BABY'S FIRST THRASH BAND

What was the name of your band?
When I was 11 in the 7th grade at Mulholland Middle School in the San Fernando Valley, I started jamming hard with my Pablo Motta, who was in some of my classes. We didn't have a name so much as an ideal.

What instrument did you play?
He played bass; I played guitar.

Who was your band trying to sound like?
We were doing loose covers of DRI, Suicidal Tendencies, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and SOD songs, trying to make them as fast and loud as our 11-year-old hands and ears dould handle. We had a couple of originals, but our jams would mostly devolve into us shredding other peoples' licks that we would loosely base our stuff on.

Who was the artist that influenced/inspired what you're involved with today?
I suppose my 11-year old self had the most influence on my newer 20-something musical self. Not in an egomaniacal way, but in trying to get back to the musical freedom and innocence of my youth.