Two years after their debut, UT student-rock band West 22nd went from performing at frat parties to receiving an invitation to perform at Austin City Limits this year. The band’s achievements include performing at South by Southwest, releasing their single, “Sunburns,” which passed one million Spotify streams, and touring across the United States. The Daily Texan spoke with Logan Madsen, singer and finance senior, and Jet Beck, bass player and radio-television-film junior, about ACL and future plans.
The Daily Texan: What do you hope people feel when watching West 22nd at ACL?
Logan Madsen: I hope people express themselves, enjoy the music and move around. When I’m performing I try to interact (and) talk to (the audience), as if I’m talking to a friend.
DT: If someone thought, “Why should I go to West 22nd’s ACL set?,” what would you tell them?
LM: I would say that we’re just a bunch of guys that love music and we’re authentic to ourselves.
Jet Beck: Also, we’re a local Austin band so that can appeal to the local Austin people. (And,) we’re all UT students, so we can gravitate towards supporting our local Austin, UT student band.
DT: Do you guys have advice for UT students wanting to start a band or other creative pursuit?
LM: Working hard is the number one thing. We played over 55 shows last year (and) cut our teeth, trying to get reps and figure out who we are as a live band. It’s an industry where you can get down on yourself so easily… It’s about having (a) positive perspective and working hard.
JB: Put yourself out there. You can be the best musician ever in your bedroom, but no one’s gonna know until you actually play.
DT: Has your time in Austin influenced the music in any way?
LM: I would say so. We all came to Austin … because it’s such an amazing music city. There’s so many big artists that have come out of here and going around venues, seeing new artists is amazing. Being local to Austin and seeing all that growth and music has influenced us a lot, and there’s no other place we’d rather be.
JB: There’s so many genres of music here. There’s bands I never thought I’d be into that I’ve come and seen live in Austin, and I’m like, ‘Oh, I guess I like this type of music now.’” We’re getting these different types of music influencing us and I think it’s a great way to grow our sound and branch out.
DT: One year from now, what do you hope for West 22nd?
LB: Our goal (for) the next year is putting out a full length album (and) promoting it. Then we’re going to be hitting the road and doing a tour over the summer across America … playing music and hopefully people will connect with it.
JB: It’s crazy how the band’s been able to grow in such a short amount of time. We’re doing things that I never thought we could have done. We’re playing ACL … so the sky’s the limit.
