SOURCE – You formed in August of 2015. What were the band’s early days like?
Dan Sena – Precious started more as a studio project. I had written a couple songs that would become our first EP/Demo and sent them to Dustin Perry. I asked him if he could forward the songs to Brian Lovro because I wanted him to sing on it. I didn’t know Brian at the time, but when writing the songs, I just heard his voice in my head and on those tunes. Once we released those songs in early March 2016, Brian and I threw around the idea of eventually playing it live. Neither of us had the expectation of it going any further than a project. I asked around and recruited a group of musicians/friends, and about a month after the 2nd EP came out (Unravelings), we had our first set of shows in September of 2016.
SOURCE – Do you feel that live experiences have helped to shape and define the band?
Dan Sena – Well, we’ve only played 5 shows to date, so I’m not entirely sure there’s an answer for that yet. But playing live is always the reward. And it’s been really fun to take those songs out of the studio and bring them to life for an audience.
SOURCE – What types of goals do you set for Precious in the long-term? Has work begun on the next set of original songs, and will the next release be a full length or are you content to churn out EP’s?
Dan Sena – We do have a new full length written that I’m currently producing. Brian is working on the lyrics and will eventually track his vocals. It’s will be 10 songs and go even further into the evolution of our sound. It picks up where Unravelings leaves off but we’re driving up the intensity. The songs are much more hard hitting than the previous work.
SOURCE – Being long-standing veterans of the rock scene, how would you say it’s changed over the years?
Dan Sena – I’m not really sure how the Hardcore scene has changed. And I don’t really care. Although, I have noticed that younger kids discovering the 90’s hardcore sound that is a huge component of our style. And that’s exciting because Precious is to a degree, a continuation of our previous bands Threadbare and Adamantium.
SOURCE – How crucial have outlets like Soundcloud and Bandcamp been in terms of getting the word out about the band?
Dan Sena – It’s good to have those resources because it makes the music accessible and easy to find. But we really get a lot of response from our Instagram, strangely enough. It’s definitely changed the model for music distribution. On the one hand, some bands don’t have to rely so heavily on touring to get their music out there like they did in the 90s. But on the other, it also creates a lot more competition because anyone can write music and get it out there now.
SOURCE – What are some of the challenges for an unsigned band?
Dan Sena – The biggest challenge is always getting people to hear your music. That’s the most important part because without that, there’s no need for a band to exist. But I think if you have great songs, it will eventually find an audience. You just have to put it out there and hope that the right people hear it. Do whatever it takes to get it in front of some ears. At the end of the day, the audience will decide whether they like your music or not. If they like it, they will spread the word.
SOURCE – What types of interests and hobbies do the band members have outside of the music? Do you believe that friendships are important to the success and health of the band as well?
Dan Sena – We’re all involved in other things besides music. As I said earlier, we are a group friends, so yes, it makes things much more fun. When you’re older, doing things for fun becomes much more important. Fun is a rare commodity as you age.
SOURCE – What’s next up for Precious?
Dan Sena – We have the Unravelings vinyl LP coming out April 22nd 2017 on Indecision Records. A special Record Store Day release. And I hope to have the new album recording finished in time for summer. Definitely play some more shows and we’ll just see where the music takes us (Hopefully to Brazil!). That’s about all we can ask for. Keep it fun.
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