Page 59 - ION Indie Magazine JulyAugust 2020

JP: It’s safe to say that Asphalt Valentine has been around a while now. 2020 has not
necessarily been a kind year for musicians with an inability to play live in support of
their music. We don’t want to get into any political discussion, but when and where do
you guys expect to play out live again?

JF: As far as I know, I believe we still have something for Massachusetts on the books, for I
think it might be August or September. They have a little music festival and we got booked for
that. I believe we had something for October in Baltimore that had to be rescheduled. Right
now, nothing seems definitive. Hopefully, we can book some dates around that. We’re ready
to get back out as soon as it’s safe and the counties and local governments will permit it.

JP: ‘Twisted Road,’ which was released in late February, is laden with guitar riffs rarely
experienced in this day of shallow music. What inspires that?

JF: I think it’s just our long bond with that type of music. We’re all a little bit older. We grew up
with more of the guitar-riff-type music. When we go to write music, it’s always guitar-driven and
riff-based. We just like to put forth a little more effort into writing a song that sounds…maybe
not old school, but it’s definitely got some technique to it. We’ve always had a really good lead
guitar player.

JP: Is there one main songwriter in the band or is it generally a collaborative effort?

JF: I would say that I’m the main songwriter in the band. It’s really not a song until we get
everybody involved in it and they get their input and influence into it. The feeling will change
when we all get together.

JP: It had been a while since you guys had put out a new record. May I ask why?

JF: We had gone through some lineup changes after we released our EP in 2014. Shortly after
that, our guitar player moved a couple of states away, so getting together was becoming more
difficult. Our drummer left, so we had to deal with that…two drummer changes. Things just
kind of got out of hand, I guess you could say, except for our focus. We just kind of let it slip
away from us for a little bit. We always had the music inside of us and we always continued to
get together and play. It wasn’t until 2019 that we were sure we were going to do a full-length
record. We don’t plan on waiting that long again.

JP: I would say it’s safe to say that you are proud of the music that you’ve created on
‘Twisted Road.’ Is there a song that resonates or perhaps sticks out as your personal
favorite?

JF: (Hesitant) I love all of the tracks. I think the album altogether is kind of dynamic. Each song
takes you to a different place. If I were to pick a personal favorite, for me, it would be the last
track on the album, ‘Rain.’ It’s because I just really love the push and the pull with that one. It’s
got a really catchy chorus to it.