While some Aggies spend quiet evenings indoors, Eric Loftis, Russell Wedelich, Ryan McLawhon and Trent Foley don’t have a lot of quiet time. Collectively, they form the indie-rock band TwoSpy. With musical equipment piled ceiling high, studio gear sprawled across their living room, and guitars and amps finely tuned, they invite friends over to watch them practice. McLawhon, a senior speech communications major and lead vocalist, said his love for listening to music evolved into a love of creating it.
“In high school, I listened to bands such as the Dave Mathews Band and Vertical Horizon,” he said. “As it turned out, the music we make now sounds nothing like those bands. I thought they were amazing musicians and they inspired me to create music of my own. I started to play with Trent (Foley) who had played guitar for several years, and basically that’s where the band got started.”
In a rather unconventional change of hobbies, Wedelich, a senior electrical engineering major and bass player for the band, said playing music was a daring addition to his list of favorite pastimes, which included math and science.
“Most of my life I fit the stereotypical description of a nerd,” he said. “Although I liked music, for a long time I just automatically thought I wouldn’t be good at it. Once I started to play I realized that it was just another language that I understood. I took the chance and it proved to be a good idea because now I love being in the band.”
With its new disc, “Kool ot Yaw Gnorw (Wrong Way to Look)” being launched Wednesday today in a CD release party/show, at Club Concept, McLawhon said the lyrics aim to have a positive message and good impact on their listeners.
“A lot of musicians tend to glorify pain and suffering by writing lyrics about ordeals they never even had,” McLawhon said. “The lyrics that I mostly write about are about how stupid I can be sometimes. We also like to be truthful and original in our music.”
Weidlich said he is a strong believer in the theology that it is not the end result that is important, but the path taken to get there.
“It’s really all about the process of gaining experience to where you want to be, in whatever you are doing,” he said. “In the beginning you write and play music for yourself. After being in the band for a while, we have all realized that we have to write for the whole band. Since we have all become in tuned to each others(‘) musical talents, the composing process has just been flowing together lately.”
Eric Ortmann, a junior economics major and a long-time fan of TwoSpy, said TwoSpy’s musical exploits seem to get more impressive with each song.
“They are constantly reinventing themselves,” he said. “This is reflected in their music. When I listen to their CD or attend their concerts, I’m blown away by how they always get better with each song. I saw them open for Flickerstick recently and they were incredible. It is amazing to see how far they have come in such a short period of time. It is very inspiring.”
Loftis said that the members of TwoSpy are in the band for the music.
“We don’t care a lot about the money at this point,” he said. “If I had enough money to pay bills and buy CD’s then it’s enough for me. The dream and goal is to do something that we love and get appreciated for it. We just hope people get something out of our music, whether they come to see us perform or listen to our CD.”
TwoSpy will be launching its new album at Club Concept on tonight, and will be a part of a local band showcase, starting at 8 p.m. TwoSpy is scheduled to appear onstage at midnight. The band will also be a guest on 103.9 F.M. at 1:30 p.m.