Header image credit: @aaronxyoungmkii
Genre(s): Emo, post-hardcore, electronica
Location: Wilmington, NC
Links: Apple Music | Spotify | Instagram
I don’t know about you, but the world has felt bleak lately. Maybe that leaves me yearning for something like ROSARY IS THE NEXT BIG THING, the somewhat self-titled debut EP from the Wilmington trio.
It’s a release that had been hyped up by our friends in ColorMeKrazy!, Fifth Floor, and Melodramatic, and for good reason. The way they blend catchy emo rock with post-hardcore and electronica is so fresh. In under 25 minutes, the band slaps you with influences ranging from Mayday Parade and My Chemical Romance to Foxing, Owl City, and M83. Just to name a few.
I met with Jasyn Bowles and Jackson Reynolds of Rosary before their Monday night show at Local 506 in Chapel Hill. Sadly, due to illness, they were without their drummer, Jacob Woodcock. Seth Brown of blankstate. filled in for what was a fantastic set, while Jasyn and Jackson all but manifested Jacob’s energy for our conversation below.
What do you do in the band, and what is something you’ve been listening to lately?
Jasyn: I sing and play guitar. Lately, I’ve been obsessed with the new Lady Gaga [Mayhem] and Mayday Parade [Sweet]. Also, a lot of Remi Wolf.
Jackson: I play guitar and scream sometimes. And I’ve been listening to this band from California called A Place We’ve Always Been. They only have two songs on Spotify, but they’re both excellent. One is called “One Hot Cup of Tea” and I am obsessed with that song right now.
Moving Boxes also has a semi-new single called “Slap Your Mama Seasoning”. I think that’s their greatest song ever.
Jasyn: I love them damn Moving Boxes.
What is the first musician that you remember discovering on your own and obsessing over?
Jasyn: Jackson mentioned Mayday Parade, which shows they’ve been good forever. They never fell off. They were the first band that I fell in love with by myself. Them and pre-hiatus Fall Out Boy, they have no misses for me.
I grew up with a lot of pop-punk. Later, I became a Modern Baseball fanatic and obsessed with that scene and 2010s emo. I actually saw Slaughter Beach, Dog here at Local 506 when I was 12 or 13. That’s why it’s very cool to be back here.
Jackson: Mine would be My Chemical Romance. But I didn’t get into them by myself. I got into them because I wanted to become friends with Jasyn. He showed me them when we were in middle school. Seeing Ray Toro play guitar made me think, “I need to pick up an instrument.”
When I was 14, I got into this band called As It Is. They were my first concert ever, right here at Local 506. I’ve wanted to play here for so long. The readers can’t see this but the shirt I’m wearing right now was bought here six years ago when I saw As It Is. That show changed my life.
The only other band since then that reignited my passion for music was (they’ve broken up), but SeeYouSpaceCowboy. They sparked my love for heavy music but they did it in a very artistic way.
In what ways have your music tastes evolved?
Jasyn: I go back to pop-punk a lot. But the older I get, the more of a straight-up pop girl I become. I don’t think the influence of emo and pop-punk will ever leave me. But my indie pop and dance pop influences are things that I love to lean into.
Jackson: Jasyn and I were both pop-punk kids growing up. I think at heart, I will always be. But as I grew up, I got much more into electronic music. Around age 16 to 18, I stopped listening to a lot of the stuff that I’d loved for a while and got more into that scene. When I went to college, I kind of rediscovered all the music that I used to love.
I listen to so much music because I just walk around the whole day that I try to listen to as much variety as possible. I still love the pop-punk and emo music that I grew up on. But I like to try and find new stuff. There’s a big California scene with a ton of these like screamo bands that I’m really into. I have gotten more into heavy music as I’ve gotten older. But I still love all the shit that I grew up on. Like Mayday Parade, I go back to it so much because it’s just so good. That stuff will never get old.
Image credit: flashed_by_tuna
How did Rosary come together? What was the timeline there?
Jackson: Jasyn and I jammed together a lot in middle school. But then we stopped talking for a bit. But what got us to start playing together again was playing Fortnite. I asked, “Yo, you want to like jam this weekend?” And he said sure. That was the first Rosary practice back in 2019.
Jasyn: We wanted to make music, but it was just us for a while. And then we booked a show and were like, “Oh god, we need a drummer.” So, Jackson called up Jacob.
Jackson: Jacob and I played in a band together for a very short period. I knew he was good.
How do you approach writing songs, as individuals or as a band?
Jasyn: A lot of it leans towards me making a song alone in the dark, cold bedroom and then sending it to Jackson for him to mix. Over the past year or two, I’ve been trying to become more collaborative. It’s very difficult for me to cut open my ego and let someone in on the process versus letting someone in on the final product.
We have a song called “Fading”, featuring blankstate., which is our best performing song right now. It feels like the first time it’s been more than me on it. It’s like six people all writing a song together. If you would have asked me like two years ago, if I would ever like want to collaborate with someone, I’d be like, “What the fuck are you talking about? I make music by myself. But it’s really eye opening to get my boys in the stew, as the kids say.
