Earlier this year on April 5th, hours before the last show of their west coast tour, Destroy Boys singer Alexia Roditis sat down with KZSC behind The Catalyst. They talked about the power of a platform and various song tidbits. During the interview, bassist David Orozco popped in to answer a question. Filler language such as “like” and “you know” has been left in this transcript in order to preserve a natural feel.
Gabriel (KZSC): So this is the last show of the tour before Outside Lands. How does it feel to be at the end of a tour?
Alexia: I am really excited to go home and have some time off because in addition to the touring, I’ve been traveling and visiting family in various parts around the world, so I’m very excited to have a full sort of break. We also have some shows in Germany in June, and then we have a couple of things before Outside Lands here and there, pretty sparingly, but I’m really excited. I’m gonna miss it because I also feel like at the end of every tour I unlock new things to do, and so we get to the end of the tour and I’m like dang I have it now and I don’t get to practice it again for a couple months, but I’m pretty excited. I have some projects to cook up while I’m home.
G: Do you have any hints or little spoilers?
A: Just like doing political stuff, I don’t know, you’ll see, I don’t wanna like promise anything
G: That’s fair, that’s fair
G: Just gonna get into it, how do you feel about the power of an artist’s platform? I’ve seen you taking full use of that, always posting political stuff on your pages and even hosting spaces in fan places for people to talk and discuss.
A: So, I guess some background, and it’s something I’ve been thinking a lot about this week, is that I have been politically active since I was in highschool. Maybe since even before that, like I was in a civic engagement project or class when I was in high school where I did like a senior project about some stuff and you know, all these things, and so it’s just been a long time of doing stuff like that you know. And I don’t know, I just think one, I just care about people and it’s just really hard for me to not, like I suppose I could ignore it if I wanted to but I can’t and I don’t want to, cause I don’t wanna like not do something when I can, and I also think that artists have a responsibility to do something for the community, at least I do, especially punk artists. It’s like I’m sorry, if you don’t do anything political, like I don’t wanna f***ing listen to your band, like you know I mean I will sometimes, but I’ll look at really famous musicians and when they don’t do anything with their power, I’m like “why do you even have it, like why do you even want it?” Honestly, I’m kinda afraid, like it’s difficult sometimes for me to like be a leader and gain this like “social power” I suppose. I’ve thought about it a lot, but I just want to do good, so that’s what I try to do. But I think it’s also really powerful, cause when else do I have access to like 800 people in front of me that are specifically interested in what I do and what my band does. So I’ve tried to find ways to bring politics back into punk because I just really feel like it’s become a lot of aesthetics, and like, omg motherf***ers, we’re literally descending into a fascist regime. Why does no one give a f***? You have a thousand people in front of you, like it pisses me off. You have a thousand people in front of you and you’re not gonna say anything? Like I get it, but that’s just not me you know
G: Wow, that was a lot. I don’t know if that’s a weird reaction but yeah that was a lot
A: Yeah, haha
Gabriel: In a good way, that was cool
Alexia: Yeah, some background. Platform is powerful, why not use it? I just think it’s a waste of power to like not use it.
Gabriel: Mhmm. Do you see the distinction between the notions of “you have it, why not use it” versus “you should be using it and it’s wrong if you don’t”?
Alexia: I mean it’s both, the thing is like, on one thing I’ll have many different thoughts about it and so I think they kinda go hand and hand. Like it is your responsibility, and it’s also like I’m surprised that people don’t want to, you know. I’m like why wouldn’t you, like you should and why wouldn’t you, cause there’s also ways to incorporate it into the show that doesn’t interrupt the flow of the music, which I’ve written about on substack, which I’ll leave that at that
Gabriel: So this next one’s about David (Destroy Boys’s bassist). He officially joined in 2023, but he’s been playing for a while
Alexia: He’s been playing for like hella long
Gabriel: Yeah, so like when does it become official
Alexia: Do you want me to bring him out here? David! Hey David! Can you come answer a question?
Gabriel: Cause like I play bass, and so I was like omg an official bass player, yay
Alexia: It’s honestly like he kinda didn’t want to become an official member, cause sometimes being in a band is like really annoying. It’s like a relationship, you commit to it. Let me see, I’m interested in his answer too.
(they go and lead David over)
We have the source
(to David) Gabriel: To reiterate, you officially became a member in 2023, and you’ve been playing for a while before that, so like what was the difference between the unofficial and the official?
David: I think that’s more like spiritual, or like emotional I guess, investing, you know what I mean. Cause like it’s one thing to play in someone’s band and then there’s another thing to have a collective energy. So I think it’s like taking pride in it as if it is my own, you know what I mean, it’s like we’re all in it together. It’s not work, it’s passion now, you know what I mean, so that’s I guess the best I can describe it
Gabriel: So it was work and became passion, or was it like passion and became work?
