We Barbarians, an indie rock band from Brooklyn, N.Y., will perform with Andy Hull of Manchester Orchestra in the Schine Underground tonight. Fresh from touring with bands such as Foster the People and Passion Pit, We Barbarians said they are looking to continue their momentum in Syracuse. Lead singer and guitarist David Quon sat down with The Daily Orange to discuss expectations for the show, past releases and the band’s future.

The Daily Orange: What are the expectations for your first show in Syracuse?

David Quon: I don’t really know, but our manager actually went to Syracuse, and he has nothing but great things to say about that area and the college. We’re excited because a lot of the people that come up for college shows are just super excited about bands passing through their college town.  It’ll also be interesting because you never know really what to expect. It has an element of surprise.

How do you feel about intimate venues like the Schine Underground?

We’re really used to intimate shows, but we’ve also been fortunate enough to support bigger bands where you’re playing large rooms.  But we thrive off of that setting, being in a small club. There’s something about having a lot of bodies crammed into a small space that kind of drives you. We get a lot of energy from that.

Are you excited to share a performance with Andy Hull of Manchester Orchestra?

We don’t have any previous experience with him, but we’ve had a couple friends’ bands tour with them, and they’ve said great things. We’re stoked to play with him, though, because we know a lot of kids are specifically going there just to see him, and it’s fun to know that so we can try to do something to draw them in.

How did the public receive your debut album and how did the release of your most recent EP compare?

Our friends made a small label just to put out music from our other friends, so we put out our first album, ‘There’s This There’s That,’ on their label. At that time in the band, things were still fairly fresh and there weren’t a ton of expectations — all we did was chisel away at the album for a year, and once it was done, we just decided to put it up on our own on iTunes.  With the ‘Headspace’ EP, we had grown more as a band and had a small team around us at that point, which allowed for a broader exposure of our music.

What does the future hold for We Barbarians?

We’ve gotten a lot of great friends’ bands to do remixes of all the tracks off the EP, which we’ll slowly release. We’ve been home for about a month writing and working on ideas for our new LP, so after this tour is done we’re going to be digging into the creative process because we definitely want to get the album out in the new year.

jtinfant@syr.edu

Published on December 4, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Joe: jtinfant@syr.edu | @joeinfantino