Upstate - Thaddeus Costa

On February 27th, I arrived at a dingy warehouse

Instagram- upstate.band

in the middle of a random neighbourhood, to support my friend's show. It was crowded, but with a charming energy and a community of kids who all know each other through their love for music. The opening band was a psychedelic rock band called Upstate, who had only performed live at open mics in the past. The lead singer and guitarist, Thaddeus Costa, easily captured the crowd with a musical introduction of the band.

During the show, Costa made sure his audience stayed energised and hyped. It was the perfect opening for the night.

After the set ended, I was able to interview Thaddeus outside the venue, which we had talked about prior to the show. I was waiting to ask questions as he talked to other people around him. He then said to me, "When are you going to ask the questions?" which I thought was funny because I was waiting for him. He then said, "You gotta use your voice, and speak up." Quickly showing his confidence and ability to give that confidence to others. I took that as good advice for future interviews. He quickly showed himself to be an aphorist and a great interviewee with his creative and direct answers. I first asked Thaddeus what introduced him to music.

"My dad used to listen to a lot of CDs, and I used to think a lot of them were annoying because he played them so much, they kind of became redundant. But as time went on, more and more of those songs started creeping away into my personal life. and I started to find a real beauty in them." Thaddeus stated first, showing how his father had a role in introducing him to music. He then explained how his first instrument was a bass guitar because of his inspiration from John Deacon from Queen.

"I got myself a classical guitar, and I started learning a lot of Simon and Garfunkel on it by ear. Then after that, I got myself an electric because Eddie Van Halen just had like a one hundred dollar Squire Stratocaster from Amazon."'

I then asked Thaddeus who his biggest inspirations were, to which he answered, "A big songwriter that's inspired me right now is Aaron Freeman, people better know him as Gene Ween. And I really enjoy a lot of his stuff. Very poetic, it just hits deep." Thaddeus had mentioned the band Ween a couple of times during the interview and covered some Ween songs in their setlist. It is clear that he is fascinated by the band and takes a lot of inspiration.

When I asked Thaddeus, "What separates you from the other artists here?", his answer showed that he was confident in Upstate's ability to outshine.

"We try to bring a lot of real musicianship to our music and also just a brotherhood." Is what he said, also showing his relationship with his bandmates. His support doesn't stop at his bandmates; his biggest supporter is his mom.

"Sometimes I feel like I push her away because I try to be independent, but she really makes the dream happen and gives me the words I need, and I love her, man. I should tell her that more."

I had asked Thaddeus, "If you could compare Upstate's future to any current or past musician's career, who do you think you'll compare to?" And he started explaining how the band came together, then lastly added, "We're kind of like Ween, just stuck in the basement, making bangers, you know?"

Thaddeus mentions the best musical advice he's been given was from Eddie Van Halen.

"I think Eddie Van Halen said it best: keep playing, man. People are like, I wish I were good at guitar, I wish I could be as good as you, I wish I could play these shows. And it's all in the palm of your hand. quite literally, when you pluck the strings to when you, you know, you're writing emails to venues on how to play there and get gigs. So you just got to keep playing, man. And if you really love it, you'll keep falling in love with it."

What's next for upstate?

For 17-year-old Thaddeus, he is heading to Grand Valley State in the fall. He didn't mention anything else, but it is clear that he doesn't plan on giving up on the band, and we all hope that they continue rising to greatness.

After talking with Thaddeus, I was happy to interview a virtuoso like him, who is truly passionate and in love with music, for my first Interview. Thaddeus is set to do great things and impact the music scene as his cupidity for musical success leads him.

To end this post as Thaddeus ended the interview,

" Up, over and out."

-Willow Mae

https://www.upstateband.com/