I’m trying to save as much music to write together as possible to bring the energy that we have to the studio and the writing process. We find different ways to go at it every time, and we just bounce ideas off of each other, having our minds go to different places than they would have gone otherwise.
I was talking to Jackson earlier about how every time we write a song, we need to change the layout of the room. Like rotate the drum set or just change everything and see what that changes. Or write a song as quiet as possible for the experience of the actual song.
Changing the variables within the songwriting process has been super interesting to me. You have to learn how to collaborate with people and know what collaboration can do for you and the people around you. It’s something I want to keep learning more about because I have a very long way to go.
Jackson: Last weekend, we got me, Jasyn and Jacob in the room together to write for the first time ever. There have been times where Jasyn and Jacob helped Jaysn work stuff out. But it was a really cool experience to all be working together. I felt like I was coming up with stuff that I would never come up with in my bedroom.
I feel like I’ve kind of been at a computer for most of like everything I’ve ever written or like been a part of writing. It’s really cool to write something in a room and then be able to play it. Like we could write a riff and they’ll be like, “All right, play the chorus,” and we just play through it.
Jasyn: Even just us getting into a garage and playing live instruments really changes things. We’re taking that same approach and just putting all this live show energy into our songs, which is really fun and not something we would have done if we hadn’t been playing this many shows at this point in our lives.
Image credit: flashed_by_tuna
I assume y’all completely self-produced ROSARY IS THE NEXT BIG THING?
Jaysn: Yes, absolutely. Me and this guy. [points to Jackson]
That EP was mostly me at a point where I would still make everything by myself, but I would call in the boys when I could to get a guitar or viola part. Young Jacob is on all the drums on the EP; I took samples from him playing an electric MIDI kit and tried to make it sound as real as possible.
Jackson: It went from his cold dark bedroom to mine. We’re really meticulous about the mixes. Jasyn would come over, I would mix it to a point where I’m good with it, then I’d send it to him. And he would come over and we’d tweak things out.
Jaysn: I’d be like, “Can you make the cymbals sound like they’re in a cave? No, not a cathedral, a small cave.”
Jackson: The songs were recorded long before they came out because we took so much time to mix them. I got new studio monitors halfway through, then went back to all the mixes and thought they were bad. So there was a lot of that. We really wanted to make sure that it was as perfect as possible to show what we’re capable of. That was the exact sound that we wanted.
How has the response to the EP been?
Jaysn: This is the most well-performing music we’ve ever done. I’m very thankful for the people listening and enjoying it. I’d be lying if I said the type of person I am takes into account the reception as much as I should. My mind is always onto whatever I’m writing next. It takes a lot out of me to really sit down and look back at this stuff.
I was working on our EPK [electronic press kit] the other day and I had to write when the EP came out. I put when the EP came out on it and couldn’t believe this was only two months old. I feel like this has been out for three years, dude. I’m way past this. [laughs]
Funny enough, a few days after the EP was uploaded, it actually got taken off of Spotify for some stupid reason with our distributor. I woke up dozens and dozens of DMs being like, “I’m freaking out right now. Where’s the EP?” And I’m like, “I didn’t realize you guys were actually listening to it. I thought you were just being nice.”
My buddy Jacob Juarez from blankstate. texted me “Damn bro, you really got me downloading YouTube music. I have an ad in between every song.”
Honestly, it’s a small price to pay!
Jackson: I was so close to posting the Google Drive link with all the masters. [laughs]
Do y’all have plans for the rest of the year?
Jackson: We’re going on tour in May with our best buddies in blankstate.
Jaysn: That’ll be super fun. We have a couple other really cool shows that we’re grateful to be on. And we’re always looking to play more if anyone wants to book us!
I’m also writing a new super secret project to be super excited for, but enjoy the EP right now. It’s gonna be a long while until that one’s done.
Image credit: flashed_by_tuna
Who are some of your favorite local/North Carolina bands?
Jackson: Shout-out to my hometown Wilmington heroes, Anywhere Else. They’re so sick. There’s a band called Dog Park that I’m good friends with. Jasyn’s also in that band.
Jaysn: It’s one of my many ventures and also my roommate’s band. Big shout-out to Lawn Enforcement.
Jackson: Ooh, they’re so good! Same goes for Hiding from Texas.
Jaysn: I’d shout out the genre of “Seth Brown”-core. Any band he touches is gold, he’s got the Midas touch.
Jackson: Fifth Floor dude, no one is doing it like they are right now.
Jaysn: Also my buddy Murphy in Yard Sale. Shout-out to Found Footage, Microdose, and Ratqueen.
Jackson: FAFO is also really fucking good, we just saw them put on an incredible show. And we can’t forget Survival Tactics, Weymouth, Girl Brutal, and our best friends in Sunshower!
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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