An Incestuous Encounter called “Pretty Please”

A gang-of-four vintage musicians, the guilty-of-creativity-mob emerged from the very deep of Miami’s underground music scene with an alternative (up to date) New Wave sound: Pretty Please. A band that defines itself as “a result of an incestuous encounter of a few musical veterans” is releasing their first album at Awarehouse this Saturday, December 11th. Join the spectacle and enjoy a multimedia show were painters, musicians, photographers and videographers will be exhibiting live. Pretty please don’t miss this extravaganza!!

…and now, a sneak peack of Pretty Please’ heart, soul and musical philosophy discussed exclusively A Cappella with WFK.

WFK:: When, why and how did you start with Pretty Please band project?
Pretty Please :: Bianca Pupo and Juan Oña used to play together in a band called “The Brand.”  After touring the US, Bianca left to pursue her own project called “Outre Violet” with Didi Aragon, Farina Mackliff, and Alex Cordovi.  After “The Brand” days, Juan moved back to Miami from New York and called Bianca.  They both decided to start a new project, which would later be known as “Pretty Please.” Bianca brought in Farina and the band would remain a trio for about a year and half during which time they began to develop their sound.  Didi also moved back down from NY and was instantly added to our lineup.  During the recording process, Juan asked Bavie to come in a record some violin parts on a couple of tracks.  She fit in so well that she was asked to join the band, she accepted, and the quintet was now complete.

WFK:: Do you remember when and how you composed your first song together?
Pretty Please:: Yes, we remember very clearly.  The first song we composed together is called L.O.V.E.  We composed it when we just started jamming together. We were in the studio just messing around and then it happened.  The three of us (Bianca, Farina and Juan) were just so heart broken at that moment but we still believed strongly in love. We wrote this anthem about it, I guess to make us feel strong.

WFK:: You have claimed that Pretty Please “it is not just about the music (…) it is a whole artistic experience and expression.” How is this statement reflected in your first album?
Pretty Please:: We believe that this album is directly or indirectly influenced by our surroundings.  We are very fortunate in that some pretty amazing people (graphic designers, fashion designers, stylists, videographers, photographers, etc) with admirable talents have surrounded us and informed us.  Not to mention all the local musicians that have sprinkled their musical – magical stardust on our recordings.  We are the brainchild of Miami’s burgeoning Design District.  We’ll copy all of our album acknowledgments to the bottom of this document.

WFK::What are your expectations for Saturday night? 
Pretty Please:: Relief!  We have been working in this album for about 2 and half years, and pretty much we have done almost everything by ourselves.  Of course we could not have done it without the help of our friends. We are expecting it to be a very magical night. We are putting a lot of effort into the whole production.  As we mentioned before, many local musicians contributed to this record and this will be the only time that we play everything on the record, the way it was recorded, all LIVE! Joining us to make that happen will be Ferny Coipel (humbert), Jorge Gonzalez (plains), Jerry Morris, and more.
Most importantly we are expecting awesomeness!  We aim to turn every head.  Those who don’t attend will wish they did.

WFK:: What do you think about Miami’s underground musical scene?
Pretty Please:: Although it is getting better little by little, we think it could be a lot better.  The underground scene is very small and it does not have enough support from venues and from the Miami people.   The “club” scene is what governs this city at this moment but we are not going to stop fighting. Miami is plagued by a logistical inconvenience and bad taste.  As long as the masses here keep flocking to booty shaking reggaeton parties, us musicians will be struggling to get people to our shows.  We blame all this on MTV and commercial radio who perpetually shoves tasteless crap down everyone’s throat. Another thing that helps any local scene thrive is the help of nationals coming through it.  If you’re a touring band, in a van, on a budget, it’s just not worth the6 to 8 hours to trek all the way down here then back up.

WFK:: Why people should listen to ‘Pretty Please’?
Pretty Please:: Because our music is a reflection of our feelings of love, heartbreaks, passion, magic, anger, disappointment, friendship, etc.  I think everyone has felt and can relate to one of those feelings at some moment in their lives. It’s as real and as honest as it gets.  And we feel that honesty and sincerity is what we don’t get enough of these days.

–

WFK Music Quiz::

Miami tastes like: Sea salt, lime, and Cuban coffee
What inspires you? Love, heartbreak, lust, sadness, and the universe
What’s your heaven like? Underwater. A world where we can live off our music.
Cassette, CD, vinyl or mp3? Vinyl all the way!
The first record ever that you remember buying: The Greatest hits of Bo Diddley.The last record that you purchased or downloaded: El Trio Los Panchos (Vinyl.)
Pretty Please’s top 5 music wise (song, artist or genre): The Breeders, The Pixies, Of Montreal, That Dog, The Beatles, The Beach Boys.
What song, from other artist, do you admire to the point you wished you have composed it yourself? The Beatles. Because their songs can be relatively simple –we don’t understand how they can still give us goose bumps.
You would kill to play in the same stage with: David Bowie because he is David Bowie
Freedom in your own words: Music, daydreaming, making love

–

Pretty Please Fact Sheet :::

Name: Pretty Please
Years Active: 2007- present
Members:
Didi Aragon- guitar, vox
Bavie Grafals- violin, synths, percussion, vox
Ana Farina Mackliff- bass, vox
Juan Oña- drums, sequences, screams
Discography: Pretty Please – 2010
Website: prettypleasemusic.net