Q: Siblings Max and Alex Karafillis make up the band Beyond Chaotic..when did both of you start seriously thinking about forming the band?
Alex: It kinda just happened. We went to a rock band camp one summer. They put 6 of us together to form a band. We played an actual gig at a club after the camp ended and did so well that one of the parents asked us if we wanted to stick together and keep things going. We were like, “sure”!
Max: We didn’t (hahaha). It all happened during a rock band camp. After it was over, we all decided to stay together.
Q: You guys seem to play a wide variety of instruments. Max: guitar, drums, vocals; Alex: violins, piano, guitar….Which is your favorite instrument to play & what instrument would you love to learn?
Alex: My favorite instrument right now is the bass, so lucky me.. I was going to say I’d love to learn the bassoon (don’t ask) but if I ever get serious about something else, it will probably be the drums.
Max: Drums were my first instrument and are still my favorite. If I were going to pick up something new, it might be the saxophone.
Q: Tampa Bay seems like a cool place to live. You have great weather, beaches, Busch Gardens, water parks and now our Tom Brady. What do you like to do for fun when not performing/writing music?
Alex: I like to sit in my room, watch movies, FaceTime with my friends – because we are all too lazy to actually go out and do stuff. When we have the energy, though, we try to day trip it to Busch Gardens (if we can find a ride)
Max: Hanging with my friends, playing video games and going to Busch Gardens.
Q: If you each had to a choose a musician you’d love to perform with, who would it be and why?
Alex: Alive or dead? I’m guessing alive? Billie Joe Armstrong because Green Day has always been one of my favorite bands.
Max: This is a tough one. There are a lot of famous musicians I’d like to meet but to play with? I’d have to say Evan Thibeault. There’s something about being on stage with Evan — he does his thing — I do mine — and man, it just clicks. ***
Q: In 2019, you released the album, This Can’t Be Good, which ironically describes 2020 perfectly but the song, You Don’t Even Know (Kung Fu) recently won 1st place in the Teen Category at the Unsigned Only competition in September. What was your first reactions when you found out you won? This obviously gives the band much more exposure..
Alex: I was excited, but I never really thought we had a chance…There were so many people, and so many great songs, that it didn’t seem possible.
Max: It kinda freaked me out. The song was actually a finalist in both the Teen and overall Rock category (where it got an Honorable Mention) and I never thought it would win either one..there were just so many good songs out there, and music is so subjective to begin with.
5 questions; 1 answer from each of you.
A: Nirvana or Foo Fighters
Alex: Nirvana; Max: Foo Fighters
B: Gibson, Fender or Yamaha
Alex: Fender; Max: Fender
C: Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime
Alex: Netflix; Max: Pass
D: Snapchat, Tik Tok or Instagram
Alex: Instagram; Max: Instagram
E: Lumpia, Pancit or Chicken Adobo
Alex: What?; Max: What? Seriously, what? ****
Q: What’s up next for the band and where can fans find your music?
Alex: I have no idea, we’re kind of just winging it. You can find our music almost anywhere online.
Max: More new music (we’re writing at the moment). Our stuff is already on Spotify, Amazon, Apple, ITunes, Deezer, SoundCloud, Pandora, you name it. There’s a list of more than 30 services on our website, https://www.beyondchaotic.com/ but that just what we’re aware of.
*** Evan Thibeault, Max’s drum teacher (Max no longer takes lessons) and instructor at the band camp the kids attended. Evan Thibeault on drums
**** I thought I read that the family was Filipino so one of the 5 questions was asking about Filipino food dishes.. I obviously was incorrect, hence the confusion from the band.
Thanks to Alex and Max for speaking with me..if you have a chance to listen to them on their numerous streaming outlets, please do so.. very talented teens, who I am sure will be hearing more from in the near future..
Up next, we have interviews from Hellcats, Overcoats and more I’m working on. If you have a new song being released or would like to get your band some recognition, please send me a msg on IG and we can set something up. I’m all about helping indie artists promote their music in anyway I can.
Until then, I’m Your Music Stylist – Linda Dias.
Music To Your Ears 