Friday Maybe Saturday
Photo: Sarah Whitsett
I’ve often wondered if tasteful shredding exists. Or if wah-wah pedals are ever necessary.
Thankfully Friday Maybe Saturday are around to remind me that there is a right way to do everything.
Friday Maybe Saturday is made up of four ridiculously talented musicians and skillful song architects. Few bands can balance technicality with songwriting, much less write an eight-minute song where every part feels essential. Their brutal low end is married to melodic choruses and flashes of lightning-like guitar work and this is a band not afraid to show off a little in service to the song.
And while they’ve long flown under the radar in the Fayetteville music scene, they’ve definitely found a home in the Northwest Arkansas metal scene. The band shares members with Left Holding the Gun and Arrowhead Project, as well as the now-defunct instrumental metal band Auger.
They recorded their new album Cauldron last spring at Adam Putman’s Insomniac Studios after a year of writing. You can preview two songs here.
Photo: Sarah Whitsett
The band is playing an album release show at 9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 8 at George’s Majestic Lounge.
They’ll be joined by The New Imperialism (from Wichita, Kansas) and Kentucky Knife Fight (from St. Louis, Missouri).
We asked drummer Jedidiah Brandon some questions.
When did Friday Maybe Saturday form?
Chad Chamberlain (guitar, vocals) and Charlie Gilbeau (bass) started writing music together in Jonesboro in 2004 and started forming the band soon after. They both moved to Fayetteville in 2006 and brought Friday Maybe Saturday with them. I joined the group in 2007, and Chase (Chad’s younger brother) joined in 2011, so the current lineup is three years young.
How would you describe your sound?
“Like a finely-tuned watch being hurled from the passenger side of an American flag-sporting 18-wheeler hauling a load of “Golden Girls” memorabilia. No, but really, two words we hear from people a lot are “progressive” and “layered.” We look at writing more as making movements rather than just creating songs. We enjoy making rock & roll that refuses to follow the rules.
Album art for Friday Maybe Saturday’s new record, Cauldron
What are some of your musical influences?
That’s always one of the hardest questions to answer. Influence comes in so many forms and because we write together and never is one single member attributed for writing a song, our music ends up having a little of all of us in it. I don’t really think name-dropping a ton of bands works because we all enjoy so many different bands from many different styles. A generic answer, I know.
Influences other than music?
Like the previous, that would also have to be a lengthy answer. All four of us have many people, events, beliefs, etcetera that has made us the musicians that we are. One must always take influence from all things, and that includes whiskey. In fact, that’s our answer, whiskey.
Any plans to tour any time soon?
Absolutely. The road is our happy place. With this new album in hand and new merch on the way, we’re looking to get out there sometime in late fall.
