By Kathryn Bloch
With not even a debut album released Coast Modern has already commanded the attention of fans and the industry. Their single “Hollow Life” hit XM radio, and the playlists of many bloggers in late 2015 with it’s infectious trap-inspired beat mixed with an indie sensibility.
The band has released two more singles, “Animal” and “Guru,” in the beginning of 2016 and have been building their fan-base along with anticipation of more new music on their Twitter page.
Coast Modern, made up of Luke Atlas and Coleman Trapp, started off years ago as two musicians collaborating on material. What they created ended up being rap songs with “quirky beats” that they toured elementary and middle schools with to teach children about space.
The duo played their first shows as Coast Modern earlier this year at the SXSW Music Festival in Austin, Texas and have continued playing shows since. “Even though there were a lot of industry people at the shows, there were those people who knew all the words to the two songs we had out,” said Atlas. “That was a big deal, this is more than just something on the internet, this is for real.”
“This last year has been the wildest ride,” said Trapp about the band’s steady rise is notoriety. “It seems like every week there’s some new, good news about one of our songs that got used in an advertisement, or someone else that wants to work with us.”
Atlas and Trapp draw inspiration from late music legends Prince and David Bowie, as well as contemporary producers. “I dig any musician that is willing to take risks, to push beyond what is popular at the moment, and who takes a lot of control over their career and their artistic vision,” said Atlas. “We draw a lot of inspiration from people like that.”
“I think Coast Modern is more than just a band, there’s a cultural aspect that we’re fine-tuning as our identity grows, and that’s something that those artists had,” said Trapp. “A couple of my favorites are the producers of the 2000’s, like Pharrell and Timbaland because I loved how versatile they were and how they could jump into any style they wanted.”
In terms of who the duo would want to work with in the future, the genres are broad. “Collaborating with Andrew Wyatt from Miike Snow could be dope,” said Trapp. “I also think it would be cool to do something with Frank Ocean,” Atlas added.
Before playing their first shows at SXSW, Coast Modern already had summer tours lined up supporting BØRNS and The Wombats, and have recently announced a tour supporting The Temper Trap in the fall. “They heard our tunes and dug it through our agent, which is so crazy,” said Atlas. “We’ve barely done any shows, so for them to enjoy the music enough, and to hear something in it, to invite us along is really crazy.”
What can fans expect from Coast Modern during the duration of 2016? “They can only expect the unexpected,” said Trapp. “That’s the plan, because if anything gets stagnant or predictable, we plan on switching it up.”
More music from the duo can also be expected in the coming months. “We have more touring through the end of the year, and we want to go everywhere throughout the U.S., and working on an album hopefully by the end of summer, we’re still crafting it,” said Atlas. “Maybe a music video,” said Trapp.
Since the duo is still relatively new to the scene, they had some advice to give to those who want to break into the music industry. “You can’t expect anything from anybody,” said Trapp. “You have to find your voice because it doesn’t really matter what you have to say, if you mean it, people will listen to it.”
“A part of it is being okay with making crap for a long time, that will happen and you have to just get it out,” added Atlas. “It takes a long time to find out what you want to say, but as long as it feels true to you, that’s what’s most important.”
Coast Modern will be on tour opening for BØRNS in the coming weeks, opening for The Wombats from June 14 to August 5, and opening for The Temper Trap from September 19 to October 19.
