s with Best Day of My Life, that unison shout chorus, whose idea was it for your song, "The Lonely Ones," to even have that going on, when that is everywhere these days? No offense, but you have to get my drift here, we hear it a lot. Who said to do it in this tune?

 

MM:  Yeah, it's just always been something we liked doing. Gang vocals are massive sounding and encompass the power of the entire band. It’s one thing to sing a very emotional lyric. It’s a much more powerful emotional feeling when  4 angry  dudes scream it together at ya. Lol

 

AD:  Ha. That's why it's out there a lot. I hear ya. Yeah, ya don't hear women in rock doing that as much. Hm. How did you guys meet up?

 

MM: We were in Bobaflex for many years prior together. We had an insane touring schedule. When you're on the road that much together you become very close. You form an unbreakable bond. 

 

AD:  I love your schedule because it is festivals, and then you get to do some theaters, warm acoustics, yet,  where do you, Marty, like the engineering the most when you guys play out, as a singer/guitarist?

 

MM: I love it all. I enjoy the 20,000 seaters, all the way down to the private acoustic gigs for 100 people. I also love being in the studio, video shoots, interviews, long bus rides and gas station stops.  I’m the weirdo that enjoys it all. 

 

AD:  That is great, in it for the entire experience. Tell me a bit about the guys in the band, their backgrounds, where they are from and what styles they dig.

 

MM:  Jymmy is from Tacoma Washington. His influences are clearly Aerosmith, Thin Lizzy, and The Rolling Stones. Tommy and I are from the same tiny little Town in West Virginia. We grew up together. Our influences are pretty close to one another. Bands like Pink Floyd, Tool, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Megadeth, and Guns N’ Roses. Jake is from Utica, Ohio. Also a very small rural town. He brings the modern aspect to the band. His influences include groups like The Devil wears Prada, Royal Blood, Gojira, Dance Gavin Dance, and Beartooth. 

 

AD:  Well that's a great classic to modern body of bands to be influenced by. Business wise, your band has only been together since 2019, right? So, what do you want to say about the industry and bands getting started, any words of wisdom about the best approach?

 

MM: Learn to write good songs. The internet and social media has provided you ways to get those songs out to the masses. If the songs are great they’ll eventually cut through the noise. 

 

AD:  Great advice! Anxieties are going on about the Delta offshoot virus of COVID, are you guys worried at all?

 

MM:  A little worried, yes. We’re all vaccinated. That’s all we can do. 

 

AD:  What is ahead with singles, EPs, your schedule in the Fall?

 

MM:  We’re releasing singles at a much faster rate these days. Albums don’t really make sense for us at this time. Once we start touring in August and things start going back to normal, then we might have a different idea of how things should roll out. Right now it’s about singles, and trying to fit in a touring schedule, around the other bands trying to reschedule the shows they lost over the last year and a half. It’s like a traffic jam of long hair and leather jackets out there. LOL.

 

AD:  That's hilarious, cause I can see guys in a line waiting with their gear, like WTF?  Who do you want to thank out there?

 

MM:  Everyone!!! It’s been a hard year for the entire planet. We all lost so much. Some more than others. For the most part, we stuck together. Thank You!!! 

 

AD: Thanks for your time, Marty. The band, you, totally rock and have a blast rocking out there! I hope to hear and see a show ahead soon.

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INFO: 

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The Lonely Ones | Facebook

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https://thelonelyones.net

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