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The power pop band, The Strive from Kansas City have released an upbeat catchy new tune with Keep Dreaming earlier this month. The song has a great hard rock edge to it and will have listeners from all genres enjoying the passionate vocals, heartfelt lyrics and solid hook. We had the opportunity to interview vocalist, Brendan Stevens and are pleased to bring you it to you here:

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Music Junkie Press: Thank you so much for taking the time out to talk with us here at Music Junkie Press. First we wanted to tell you that we love the energetic new song, Keep Dreaming, Can you tell us a little bit more about that song?

Brendan: Thank you! Keep Dreaming to me is a song about never being able to break that wall of friendship with the person you’re truly in love with to progress to something more. I think while it’s one of our more fast-paced and “dancey” so to say songs, it’s also really bitter and dark which is a cool contrast to the upbeat tempo.

Music Junkie Press: I know the song will be available on Itunes, is it part of a forthcoming new album and if so, is there a timeframe for that album?

Brendan: Keep Dreaming will be part of our full length record which we start pre-pro for in August and will release in early 2015!

Music Junkie Press: What are your currently working on or what is in store for The Strive this year?

Brendan: Right now we’re looking ahead to the summer while finishing up a lot of the college tours that we’ve been doing recently. After the summer, we head back into the studio to do the full length. 2014 is looking pretty busy.

Music Junkie Press: How did The Strive first form?

Brendan: Our drummer Nick and our guitarist Luke met through YouTube after seeing that they both had covered some of the same songs on their respective instruments. They started jamming and recording instrumentals. They wound up finding me (Brendan/vocals) through Facebook because I had liked one of their posts or something. Then after inviting me over to jam, we hit up some of our old high school buddies that we had all jammed with. Greg came and auditioned and we put him on rhythm guitar and we put Michael on bass. We’ve had the same line-up ever since. Greg, Michael, and I joined Nick and Luke in the winter of 2010.

Music Junkie Press: Your music has very heartfelt and passionate lyrics, do you have a particular writing process?

Brendan: Usually Nick and Luke will create the instrumental and show it to me to listen to and then I start writing the lyrics. We live together so it makes writing and collaborating a matter of just walking down the hall to see what works haha. I usually come up with a first draft of verses and then Nick and I will work out a chorus together. He’s got a real ear for things that I sometimes miss. I’m really lucky to be surrounded by such talented, versatile, artists. Sometimes a song takes a day, sometimes weeks, sometimes a few months. We’re very picky haha.

Music Junkie Press: We at Music Junkie Press are very strong believers about how music can heal, help, inspire and move, do you remember a particular time where music was there to help you the most? Can you share the story with us?

Brendan: It’s really hard to pin-point an exact time where music has been there for me because I feel like it’s always been the art that I have been able to connect to and escape from anything that was bringing me down. I guess most recently music really got me through my first year of college. I’m a junior now, but that first semester was terrifying and I was really torn on what I should be doing with my life. I had decided to stay in Kansas City so I could push forward with The Strive, but mostly all of my high school friends that I had grown up with moved away to school. I had given up some scholarship money to stay here, and I was just hoping that I had made the right decision. That first semester we recorded our first EP and from there I knew I was right where I was supposed to be. Later that year, we went to Austin, Texas to record our second EP, “Design The Road” and once again I knew I’d made the right decision. I don’t know if it was music necessarily or just my guys being there for me. But it was music that brought us all together and made me feel less alone.

Music Junkie Press: You have a couple upcoming shows this April, do you have any plans for more shows?

Brendan: We have a few more college shows this month in Ottawa, Kansas and in Eureka, Illinois. Then we have one set for June 20th at KC Live in the Power and Light District in Kansas City. It’ll be our first hometown show in almost a year. I don’t want to give too much away but we’re playing with a pretty sweet band haha.

Music Junkie Press: All of your songs are wonderful, especially a couple of my favorites like Rescue Me and Bury Me Under. Do you have a particular song of yours that is more special to you or you are more emotionally attached to?

Brendan: Sleepless will always be my number one. I wrote the lyrics about my dad being there for my mom when she was fighting Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma cancer when I was three. She passed away when I was really young, but my dad is the biggest influence and inspiration in my life. Sleepless will always be a testament to how much I admire my dad and the man he is.

Music Junkie Press: If The Strive could put together their dream lineup, what three bands (living or dead, together or broken up) would you put on the bill with you?

Brendan: Paramore, Relient K, and even if it sounds cliche, The Beatles

Music Junkie Press: If you could take any song from a completely different genre and cover it and make it in your own style, what might that song be?

Brendan: Haha this is a really good question…I think it would be cool to give Ray Lomantagne’s “For The Summer” a try. It’s one of the most beautiful acoustic songs I’ve ever heard, but I really think we could put a rock spin on it and make that chorus HUGE.

Music Junkie Press: Who were some of the most influential musicians for you? What was your first concert you ever went to?

Brendan: For myself, Green Day, New Found Glory, and Cartel were huge parts of at least opening my eyes to the rock genre. I know all of us collectively really enjoy Paramore, Circa Survive, Relient K, and countless others. The first concert I ever went to was The American Idiot Tour with Green Day and My Chemical Romance opened. I was twelve. It was insane haha.

Music Junkie Press: If we could peak into your Ipod, what artist or song might we be most surprised at finding in there?

Brendan: Back in high school, I had a friend who didn’t have a way of burning a CD for one of his auditions for our end of the year choir concert. He wanted to audition with “I Believe I Can Fly”. My buddy Marcus has an amazing soulful voice and I knew he’d get into the show. Well long story short, it’s been in my iTunes for 4 years now, and every now and then we’ll be having a party or something and my phone will be on shuffle and out of nowhere R. Kelly comes on. Usually everyone stops what we’re doing and sings along hahaha.

Music Junkie Press: Lastly, what would you like to share with your fans and audience?

Brendan: First of all, thanks for reading this interview, and if you wanna keep up with us, our twitter is @wearethestrive. Our Instagram is @wearethestrive. Our facebook page is www.facebook.com/thestrive, and our official website where you can stream all of our music and check out merch is www.wearethestrive.com! Thanks for the interview, Music Junkie Press!-

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The Strive have just released the video for their new song, Keep Dreaming (available on Itunes here) and you can check it out here:

Make sure to visit The Strive social media sites so you can stay up to date on their latest news.

~ Marisol

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