Today we’d like to introduce you to Seth Mireles, of the band ZEGOVIA.
Hi Seth, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My brother and I performed as Zegovia back in middle and high school but changed it to “Gray Falls” in 2019. We had some success under that name, but then we had a lineup change. So last year, we decided the name Gray Falls had run its course and was a little tired, so we tried to come up with something new and couldn’t think of anything. As a joke, we told everyone we were going back to “Zegovia,” and they loved it. So here we are.
As far as how we decided on the name “Zegovia,” it’s actually a variation of the name “Segovia.” Years ago, when my brother and I started playing music together, we decided to name the band after my middle school Spanish teacher, Mrs. Segovia. When we announced our decision, my dad told us that was also our great-grandmother’s maiden name, so we thought that was pretty cool. But when we went to upload to iTunes (yeah, we’re dating ourselves, it was a while back!) The name Segovia was trademarked by the classical guitarist Andres Segovia. We changed the first letter and became Zegovia.
Our current lineup consists of my brother Matt on drums, myself (Seth) on lead guitar and vocals, and our friends Chandler Weber on bass/vocals and Logan Gill on rhythm guitar/vocals. If you had to put a label on our genre, it would be alt-rock, but there’s also a pop-punk, indie-rock feel to our stuff. We get our inspiration from a lot of different bands, and our sound has been compared to Dinosaur, Jr., PUP, Car Seat Headrest, Bass Drum of Death, IDLES, and Foo Fighters. Our music has a driving energy that makes for a great live show.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Ask any musician and they’ll tell you it’s a challenging business. We’ve had lineup changes, life changes, and even personal struggles that come with those challenges, but we’ve always found our way back to doing what we love, and that is creating good music. Our debut release, “All We Ever Have is Time,” touches on those topics, and our upcoming tracks are starting to look almost like a concept album. We didn’t intend for that to happen, but 2023 was tough on the band, and on us as individuals. And before that, the pandemic and shutdowns were hard on everyone, but we used that time to write music and managed to play a handful of safe shows during that time to keep the momentum going. However, those were the months when we started to notice a shift in the social media environment and how people treat each other online, and it’s only gotten more intense.
The irony is that today’s musicians have more access to direct fan engagement through online platforms, but that has also resulted in a saturated market. It’s hard to break through the noise and get noticed on digital streaming platforms like Spotify, so we have to not only create good music but we have to be our own brand managers, marketing reps, promoters, and touring managers. It’s a lot of hats to wear at once, but we’re learning a lot about the business along the way.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar with what you do, what can you tell them about what you do?
We like to think of ourselves as part of the newest generation of rock. This genre has been on the backburner for a few years, and we’re looking forward to being part of the resurgence. As far as content, our new songs are what we’re seeing within our generation and the younger set as well. We’re Gen Z and truly the first digital natives to have grown up online. As an overall society, we’re the most connected we’ve ever been, but also the angriest…for a lot of reasons.
Our debut single (as this version of Zegovia) is called “All We Ever Have is Time,” and it kind of calls out all those observations. Society is at a point where we don’t know what to believe or who to trust on social media. Our politicians are selling us out, online trolls now have a huge platform and we’re just feeding into an algorithmic manipulation that creates more and more division.
In our opinion, that’s why live shows are so important. It brings back that human connection, and reminds people you can have differences, but music is still a universal way to be able to relate to one another. We’re looking forward to bringing the new songs to our supporters. It’s definitely going to create a deeper connection than we’ve ever had before. We have some really loyal fans who have been with us from the beginning, and they’re already telling us they think this new stuff is next level.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out.
I guess the important thing to remember is this: You can have the best music in the world, but if no one knows about it, then you need to ask yourself if you’re okay with it just being a hobby, or do you want this to be a career? The new business model for independent musicians requires us to know a variety of things about the industry, including how to market and generate a financial return on our time, energy, and creative investment. It’s called the “Music Business” for a reason. Surround yourself with people you trust and treat them with respect. Always be professional with other bands in your scene; relationships are important. But don’t expect everyone to treat you that way in return. That way, you won’t be disappointed because betrayal is an unfortunate reality in this business.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.zegovia.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zegoviaband
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zegoviamusic
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/zegoviaband
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@zegoviaband
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/zegoviaband
- Other: https://linktr.ee/zegovia
Image Credits
Kinley Erin
Greg Holleman Bensiive
