IN CONVERSATION WITH BEEN STELLAR

By: Mia Romanoff

Having toured the U.K. and opened for artists like Shame and Beabadoobe in The States, New York City based band Been Stellar is at the beginning of a major breakthrough. The five-piece formed during their Freshman year at NYU when high school friends, Sam Slocum (vocals) and Skylar Knapp (guitar) met Nando Dale (guitar), Nico Brustein (Bass), and Laila Wayans (drummer) on campus.  

Though they started out in university playing the local scene, when the pandemic hit, Been Stellar was able to take the time to rework their sound and approach to music. Emerging with a clear vision for their future, Been Stellar has spent the past few years making music that manages to be what everybody wants to hear, despite not being written for the trends.

Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to sit down with the band to talk about what they’ve been up to this past year. The five of them showed up as a pack, laughing as they gathered outside the Brooklyn coffee shop where we agreed to meet. Even in a large group they managed to be approachable, where one would expect to find an impenetrable closeness they were welcoming and open. As we sat down and began the interview it quickly became apparent that the most important thing for Been Stellar is making art they believe in, no matter what others say. 

Despite the music industry’s wide reaching declaration that the New York music scene is back from the dead, Been Stellar is separating themselves from the wave, making a point to be independent from the trend. Though they do acknowledge the heightened attention on new music coming out of the city right now, when asked if they feel pressure to seize the extra attention that comes with the newest New York boom, Slocum responded “we try to make a real point out of not being too worried about what is popular at the moment. I think maybe, maybe a few years ago we would've had a different answer, but I think one of the best things we've been able to do for ourselves internally is to kind of shut that out a little bit. And I think like … that was like the first real step towards creating something that was very organic to us.” 

It is this self-assurance that permeates their post-pandemic music. On their eponymous EP, every song holds its own but perhaps more importantly, their songs aren’t begging you to like them. There’s no reliance on vague buzz word lyrics or overly digestible guitar riffs. Instead, the wide-ranging songs move from hazy, distortion filled ballads to tracks pushed by gripping vocals and loud drums. The resulting EP plays into a sense of chaos, yet somehow manages to maintain cohesion. Listening to their discography, it is no surprise that the band finds their inspiration from all over. 

Even with disparate listening habits, Been Stellar is able to create musical continuity through their devotion to collaboration. Brunstein emphasized the importance of teamwork in the process of songwriting noting that “it becomes a lot more important to everyone in the band … it also just challenges you, like what you think of the song, what it is, ‘cause like then you’ve got four other brains being like, no, the song should be like this.”

What is truly at the root of Been Stellar’s success is that as a collective they know who they are and they’re not going to change for others, a refreshing approach that’s increasingly rare in an industry where social media and soundbites reign king. Luckily, Been Stellar has been able to find support for their unapologetic approach to the industry after signing to So Young Records in April of last year. The experience of signing seems to have been overwhelmingly positive with Knapp describing the relationship with So Young: “it opened a lot of doors for us as to playing over in the UK, but also just like, the friendship that we have with them, it's just, it's a very honest thing.” 

Coming off an exciting year, Been Stellar shows no signs of slowing down. In addition to opening for Fontaines D.C. in Chicago, Milwaukee, and LA later this summer and fall, Been Stellar is set to record the new music they’ve been working on. With momentum like this, we’ll surely be hearing a lot more than background whispers in the next year.

Been Stellar will also be returning to the U.K. and Europe this November, so make sure to catch them at Pitchfork London and Pitchfork Paris.