Shiffley

What if Panic! At The Disco, instead of branching into 70’s Beatles territory with Pretty! Odd, had created their sophomore album with all the same influences as A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out, but minus the accordions and violins? Shiffley’s new EP, Anthem City, gives us a taste of that alternate reality. With flawless production, fantastic songwriting, and great vocals presented by Alex Ganes, Anthem City is a fully realized EP that shows off all of the strengths that Shiffley has as a band and absolutely none of the weaknesses.

From the very first track, “Entropy”, it seems nearly unbelievable that the guys of Shiffley have not only been together for a relatively short time (three years), but that they remain unsigned. The work presented here is more indicative of a veteran band that has their formula down pat, with swirling synths, a catchy chorus, and a beat that will haunt you for days after your first listen. I would recommend listening to this album with headphones to get the full effect, especially when considering the end of “Entropy”; when the song winds itself down after Alex’s final line, “All this entropy’s gonna be the end of me”, you can hear the synths alternately brake in each ear. It’s an outstanding feat of production, and one that shows how carefully and lovingly crafted the whole of Anthem City is. “Instinct Over Mind” slows things down a bit, evoking the flavor of The Killers seminal album Hot Fuss while still presenting a mature synth ballad that listeners all over can connect to. Clones spotlights the excellent drum work of Bryan Contreras, with compressed drums in the beginning that open the track up perfectly and help it bloom into a low key synthesizer and bass groove. It really is an excellent example of synth rock musicianship, which is many times dismissed by critics of the genre as falsified with computers; on a song like “Clones”, there is no denying the talent of all of the members of Shiffley. As Alex Ganes sings, “We are the formally departed/were lost and then restarted, and know we found a new way out,” Brian Contreras relentless drums become the backbone of the song, and the beat eventually gives way to an incredibly sick guitar solo by Will Rosati, who is supported by Shaune Killough on bass and the enviable keyboard playing by Alex Jenks. The band works together as a whole, even on the final track and current single, “Ships”, which serves as the introspective calm in the relative storm of Anthem City.

In that last track, Alex Ganes optimistically looks towards the future, singing, “Make no mistake, our ship will come; our ship….will come”. He has all the reason to keep that mindset; after all, Shiffley is finally getting some recognition, having most recently been featured on the series premiere of the E! Network show “Stewarts & Hamiltons”. Every song on Anthem City points towards something bigger, something more intense, something hopeful and bubbling beneath the surface. It is that kind of talent and perseverance that has gotten Shiffley to the level that are at, sitting on the bubble of being a more mainstream band, and honestly, they deserve every second of it. Anthem City proves that they are ready for rock radio and the recognition that comes with it. Hopefully, with this EP, their ship will truly come. - Babetalk

When Shiffley came together a year and a half ago, the four college guys thought they had put together a fun music project for when they were on Long Island during school breaks. Now, less than two years later, winter break means much more than jamming in a friend’s basement. In its month home, Shiffley released its second EP, Atomic Robot Man; hosted a sold out release party; and competed as a finalist in CBS’s Grammy Gig of a Lifetime Contest. Although Shiffley didn’t make it to be the opener for The Neighbourhood, the internet buzz skyrocketed from the contest publicity (their cover of “Clarity” currently has over 23,700 views on YouTube). I sat down with band members Alex Ganes, Alex Jenks, Bryan Contreras, and Shaune Killough to find out how these four silly friends are finding some serious success with a killer pop sound.

The Argus: So let’s start at the beginning. When did Shiffley form?

Alex Ganes: We’ve all been playing together for years, [and] over the past few years we’ve been in all sorts of different bands with each other. And [Bryan Contreras and Alex Jenks] have always been really great friends of mine. And then the way we met Shaune [Killough] is kind of interesting.

Shaune Killough: Alright, so I was kind of slacking off on my homework one day in 10th grade and I was roaming through the musician section on Craigslist. And I found them.

AG: We found him on Craigslist. We find our friends on Craigslist.

A: If you had to put Shiffley’s sound into five words or less, how would you describe it?

Alex Jenks: This is what’s on our Instagram: synthesizer-driven alternative rock with a pop flare.

