I first learned of Pent Up! When I read about them on the AMS Radio Blog a few weeks ago. What immediately caught my eye—and, moments later, my ear—was the fact that the B-side of their latest single, “The End,” is a cover of the Cure’s “Just Like Heaven.” It’s an incredibly tight recording that cuts to the heart of the classic goth tune while simultaneously putting a new, grungy twist on it. (If you’re reading this, Triangle Rain Club, drop what you’re doing and give it a listen!) Needless to say, I was so impressed with that B-side that I had to check out the A-side, an equally tight original tune with echoes of all my favorite bands from the nineties.

I understand that you’ve been playing out a bit. How have your shows been?

The shows have been a great experience! Pent Up! played its first show in January 2022, and we spent quite a few months playing anywhere that would have us. The first few shows were pretty quiet, but we knew something had changed during a show at the Central Saloon in May. The first time you get a whole crowd to dance leaves an impression on you!

What do you think is the value of playing live?

I’d say it comes from two places: camaraderie within the band and connecting with the audience. One approach we all share with shows is that we’re ultimately playing for ourselves first, because we’re happy and dialed in with each other, we consistently put on high energy shows that audiences connect to.  There’s something really special about playing music on the same wavelength as members of a group, and it gets even more amazing when an excited crowd is egging you on, pushing you further off the ledge into places you’d never thought you’d go.

Do you feel like the experience of COVID lockdowns has underscored that sense for you—brought it into sharper relief?

We started to play shows as lockdowns began to ebb away. I think all of the isolation underscored just how meaningful human connections can be, and live music is really all about forging connections between disparate strangers through sound waves. We’re all thankful to get back on stage and go back to feeling fully human again.

Is your band name a reflection of that feeling?

The band’s original name was going to be Pent Up Talent, but we realized there was a more central feeling evoked with Pent Up! on its own. We started this band during some of the most isolating times of the pandemic, when all three of us were working from home and adjusting to a new social reality. If anything, Pent Up! is our way of reintegrating ourselves with society, only this time we’re doing it with loud noises.

You keep your songs pretty short. A good number of them are under three minutes long. Is that a conscious aesthetic decision, or do they just end up that way? What’s the thinking there?

A little of column A and column B. I have a tendency to approach songs mathematically, where you need certain functions to balance the equation and make it work. “Dream to Dare” is a good example of that, where the verse-chorus-instrumental bridge structure keeps the song tight and easy to follow. You always want something unexpected to grab the listener’s ear, like a stray harmony or a tight drum fill that surprises and momentarily snatches attention, but I think that familiarity can have a similar comforting feeling. Outside of philosophy, it’s in our band’s nature to keep things compact. Both Jay and Nate nudge to keep songs shorter, though for different reasons. Jay loves artists like Bad Religion and Pennywise, who are known for short, to-the-point songs that always keep you wanting more, and he brings that hook-sharpening sensibility to our arranging sessions. On the other hand, Nate is the metronomic heartbeat of every song. When he’s excited (which is often!), the metronome flicks back and forth just a little bit faster!

There’s also a certain Gen X sensibility to what you’re doing. I don’t want to say cynicism because it’s more complicated and genuine than that—but a sensibility that feels a bit self-deprecating, maybe? Or ironic? I’m thinking particularly of your song “Self-Titled” and what I’d call the “non-art art” that you used for the cover. Even the title of your EP Pretty Good suggests a self-effacing modesty. How would you describe the band’s aesthetic in that regard?

I think we’ve been pretty self-effacing so far because we’re ultimately just three guys having fun making music that occasionally remember we have to complete the rituals of the music business. Nate’s known for wearing flowery shirts and neon sunglasses on stage, and Jay and I both have colorful hair and loudly-colored instruments, but we haven’t done too much in terms of firm, matching aesthetics. The Self-Titled art started from a joke about forgetting to upload any art at all. It seemed to work, as a number of people asked if it was some kind of glitch! We’ve tried to focus our aesthetics to dovetail with our music, where things stay direct, essential, and to the point, but not without a sense of humor underneath.

So far, you’ve released six original tunes. What makes up the remainder of your live set?

There’s three more originals that we rotate into the live set, as well as a couple of covers we can’t get enough of. “Another room” is a mid-tempo song about shifting perspectives and changing moods. “Pepper” is a kinda-sorta story song with a singalong section about an old influence who may be bad or good depending on your interpretation. “Up All Night” is a ricketty rock song (with Jay’s ripping bass solo) about struggling to keep up with a friend whose nightlife partying far exceeds your own.

As to the covers, “Just Like Heaven” is a staple in the early part of our set, along with our own nuclear-grade take on a 90s country ballad, Clint Black’s “Like the Rain.” We’ll also rotate in the Misfits’ “Saturday Night” and Neil Young’s “Rocking in the free world.” As we finish off more new tunes, some of the covers might go away… Or we might just have to start playing longer sets!

I’m curious about your cover of “Just Like Heaven.” What drew you to that song in particular?

I may have suggested it half-jokingly to the guys at the time (my previous bands never seemed very interested), so I was very surprised when they were so enthusiastic about doing it! This is, without a doubt, my favorite Cure song, but the desire to cover it came from Dinosaur Jr., whose version I heard first. The Cure’s take is airy and atmospheric with a lot of yearning love and emotion in the vocal delivery, while Dino’s take is both winking and abrasive with some of my favorite guitar tones on a record.

What sold all of us on making the song a live staple for us was the reaction the first time we played it at a bar called Lucky Liquor. Once we hit the first chord progression, we heard a couple cheers of recognition. Once we finished the song, we knew we had the audience on board with us, and it’s remained the same at every show we’ve played!

Anything fun on the horizon?

We’re playing our last planned show for 2022 on October 15th, then officially entering the writing and recording phase.. We’re aiming to drop another single this year, with our debut LP following in 2023!

Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions!