An exclusive interview with hardcore band from America, OFFSIDES. Yes we interview Dannielle Allen the vocalist of the band. She will tell you about OFFSIDES’s story, she’s favorite bands, and also the direction of the band. We bring you this exclusive interview by Oki, just for you, read it carefully!

1. First of all, can you guys please state your names and what you do in the band?

I am Danielle Allen. I do vocals for the band.

2. When and where did the band from ?

The band started in the summer of 2006. The original guitarist and myself decided we wanted to start a band together, just have some fun. We really had no ambition for it. Originally I was playing bass, but the person we wanted to sing decided he wanted to play bass and before I knew it I was singing. We have had a lot of member changes over the bands lifespan till we reached the final solid line up we have now.

3. Where did the name OFFSIDES come from? Does it have any special meaning? And why you guys choose that name?

The original guitarist, drummer and I were sitting around after practice trying to come up with a name and having no success. We all played and love hockey and were kicking around the idea of just having a silly name since we couldn’t come up with anything good. Offsides got brought up and we all sprang up at the idea. It was silly, but also represented something beyond its meaning in sports. Its how we all feel in life and with a lot of the people around us. We are offsides.

4. So how long has the band been together? How did you meet?

We have been a band for 2 years. The current line up is kind of a long story. Basically, Charles filled in for our first tour, and ended up joining the band despite living so far away from everyone. Over this summer we toured with No Harm Done and some of their members filled in for Offsides. They also ended up loving playing in Offsides and have now become permanent members and great friends.

5. What is the bands songwriting process like?

The EP I guess shouldn’t really represent our normal writing process but it is the only example yet. We wrote that 2 days before recording. Our original guitarist had written the EP, but quit 2 days before recording taking his songs with him. So Charles stepped up and wrote 6 songs in 2 days which I then put lyrics to. It was pretty much the most insane experience ever that could have easily killed the band. From now on though, we will have the normal writing process. Charles will write out almost all the music, including most of the drums and bass then I will put lyrics to it.

6. What are some of your favorite bands?

We are all heavily into youth crew, love all the classics. For myself, Minor Threat, Gorilla Biscuits, Floorpunch, Kill Your Idols, Judge, Fired Up, Ambitions, Shelter and Grey Area are some of my favorites to name a few.

7. Living or dead, which three band would you like to play with?

I would say Kill Your Idols, Minor Threat and No Doubt.

8. You guys are on GET OUTTA TOWN RECORDS, a quality hardcore label, is it an easy environment to work with the record company, the producers and the label?

We are really lucky. Charles, our guitarist, runs Get Outta Town. So he always has the bands best interests in mind. He works insanely hard on the label and really pushes all the bands he has on there. We could not ask for a better label or person to work with.

9. Your vocalist is a girl and being a girl fronted band, do you ever get frustrated getting placed as the main focus of attention, even more so than the music?

Yes and no. When the band first started it really frustrated me and it still does to some extent but I have learned to have a positive mindset about it. Now I look at it as people may check out the band just because it is girlfronted and not because of the music, but that also means they are checking out the band. Maybe they will realize there is more to it then just a girl singing. Atleast that’s what I hope. I think my biggest frustration is our constant comparison to Fast Times. It is a compliment since Fast Times was an excellent band, but I honestly think we sound nothing like Fast Times musically. Both bands just happen to have female vocalists.

10. Your band has self-released a demo and then later a 7" split with RIPSHIT on Spicy Soup Productions. What are the differences between the band's mind set for these two releases versus the new EP It's A Struggle to Communicate coming out on Get Outta Town Records?

First off, we have a different guitarist writing the EP verse the first 2 releases. That alone caused the sound to change a lot. The EP really represents a new chapter for the band, we changed around the sound and members and it really is what I always wanted the band to sound like. We went for a much more clean youth crew sound, instead of a thrashier rough hardcore sound we previously had.

11. What are the plans for the band once the It's A Struggle To Communicate CD EP comes out?

We toured a lot this summer and are going to be playing the Ambitions last show coming up. Besides shows here and there, we are now writing for a full length hopefully coming out at the end of the winter.

12. Which songs do you perform most frequently? Do you ever play any covers? Do you have a set play list?

Our usual setlist is all of the songs off the EP and a cover or two. This past tour we covered In My Eyes- Take The Risk and Floorpunch- Let It Ride. We just decided that our next 2 covers will be a Civ and Inside Out cover.

13. What are your plans for releasing the new CD? Are you producing a large quantity of physical CDs or will you concentrate more on the digital route and hope that people buy the album on iTunes or eMusic or whatever?

The initial pressing of the CDs was 1000, which we thought would take a while to sell out of. As it turns out, we have sold almost all of them within a month of the CD coming out, which was a huge surprise. As far as releasing it, I hope people buy the CD in any form, but am just as happy with them downloading it or burning it. I love this EP so much and just want people to check it out.

14. Any plans in 2008?

2008 is going to consist of more shows and hopefully recording at the end of the year.

15. Do you want to play shows in Indonesia?

We would LOVE to! Probably not anytime soon because of finances and the band needing a little more push behind it to get there, but hopefully the future will bring us there.

16. What’s your ultimate direction for your band? Are you seeking fame and fortune?

I think my only ambition for this band is fun. All of us can agree, playing an Offsides set is probably the most fun we have had with a band and we want to keep doing it. We hope to release more songs as well, including a full length this winter. I would also love to tour as much as possible and tour everywhere. As far as fame and fortune go, that’s not exactly on the mind. I would love to be able to tour and not loose money out of pocket, but that’s really the only monetary gain I could think of.

17. How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with sample songs or a demo CD?

We have 2 songs up on our myspace www. myspace. com/offsidesct. You can also purchase the new EP on revhq, interpunk and I believe download it off itunes.

18. Last words for your fans in Indonesia?

Thanks for checking us out, it means more then you can imagine. Start a band, book a show, do a zine, get involved and have fun.

19. Contact?

offsidesct@gmail.com or www. myspace. com/offsidesct

20. Thanks for everything