Screaming Females, a punk rock band hailing from New Brunswick, N.J., performed at the Ottobar’s U+N Festival this weekend. News-Letter writer Dubray Kinney met with the band’s lead guitarist and vocalist Marissa Paternoster to discuss her approach to performances and the band’s future endeavors.
Marissa Paternoster: I’m afraid I don’t think about that too much. If the show is going well and the crowd seems excited and interested in hearing us play, then I haven’t any need to put myself in the “zone” or whatever. In general I’m always ready to play.
DK: With the tour that followed your latest album Rose Mountain’s release, was their anything that changed with the process of playing live?
MP: Screaming Females have been touring for about 10 years now, and so our live show has grown and changed with us along that span of time. We like to improvise and we’ve never brought prepared sets with us on tour. Like I mentioned before, I think that a lot of our collective mood depends on the show’s atmosphere. For us, Rose Mountain is just another notch in the doorway regarding our growth as a band.
DK: What are other releases you enjoyed from this year?
MP: My favorite record thus far has probably been Sometimes I Sit And Think And Sometimes I Just Sit by Courtney Barnett. I’ve been listening to the new LOW album a lot and I’ve really enjoyed the new Potty Mouth EP plus the tape Tenement put out in early 2015.
DK: What comes after the touring dates are done? Rest? More recording?
MP: We’re going on a short New England/Canadian jaunt with Potty Mouth for the first week of November. All of the tour dates are online, www.screamingfemales.com!
