Tyler Broderick of the indie pop band Diners performed a Tiny Desert Concert in the studio.
Broderick is 22, and has already been writing songs for 10 years, which means for a long time he wasn’t even old enough to get into a lot of local venues. So he said his aspirations were hyperlocal in scope.
Full conversation
TYLER BRODERICK: Like my dream show is like playing, like the Mesa Amphitheater. Because I live down the street from it.
MARK BRODIE: So what kinds of places do you tend to play now?
BRODERICK: There is a venue called the Trunk Space in Phoenix that I play all the time, and then there's a venue called Funny World that I also play at. But yeah, I mean just there's a lot of places in downtown Phoenix that are real cool DIY spots.
BRODIE: OK, so what is the DIY type of thing when you're talking about music, we're not talking about like craft necessarily, but like in music, what does DIY refer to?
BRODERICK: Well, it stands for do-it-yourself and what separates like a DIY space from I guess just like a regular venue is just like kind of like a set of ethics, just everything is about kind of helping each other and helping the community out in like a really positive way.
BRODIE: So is the ethic of the DIY community, is that different than other parts of the music scene?
BRODERICK: I think so. I think there's this nasty vibe that I felt from some bands that just their only goal is to get really famous and like it's not about putting on a fun show. It's about seeming really cool to them and seeing, I don't know, it's just not about having a good time and having fun.
BRODIE: So where do you find the balance then between being cool about things and putting on a good show, but also I mean I assume you want some kind of notoriety and you'd like to make some money doing this, right?
BRODERICK: Yeah, it's funny, this year was kind of the first time that I was like thinking about, well, it'd be really nice to do this for a living. I mean there are bands that I know personally that have done it, like they've just inch their way up in a way where really they just get to do more of what they love.
It's not so much about being a huge band and making a ton of money. It's just being able to do more of what you love and that's, I think, I think it's possible. I think it's really hard. I think you just have to go in with that mindset and as long as you agree with everything you're doing, then it'll probably work out.
BRODIE: Is that kind of what you're looking to do? Just sort of be able to do more of what you're already doing?
BRODERICK: Oh, definitely, yeah, I just, all I think about is music all the time.
BRODIE: So can you play something for us?
BRODERICK: Yeah, absolutely. This song is called “In My Home Town,” it's a new one.
[PLAYS SONG]
BRODIE: In listening to your music, it sounds like there's just a lot of, I don't want to call them competing influences, but sort of It's not like one type of music. It sounds like there's a lot of different things sort of percolating in there.
Can you describe sort of how, how you create your sound, what from what sounds like a lot of different kinds of sounds?
BRODERICK: I can try, yeah, I think I, I, I like, my favorite bands are the bands that my friends play in, and so definitely like after I write a song, my first thought is like, oh jeez, I can't wait to show Tristan this, or I can't wait to show my bandmates this ‘cause all my bandmates play in other bands, too. So I don't know, we all, we talk about just bands we like.
I mean, I tend to listen to a lot of Beach Boys and a lot of different pop bands from the ‘60s and ‘70s. So I don't know. I think probably that gets in there, but also just the influence of talking, just talking about music to friends and I think is just a big influence, too. So I don't know if that answers the question or not, but I love the music my friends write.
BRODIE: So is that part of this DIY ethic that you're happy for your friends when they come up with something as opposed to, “man, I wish that was mine”?
BRODERICK: Oh yeah, totally. My friends' bands, I, I really do feel like they're the best bands, and I feel super lucky to, to be a part of it in some way, just to be at a show where they play a new song and I go, oh jeez, that's that's their best song right now, so I don't know, it's great.
BRODIE: So what's next for you?
BRODERICK: We're going to be releasing a 7-inch record EP and then we're also working on a full-length album that will be out very soon.
BRODIE: I've been talking with Tyler Broderick of the band Diners. He's going to take us out on a song called “Hear the World.”
If you’re in a band or know of one you’d like to hear on air, send us a note at [email protected].
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