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Interview: Live Well Releases New Video for 'Neck Tattoos'



Thank you for chatting with Music Update Central! What's the inspiration behind the music video for Neck Tattoos? Thanks so to y’all as well! Max (co-director, guitar and backup vocals) loves to approach music videos with an outlook of putting a “new spin” on an “old trick”. For “Neck Tattoos” Paul (lead singer and guitarist) wanted to do a one shot music video which was our fun take on what is a standard “day in the life party video”. We also wanted to convey the story of the song in an interesting way, so we thought the one take, a little all cast moving tricks, tricky camera movements, and lighting (done by Will Armstrong) would be great. Another fun part was using a female lead actress as “Neck Tattoos” doesn’t use any gender pronouns in the lyrics. We really want to present any of our creative efforts in a diverse way, whether with race and or gender. Stephen Emmerick (Co-director, filmer and editor) suggested actress Katrina Abreu, who ended up being the perfect fit and after we kicked around the general concept over a few sessions, a month later we went just for it. About 20 friends/ fans came out and had them running all over the house to make some of the sequences work but we feel it all paid off and hope y’all do too.

You're releasing your debut album in 2019. What's the message me behind the project? What are you looking most forward too? There isn’t any clear cut message across the songs but more the project as a whole is a showcase of what a group of friends can do in under a year when they choose to support each other’s dreams. These songs are very personal to Paul and about aspects of his life. They carry messages we can all resonate with, so it’s taken a certain amount of care to make sure those stories in each track are preserved and presentable. Paul and Max made a list of their favorite songs that Paul had written over the years and ones that they thought would transfer best to a band setting. 16 songs were on that list and 13 have been recorded with 12 making it on “Perfectly Temporary”. I think we are all honestly just so excited to share all the songs with our friends and fans (who we just consider our friends).

What can fans expect in the future? Upcoming tours? Special releases? We have a bunch of stuff cooked up! More music videos, another EP already in the works, a huge blowout release show in Westchester New York and also some harder conversations that we feel need to be said in our music. And also us, having a ton of fun with whoever is down to come.

How did the formation of LIVE WELL come to be? In 2016 Paul interviewed Max for his podcast “Dear Stranger (and Friend)“ where he goes through his Facebook, contact and other social media lists and as an hour conversation with someone he hasn’t spoken to in years or barely ever. After being on the episode Max and Paul forged a friendship that continued on. In 2018 after a bit of planning Max wanted to take Paul and his podcast on a month long road trip doing interviews with strangers in person in a mini school bus Max had renovated. On the trip Max would sing along to Paul’s songs and asked him a few times if he would be interested in starting a band when they got back. It took some convincing but in early 2018 the two begin arranging for a full band. The band name originated from matching tattoos Paul and Max got on the road trip. “Live Well and have enough“ is a quote that Paul’s mother says and the two resonate with. Neil Stafford, Max’s roommate, would hear the two jamming and one day they asked if he would play drums. Max was telling Matt LaPerche one night at a party about the new venture and invited him to come jam. After a couple sessions the chemistry between the 4 was very apparent. The following week MATT brought in Luis Castro who was an instant fit and the unit was solidified. Just over a month later in late April, Live Well released their “first demos” EP, played their first show and have been going ever since.

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