Intro by Natalia Lehaf
It is a rite of passage for established artists to engage in a Twitter feud of some sort. That’s how the members of Continental Breakfast knew they were making it big—when they found themselves in an ongoing feud with 50 Cent.
50 Cent has yet to respond, but the members of Continental Breakfast aren’t holding their breath. Instead, they are busy performing their 4-song EP all over the tri-state area.
The band originated with three members: Adam on guitar and lead vocals, Chayse on drums and backing vocals, and Zach on bass and backing vocals. Craig, their lead guitarist, began playing shows with them this past January.
The songs on their first EP, The Dinner Island Demos, are cleverly-written and funny, and the acoustics are effortlessly authentic. Chayse describes their sound as Punkish-A.D.D.-Pretty-Human Music; Zach says he is no longer surprised when people compare their sound to the early 2000s (an accurate comparison, in my opinion). Listening to the songs makes you feel like you are at an underground punk rock show—it’s pretty incredible that you can experience all the euphoria of being shoved into a sweaty mosh pit at your computer desk.
We asked the OG members to talk about the songs on their EP.
Talking About
Adam
“Talking About” is a very old song and probably one of the first I wrote for my own voice.
What I can say about it now is, it's a narcissistic breakup song. It's very "me, me, me.” And if there's one thing you should know about this band, it's that we love memes.
From a written perspective, it doesn't focus on the feelings you may have or on the individual you may have them for, but this sort of egotistical view on post-relationship life. The narrator doesn't think he's wrong, he doesn't think he's the problem. He deserved the breakup if you ask me.
A Stressed You
Zach
I remember Adam showing me this song at his old apartment. He taught me the guitar chords and had me play along. He played some funky chords that I just couldn’t get my hand to cooperate with. I picked up the bass to play along, so I give this song credit for my transition to bass.
I'll always know this as our first song and what made me think, "Okay, we’re actually going to be a band." It'll always evoke that feeling, but above all else, it's just damn fun to play live. So simple, quick, but so much energy.
Chayse
Before the band was the band Adam said, "Let’s jam!" I showed up, he started playing the opening riff to this song, I busted in with the drums and the rest is history. It’s a short and sweet-to-the-point kind of jam, but I still think it could be longer. "Maybe a guitar solo after this part or something?" I presented. Adam replied, "I like writing short songs." So like I said, the rest is history.
I'm Your Dog, Not Your Lover
Zach
This is the longest track on the EP and probably the most complex among them. When I first played this, Adam and I worked out a bass line and it quickly became my favorite song to play on my newfound instrument.
I like this track a lot for its progressions and the complexities of all of the instruments and vocals put together. It's probably the darkest and most brooding track on the EP, but I think it's different in that way and I like that about it.
Adam
No one says the word "lover" in real life. It's almost exclusively heard and said in songs. This is one of those songs. Except it's from the perspective of a dog. It's also about TV!
Stop Slut-Shaming Me, Mom
Zach
This is without a doubt my favorite track on the EP and perhaps my favorite song we've ever written. We've been opening with this at recent shows and I really love the feeling it evokes when we play that very first note.
I think we took something that was simple when it was just us in our practice space playing and made it much more dynamic as a recording. The harmony in the chorus and the guitar solo at the end really took this from what I felt like was a garage jam to something more.
Chayse
This song rocks. We recorded the drums with maybe just two vocal microphones that were at our disposal at The Sweatshop, Adam's laptop, and potato chips (which should not be allowed in the same room as someone who is recording, but whatever). And in just a few takes we DIY'd that shit to perfection, or…maybe not perfection, more like a sloppy non-rehearsed "You may now kiss the bride" heat of the moment type of jam that I love to this day. You know? Don’t try too hard. Ever.