MARCH 2023
REVIEW & INTERVIEW: FUNERAL PROPOSALS
A MONTHLY ARTICLE WRITTEN BY JUDE LEWIS, EDITED BY HAYLEY FAJERSKI
“Spawned in Akron, Ohio, Funeral Proposals have forged a unique, indie rock sound that is all their own.”
“Curated by Holden Shumate (Vocals, Guitar) alongside Ryan Hanlon (Lead Guitar) and Sam Gucciardo (Drums), Funeral Proposals recently acquired Gavin Gunn (Bass) to solidify the most creative and live version of the band yet.”
- Funeral Proposals Bio
I first saw Funeral Proposals last summer during Porchrokr. Brandon was hyping Hayley and I up while we walked over to their stage in Highland Square. I was thinking, “damn if Brandon thinks these guys are good, they must be great” and they were! For being on someone’s porch they sounded phenomenal, and I knew I needed to see them at a legitimate venue ASAP. Looking them up online and I was shocked to see that they only had three songs out on Spotify. I thought for sure they would have an album out, I needed more!
Thankfully, from my interview with Holden, I learned that they’re working on releasing an EP this summer. Holden gave me exclusive early access to some demo tracks for the EP and they’re shaping up to be some great songs. I don’t want to spoil too much but the demos sound like a natural evolution of their sound: stabby guitars, syncopated rhythms, and catchy hooks.
Pillbox, one of the demos Holden sent me, is a great example of Funeral Proposals’s evolving sound. The lightly distorted rhythm and lead guitars gives the track their signature messy sound. The beat in the choruses is really focused on a driving kick drum, giving the choruses a half time feel. It seems like they also messed with the dynamics of their parts, giving more emphasis between the different sections. The changes in dynamics and rhythm also dramatizes the changes in the song’s feeling and emotion as well. Overall, I really like the direction they’re going with their indie rock sound and can’t wait to hear these tracks finalized!
Questions
Q How did you meet?
a. Ryan and I met at church in 2nd grade and kind of became friends. I didn’t see him again till like 6th grade and he introduced me to Sam in middle school. That’s kinda when Funeral Proposals started back in middle school. We asked Gavin to play bass because of his musicianship and taste in music. We’ve been together for over 10 years.
Q What’s your biggest musical influence?
a. For me, it begins and ends with My chemical Romance. They’re my number one source of musical influence and inspiration. Ryan and I love MCR and everything they do. Their musical ability, the way they write songs, song structure, visuals, and theatrics are often we keep in mind. It’s not on purpose but on accident that a lot of stuff kind of coincides with The Strokes and Wunderbar.
Q Take me through your writing process!
a. It’s different all the time. The best songs are where we are in rehearsal and Ryan can’t help but play his guitar. He’s always playing it. He’ll play something and I’ll say “Stop! Play that part again.” He plays it again and I’m already thinking about where it’s going. I sort of conduct sometimes. Those are usually the best songs, the ones that are finished in a couple of hours. What we’ve been doing more lately is I’ll write an entire song, start to finish and then I’ll take it to Ryan. For songwriting, me or Ryan already have an idea and we’ll look at them and already know where its gonna go. Sometimes it’s sporadic, other times it’s more like hard work.
Q What’s your favorite Akron venue?
a. It sort of depends because they’re all sort of different and special in their own ways. What comes to mind immediately in terms of sound quality, The Rialto and Musica have the best sound, easy. Which is really, really, important when you’re playing certain types of music. In Kent, I would go with Zephyr.
Q What has been your favorite gig?
a. I would say the Akron Music Awards that our friend Chris Butler put on right before COVID at Musica. It was great because it was one of the first times where I could look at what we’re doing and have it validated not only by a crowd but also by someone as thoughtful and as knowledgeable as Chris.
Q Who’s your favorite local artist to play with?
a. So #1… I instinctively want to be super dramatic, but I LOVE People in The Day Time and Grumpy Plum. I think they’re really, really, special and they stand out to me the most. I really love The Beyonderes. I really love Dome Test.
Q What’s are some goals for Funeral Proposals?
a. We have our EP coming out this summer. We hope to promote the hell out of it. We want to begin weekend trips to other cities like Columbus, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Detroit, New York, etc.
Lewis’s Note: Unfortunately, due to some pesky college assignments I was unable to put out Funeral Proposals R&I out in a timely manner. Funeral Proposals will be back here at The Rialto soon, they’re one of our local favorites!
Give Funeral Proposals a listen on Spotify and follow them on Instagram.
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