Thunder Club is a five-piece indie rock outfit hailing from Baltimore, Maryland. Their ranks consist of guitarists Pete Burkhardt and Dennis Chen, lead singer Garret Cusack, bassist Conor Johnson and drummer John Burkhardt. Thunder Club’s unique style emerges from the chemistry between the musicians as well as their collective goal to stay simple. They are able to simultaneously incorporate a wide variety of musical influences into their songs. Their music is lively, enegergetic, and place a focus on groove and melody. Thunder Club has quickly gained a local following with the release of their self titled EP in 2016 and their dynamic and lively performances. Most recently, they’ve been gearing up for yet more releases in 2019, so keep your ear to the ground!
“Go Ahead” is the latest single by Thunder Club. The ears are immediately treated to a great guitar riff, and a rock beat that will have you instantly grooving along and reaching for the volume knob on your stereo. The drums and bass are so tightly wound together that it sounds like they are sharing one brain, and the two guitar parts are distinct yet harmonious, playing off each other in a way that really establishes two valuable melodic lines. The chorus sees a return to the fabulous riff introduced at the beginning of the song, which seems like a unique take on a chorus, allowing the instrumentation and arrangement to shine through. The bridge however is definitely showcasing the powerful vocals, and the whole band builds to a climax. This band clearly knows what they are doing, delivering a powerful sound but with so many subtle details, culminating in what is a tremendous song that is well written and well produced. Thunder Club is sure to have you grooving, and they will certainly not disappoint.
Make sure you check out "Go Ahead" here.
Continue scrolling for Thunder Club's exclusive interview with BuzzMusic!
Thanks for taking some time and answering a few questions! First of all, how about a bit of backstory? How did you all meet and form Thunder Club?
Hey, thanks so much for having us! We started this project just about two years ago. Pete and John are brothers and were neighbors with Conor. Conor went to high school with Garrett and Dennis. We each went our own separate ways within music with some of us forming our own bands throughout the years and then most recently coming together to put this together. Fun fact, we had recorded our first EP without having a name for the band. We hadn't thought of a name until we finished up in the studio.
Being from Baltimore, how would you guys describe the general music scene there? Is there a large rock scene?
The music scene in Baltimore is pretty damn amazing. It's not a huge market as compared to DC or New York, but we've got some magic down in these parts that people should not miss. We've got excellent groups like Super City, Outcalls, Beach House, and Future Islands. Baltimore has a great music scene that includes everything from indie rock to DJ's and hip hop. The arts district gives us a great opportunity to play at some really excellent clubs like Metro Gallery, Ottobar and Joe's Squared (they have AWESOME pizza!).
As a band, who would you say you collectively draw artistic influence from?
We draw from a ton of influences and they change all the time. Most recently we've taken a lot of influence from The 1975, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Queens of The Stone Age. We also take huge influence from bands like The Strokes, The Killers and Kings of Leon. We also can't ignore the greatness of Led Zeppelin either, they're hands down one of the greatest to ever do it!
Can you delve into your songwriting process a little bit? How do these songs all come together?
The songwriting process is interesting. We can't really pinpoint a songwriter within the band since we all contribute equally and construct the songs together. It'll usually begin with an idea from someone in the band whether it's Garrett on keys, or Conor with a bass riff, or some instant classic riff from the guitar boiz of Pete and Dennis, and every once in a while a fresh drum idea from John. With all that put together Garrett finds an infectious melody and puts together a most excellent choice of words to put to the melody to top off the song structure.
What can we hope to see from Thunder Club in the future?
We are finishing up a couple songs in the studio and aiming to release those in the next coming months so be on the lookout for those. We have shows coming up in Baltimore, DC, Philly and New York. We also have some great shirts that people say are some of the most comfortable T's they've ever put on their backs. We also just want to add that we really appreciate the time everyone takes to listen and support our project. This is the dream and every listen or t-shirt bought helps keep that dream alive so we would like to thank everyone who has come out to shows and listened to us online. We also would like to thank everyone at Buzz Music for the great support we've gotten from you all. It's been most excellent and we can't wait to continue this journey!
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