Every Friday, we’re here to remind you of the Boston artists we love and think you oughta know.
Try to keep a finger on the pulse of every local band that’s worth a listen in a city like Boston, and you’ll discover it’s impossible. Bands sprout and wilt over the course of a season. But occasionally, some of them bloom.
Boston artists drift in and out constantly, whether by desire or necessity. Some float from one project to others, and deviate in sound with each new iteration. Andrea N., for example, played in Elephants; Steph S. is recording an EP with her new band, Panther Lamp; Al Z. plays guitar in Depressors; and Justin K. plays solo as Long Sleeves.
All four artists make up Sorry, an alt. rock/emo group local to Boston. Andrea and Steph harmonize on moody melodies about writer’s block and missed calls, while driving the band’s guitar and bass respectively. Al and Justin create emo-tinged swells of drums and guitar, not too dissimilar from the sounds of Full Circle-era dæphne (RIP). Sorry was kind enough to exchange pleasantries with Allston Pudding, and answer a couple questions on their sound, name, and favorite Allston food joint. Read all about it below.
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Allston Pudding: In a time where living unapologetically is so widely talked about, why be ‘Sorry’?
Andrea: ‘Sorry’ is a word that I’ve used more than probably any other. Sorry for things that are my fault, sorry for things that aren’t. I think that guilty/apologetic feeling becomes ingrained in folks who are raised female. It’s as if there is a tinge of shame for existing, or for not living up to others’ expectations for your life, not being good enough. Naming our band after the word has helped take away its power, in a way.
Steph: Social anxiety is a hell of a beast. When it was just me and Andrea starting out, it would take us two hours to even start writing because we were so afraid of stepping on each other’s ideas. We would spend so much time apologizing and worrying about offending the other that we wouldn’t get anything done. Al and Justin were the perfect addition to this mess. Any time Dre and I apologize to each other they mimic our “SORRY!” in a way that makes it completely absurd. They helped us address this issue we have with needless guilt and shame, and overall I think we are worlds ahead of where we were with our anxieties three years ago.
AP: I’m picking up some Rainer Maria/late 90s emo vibes from your EP. What eras are you most influenced by or interested in?
Sorry: Wow, thank you! Rainer Maria is our favorite sound and it makes us so happy when people pick up on that influence. Late ’90s/early ’00s emo is huge to us. We could go on and on about our contemporary favorites – instead we’ll hype more of our favorite local bands that we love and have been super supportive in the scene: Pushflowers, Ozlo, I Wish I Could Skateboard, Half Sour, Green Piece, Nanny, Honeycutt, Prior Panic, The California Flowers, Save Ends, Rebuilder, and Vaulted just to name a small portion of the awesome people who keep music going in this city.
AP: Andrea I know you were/are in Elephants, (love Elephants) but for the rest of y’all— were you, or are you currently, in any other music projects in Boston?
Sorry: This gets intricate; we all currently play in several other projects (mostly with each other!) and we have an umbrella collective/vanity label called Indica Violence to house it all. You may have caught the moniker on our bass drum head.
[in addition to the projects listed above] Andrea and Al are 2/3 of Birdwatching. Steph, Justin, and Al are Daytime Wino. Andrea plays solo as Nine Fields and is no longer in Elephants, but they are our dear friends and we dig the current lineup! Speaking of Elephants, Steph has been playing drums for Lauren’s new project! Andrea works at O’Brien’s, and Al helps out with booking/sound at Charlie’s and the Hong Kong.
AP: After practice, what’s your favorite food spot?
Sorry: YOMA! We can’t wait for them to reopen! We have also been frequenting Twelve Hours in Oak Square!
AP: You did just put out an EP in December, but do you have any exciting news you’re looking to put out there?
Sorry: We just recorded 3 tracks for a split with our buds Greed Island from NH that we cannot wait to share. We also have two gigs coming up and we’re shaking with anticipation; 4/29 at Charlie’s Kitchen and 5/21 at O’Brien’s Pub.
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Listen to Sorry’s late 2018 EP release, b-sides and rarities, streaming via Bandcamp below.