“Cusp” is such a great band name, and is a cool reflection of the kind of music you guys create, which seems to reside in its own lane, hopping between genres with a myriad of melodic shifts in between. Would you say this new single is another new transitional state for the band?  

Jen: I think it is, as much as any song we put out is a transition in some way or another. As I spend more time writing songs and having conversations about music with my bandmates, I feel less and less inclined to try to fit into a genre or a style. It’s been freeing to write just for the sake of writing. So it’s fair to say that this is a transition into whatever’s next, but that the next Cusp release will probably also feel unique to what we’ve put out already, this song included. Some songs I’m writing for the LP certainly feel different than “I Know” or the EP, so I’m hoping folks will be receptive to that. Also, funny band name origin story here. We used to be called “Jem” when we first started. But then our friend pointed out to us that there’s already a very famous musician named Jem. Oops. So we spent some time brainstorming and Cass came up with Cusp. It stuck immediately, and now I can’t imagine it as anything else.

Speaking of transitions, you just made the move from Rochester to Chicago - what motivated that decision?  How has the local scene Cusp has been a part of impacted the band’s growth so far and what are you most looking forward to about your new city?  

Jen: Gaelen and I were talking about moving for many months. A variety of life changes and just general feelings of “stuckness” sparked the idea. For as much as I will always care for Rochester and the friends I made there, I just knew it was time to try something new in a bigger city. The affordability of Chicago, plus its proximity to a really vibrant scene, drew me to moving and so far I haven’t been disappointed. I’m excited to get out and play. It’s almost overwhelming how many venues exist out here, at least compared to where we moved from. 

 I do have to give some credit to Rochester, though. I couldn’t have expected the positive response we got after we put out that first EP. For being a relatively unknown band, we generated a pretty remarkable group of fans in a short amount of time. Rochester folks in particular have been extremely supportive despite us not getting to play out too often in the city. I’m pretty grateful. Rochester will always have a lil spot in my heart; especially because that’s where I met Gaelen, Dylan, and Cass, and this original lineup will always feel special to me.

CUSP
MIX

  Cusp’s songs have been aptly described as “a gut punch that’s insanely catchy” and definitely feel like a dose of catharsis.  Very honest, emotional music seems to really be hitting a stride in popular culture right now, and it all feels like a reflection of society at its current moment.  The new track also exudes a numbness that also feels sentimental - in this strange couple of years where time seems to pass in intangible ways, does it feel like hallmark of that?

 Jen: Sure, but part of me thinks too that my songs would have that sentimentality regardless of the pandemic. I guess I have no way of knowing that for sure, but my hunch is that I don’t know how to write any other way. I think anyone who knows me well would agree that I’m a generally sentimental person. When I was working on the lyrics for “I Know,” it felt like I was trying to convince myself to cool it a little bit. Like, “Okay, obviously you’re anxious about a bunch of things at all times, but you’re fine. You’re not going to die when you get in this elevator. That slight physical discomfort you’re feeling isn’t fatal.” Maybe I’ve always been inclined to write about that anxiety as a way of understanding it better, but I guess it would be silly to say that the frustrations and further anxieties brought on by the pandemic haven’t played at least a small part in writing this song. 

You were all in bands before Cusp - what lead to the cultivation of this new project & how did it come together?

Jen: Dylan and Cass’s band, Full Body 2 (formerly known as Full Body) actually was one of my biggest inspirations upon entering the Rochester DIY scene. I was so inspired by the music they were making (and still am). In 2019, Full Body and Rut (another project that Gaelen and I play in) went on tour together, and we all became fast friends. At that time I was sitting on a few songs that I’d written and demoed, and was ready to put them into a full band context, and it just clicked between the four of us. We’ve spent so much time together over the past few years and our chemistry as friends greatly impacted our chemistry as musicians. 

Tell us more about the recording process/inspiration behind this new track!  

 Jen: The origin story of this song is pretty funny. I came home from work one day and Gaelen was listening to something he had just demoed. I said, “This is really good,” and he said “Thanks. I think it could be a new Cusp song. I was pretending to be you when I wrote it.” So Gaelen gets full credit for the music on this one. I wrote up some lyrics and the melody came to me very quickly. As far as recording goes, the four of us got super caffeinated one winter’s day and spent a full day tracking in Dylan’s basement. Dylan has mixed and tracked almost all of Cusp’s output up to this point. Now that we’ve worked together for so long, he really understands the vibe I’m going for.

 Any under the radar musical peers we need to know?  

Jen: One of my favorite bands is called Bighand//bigknife out of Denton, Texas. Excellent riffs and great energy. I think I once heard them described as “if Rush was doom metal.” I don’t know how accurate that is but I know I’m into it. Big fan of their vocal style, too. 

 Cass: Henderson Century, from Philadelphia. Wide, expressive, beautiful shoegaze with vocal hooks and synths that instantly conjure Yung Lean or George Clanton to me. I  always come back to their release “100” with my heart open, and the crescendo in “Dreamer” is criminally underrated.

 What’s special about the mix you’ve made?

Jen: This mix is absolutely wild. The four of us each have very specific musical interests ranging from indie rock to ambient drum and bass. I was laughing while I was putting it together because there’s just such an eclectic variety of songs in there. But I think it works. It’s kind of a testament to our friendship, too. The four of us all have these really specific interests and influences and the variety of projects we’re in range widely in genre and style, but it doesn’t really matter. It’s nice to be around people with differing interests. The passion for music in general is something that bonds us, and is one of the main reasons that we’re friends. So I guess the mix is special because it’s a tangible reflection of that bond.

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