What are your names?
Collin Steves – Vocals/Guitar
Kevin Goldman – Lead Guitar
Max Biskup – Bass
Ryan Steves – Drums/Harmonies
What is the band’s name?
The 5:55 (Pronounced The Five Fifty Five)
How did you come up with the band’s name?
It started as a celebrated time of when we all started drinking, and slowly turned into a curse that we now can’t unsee haha
What is your genre of music?
Indie-Rock. There are elements of alternative and pop.
Give us a little bio about you.
Kevin, Max and I (Collin) were in a band together since we were in middle school. We went to neighbouring colleges (Radford University and Virginia Tech) so it made getting together to play music pretty easy. The 5:55 started when a sorority asked us to perform at one of their events. That one show got us booked for the rest of the year. Then other colleges started asking us to perform for their sorority and fraternity events. So we decided after graduating college that we’d head back to the D.C. area and continue playing. We randomly got in touch with Producer Austin Bello (Forever The Sickest Kids) to record one song (“Marquee”). We enjoyed working with him and agreed to record an EP.
What made you go in to music?
Probably because we started so young haha. We obviously love listening to music, writing songs, finding new bands or new sounds, but there’s nothing like performing. I think us playing so many awesome shows when we were only in middle school got us hooked. We’ve always been extremely lucky, so when all of these colleges started asking us to perform we agreed that we needed to take advantage of that luck.
Are you a signed?
It would be cool to have that help, but we are not signed. We are growing our own team though, because we understand we can’t do this on our own.
You released your new single ‘Slow Down’, tell us more about the single.
The song started when I first met Austin (Producer). I agreed to meet him in his studio and see if we could possibly work on a song together. We quickly got along so he asked me (Collin) to play him some stuff I’ve been writing on his acoustic guitar. I played the chorus to “Slow Down” and he seemed to like it because he grabbed his acoustic and we started jamming. We recorded that session on our phones and agreed that we should come back to that song and record it.
What is the meaning behind the single?
“Slow Down” is about realizing your life is a mess, and then trying to find yourself to help turn things around.
Describe the track in two words.
Gritty Groove
What was the writing process like? It was basically Austin, Kevin and I (Collin) jamming out in the studio. The concept and chorus of the song were written before going into the studio. We wrote the guitar solo and verses while recording.
What was the recording process like?
Super easy haha. We recorded a lot of what we were jamming out to, and just kept our favourite parts. Austin is a genius, so recording/writing “Slow Down” was another huge step in maturing our sound.
Who did you work with on the single?
Austin produced, mixed and co-wrote “Slow Down”. Kevin Butler mastered the track.
Will we see a video for the your new single?
Absolutely! We actually just finished filming our scenes yesterday. We got extremely lucky with how talented the film team (44 Filmworks) is. They came up with a ridiculously awesome script that was everything we wanted and way more haha. Excited for everyone to see it!
You are also set to release your debut EP, tell us more about it.
The EP is titled The Five Fifty Five. There are 5 songs total, including “Marquee” and “Slow Down”. We tried to make each song really different from one another. Lucca Vaselli took the pictures for those singles, and the picture for the artwork on the EP.
Describe each track in two words.
“The Edge” – Southern Rock
“Slow Down” – Gritty Groove
“Headlights” – Alternatively Driven
“Marquee” – Electrifying Pop
“Let It Out” – Screaming Grunge
Who did you work with on the EP?
Austin Bello produced, mixed and co-wrote the EP with us. Kevin Butler mastered the tracks.
Do you have any shows coming up or a tour in planning?
We’re playing at Washington & Lee University, Virginia Tech, Washington D.C., Ocean City, West Virginia University, and performing at Capital Pride Fest this June in Washington D.C.
What else can we expect in 2019?
We just finished recording our second EP, so we’re setting up a release for that!
Do you have any collaborations coming up with any upcoming artists? We’re actually currently working on a song with an EDM artist. We don’t want to give away too much info, but the song should be out by the end of the summer.
Would you be up for collaborations if other musicians wanted one with you? and who would they have to contact?
Yes absolutely! They can contact us on our Instagram account (@thefivefiftyfive) or email us at Booking@thefive55.com
Do you play any instruments?
Yes I play guitar, piano, drums, and sing.
Who are your influences?
Man there are so many and they’re constantly rotating. The bands that influenced me (Collin) personally growing up were Blink-182, Green Day, Sum 41, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, My Chemical Romance, Muse, Rise Against, Linkin Park, Thirty Seconds To Mars, Foo Fighters, Avenged Sevenfold, and probably a lot of others that I’m forgetting. Now, pop artists like Ed Sheeran and producers like Max Martin are a huge influence.
How do you get inspiration to write songs?
The biggest inspiration to write a song is a melody popping into my head that I enjoy enough to stop whatever I’m doing at that moment. What causes that melody to develop in my head is different every time. It could be because of a TV show, a movie, a song, finishing up a work out, or from drinking coffee or other stuff.
Where do you see yourself now in 5 Years?
Hopefully on the road to the next venue.
When you’re not doing music, what do you do?
It’s interesting when your passion and/or hobby becomes your job. It’s so encompassing that the number of other activities decreases. DC has an amazing nightlife, so I try to go out with friends whenever there’s a free weekend. Other things like watching movies, reading or exercising are just different ways to relax.
What was the song you listened to most that influenced you to go more in to the music scene?
I’m not sure if there was a specific song or even an artist that influenced me (Collin) to go more into the music scene. It was mainly just shows and performing that got me more involved.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given?
“Try this shot of tequila…”
What advice would you give to aspiring musicians not about the industry and just as an artist?
Learn how to record songs on your own. The quality doesn’t have to be amazing but should definitely be listenable. Record every song you write and look for some honest feedback on your favourite ones. If you’re looking to form a band, find people you would hang out with outside of music. Don’t be afraid to try different things, it’s your music so explore as much as possible.
What quote or saying do you always stick by?
“The drunker you are, the better we sound!” – The 5:55
Where in your hometown is a must go to visit?
We all grew up in a royal area of Virginia called Fauquier County. There’s this place called Great Meadows that holds polo matches. Everyone gets dressed up and brings a ton of food and alcohol. So it’s basically a fancy tailgate, so I highly recommend attending a match.
Your coming off tour;
1/ Where do you go first? Definitely go to bed and sleep for a couple of weeks.
2/ Who do you see first? Besides our family, most likely our friends in the DC area.
3/What do you eat first? There’s this hometown restaurant called Foster’s Grill that we all love so we’d go there and get some wings.
When you are at a gig, what are 5 things you cannot forget?
Coffee and/or Monster Energy Drinks
4 guitar picks
Cough Drops
Setlists
Jam pants
Do you have social media accounts so your fans can follow you?
Yup! Check us out on Instagram
