Long Island pop punk band Times Like These announced that they are working on a second EP, Take It or Leave It. Coinciding with the announcement, they released the single “Too Little Too Late,” as a free download on Bandcamp. The song was produced and co-written with Okan Kazdal of the band This Is All Now. Both bands will be playing a show at Revolution Bar and Music Hall in Amityville on January 29.
Mike Acampora (lead vocals/guitar), Zach Dyer (bass/vocals), and Eddie Giuffo (lead guitar) have been friends since high school, and formed Times Like These in the summer of 2015. NYS Music reached out to Mike to learn a little more about this up-and-coming band.
Paula Cummings: How did you decide on the name Times Like These?
Mike Acampora: We were going back-and-forth with names for a while, and there is a lyric in the All Time Low song “Noel.” We thought the lyric was cool, and the name would be cool and it kind of just stuck after that.
PC: Based on the band name, it’s safe to guess that All Time Low is a band that you are inspired by. Who else would you list?
MA: Yeah, All Time Low is a huge inspiration. Other bands would be State Champs, With Confidence, Neck Deep, and of course Blink 182 and Green Day.
PC: Tell me about the new single.
MA: It’s called “Too Little Too Late,” it’ll be the first song we drop off the new EP which is called Take It or Leave It and we are super stoked about it. We are so proud of this song. It also features Okan Kazdal from This Is All Now. It’s just so awesome in itself to be able to work with such a fun and talented person like Okan.
PC: What is Take It or Leave It like, compared to your first EP Follow Your Stupid Dreams?
MA: I would say it’s definitely a change, not a huge change, but our writing has improved and I want to say this EP has more pop in it. It’s still a pop punk/pop rock EP but the pop influence definitely shows a lot.
PC: What are the meanings behind the names of your EP’s?
MA: Follow Your Stupid Dreams was all about doing what you wanted and never letting anyone hold you back. Days before the album came out we had people send us their dream jobs and we posted them all with the hashtag Follow Your Stupid Dreams and it was really cool having all these people open up to us and tell us about their life goals and telling us what they want to do for the rest of their life. And when you dream big, there will be people who shut you down and tell you you’ll never be able to do the things you want to do. Follow Your Stupid Dreams is all about ignoring those people and dreaming big and not letting anyone shut down your master plan. As for Take It or Leave It, the name comes from a lyric in one of our songs off the new EP called “Chicago” and we felt that the lyric was so strong that it should be the EP title!
PC: I heard that you’re upgrading your equipment. Are you getting a new guitar?
MA: Yes! We all got new guitars and basses! I just got a new Fender Duo Sonic with an orange cab. Zach just got a new Jaguar bass with a Snake eyes cab. And Eddie just got a new LTD guitar with a Marshall cab.
PC: What has been the best gig so far?
MA: We played a show at a local spot called O’Briens a few weeks back. We packed it and the whole room was screaming our lyrics and moshing. It was just so cool. All the shows we play there are always amazing. So many people come out to see us there, and we always make sure we put on an amazing show.
PC: Your band profile lists your interest as milkshakes. What are each of your favorite flavors?
MA: Eddie digs chocolate shakes. Zach and I are more fans of vanilla milkshakes.
PC: Want to give a shout out to your favorite place to get milkshakes?
MA: Lake Grove Diner. We love the shakes there!
Photos by Sofie Vasquez
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