Blur (Changing Colors Book 2) (29 page)

The tender tone accomplishes its intent. I want to burrow into this bed and hibernate while she blankets me with her voice. It reminds me of a seaside night underneath a star filled sky. A white Christmas package wrapped up in a red, satin bow.

It’s so beautiful—
she’s so beautiful
—it hurts.

My mind wanders to unchartered territories, thinking of Brooke as a mother, singing her own child to sleep. This woman and her giant heart, the way she takes care of everyone around her, will be the best mother to the luckiest golden-eyed baby in the world. I want so badly to have that kind of future with Brooke. I can’t breathe. Can’t think about anything else as I watch her gorgeous lips move in subtle movements.

I want everything with Brooke.

Music, love, marriage, fights, brilliant make-up sex, kids, the proverbial white-picket fence, I want every goddamn thing with this woman. If only I could find a way to get her to open her eyes and see she’s supposed to have that with me.

The Interview: Careless Cockups and their flaming orange path to fame

ShortLyrics.com

Careless Cockups are well on their way to the path of success, and we were lucky enough to enjoy a behind the scenes interview while the band did a promotional shoot for their pre-release tour.

Currently going outside the norm, they are putting themselves out there before the album has yet to drop. There are a lot of naysayers, taunting and downright shaking their heads at this “marketing ploy”, but the ticket sales say otherwise. They’ll play in front of sold-out crowds at every US and Europe stop on their short tour.

And, they’ve released a few songs on their VEVO channel that have music fans across the globe begging for more.

If anything, Careless Cockups are doing us all a favor by not making us wait until February to hear tracks from their debut album.

“Right, let’s get properly leathered up,” says Dylan Bissette, reaching for his leather jacket as his band mates chuckle behind him. “Flying V formation, everyone.” They attempt their best silly faces for the shoot, inspired by two iconic album covers: Ramones by The Ramones and Definitely Maybe by Oasis.

Four bandmates. Four lads. Four all-around good guys who are as close knit as they come. They’ve roared onto the scene and are ready to change the course of music. Playing together since college, this band has the potential for longevity in this business.

They’re smart, cunning even, and have plans that far outreach the two-album deal they signed with Wallace & Wright Records. But over the course of an hour with Dylan, Jesse, Alex, and Zach, they’ve joked, laughed, and even contemplated what they’d do with pyrotechnics at a show.

You’ve got the pre-release tour and a debut album on the way. Anything we should anticipate during the shows?

Dylan:
Obviously, we’ll play some tracks from the album, but we’ve got some other things up our sleeves too.

Jesse:
In London, we’re kind of known for switching things up in the heat of the moment. We did a show a year or so ago at The Underworld and played a cover of The Smiths,
I Know It’s Over
. I guess it must have been pretty great, fans still request it.

Dylan:
I think we did more Jeff Buckley covering The Smiths kind of cover, but yeah, it was kind of brilliant.

Jesse:
[Laughs] So true. We did a cover of a cover.

Has there been backlash about your decision in doing the show, Mad Sounds?

Jesse:
If there is, we’re not listening. We’re enjoying filming the show, letting people into our lives and our journey towards producing our first record. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride, that’s for bloody sure.

So you guys are on the road now. How are you staving off tour-bus boredom?

Zach
:
We mostly rag on Jesse to pass the time.

Jesse:
Piss off!

Zach:
[Laughs] We’re still working on finishing the album, so there’s quite a few jam sessions commencing on the bus.

Alex:
And we’re working our way through a few Netflix series and box sets.
Prison Break
,
The Sopranos
, you name it, and we’re probably watching it.

Dylan:
Well, besides
American Horror Story
and
The Walking Dead
. One of our producers is a bit of a chickenshite when it comes to the horror genre.

One of your producers? Are you talking about Brooke Sawyer?

Jesse:
[laughs]
Yeah, Brooke truly is a chickenshite when it comes to horror. She couldn’t sit through the first episode of The Walking Dead without smacking us over the heads with pillows and hiding underneath a blanket.

Speaking of Brooke Sawyer, the world is extremely curious about the type of relationship she has with a particular member of this band… Any comments related to those accusations, Dylan?

Dylan:
People will always want to make something out of nothing. That’s just the way the world works, especially in Hollywood. We’ve been working sixteen-hour days for the past few months. I’ve spent a lot of time with Brooke, and she’s become a very good friend of mine. She’s a brilliant producer and even helped write music for one of the songs on our album. The girl is a bit of a musical genius.

Jesse:
It’s hard not to be friends with Brooke. She’s become one of us over the last few months.

Alex:
She kind of won us over the second day in the studio when she brought a pan of brownies. That was weeks ago, and I’m still thinking about how good they were!

Dylan:
[looking at Alex] Operation get Brooke to make us more brownies?

Alex:
Let the begging and persuading commence.

Zach:
[laughs] Count me in.

Did you know there are Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter accounts dedicated to the mysterious relationship between Dylan and Brooke? What do you think of that, Dylan?

Dylan:
That’s a joke, right?

Jesse:
[Laughs] No, mate, it’s true. I’ve seen them. Hell, I follow a few of them.

Dylan:
Seriously?

Jesse:
As a heart attack.

Dylan:
Bloody hell… I think it’s insane. We’re friends. End of story.