Bryan Contreras: That was more like six…

A: It’s perfect. What are your musical backgrounds prior to Shiffley?

BC: I got my start in music when I was very little. I was always influenced [by] my parents playing different sorts of genres in the household. We’d listen to Bachata music to Michael Jackson. I started singing, and then I stopped singing after high school because I fell in love with drumming. More specifically, Rock Band drums and that’s where I started playing drums.... I just haven’t stopped since. So I got my start in music from Rock Band: the videogame.

A: A true inspiration for us all!

BC: Play copious amounts of Rock Band and you’ll do what I do.

SK: I grew up in a musical family; both my parents were in rock bands. So I grew up listening to music and playing music. I was actually a drummer when I first started when I was six years old. And then when I was in fifth grade I taught myself how to play guitar. From that point I just kind of developed that a little bit and I ended up playing bass with these guys. I actually started out as the guitarist, and then when we came back together as Shiffley I was like, “Dude, I have the perfect bass line for ‘These Cold Eyes.’”

A: But guitar was your main thing.

SK: And my playing is very influenced by guitar because I play a lot of weird stuff.

AG: Something that makes it our sound more is that the bass lines are so much like guitar lines.

SK: With the exception of Bryan, in Shiffley none of us plays our primary instruments. My primary instrument is guitar.

AG: Violin.

AJ: Trombone.

BC: Uhh, sticks.

AJ: So I started with piano lessons when I was six...and then when I was eight we got to pick our instruments in the school, and...I was assigned to trombone. I played it and I was like, “Oh man the slide is so fun,” and then I fell in love with it.... [N]ow I’m a trombone performance major at school, and I keep up with trombone a lot. And piano, mostly for Shiffley. I’m really more classically trained for symphonic bands, orchestras, that sort of thing.

AG: For me, for lack of a better word, when I was five I was forced to play the violin, and since then I’ve never stopped. I really appreciate that I was forced to play it because that pushed me into music and kind of getting into it early. ...I really started getting into other instruments when I was in high school, picking up the mandolin first as a transition, and then to the guitar, and then bass with these guys, and I started writing songs in high school also. I go to college for [classical] music composition. Most of the year it’s strictly classical that I’m studying or listening to, and then when I’m back on break it’s just a complete switch from working with everybody else here.

A: How do you guys manage to balance being in school full-time and making Shiffley successful as well?

AJ: Facebook.

AG: Maximizing the breaks.

SK: In general, school time is for school and then breaks are for Shiffley.

A: In dream world, where would you guys like Shiffley to be a year from now?

SK: Signed to Fueled by Ramen and somewhere touring in Spain.

AJ: Number one on the Top 40.

AG: Realistically, starting to see some profit from it. Some evidence that we should continue it on a more serious level.

AJ: Ideally, signed to a major industry, touring, recording, and turning a profit.

BC: I’ll just say this: in one year Shiffley will be touring, recording, signed to a label, and profiting off of our hard work.

A: What’s your favorite track you’re recorded so far?

AJ: “Turn Around Now” is my personal favorite. That was really fun in the recording studio. That was the one I got to see the most of the process for.

AG: I would say “Cry” because it’s just so ridiculous. We recorded it at two in the morning. If you actually listen to it, there are so many hidden undertone really quirky tracks. There are four undertone trombone lines. There is an out-of-tune acoustic guitar, on purpose.

SK: We thought about recording in the bathroom at one point. We ended up deciding against that.

AG: Just a lot of quirky things on that track. “Cry” is on our new EP [Atomic Robot Man].

A: What’s the story behind Atomic Robot Man?

SK: We initially thought we were going to call [the EP] Diamond Complex, because if you look at our logo it’s made of a bunch of different Shiffley diamonds. We thought of using Diamond Complex as an extended metaphor. Each of our songs are like diamonds because… [to AG] do you want to explain it?

AG: [W]e had a deep meaning behind it, and we all basically agreed upon it. Then I’m in my room later that day and I see this little toy called the Atomic Robot Man. And I’m like, man this thing is awesome! And I called each of [the band members] and had a talk with them individually, that I know we agreed on this title but what if we just made it Atomic Robot Man? All of them switched instantly and then Shaune was the last one...It kind of fits because all of the songs have sort of this retro surf rock undertone feel to them. If it’s not apparent, it’s just undertone. They all have very retro synth sounds.

