Congrats on the release of your full-length album Rerunning! Can you tell us a bit about the idea behind this album? What type of story did you want it to tell and how you came to that agreement?
Justin Bryte: The album is centered around romance. Different encounters that have really stuck with us the past two years or so.
Slavo: I don’t think we ever had a discussion what we wanted the album to be. It just became what we were feeling at the time.
Justin: Romance & meeting people has been a really big part of our lives so it made sense the album would embody that.
What was the process like when working together from the very beginning of creating the album to releasing the final piece?
Slavo: Long, but more rewarding than anything I think we’ve ever done.
Justin: Agreed. We never anticipated making an album either. We took each song one by one… which honestly I think is why the album came out the way it did.
Slavo: It feels like single after single. We didn’t include any track that wouldn’t resonate being on its own.
If we were to sit in on one of your studio sessions while making the album, what would be a typical day be like?
Slavo: Coffee & laughs.
Justin: And a bit of fighting [laughs] mostly because we’re like brothers.
TYF: How much collaboration with other producers/artists go into Rerunning? And what did you learn after teaming up with outside sources?
Slavo: Out of the 9 tracks, 3 were collaborations in some form or another. “Heart” was co-written with an awesome dude in NY named Kyle Kelso. We didn’t write it for us initially, but we decided to cut it just for the hell of it. Fast forward a few weeks and we fell in love with how eclectic it made the album feel as a whole.
Justin: “I Feel It” features Carly Paige who we also wrote the track with out in LA. I always think about how quick that whole process was. The chemistry in that writing room was such a sigh of relief. It doesn’t always happen that way. Within a few hours, we had finished writing it and knew we had to cut it together.
Slavo: Lastly, we were sent an instrumental to top line by our homie Amy Birnbaum. We didn’t expect Dave Edward’s production to be as inspiring as it turned out to be. So much so that even knowing we’d never taken in an outside production before we decided to give it a shot.
Was there anything you wish you could have included in Rerunning but couldn’t this time around?
Justin: [laughs] There’s one song. I wouldn’t say we wish we could have included it, but it was one of those “let’s save this for 2019” last minute decisions.
Each song has a great significance to the artist but which song on Rerunning do you feel a bit more attached to than the others?
Slavo: Production wise I’m just really proud of how “Loving Yous A Little Bit Hard Sometimes” came together. Being one of the last ones we worked on for the album, it was exciting to blend different genres into our sound.
Justin: It changes all the time for me. Today I’ve really been connecting to “I Feel It.” It’s such a fun track that kind of takes you off guard when the hook comes in. I remember watching Slavo build that chorus out and thinking, “Shit, this is brilliant.”
You also recently released the music video for “You Belong” which had that plot twist at the end! How’d you guys come up with the concept? What was filming that like for both of you?
Justin: Slavo & I were really inspired to pursue a cinematic style video for this one after our best bud Alec filmed a travel video in Bali recently. We hit him up and he was on board immediately.
Slavo: All of our concepts are usually Justin & I with a couple of red bulls and a deadline. This one, in particular, went through several iterations until we were really happy with the payoff at the end.
Justin: Filming this one was different than anything we’ve done. It’s always a bit stressful directing & being in the videos, but this is the first time minus one scene we were never on screen together. It allowed us to collaborate with Alec on the shots and really take our time with it. Two days on the road. Just us 3 and a lot of ideas being thrown around.
Could we expect a follow-up video to “You Belong” to tell more of the story? If not, what would you hope to have seen in the hypothetical sequel?
Slavo: [laughs] That’s a fun question. Don’t think we’ve been asked that yet. I don’t know about a follow-up. The video itself is somewhat of a metaphoric parallel that concludes with me being potentially in the position Justin was in his past with this person. It feels like a closed chapter.
Justin: Yeah I’d have to agree. I mean I guess we could assume Slavo’s bound to come home to the final situation that’s unfolding. What happens next… is up to the viewer.
With 2018 just about wrapping up, what are some goals you two wish to accomplish in 2019?
Slavo: More music. More risk taking.
Justin: More touring. Overall growth in our craft as live performers & songwriters as well.
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