Alexia: Well cause he was like a touring member, so we would hire him to play bass
David: Yeah, and it was always fun, like they’re my actual best friends, but now it’s like more involved, you know what I mean
Alexia: I didn’t know that. I was like, he asked me that and I was like “Let me just, I don’t know, like we can ask him”
Gabriel: Haha yea, that’s just been something I’ve been wondering ever since it came out like “hey wait, he’s been there”
David: Yeah, there’s a difference, cause like there’s business and there’s like emotion, you know what I mean. And it’s like art, and art’s different, it’s like, to be a part of someone’s artistic process is very personal you know what I mean. You can like rock with someone for a while like working, but then there’s like being “in”, which is different in my opinion
Gabriel: Yeah, thank you so much
Gabriel: You had an Instagram live once, where you talked about how the song Gold Medal’s title was inspired by Lazytown
Alexia: Yeah it was, hella random, I don’t even know why, our drummer was like a chaos demon, love him, and then we just had to call it Gold Medal. I don’t know why, it kinda fits too for some reason, cause literally they go like “gooold medddal” and that was something we were saying a lot, so we just named it the song
Gabriel: Haha, so it was like one of those inside jokes with friends where you just walk into a room and blurt it out, love those. Do you have any other songs that are in that vein with like a title with a silly origin?
Alexia: I mean Cattywampus, I think I learned about that word, and I didn’t know what to sing about so I sang about nothing and called it Cattywampus. As with I Threw Glass At My Friend’s Eye and Now I’m On Probation, do you know the story behind that, like is it out, why it’s titled that? I think it was cause the guy that it’s written about was in a band and we were talking to his friend and it was like a whole “Oh so-and-so’s on probation” “why, did he throw glass at somebody’s eyes or something?”. Let’s see, I’m going through the first album. American Rivers was my highschool, so that’s why it’s called that, American River High School, er Rio Americano, Rio Americano
Gabriel: Does that have anything to do with the college?
Alexia: It’s on the same river yeah, it’s in the same area. So I went to Rio Americano, and we were next to the river. Let me think, yeah
Gabriel: So that song, I Threw Glass, so I know like at concerts, before you play that song, y’all are like “Hey guys, we want this to be a personal moment, no phones”. Did that start that way? Or did you notice like everyone’s bringing out their phone, we don’t wanna be looking at phones
Alexia: We just noticed that everybody was on their phones and it’s mad annoying sometimes, cause also people dance harder when we tell them to put their phones away, they like stop recording and it’s nice to like actually be there you know. And also like, people recording, it’s cool sometimes but it also like frustrates me to see people recording every single song, cause it’s like bro you’re not even gonna remember it you know what I mean, like you’re not there. At least for me when I go to a show and I start recording it, I’m taken out of the experience of like the mind bubble, you know what I mean.
Gabriel: It’s like your eyes are on the phone, not them
Alexia: Exactly, like trying to make sure that everyone’s in the shot and stuff, and it’s like nice, especially if you’re in the audience, it’s really nice to just like be there. People just dance harder, they just get more into it dude, and it’s also nice especially as a generation that grew up with technology, just intentionally being like “okay, like put that sh** away” you know
Gabriel: Yeah, that’s cool to hear. I had another question that was like “How do you feel just like looking at phones?” but yeah you answered that so cool. I hate when like there’s someone tall in front of me and they have their phone, like double whammy
Alexia: Yeah like bro, double trouble
Gabriel: In preparation for this, I read some other interviews. You always bring up, and especially with this latest album that came out, you’re always talking about Boyfeel and You Hear Yes. Do you have any comments or anything to say about the songs that don’t get brought up, if that makes sense?
Alexia: Yeah, Praying is a banger, it’s an underrated banger. It’s kinda hard to play, so we haven’t yet, but I love that song. Let me think hmm, I feel like I’ve talked about Shadow, Plucked, Vi’s songs. Not really, do you have any questions about a song? Amor Divino is a really nice one.
Gabriel: Ooh, about that, before this I also looked up the Spotify listens. The bottom three are Shredding Skin, You Don’t Know, and Amor Divino from the latest album.
Alexia: I mean that makes sense, they’re like the slower songs you know what I mean. People I feel like come to Destroy Boys for punk music and so when there’s like a ballad, they’re like “what?” Doesn’t mean that we’re not gonna do it like you know
Gabriel: Amor Divino surprised me though
Alexia: Yeah, I know, me too
Gabriel: It’s like, whenever you come out with a Spanish song, there’s always that little group of people that are like “Yayy” and so I assume they like replay it over and over again
Alexia: You know I think that just nobody knows it exists. I think it just doesn’t get promotion or advertisement, so no one even knows. Like people be like “Omg, you’re latina?” and I’m like yeah bro, and I’m mad loud about it I feel, but whatever.
Gabriel: In your earlier articles and earlier interviews, you self described the band as “if Blondie walked into a Misfits recording”. Has that description evolved at all, or are you like “Yep, I was right the first time”?
Alexia: Here’s the thing, I don’t like the Misfits a lot, they have a couple songs that I like. That was actually written by a dear friend of ours.
Gabriel: Oh, was that actually not a self description?
Alexia: No
Gabriel: Oh my gosh, my bad, researched wrong
Alexia: It’s okay. I do describe it as Blondie actually. Cause it reminds me of like, I call it melodic rock, like there’s such a spectrum of Destroy Boys music where it goes from like punk to more alt rock, like yknow, there’s a Bolero, there’s a metal song, like PJ Harvey vibes. I just like to say melodic rock music, it’s like angst guitar and power chords, but I’m a singer, like I sing. But then also live I start screaming and I’m like “oh no oh no”. So yeah, hahah