Get To Know: Lemuria - Indie-Rock and Alternative Punk Band From Buffalo

Earlier this month, we had the opportunity to interview Lemuria, an indie-rock and alternative punk band from Buffalo, NY.

The trio has spent the past few months touring with fellow punk band from Philadelphia, The Menzingers.

We had a chance to catch up with the Buffalo crew, consisting of Alex Kerns, Sheena Ozella and Max Gregor, on their stop in Pittsburgh before performing at The Altar Bar in the Strip District.

Read further and get to know Lemuria!

How did you first get your start in music?
When I was in fourth grade, I started playing the trombone for the school band and I continued to do that until I graduated. But at some point during middle school my brother got an acoustic guitar and he never really played it.

I would always sneak and play it and I would accidentally break strings.

I remember it would take weeks before we could get the string replaced cause I would have to find a ride to the city which was about an hour away.

That led me to play guitar in some bands throughout high school and then the drummer of one of those bands started leaving his drums at my house for convenience sake and I started playing drums all the time and I became hooked.

Who do you consider some of your musical influences?
The Lemonheads, The Clash, Superchunk, Thin Lizzy, Archers of Loaf.

In your free time, who are some artists you spend your time listening to?
Lately, I've been listening to a lot of The Marked Men and Sundials.

If you could collaborate with anyone in the industry, who would it be?
Dave Fridmann. I love his more surrealist take on recording albums.

What is your best piece of advice for those looking to get their foot in the door in the music industry?
Self release a demo or 7" record and try to play as many shows as possible.

Slowly increase your radius of show contacts so you can keep getting out on the road and playing new towns to new ears.

What has been your most memorable experience while touring?
We toured Russia and dealt with a lot of Nazi's coming to the shows and stirring up trouble. That's a bad memory though.

One of the best memories was drinking coconut water straight from a coconut while swimming in a secluded untouched beach in Banda Aceh, Indonesia last year.

The best part about being in a band is the places it can bring you.

What are you looking forward to most this summer?
This tour with The Menzingers, PUP and Cayetana is pretty perfect for us.

We are also closing the tour with a 10 day run with our friends Kind of Like Spitting so that will just be the cherry on top of the shake.

What are your upcoming plans in regards to new releases, touring, etc?
A great deal of summer touring and a few festivals in the fall.

We've started writing some new songs and our plans are to start demoing them this winter.

Anything else you would like to add?
Thank you very much! Looking foward to seeing our fans out at the shows this summer!

For more information on Lemuria, and news on tour dates and releases, be sure to visit their website at www.lemuriapop.com.