A: So there ended up being a meaning…

AG: Even though there wasn’t.

A: Which new tracks are on Atomic Robot Man?

BC: There’s four songs on it: “She Bites Back,” “Turn Around Now,” “Cry,” and “Harmonic.” And those are all kind of songs that we’ve been playing at our shows, wherever we play…we’ve only played like five shows [All laugh]. It’s pretty crazy that people come back for the next one and they’re singing it after hearing it once. It doesn’t leave their head. So that means Alex [Ganes] is doing something right.

A: Where have you guys been recording this new EP?

AG: We got news that the studio we recorded the old EP, Game of States, at was closing. So we wanted to try out some new studios. The vocals I did with my friend Ambrose [Teniozo] in his closet. We recorded all of the vocals in his acoustically treated closet.... [He] likes to call it Studio 66. We mixed and mastered it at a studio called The Cutting Room, which is in New York City. They’ve recorded everyone from Aerosmith to Kanye West. The same person who worked on us, Tom, did a lot of John Legend stuff. And the guy who mastered it, he masters Steely Dan. So a lot of really cool names.

A: What has Shiffley meant for you guys on a personal level over the past couple years?

AJ: It’s been a very transformative process for me. I never thought that I would be able to perform, especially in a rock music scenario. I went to college initially for music ed[ucation], and then performing with Shiffley and realizing how much I enjoyed playing and realizing that we could actually have some success with this, I was like, “This is something that I could do. And this is something that I would want to do over teaching.” So I switched my major to performance and this is becoming more and more a potential career. We just have to get there.

AG: For me, when I started college I would have never guessed that this could be a possible thing I would be doing. I kind of saw going to college as the end of playing with bands and stuff like that. And even the first year we started I felt such a hesitance to say, ‘Oh I’m in a band.’ Really until this year; now I feel like I can say that I’m in a band and feel confident about it and have music to back it up.

A: [To AG and AJ] Is it weird that the culmination of your music experience is on Long Island, instead of at school where you study music?

AG: When you go to school with a bunch of musicians, everyone has their own agenda. It’s hard to get a feel of connection. We’re just so lucky that [most of us] have been great friends for so many years, now we’re all great friends. That connection means so much. I’m not the most proficient guitarist, he’s not the most proficient pianist. It’s just the connection we have...has a hand in whatever concerts we’ve gotten so far and whatever success we’ve seen is because we’re friends and because we have all of these jokes.

SK: Shiffley for me started off as fun thing to do, and that was it. Since then it’s become a big part of my life. It’s what I love doing, it’s what I want to see myself doing in years down the line, it’s everything. It’s one of the very few secure things I have. These guys are my brothers and I want to see how far we can get with it.

BC: I can put it into three words: perseverance, unity, family. This is what we’re trying to establish. The four of us, like they said earlier, are brothers. But anyone who’s involved in this, anyone who likes the music and enjoys what we’re doing—I just want people to enjoy what we do. I want everyone to be a part of our Shiffley family. Basically, I do this for myself of course, but for everyone to enjoy [Alex’s] beautiful voice, the cool piano lines, and my lame drumming. What it means to me, is everything.

This interview was edited for length. - The Wesleyan Argus

You wouldn’t expect a band to find their missing piece on Craigslist, but that’s exactly how, at age 15, Shaune Killough met his counterparts in making music. That’s how the band Shiffley came to be.

“None of us had any business being on Craigslist at that age,” Killough said. “But still, I auditioned for the band as a guitarist and got the spot.” The lineup was under a different name.

Now playing as Shiffley, the alternative pop quartet is making waves even though all members live at different colleges. Alex Ganes, lead vocalist and guitar player, is enrolled at Syracuse University, Bryan Contreras, drummer, goes to SUNY Old Westbury, Alex Jenks, keyboards, attends Furman University, and Killough, the bassist, is an Oswego State student.

