MeanTime Spotlight

MeanTime MySpace

From the shores of Daytona, come our local heavy-heads, MeanTime. Drawing from influences like 108,  Integrity, and Strife, MeanTime bring a breath of fresh air to Florida HC. Vocalist Alexx and guitarist Mikey both were a part of the recently deceased Years From Now, a melodic hardcore band that continued where Lifetime's "Jersey's Best Dancers" left off. With MeanTime, these dudes show their talent in a different branch of hardcore. Not too long ago they posted their most recent demo recordings on their myspace, and you can't help but want to mosh out of your computer chair when you hear the beginning riff of "Measurement". A common misconception about this band is that vocalist Alexx is some sort of hardman. I'd like to clear this up by saying although his muscles are extremely sexy, I think Larry of Think Fast! Records put it best when he said "Alexx is a pussy."

Anyways, with a little over a year of local gigs under their belt, MeanTime are making their first record attempt out on Double or Nothing Records at the end of this summer. They're supporting this release with a short east coast tour in August. Guitarist Matt answered some quick questions. Check 'em out:

FU: So, who does what in MeanTime?

MT: I am Matt, I play guitar. Mikey also plays guitar. Alexx is our vocalist. Josh plays bass. Jesse plays the drums, when he is not napping off.

FU: You dudes hail from the Daytona area, home of This Is For You Fest. You guys are definitely doing something different from what normally comes out of DB, what would you say influenced you guys to try something new?

MT: Well Mikey and Alexx have been in their fair share of hardcore bands from Daytona, and have always listened to the bands that influence us. Daytona has had some great bands, that not a lot people really gave a chance, like; Same Mistake, Years From Now, The Other Side Of The Sky. It is a misconception that everyone from Daytona Beach is PC. Everyone assumes that This Is For You Fest is some hippy gathering like BurningMan or something, but in actuality, Billy books a lot of up and coming bands. Before the hype machine (messageboards) hit them bands like Shipwreck, Guns Up!, American Nightmare, Darkest Hour, Pulling Teeth, Down To Nothing have played TIFY Fest. Sure, there are some crust and grind bands thrown in the mix, but that doesnt bother me. I guess we are a band now still to show people that Daytona is not what everyone assumes it is.

FU: MeanTime is a relatively newer band, and seem to be gaining recognition pretty quickly and deservedly. I know you guys have a release in the works, whats the info on that?

MT: We just got done recording our first seven inch, which does'nt have a title for it yet, but it is coming out on Double or Nothing Records sometime in late July/early August. We are currently working on getting the artwork and layout together for the release. The record has two new songs on it entitled, "No Tolerance" and "A Long Way Gone." Be on the lookout, because we will be posting those two tracks on the myspace in the coming weeks. The record also has two re-recorded tracks from our demo, "Believer" and "Measurement."

FU: With summer at our heels, are there any touring plans that people should keep an eye on?

MT: Nothing is confirmed yet, because we do not have a van yet, but we are most likely going to be on tour August 8th - 17th with Dead Hearts, Know The Score, and Energy. The start of the tour is in Boston, MA on August 8th, so we have quite a long drive up to join them, but we are looking forward to it.

Here is the routing for it:

 8-Aug Boston , MA
Sat 9-Aug Syracuse , NY 
Sun 10-Aug Baltimore , MD 
Mon 11-Aug Huntington , WV 
Tue 12-Aug Richmond , VA 
Wed 13-Aug Wilmington , NC
Thu 14-Aug Jacksonville , FL 
Fri 15-Aug Ocala , FL 
Sat 16-Aug Miami , FL 
Sun 17-Aug Tampa , FL 

FU: Alright man, thanks for doing the interview. Last question, what are some florida bands that people should be listening to?

MT: No problem. There are a bunch of Florida bands happening right now that people need to be listening to and supporting. Here is my list: Evasion [editors note: Evasion is legit] ,Mekhago N.T., Know The Score, DEA, Hours, Kids Like Us, Time To Die, Learn Nothing, Overboard, Cant Stand It, Rockfist, Change of Ideas, Republicorpse, etc. I am sure there are some others that I like and forgot. Anyways, check all these bands out, and thanks for the interview.