HerCampus Amherst’s first Campus Celebrities are none other than the members of Railyard Conspiracy! RYC’s members are Ian Stahl ’14, Conrad Karsten ’14, Ben Muller ’14, Dan Webber ’14, and Joe Taff ’13. This up-and-coming band has played at several on-campus parties as well as events at Hampshire College, and you can hear the members perform at Marsh Coffee Haus on Friday nights. Last week, the band released their first EP, entitled Won’t Settle Down, which you can listen to and download here!
All of the guys have different musical backgrounds and influences, which combine to create a cool and unique sound. Ben calls his sound piano pop/rock; think Billy Joel and Ben Folds. Dan says Bruce Springsteen is a huge influence on him as a songwriter, and Conrad says he’s most influenced by Stu Copeland, the drummer from the Police.
The band recently learned to play Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan. “We based our cover on a cover done by another group. They give it a nice, slow blues feel. We kept that, but also added some melodies where everyone plays the same notes together, which gives the song a bit of a heavier, more rock-oriented feel.” They also wrote an original song, which you may have heard them play at their show on the Freshman Quad. “It involves Joe Taff being a badass, and is about taking the next bus to Boston just to get away.”
Do you sing in the shower?
IAN: Only Dave [Matthews].
CONRAD: Only with other people!
JOE: I do, quite often – the resonance in most bathrooms is really fantastic.
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What are some of your hobbies outside of the band?
IAN: I mostly just listen to Dave Matthews. Sometimes I do karate in the garage.
CONRAD: I collect belt buckles and kick ass. I also like to make disparaging remarks about Ben Affleck and brood silently in the corners of rooms.
DAN: If I were Ian, I could safely answer, “making the answer to every interview question about Dave Matthews,” but I’m not, so I guess I’d have to say Ultimate Frisbee, writing songs for the band to reject in the future, and making one biting joke at the band’s expense per interview.
If you could take a road trip with any musician, dead or alive, who would it be and where would you go?
IAN: Well, my first thought was Keith Moon from the Who, but I would probably not survive the road trip, so I’d go with Dave.
JOE: I would love to go with the great blues pianist Dr. John to New Orleans – where he is from – to hang out, play a few shows, jam, meet people, and above all hear his stories about his own and the country’s many musical transformations over the course of his 50+ year career.
BEN: Dispatch. They seem like chill dudes. And we would go to Local Burger in Northampton. I’m hungry, and it’s not too far.