The band recently opened for the artists Twenty One Pilots after winning a contest on social media for the opening spot. They are currently nominated in the “Gig of a Lifetime” contest to play at the Grammys in Los Angeles. On Jan. 4, the band is holding a release show for their second EP “Atomic Robot Man.”

Shiffley’s alternative pop sound will make listeners want to dance. The sound is a nice combination of a raw rock sound mixed with soft pop melodies that will stick in your head. Killough’s bass is doing more than just following the guitar part, helping to drive the song along with the synth melodies. Killough first learned to play guitar, taking his style to the rhythm section with Shiffley.

“I’m a self-taught guitarist of about nine years,” Killough said. “I’m not really a bassist, and yet I play bass. However, I play a bass like a guitarist.”

The “Atomic Robot Man” EP is continuance of Shiffley crafting their unique sound. The release was mixed at The Cutting Room Studios in New York City, which hosts clients such as Linkin Park, Kanye West and Bon Jovi.

“Finishing our songs at such a renowned studio was a dream come true for us,” Killough said. “But now that that’s done, our most important job is to get our songs onto your iPod and into your head. We’re planning a winter tour to support its release, which leads up to our EP release show.”

Killough is an active student on the Oswego State campus, mainly in broadcasting. He’s spent a good amount of time working at WTOP-10, the college television station, and is a teaching assistant for a video production course taught by the college. In his spare time, he likes to play music with other musicians and friends in Oswego.

The band plans on building from where they are now when the summer comes and they have time to play regularly again. When it comes to becoming famous musicians, the band plans on taking small steps and enjoying the ride.

“We just want to work our hardest, and put on the best performances we can, so we can share our music with as many people as possible,” Killough said. “That’s really the goal, and I think that’s the goal of any musician who loves what they do.” - The Oswegonian

The stage lights, blurred by a violet fog, were still. The voices inside the Goldstein Auditorium dimmed to a murmur. The crowd was waiting.

Soon, there was a thump of a drum, a jostling of bodies and the lights burst alive with the flare of a white strobe. A skeleton-masked figure paced out of the shade. With three sharp strides, he crossed the stage, leapt onto the piano and launched off.

This was frontman Tyler Joseph’s entrance to the band’s first number, “Ode to Sleep,” at the Twenty One Pilots concert on Thursday. The show, which also featured rapper Travi$ Scott and up-and-coming alt-rock band Shiffley, was co-hosted by the Traditions Commission and University Union as a part of Orange Central.

Twenty One Pilots, a duo made up of Joseph on vocals and keyboard and Josh Dun on drums, had just flown in from Columbus, Ohio. This was their first of four shows, having just finished a month of performances across the country with Fall Out Boy. The band will head out again later this month for more, and starting in January, they’re set to play in Australia and Europe.

“We’ve been traveling a lot longer than I ever thought we were,” Dun said in the Jabberwocky Café lounge.

Joseph, slouched halfway down the armchair beside Dun, added they had been traveling so much he doesn’t “even know where the years start and stop.”

But once on stage that night, Twenty One Pilots was all vigor. They propelled around the stage. They smashed at their instruments. They improvised covers. They donned ski masks and skirts. At one point, Dun back-flipped off of the piano over Joseph’s crouched body.

Kelly Benini, UU’s director of concerts and a senior in the Bandier Program, said one of the driving factors for bringing Twenty One Pilots to Syracuse University was their performance power. Benini also said Twenty One Pilots made a nice change in genre for this year’s concert lineup.

“We thought it was really unique to have an alternative-rock duo. It’s something we haven’t done in a while,” she said.

Shiffley, a bouncy young alt-rock band from Greenlawn, N.Y., opened the show. They won their spot on the lineup through a contest held by UU and Syracuse radio station WERW to book an SU band. The contest, announced two weeks before the show, was judged by a combination of talent and social media pull. The band found out they won on the Monday before the show.

“We’ve been building up a nice fan base amongst our friends and extending [the band] more. They all really pitched in,” said frontman Alex Ganes, a junior music composition major.

The performance fell in seamlessly with the headliners. Ganes got the crowd clapping to his exuberant guitar grooves, while surprises like a trombone and a lively cover of Zedd’s “Clarity” kept them dancing.

Travi$ Scott, a rapper who collaborates with Kanye West and T.I., also helped open the show. He stormed the stage with an energy that fit with Twenty One Pilots’ upcoming performance.

“This is a no bystander show!” he called out to the crowd before dropping into songs like “Uptown.” The center of the auditorium was packed with fans, jolting and jumping to the beat. Despite issues like a microphone cutting out during the second song, Scott was content after the set.

“It was great,” he said backstage. This was only Scott’s second college performance, though he’s been touring for the last year.

Though the first two acts were well received by an enthusiastic crowd, the stars of the night were Twenty One Pilots. They crashed, they thumped and they caused a thrilling ruckus.

The highlight of the night was the show’s final moment. After a preface that there would be no encores, Joseph told the crowd to make a circle whenever he instructed them to do so. And in the middle of “Guns for Hands,” he gave the command. Joseph and Dun carried drums down off the stage and banged at them until the song came to a ripping halt.

“The one thing that we’ve learned about college shows is that it’s truly unpredictable; you just never know [what’s going to happen],” Joseph said. “The college scene is where bands thrive.” - The Daily Orange

Review by Mark Ventrice

RIYL: Imagine Dragons, American Authors

Recommended Tracks: All Four Tracks

Shiffley brings the synth rock sound from a band like Imagine Dragons and the catchy hooks and pop radio-friendly rock sounds of a band like American Authors together with the vigor of a high school romance.

The best song on this EP is definitely “Cry” because it is where these two styles blend best, and that’s not to say that the rest of the songs aren’t great because they are. They really are. Words cannot do this album justice, so it really just begs to be listened to. - WSBU The Buzz

Long Island based indie band Shiffley is creating music as if it were tailored for the warm summer weather — effortlessly transforming from rock based anthems to contagious dance pop. The five piece Craigslist success story have been making their mark with their catchy melodies as we’ll listen to below, dance-worthy beats, and not to mention quirky stage antics that are entertaining for everyone. They’ve been honing their craft and expanding their sound while performing alongside Twenty One Pilots, Plain White T’s, Strange Talk, and Night Riots. After having released two EPs, Shiffley’s sound is growing into that of being capable of headlining music festivals. Today we are pleased to share with you the premiere of their newest single, “Systems.”

As the first single to their upcoming debut album dropping this winter, “Systems” is a real head turner offering more than just catchy verses. Mixed by Alexander Almgren (Skylar Spence, Glass Gang, Young Yeller) at Freshly Baked Studios, the brilliant track demands your full attention because you’ll find yourself immediately wrapped into the story. The band describes “Systems” as “the second half of a two-song story where a robot learns to feel and immediately regrets that decision. By shutting out his newly found feelings, he returns to ultimate efficiency.”

Even though this song touches on regret, there is a refreshing transparency of realizing expectations were perhaps to high which can be a brutal punch in the face that stings for long time. Let’s hope this robot finds a happy ending. Stay tuned for the other half of the story coming soon.

Shiffley will be performing in the studio at Webster on July 21. If you happen to be in New York, check them out live. For more on Shiffley, visit their website and support them by sharing the music. - BitCandy

Straight out of Long Island, New York, four-member band Shiffley has made a brilliant splash in the music industry with their vibrant brand of synthy pop-rock.

The band talked to MNGBlog about how they started, tour experiences, and what the future holds.

Although its members have played together in different groups over the years, Shiffley has been united as a band for four years, with Alex Ganes (vocals/guitar), Alex Jenks (synth), and Bryan Contreras (drums) having met in high school and Shaune Killough (bass) being found on Craigslist.

Together, they have created a sound that forces you to pay attention, a sound that is audibly colorful, a sound that is radio-ready and complemented by a super cool, unique band name. They revealed the story behind the name to MNGBlog: "In his free time, Alex G. likes to draw comics,” they explained. “One of his characters was this sleazy salesman named ‘Shiffley.’ As musicians trying to push our music we can relate to that grind."

Though they admit that they each have distinct tastes in music, collectively the band is influenced by rock bands like Phoenix and The Killers and indie pop band Foster the People; and they have opened for groups such as the genre-bending duo of the moment Twenty One Pilots and Grammy-nominated pop-punk band Plain White T’s, finding great enlightenment in doing so. "We have been fortunate enough to play with and meet some big acts," they said. "We always ask what it was like when they were just starting off—the advice we’ve received has been invaluable. It is also interesting to see different pre-show rituals that people do."

Having recently completed a short tour of the East Coast, including dates in the nation's capital and their home base of Long Island, Shiffley is just going to continue to grow in reach and popularity. With such intriguing tracks, really, how could they not?

And that got MNGBlog thinking...

Every artist has dreams of playing on certain stages, right? So MNGBlog asked Shiffley the following question: If you could pick any stage in the world to perform on, which one would it be? Their response was nothing short of inspiring: “It would be a dream to play at Red Rocks in Colorado," they said. "The stage is perfectly fused with the rocks and nature around it making for a really unique experience."

As for memorable experiences they’ve had on tour, well, "As a band we have some weird traditions," they explained. "One of them is that when we’re on the road, every thirty minutes on the dot we take 'the plunge.' This means we each reach our hand into a jar of questionably assorted jellybeans and take one at random… some are tasty and some are disgusting (lawn clippings, moldy cheese, etc.). Think jellybean roulette with 'Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans' from Harry Potter. We live life on the edge…"

Shiffley recently landed on Spotify’s "Feel Good Indie Rock" playlist with their super catchy dance pop anthem "Systems." Recorded at Freshly Baked Studios, "'Systems' is a story about a sentient robot tormented by its emotions," the band explained. "Overcome by its newfound ability to feel, our robot protagonist eventually decides to give up those emotions returning to maximum efficiency. Inspired by many a cold night waiting out on a stoop in Syracuse, this song is about the moment when reality sets in—the feeling of, 'Sure I could stay out later… but in the end, it’s freezing outside and I’m not having much fun anyway.'" Have a listen here. You won't be able to get that beat out of your head.

While we wait for their full-length release, the group just released a new single called "Sleepless Night," a song they say has "informed the musical direction of the album and has changed our perception of what a Shiffley song can be." Like "Systems," "Sleepless Night" is another tale about a robot. But this one "is a story about a robot who falls so deeply in love with a human that it is willing to take on the full emotional spectrum to be with her," the band said. "Once we had the narrative for the song it sort of wrote itself. Though it is about a robot, to us this song represents feeling in its purest form. Unlike other songs of ours, this one is lyrically straightforward in its intentions. Instrumentally this single was birthed in the studio and is very much so a collaboration with our producer, Will Rosati. It is adventurous for us in that the synths heavily drive the song's percussion." Listen to "Sleepless Night" below. It is now also available for purchase on iTunes or stream it on Spotify.


Shiffley is currently working on their first full-length release, which is expected to drop in February 2017. For their latest news and updates, follow Shiffley on social media: - Musical Notes Global

New York-based band Shiffley is made up of Alex Ganes (vocals, guitar), Alex Jenks (keys), Shaune Killough (bass), and Bryan Contreras (drums). I first heard their music about a year ago when I reached the end of a playlist and Spotify shuffled through its similar artists algorithm. “Systems,” the first single from their debut album, took me straightaway: I loved the retro-sounding synths first and then the deep bass and then all of it at once. Paper Cranes, which was released in February of this year, is laid back and fun. Though each one is completely different, its tracks come seamlessly into one another, and the sound is overall consistent and exactly what I believe to define the band itself. I was able to chat with lead singer Alex Ganes about the band's origins and its artistry.

Suburban Rose: For introduction purposes, can we talk a little bit about Craigslist?

Alex Ganes: We all went to the same high school except for our bassist, so we all knew each other just from being in the same town. And then, as was customary back then, you find bandmates on Craigslist.

SR: Of course.

AG: We put up an ad. We were a metal band at the time—we weren’t Shiffley [yet], and we were playing metal music, as most angsty high schoolers do—and we happened to find Shaune. He was accompanied to his audition by his parents, I remember. [laughs] We reconnected later on [to form Shiffley], and at that point he was a really close friend of ours.

SR: It’s a good coming together. And from Craigslist—there’s this guy on Twitter, and this isn’t the same thing because it’s a joke, but he puts up these mock ads. There’s this one where he’s looking to start a band but he can’t play any instruments so his selling point is that he hums on his mixtape. But then there’s like, “looking for someone to help me peel bananas.”

AG: Oh my God.

SR: It’s wild. It’s great. Anyway, I read about Shiffley as a comic cartoon character. Can you tell me about that?

AG: The other thing I like doing outside of music is drawing comics. I have this little comic world centered around this guy named Wrath, who’s a foil for me, I guess. One of the minor characters in this comic world is a sleazy salesman named Shiffley, and that’s sort of how we got the band name. We were sleazy salesmen of music.

SR: And so the comics on your guys’ Instagram—that’s all you?

AG: Yeah, that’s me.

SR: And the cover art for the singles and album? Is that you guys as well or someone outside of the band?

AG: No, that’s just friends of ours. We like their stuff, but in the future, we’re definitely looking toward making the comics a more integral part of the Shiffley experience.

SR: Yeah, I get that. I love all of it.

AG: Thank you.

SR: I mean, and even with the art for Paper Cranes, I think it's great because it’s so simple. It fits really well. I especially like minimalist illustrations because otherwise it gets too busy and sometimes it’s too much.

AG: Yeah, same. We had a few releases to test out things, so we did three EPs—two on the record, one off—leading up to this album, just to make sure we got our eggs in a basket, if that’s—eggs in a line? What’s the expression?

SR: Uh—

AG: —ducks! Ducks in a line! Eggs in a basket. Making sure we had our ducks in a line going into an album. So, like, for our first EP, our album art was all over the place. It’s all trial and error. I was looking on iTunes, realizing I couldn’t read any of that. And then that mentality, I guess, goes into the music too: the arranging, the writing, everything.

SR: Do you all write collaboratively? Or does someone do the bulk of it by themselves and then you come together after?

AG: I would say that I come to the table with the song already playable in some form. And then we all put our footprint on it in the arranging, just adding our specialty.

SR: You guys have full control over all of it.

AG: At this point, yes, luckily.


SR: It’s nice just working at your own pace and doing your own thing, especially when labels come in and start taking over. If you were to be signed, who would you want to be with? In—not an ideal world, necessarily, but just thinking about other [bands].

AG: At this point, I think if we were to be signed, I’d love to just be with someone small who gets what we’re about and is able to spend that time with us. I don’t think it’s necessarily feasible for us to look for someone big. That being said, if we were to look for someone big, Glassnote. I love all the artists on it. Fueled by Ramen isn’t really our music, but I like the label.

SR: Those are both great. Plus, there are a lot of indie labels and people who work super hard on themselves but also on other artists and I have so much respect for them. There’s this artist from Brooklyn, pronoun, and she’s—

AG: Oh, we know pronoun. We used to have the same distributor.

SR: Yeah, so she’s got her own label, and she’s great, and I feel like she works so incredibly hard. I also saw her at a house show last year. It was weird. She was great, but house shows are just bizarre to me.

AG: Why do you say house shows are bizarre?

SR: Um, I don’t—I feel like if you’re at a venue, at least it’s this public thing. But it’s way more intimate at a house show because I almost don’t know how to move in some stranger’s space. Like you’re intruding.

AG: Definitely feels that way to play there, too. Always afraid we’re gonna break something. We once broke someone’s floor and subsequently someone else’s ceiling.

SR: Oh my gosh. That doesn’t sound like it’s your fault, though. That’s just poor architectural work.

AG: Yeah, they didn’t blame us, but we couldn’t help but feel the blame.

SR: So, that’s all I have. Is there anything else you want to say?

AG: It’s a cool energy right now at the Shiffley house; we all live together. We’re just grinding away trying to keep Paper Cranes relevant and just mapping out this time in between where we’re aggressively writing what’s to come. We’re all really excited about that, too.

You can find Shiffley on Twitter and Instagram (@_shiffley). Paper Cranes is available on Spotify, Apple Music, and all your other usual streaming services. - Suburban Rose