Not many modern bands make it far without collapsing. Do you think the fact you’re childhood friends will help you stay together?

Dylan:
We hung around with each other a long time before we were a band, and I’m sure that helps bypass a lot of those pitfalls.

Is there any cheesy pop you secretly quite enjoy?

Jesse:
If only Brooke were here to school us on the Queen of Pop…

Dylan:
[Laughs] She’d definitely want us to say Beyoncé.

Alex:
And Britney Spears and Taylor Swift.

Zach:
Yeah, but I’m digging Ellie Goulding a bit these days. I’m a fan of her song,
I Need Your Love.

Alex:
[Laughs] Of course you are, mate. I’m sure it has everything to do with her music and nothing to do with the fact that you want to shag her.

Zach:
Well, there’s that too… [Laughs]

Have you ever been drunk on stage?

Jesse:
I’ve maybe had three drunk gigs in my life. And I’ve found if I drink more than a couple of pints, I can’t play. I get paranoid about dropping my sticks — I can’t play fast, and I’m far too tense.

Zach:
There’s that magic amount. If you go on with nothing you’ll be a bit nervous, but if you have too much, you’ll be crap and end up looking like a twat.

So what’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever seen in the crowd?

Jesse:
Concerts can always use more tits being flashed.

Alex:
[Shoves Jesse and laughs] Of course you’d say that. The question was about weird shite, not an opening for you to encourage female fans to take off their tops.

Jesse:
I wouldn’t be mad about beautiful women showing us their appreciation through the art of shirt and bra removals.

Zach:
[Laughs] Next question. Believe me, you don’t want him to go any further with this.

Have you made any extravagant purchases?

Dylan:
Not really, no. We haven’t had time.

Alex:
Jesse bought a juicer. I think that was his big purchase.

Dylan:
[Laughs] That’s right. I forgot about that.

Jesse:
Don’t mock the hand that feeds you smoothies in the morning.

I’d lay money on the fact that this time next year; you’ll be playing giant arenas. Have you thought about that? Any big dreams for when you play in front of a crowd that big? Lights show? Pyrotechnics?

Dylan:
Pyrotechnics? Hmmm… That’s tempting…

Jesse:
Yeah, but we’d need to go over the top with it. Act like something’s gone wrong, but we’re all in on it. You know like when you go to Universal Studios and they do that bit on the Jaws ride where they act like the boat stops working. We’d need to do it like that, like a stunt. The light falls on me…

Dylan:
[Laughs] Sets your drum kit on fire…

Jesse:
Exactly! The drum kit’s on fire, and everyone’s screaming and crying, thinking something has gone horribly wrong, and then I come back on and do a solo performance of
Blue Daze
, playing acoustic drums on pots and pans or some shite like that.

Alex:
[laughs] Not pots and pans. It’d need to be bongos. Nothing trumps bongos.

Dylan

Louisville is our second stop on the tour. After we finished up our show at Headliners, Jesse had the brilliant idea of getting everyone together for a late dinner. It’s safe to say barhopping and debauchery are on the agenda. I convinced Brooke to come along, as well as most of the crew from the tour. Even our driver Bob has joined us. The man is cool as hell, and I’m happy to see him get a night off. We aren’t due to leave Louisville until late tomorrow morning, and it’s a godsend we’ll get to sleep in hotel beds rather than cramped bunks on the tour bus.

Jesse invited the chicks from Second Hand Girls, the all-female band that joined our tour after signing with Wallace & Wright a few weeks ago. He said he just wanted to be a good tour host, but I know better. My brother has his sights set on the Second Hand Girls drummer, Josie, and in true Jesse Bissette style, he won’t stop until he gets what he wants.

Yeah, he’s a wanker that way, but for some reason,
unbeknownst to me
, women fall for his charm.
Always.
Jesse is never short on opportunities, if you catch my drift.

We got lucky with a local restaurant that more than accommodated us. Jesse only had to make one call, and Jack Fry’s stayed open past their normal ten o’clock close time, setting up a private room for our large group. It’s a bit of an upscale joint, probably too classy for my crew, but I’m relaxed, relishing in the first moment I’ve had all day to sit around and chatter with my band. No paparazzi, zero expectations, and being the only people in the restaurant, give us the freedom to be our normal, obnoxious selves. Of course, Dean and Thomas are here, hovering over us with their bloody cameras, but they don’t really count. I’ve made a habit of ignoring their presence.

Zach and I have spent the first part of dinner razzing Jesse about the interview he did with
The Morning Show
. We’ve watched that video at least fifteen times, picking out the idiotic things he said to get the female reporter to laugh. It’s not a surprise her frequent giggles and batting eyelashes took up more time than the actual interview. The woman was putty in his hands. And I can’t wait for the response he’ll get from the public once it airs. No one can miss the flirtatious vibe flowing between Jesse and Alison Cross,
The Morning Show’s
prettiest reporter.

I dig into my delicious meal, occasionally joining in on the dinner conversation between bites. Brooke sits across from me, and I’m finding myself unable to stop from watching her enjoy her cheeseburger. I love the fact that we’re dining at an upscale restaurant with a menu highlighting filet mignon and lobster, and Brooke orders a cheeseburger and chips.