Artist Spotlight: Girls W. Bush
Hearing that three of the most entertaining, talented and hilarious people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting decided to start a band out of the blue was pretty unexpected, but probably shouldn’t have been considering the culprits.
Made up of vocalist Mo Aljaser (24), drummer Daniel Scott (23) and guitarist Nash Winner (21), the trio had no intentions of starting a band originally. Mo and Daniel have been best friends for years and already run a comedy YouTube channel together. Nash, who returned from Southern California not too long ago and is soon moving back, says he got introduced to the punk scene out there.
“Girls W. Bush literally started with just a random jam session,” Daniel says. “Me and Nash were just fucking around and we both hit this thing at the same time, and we thought it was cool, and then Mo just goes on top of it, just starts improvising lyrics, and Cheddar Bob was the first song.”
They wrote and had the entire song finished in about an hour.
“And then we started coming up with songs by literally saying, ‘I’ve always wanted to write a song called…’” Daniel says, and that’s how Blue’s Clues was born.
As for the other songs they’ve written in the weeks they’ve been together, Mo, whose stage name is Buddy Crystal, says they usually agree on a general vibe they’re aiming for. After that he’ll start writing the lyrics, and together they make the song whole.
“Chocolate Drop was my passion project because I fucking love black women,” Mo admits. “You can quote me on that.”
If he’s not writing the lyrics at their jam sessions, he’s usually writing at three in the morning, after thinking over what they talked about and finding inspiration in the others’ sounds.
“As musicians, we’re just a big influence of everyone we enjoyed,” Mo says. “And then when three people have different taste in music and come together and clash really well, that’s why we make the music that we make.”
Erratic in the most lively and creative way, Daniel calls their particular genre “southwestern punk.”
“It’s like The Doors meet The White Stripes at the beach and just start jamming,” Mo explains.
Back before they made things more official, they were at a bar drinking when Nash came up with the name Girls W. Bush and it stuck with him.
“How can you make George W. Bush better?” Daniel inquires. “If he was a chick.”
Upon asking if they had any alternatives, Nash pulled out his phone and produced a list of “jam group” names they had thought of prior to the formation of the band, including Pulp-Non Fiction, No Kooks, Taxidermy Taco (also the name of a song currently in the works), and Scumfucks.
“We’re so creative and we can literally get something done every time we’re together.” Nash says.
It took the trio only about three weeks to complete and record their six song, 18 minute set.
“Me and Daniel have been best friends since like 6th grade, and we always talked about how cool it would be to be in a band, but we’ve never really been in the music scene like that,” Mo says. “We enjoyed acting and screenwriting, and things like that, so we’ve been on the film side of the arts.”
He says that making music has helped him realize that he doesn’t just enjoy creating in one type of way, but enjoys creating in general. Daniel and Nash expressed that being in the band has helped them move past recent hardships, and they all agree that it has changed their life for the better.
“When you start doing something you love, and you really care about it, everything else just kind of falls into place in other aspects of your life,” Mo says.
As for hitting the recording studio, the boys say they’re looking around for the right fit but aren’t in a hurry to settle on one right away.
“We are a punk band, you know, so we don’t want anything to be glossy; we don’t want it to be overproduced.” Daniel says. “I love the idea of just not making anything perfect.”
“We really just wanna plug in and record and be done,” Nash adds.
Until then, they’re recording demos on their phone, and they have two released as of right now (check the links below!)
“It’s like if you were to find a record of some random artist on Spotify that you loved and just wanted to share with somebody, that’s what it is,” