Brett CallwoodThe lineup originally included a dude – drummer Greg Settino. Now though, Bailey Chapman occupies the stool, and the chemistry is perfect. The issues that plagued their last band are in the past.
“I was butting heads with another member of the group if I’m being honest,” says Westervelt. “It was an ego issue. She just had some trouble relinquishing control over certain things, struggled with sharing ideas, and all of that. I was also really sick of people telling me how cute we were and how cute our music was. Fuck that. I don’t want to be cute. I want to scare people, or make people think. Be the opposite of what someone assumes I’m going to be just by looking at me.”
“There wasn’t a lot of room in that band to play around,” adds Saperstein. “We had a lot to say and a lot of energy to get out. Playing guitar, I wanted to play in a heavier band. So it was a no-brainer for me.”
It certainly is a heavier band. Egg Drop Soup isn’t pop-punk at all, but rather sludgy, swampy punk in the Clutch, Eyehategod sort of way. A few people, they say, are shocked when they see them play.
“I want everyone to be like, ‘What the hell was that?’,” says Saperstein. “I think we do that. People never expect us to sound like what we sound like and do what we do.”
The sound, Westervelt says, has evolved during their three years of existence. It’s inevitable – she only started playing bass in 2016 and has gradually been writing songs more and more using that instrument rather than keys.
“As I’ve grown as a bassist, I think that my songwriting personally has evolved a lot,” she says. “Olivia comes up with some of the most complex shit that I’ve ever heard. It just keeps growing. So I would say yes.”
“I think it’s hard to track our evolution,” adds Saperstein. “Obviously, the pandemic, but also we’re releasing all the newer songs as far as when they were written. But I think we’ve 100 percent evolved as far as all of the music has gotten more complex, and heavier.”
“We’re recording our next music video and we’re hoping to shoot that in January some time,” says Westervelt. “February is fine too, no rush. We’re also planning a livestream, or a pre-recorded livestream performance. Like an EP release party. A lot more goes into planning things now. If we want it to be anything other than the three of us participating, we have to be extra cautious and safe about it. We get COVID tested as frequently as we can. That’s a factor – making sure everyone is safe and doing things as cautiously as possible but not suck all the fun out of it at the same time.”
She says in conclusion, “I can’t even comprehend playing a show. It almost hurts too much, thinking about it.”
Egg Drop Soup’s Eat Snacks and Bleed EP is out now.
