National Product Interview Questions

[Brandon Allin]

In the near future, I will have the opportunity to sit down with Danny Casler, frontman of Huntington Beach, California's National Product (http://www.myspace.com/nationalproduct). If you have any questions for Danny, please leave them in the replies and I will do my best to get them answered for you.

[thatwasamoment]

What keeps you motivated to keep on going with the band, after so many years without having any real success?

[Jamais_vu]

Why are you the nicest dudes ever? lol

[ramblinger]

btw, the link's busted.

[stevecrumb]

it almost seems weird to have an interview with him since he's on the board all the time talking to people and answering questions. nice guy.

[weworemasks]

is this nationalproduct on the forums? why don't you just make a thread? hahahha.

[Brandon Allin]

btw, the link's busted.
It works for me.

[NationalProduct]

brandon, use the myspace link www.myspace.com/nationalproduct we dont use the site anymore, or at least not for now, not until the record drops in july

[CountMeOut923]

Why are you the nicest dudes ever? lol

seriously, these guys are so nice. danny is always on the boards and he seems super chill. i know for a fact that stan is a really nice guy too.

Anyways, on to the question....

you guys seem to really have a connection with your fans, whether it be podcasts with your fans, emailing them all back or even just talking to them here on the boards. Were there any bands that you guys loved growing up that treated their fans the same way?

[NationalProduct]

What keeps you motivated to keep on going with the band, after so many years without having any real success?

haha, i dont know if that was meant to be a real question or a stab. I look forward to answering that in much detail. The short of it since i doubt youll read the interview is:

1. it depends on what YOU see success as. For me, i havent worked a "real" job in almost 4 years because of this band. I have been able to affect (positively) many young peoples lives, ive been able to watch the charities we are apart of benefit, which ultimately benefits people who are in a much more dire situation that i am in. I get to fly out and play places like Hawaii (6 times), Alaska (2 times and back in July), Entire Country of Mexico, The US. I have been blessed and fortunate if your not that off the blessed, to be able to work with my dream producer (James Wisner) and have Bob Ludwig master the record. My father used to love all of Bob Ludwig's work and when i was 8, i grew up defining my love for music based on records he was apart of and to tell me dad he was doing our record, was incredible. Lastly, to know that i make music with 5 of my very BEST friends and we left behind EVERYTHING to do this, and people write to us and listen to us daily, is my success. No monetary value will ever replace that feeling and one day when im old and fat and i have dogs a house, a wife and kids, ill look back on that with great fondness and admiration that i was fortunate to be apart of something that will be permanently etched into the world, and tho it is small and its may not be liked or loved by everyone, it was liked and loved by 6 dudes who created it with their bare hands and hearts.

p.s. This above was not the detailed version. I can get deeper and will. xoxo
- Danny

[Brandon Allin]

brandon, use the myspace link www.myspace.com/nationalproduct we dont use the site anymore, or at least not for now, not until the record drops in july
Fixed.

[NationalProduct]

Fixed.

thanks dude, your bomb and you know it, welcome back to the AP.net

[nagohmada]

i just want to say thanks to him cause a while back he sent me a package with a bunch of free shit in it. so yeah thanks.

[thatwasamoment]

haha, i dont know if that was meant to be a real question or a stab. I look forward to answering that in much detail. The short of it since i doubt youll read the interview is:

1. it depends on what YOU see success as. For me, i havent worked a "real" job in almost 4 years because of this band. I have been able to affect (positively) many young peoples lives, ive been able to watch the charities we are apart of benefit, which ultimately benefits people who are in a much more dire situation that i am in. I get to fly out and play places like Hawaii (6 times), Alaska (2 times and back in July), Entire Country of Mexico, The US. I have been blessed and fortunate if your not that off the blessed, to be able to work with my dream producer (James Wisner) and have Bob Ludwig master the record. My father used to love all of Bob Ludwig's work and when i was 8, i grew up defining my love for music based on records he was apart of and to tell me dad he was doing our record, was incredible. Lastly, to know that i make music with 5 of my very BEST friends and we left behind EVERYTHING to do this, and people write to us and listen to us daily, is my success. No monetary value will ever replace that feeling and one day when im old and fat and i have dogs a house, a wife and kids, ill look back on that with great fondness and admiration that i was fortunate to be apart of something that will be permanently etched into the world, and tho it is small and its may not be liked or loved by everyone, it was liked and loved by 6 dudes who created it with their bare hands and hearts.

