We had the good fortune of connecting with Christian/Jack/ Alex Gerner-Smidt/Reed/Morrison and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Christian/Jack/ Alex, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
Christian: I think in any artistic pursuit you have to be willing to assume a certain degree of risk: whether your art will be received well and whether your expression comes across honestly. For me personally, I have always taken a lot of risks almost haphazardly. Between only applying to one place for college (having never seen it or known anything about the school) to working at a startup company during the day and to starting new bands, it’s something that’s always followed me. Still, I think it’s impossible to achieve anything worth having without assuming some risk. Getting outside your comfort zone and trying new things is essential to personal growth and that’s definitely something we’re currently seeing in our music. While our back catalogue is very straightforward rock music, we’re in the middle of writing a new series of conceptual EPs that musically are a big departure from anything we’ve done. It’s more edgy, more diverse, more out of left field, and definitely more intricate. And it feels very right for us.

Jack: Risk-taking has been a huge part of my life and career (see; Degree in Music Education from UGA). If I hadn’t taken that first step, I would’ve been woefully underprepared for anything I’ve done since, and absolutely would not have been ready for the new music we’re currently working on. It’s a bit of a step away from what we’ve done up to this point, so even now, we’re still taking chances.

Alex: I used to be the valet manager of a popular strip club in Atlanta while earning a Political Science degree. I finished my degree at the height of the 2016 election, all the while working for a questionable establishment. I certainly weighed the risks of these decisions going in, but I’m glad I ended up choosing my path. I’ve learned alot from these experiences, mainly just trying to think less about the failures of risk taking, and more about seizing new opportunities.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Jack Reed: I feel that what sets us apart from other bands/musicians is our arrangements and instrumentation. We all at least have the language to communicate what we’re thinking musically, so every part on every instrument is thrice reviewed and carefully considered. We’ve done all of our own production and mixing in-house thus far, as well, and I’d like to think that Alex, our drummer, has done a bang-up job.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Alex: Depending on how long our best friends are staying, I’m showing them the greatest parts of Atlanta that we frequent. Two Urban Licks and Barcelona Wine Bar for fancy food, Follies and Clermont Lounge for strip clubs, Compound and Havannah for night clubs, Lenox and Perimeter mall for shopping, Buford Highway and East Atlanta for niche spots, and the Botanical Gardens and Stone Mountain for sightseeing.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Christian: Absolutely! Musicians in general take a lot of risk in terms of their careers. So in earnest, we have to shout out the Atlanta music scene that has been extremely kind to us over the past decade of our careers. As cliche as it sounds, bands are nothing without a community to support them and give them a shot (or in our case several) at perfecting and displaying their art. Venues like 529, Smith’s Olde Bar, Star Bar, and Aisle 5 are really the glue that holds the scene together as are the folks who are passionate about supporting local music.

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Image Credits
Last 3 images and cover photo by Lauren Leathers

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