Flyer News: How did The Leaps Years come to be?
Joe Oliveri: People just know us.
Pat McKeone: Joe plays guitar, and I play drums.
JO: I came to school and thought, “I really need to find a drummer.” And in the first three days, I found a drummer. Bam.
PM: We were actually in a band called Abstract View last year, but two of the members transferred. So, we were no longer as abstract.
JO: [The Leap Years] really just happened.
PM: We came up with the name for one show, and it had good feedback, so we just kept it.
FN: Who’s the front man?
PM: Joe sings.
JO: We’re both co-writers. Pat’s “all ear” when it comes to drums. I’ll start playing something, and he’ll just go, without thinking.
PM: If I think, it gets off.
JO: As you see, we’re not music majors.
PM: We’re just good.
JO: It’s as least professional as professional can get.
FN: What would you say your sound is like?
PM: Dope.
JO: Even though dope is bad for you, our music is still good.
PM: We sound like everything.
JO: Well, Ben Rector is the inspiration, kind of. I’ve always liked that style and Pat’s in love with the dude. Man crush.
PM: A little bit. We have a chill, acoustic sound as well as upbeat tunes. It’s probably classified under pop, even though I hate that word. We strive for lyrics that have a meaning behind it. Joe won’t sing if the lyrics don’t make sense. Sometimes I’ll just be messing around and he’ll be like –
JO: No.
FN: So Joe’s in charge?
JO: I wear the pants; Pat wears the panties.
PM: I can’t write music. So even if I think some lyrics are cool, I can’t put the words with the music. Joe is kind of in charge of how it sounds. But, it always sounds good.
JO: I promise.
PM: So good.
JO: Nothing that sounds bad is ever going to be played.
FN: Are you involved with StreetSounds?
PM: Yes.
JO: We recorded some stuff already. Six tracks. Two of them we have put up on this little web site called YouTube.
FN: How did The Leaps Years get their name?
JO: Ha ha. We are bad at coming up with names.
PM: Actually, we’re really good. Most of the names just didn’t make sense.
JO: They sucked. Wait, let’s come up with a new name right now. The Pepper Shaker.
PM: The Bananarama.
JO: In a Nut Shell. Think about that. Everything we play is “in a nut shell.”
PM: Little World, Big World.
JO: My Time to Shine.
FN: You really are bad at this.
JO: I know!
PM: We were actually thinking Pat McKeone and the Joe Oliveris.
JO: That actually came from a Thursday Night Live, when Pat contacted ArtStreet and told them The Leap Years would be playing, but they just put down Patrick McKeone. So, we’re actually The Patrick McKeones.
PM: I guess it just came up. The Leap Years.
JO: I just like the notion of leaping.
PM: Just take it as it is.
JO: If you try to find a meaning, it will just be terrible. Stop asking so many questions.
FN: What can we expect from The Leap Years in the future?
PM: Grammy’s.
JO: We’re going to strive to elect the first female president.
FN: Anything else you’d like to add?
JO: Yes, I do know Denzel Washington. I have eight followers on Twitter, and one of them is Denzel.
PM: Kanye West hooked us up.
JO: That was your question, right? We’re always coming out with new stuff. Like us on Facebook, hit up that Twitter, look at the YouTube channel.
PM: It makes us feel good.
JO: Talk to us. Challenge us to cover songs!
PM: We’re performing at the next Thursday Night Live [Jan. 31] and hopefully at M-Fest this spring.
