Erica Rose Interview

 

Shock Treatment: How and when did you decide to pick up an instrument and gain the desire to start learning to play and write music?  Erica Rose: I had dreams of being a rock n roller since I was a little kid. I technically started (or, at least, tried) to start learning guitar in second grade. However, I didn’t have the patience and my folks decided to stop wasting the little money they had on lessons when they walked in on a lesson where I had the guitar on top of my head and was attempting to play that way! I picked up guitar again in high school. I’d go over to a family friend’s house. He’d have me choose songs I wanted to learn and show me how to play them. That’s how I really learned. I believe my first song was “Can’t Explain.” Shock Treatment: Tell me about Appaloosa. How did you meet them and decide to form the band? Erica Rose: I started Appaloosa while I was pregnant and right after I’d moved back to Seattle after about six years in NYC. Since I was a teenager, and started playing in bands, I’ve always played in at least two bands. I was terrified of not playing in a band after having kids, but realized I needed to be much more intentional about how I did it (and work that much harder). I wrote the first 5-7 songs after I’d come back to Seattle (fairly late into my pregnancy). I wanted to start my ‘dream’ band; a mix of power pop, glam and tough rock n roll..and that was the beginning of Appaloosa. I had the songs ready to go and began the process of starting the band right after having my kids. It took a long time to find people that wanted to be in a band with me. There was (unfortunately) an opinion that because I’d just had twins, there was no way I could possible devote myself to a band (not true!). Eventually, I found the right group of people. There’ve been a couple lineup changes over the years, but Leif has always been in the band, we work really well together, he’s totally like a brother. The current lineup with Ian on drums and Kevin on bass rules!

Shock Treatment: Appaloosa released a super limited 7” last year with one fantastic song (Of Human Bondage) and another killer tune on your Bandcamp (Get It Together Kid) both mastered by Kurt Bloch. First off, how was your experience working with Kurt Bolch and as an inquiring fan, are these songs part of an upcoming LP? Erica Rose: Thank you! Working with Kurt is the very best! He’s been so supportive ..and a true friend. I’ve recorded a bunch of solo acoustic songs with him as well as Ragged School songs and it’s always a blast. We get everything done efficiently, but there’s always so much laughter and jokes. These Appaloosa song will, hopefully, be a part of an upcoming LP! Or, that’s the goal! Shock Treatment: Now I’d like to move on to Erica Rose and The Ragged School. Tell me about how this project came to be. Erica Rose: Erica Rose and the Ragged School came about because of the Jacobites! For me the Jacobites are life and death; everything. I’d done a Jacobites cover band for Halloween in 2022. After this, me and one of my friends in the band decided to start a troubadour style project ..and I started writing. Unfortunately, that project didn’t work, but I kept writing songs in that vein; Jacobites meets Nico. I started recording them for fun. My initial thought was to bring the songs to Appaloosa, but after giving that a try, I realized they weren’t Appaloosa songs. My best friend, Pete, encouraged me to start another band devoted to these songs (he plays drums in the Ragged School). Since that point, we haven’t looked back. Shock Treatment: I got your solo LP you put out on No Front Teeth Records in 2024 and I was totally blown away. Quite a departure from Appaloosa! What inspired you to write these songs? Were these songs you’ve had written for a while? Erica Rose: I started writing these songs after a Jacobites cover band I did in 2022. They’ve always been my favorite, but I’d never written like that before. The attempted troubadour project was the initial inspiration. These are all new songs. I was immediately inspired to record them. The first record is a solo project, but it’s evolved into a band which is a dynamic I truly love. It feels like one more evolution; Appaloosa was the first (well, sort of second) band I’d ever tried singing for, this felt like the next step both vocally and musically. Before I started singing, I didn’t know how to articulate these sorts of songs. Now I feel like I have that vocabulary..but always trying to get better and push myself.

Shock Treatment: And speaking of your solo record, tell me how I Knew Buffalo Bill came into your life and your decision to cover Nikki Sudden’s “Gallery Wharf” Erica Rose: It came into my life when I got into the Jacobites! We were going to cover it in that Jacobites/Jacobites adjacent cover band, but ended up not playing it. I love that song so much, it felt so natural to bring it in. I also have a cover of Dave Kusworth’s Orphan (All His Life). Always up for a Jacobites/Sudden/Kus cover!

Shock Treatment: Can you tell me about your newest project and collaboration with Marco in Self Incrimination? Erica Rose: Self Incrimination has been an insanely fun project to work on. I’ve known Marco through No Front Teeth; he put out a couple Appaloosa 7”s and my solo record. We’ve chatted over the years about music and family and such. Last summer he asked me if I’d consider/ want to write vocals/sing for a project he’d begun to write music for. He sent me the songs and I thought they were AMAZING. It was a challenge because I’d never written only vocals before (my songwriting started with just guitar and evolved into guitar and vocals), but it was a great challenge and I had so much fun going through my poetry looking for ideas/inspiration and then turning those words into vocal lines. It’s been so cool to do a project with someone who lives in a different part of the world..to send music/ideas back and forth. I’m beyond stoked on the record. Hoping to do another!

Shock Treatment: So Erica, I once heard someone say that there are several life lessons you learn by being in a band. What is one you feel you learned this way that you still value to this day? Erica Rose: Hmm, that’s a hard one! I can’t imagine NOT being in a band, it’s been a constant in my life for at least 20 years now. While there might not be one specific lesson I’ve learned, being in a band feels like the most natural thing in the world to me. Shock Treatment: What lies ahead in 2026 for you? Any Self Incrimination live shows planned?? Erica Rose: Both Appaloosa and Ragged School plan to record more songs (both aim to have LPs soon!). Both bands  hope to tour and get out of Seattle more as well. I’d love to do some Self Incrimination live shows! Though, we’ve yet to plan anything. We’ll see! ..and I’m always writing new songs!

Shock Treatment: Where can people go to listen to your music and buy your records?

Erica Rose: They can listen on bandcamp:
ericarose.bandcamp.com
Appaloosaseattle.bandcamp.com
Selfincrimination.bandcamp.com

..as well as other streaming platforms!

For Self Incrimination, the records can be snagged through No Front Teeth (or people can hit me up on the gram: @airica666)

Cheers!