1) Your first 7inch EP was released from Nemesis Records, which released other bands like Insted, Vision, who I think are very hard core punk bands. What was the reason of your decision to sign Nemesis Records?
Yes, Nemesis Records is best known for their hardcore records but they actually had a very diverse catalog. Just before Gameface, they had released some of my favorite indie rock/melodic punk records. Pitchfork (John Reis and Rick Froberg’s band before Rocket From The Crypt and Drive Like Jehu) and Reason To Believe (who later became Sense Field). Those were the bands that drew us to Nemesis. The way we connected with the label was interesting. The owner of Nemesis, Frank Harrison, worked at a local record shop. Gameface had just recorded a demo cassette and we brought some copies to the shop to sell. After a few weeks we got a phone call from Frank. He told us that he had sold all of the tapes and asked us if we wanted to release a 7” on his label. At first, I thought he was joking. I didn’t think that Nemesis Records would want a pop/rock band on their label, but he seemed to really like us. It may not have been the perfect fit but it was a great decision for us because being on Nemesis introduced our band to the punk/hardcore scene. Not everyone liked us, but because of that first 7” we found our niche and found fans that embraced us.
2) I was wondering what sort of nuance you were trying to convey from the phrase “Orange County Power Pop” on back side of your very first EP sleeve. Did you have more awareness toward Power Pop rather than Pop Punk?
That’s a good question. The truth is that there is a subtle difference between the musical genres of pop punk and power pop. Although Gameface comes from a pop punk scene, our original influences came from other places. We never pretended to be a punk band. We love Bad Religion, Descendents, Hüsker Dü and all of the great pop punk bands, but the music that shaped us comes more from rock and power pop…Tom Petty, Generation X, Cheap Trick, The Alarm, Green Day, The Plimsouls, Goo Goo Dolls, Gin Blossoms and a band called Candy. We covered their song ‘Whatever Happened To Fun’ early in our career.
3) Please tell us the band who were close to your band and band you have played with a lot. Also what was Orange county scene like at that time?
The early 90s Orange County scene was great because it was very diverse. We were fortunate to have played we so many bands with different styles. We played with punk bands, pop bands, hardcore bands, ska bands, rock bands. We played with No Doubt and Reel Big Fish and Sublime. We also played with The Offspring, Pennywise and Face To Face. I would have to say that Farside was the orange County band that we played with most. We had a great friendship with them. They were similar in that they came into the punk/hardcore scene but also played melodic rock music. They were a great band and are still one of my favorites today.