p.s. This above was not the detailed version. I can get deeper and will. xoxo
- Danny
ha, I was gonna mention that it's was a serious question, but I felt I should leave it open to interpretation.

I ask because it seems you've been around for awhile now, but haven't had what an average fan would consider "success". I mean that as big record sales, big name tours, attention from press, etc..

Are you guys waiting for your big break? Do these things cross your mind?

[S9Dallasoz]

Just got "sean Song" from the SMG sampler on Purevolume.
Awesome.
Got it to the guy @ alternativeaddiction.com where it is now on the AA Radio rotation.

[NationalProduct]

ha, I was gonna mention that it's was a serious question, but I felt I should leave it open to interpretation.

I ask because it seems you've been around for awhile now, but haven't had what an average fan would consider "success". I mean that as big record sales, big name tours, attention from press, etc..

Are you guys waiting for your big break? Do these things cross your mind?


I can answer that...

Big record sales - we just signed our record deal 1 1/2 years ago. We were in talks with majors and indies for the last 3 years. I watched alot of my friends bands (moments in grace, home town hero, and many more) getting totally screwed by majors. We self released EP's during that time, pressed them a thousand at a time and continuously sold out of them over and over on tour. We were able to retain our musical intellectual rights while making ALL of the profit. I guess our record sales will be determined in the next year as our record drops in July. Commercial success is not something we have ever cared about. If it were, we would have signed to a major a long time ago. For me, its about taking time with the thing you love vrs signing fast to possibly destroy what you built. I personally dont have much faith in the record industries interpretation of success. I assure you, we wont sell 10K copies our first week, but i promise you we will sell more than 10k copies period.

Big Tours: We have played several festivals and been on many tours. Some bands we have played with whether it was festival or tour are: Yellowcard, Rise Against, Vandals, Saosin, Me First & The Gimmie Gimmies, New Found Glory, Anberlin, Over It (when i say festival or tour, i dont mean like we were a band on a side stage in the parking lot, i mean we played directly with them) During sxsw we shared the PV stage with Mute Math, Deer and the Headlights, Eisley and more. Im not name dropping because i dont care for that shit. To be honest, my favorite tours were with my friends bands like Delux in Mexico, Its like Love in the West, Fiore from cali to florida. A Prize Worth Killing in the west and Over it. Tours like that, were its a band of brothers trekking and having fun is where i thrive.

Attention from Press: I guess were about to find out right? We just got Larry W, head of fanscape taking on our record. If you dont know how massive he is, please go check out www.fanscape.com and Mike C is our publicist from Ear Shot, he too has done some MAJOR and Indie Major bands. Youll know more than a handlful from him. The record is being sent to radio, tv, film, magazines, your truly (AP.net) all here, very soon and then the press can decide what they think.

Thats all for now, my nap was incredible. If you got any more, im always "ON" <~~~staring back, rad record. miss those dudes

[NationalProduct]

Just got "sean Song" from the SMG sampler on Purevolume.
Awesome.
Got it to the guy @ alternativeaddiction.com where it is now on the AA Radio rotation.

Thanks man, that song was not supposed to even make the record. We had to go back and track it and it was synced to an OOOOLD video we shot to get it out and use it. We will not be using that for anything more than only promo, however the song will be on the cd. We are picking a single for the video here shortly.

[BtoTheRad]

What do you miss most about the 808, and do you consider yourself a hawaii band?

Ps james paul wisner, wtf

Pps brown trout