Canadian alt-rockers Locket are preparing for the 10 November release of the new Superluminal. Frontman Brad Garcia took some time out of the pre-release cycle to chat with TGEFM, where we discuss pandemic releases, regret and what’s next for the future stars. The Fearless Record release is available to order here.
Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. Congratulations on the upcoming release of the new record, “Superluminal”! What can you tell us about Locket, how you got together and your sound?
Even though we’ve only been releasing music as Locket since 2019, we’ve been playing music together for ten years now at this point. I think we’re in the same boat as most bands, playing local shows solely for fun until things start to snowball in one way or another. As for our sound, I never really know how to answer that. We’re kind of all over the place—which is something I love (and I’m sure some people hate) about us. Some stuff is throwback emo rock inspired, other songs lean post-hardcore, and then every once in a while we’ll have a straight up ballad.
“All Out” had a lot of positive press coming its way when it released in 2019, but then the world and your ability to support it live stopped in 2020. How much does that disappointment, the extra time on your hands and the loneliness of pandemic lockdowns feed into this record?
“That’s a great question. It was obviously disappointing. The record had only been out for a few months before the possibility of touring that album was a no go. But I don’t think the time during the pandemic fed into further disappointment. We more or less took that time to re-evaluate what this band means to us, what we want out of it, what we like and don’t like. You learn a lot about that sort of thing the more time you spend away from one another. Kinda like any relationship, right?”
What album or band or significant singles made you go “Yeah, this is what I want to do” Not just an influence but who or what was the catalyst?
“I can’t speak for everyone, but going to local shows when I was a teenager, seeing bands from my area. I remember being mind blown that there were even bands from my area, playing shows for ten bucks, and everyone watching knew the words to their songs. So I think it was that environment more than anything else that made me think ‘fuck, this would be so much fun.’”
We’ve all got a few, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn’t take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?
“Regret can make it seem like ‘I wish I did that,’ or ‘if only we did this,’ when it comes to band life. I don’t think I really have any in that sense because of how things have unfolded for us as adults. But there are definitely moments I’m aware of that, had we gone about them differently, things could have opened different doors than the ones we were shown. Whether that’s touring the states sooner than we did, seeking other opportunities on the business side. We’re pretty very stubborn and refuse to budge on our values. Sometimes that rubs industry people the wrong way, but hey, what can ya do?”
What is it about music that you are most passionate about? What motivates you to keep writing?
“There’s obviously a part of me that needs some sort of creative outlet, whether to voice what’s eating at me or whatever. But more than that, connecting with our audience— cliche as that may sound— is a feeling I can’t really describe. Whenever someone reaches out to let us know a song or lyrics has meant something to them, that’s the thing you remember more than any crazy show or tour memory.”
What’s the state of the scene from your point of view? We are living in a “just deal with COVID” world and everything about this timeline is some level of completely fucked, but since 2020, it does seem like the live experience has been rejuvenated for the crowds and artists. How has the live scene changed over these last few years?
“I’m going to be perfectly honest, because of Covid I may have gone to five shows between 2020 and 2023, and four of those were ones I played. The scene seems different to me, but not in a negative way. I think in that time a lot of people got older and the scene is no longer on their radar. And on the flip side, a new generation of kids are coming out. There’s something endearing about seeing a packed venue full of people you don’t recognize. It’s like, ‘this thing is going to continue on without us,’ and that’s a great thing. On a more general scale, I think seeing the hardcore scenes blossom again has been a treat. I’ll chalk that up to the Turnstile effect. There’s gonna be a whole wave of kids who may have been ten-years-old when Pressure To Succeed, came out, or it was too on the fringe. And now those kids are gonna pick up guitars and start bands because they discovered GLOW ON, It’s very sick.
One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should know about?
“Ontario bands are always popping off. Former bandmates of ours have a project called 9million that are doing some cool fuzzy shoegaze stuff. They just released an album called Gush, and I believe they’re on the road this month opening for some great artists (Ethel Cain, Angel Du$t, etc). For some great indie vibes, my pals in Fanclubwallet and Chemical Club have been releasing amazing work. They’re really putting the spotlight on Ottawa’s indie scene. There’s a band called Frown Line that I’m particularly fond of.
What’s next for the members of Locket?
“Hopefully play some goddamn shows haha. For real though, all we want to do is keep creating things we’re proud of.
Was there anything I missed that you’d like to share or dive deeper into with our readers?
“Go listen to the record! This album is entirely self produced, engineered, and mixed. We put everything into these songs. If you’re a day one especially, it has an STS vibe that we could have only dreamed about capturing ten years ago. And hey, if it’s not for you, that’s cool too.
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, and no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
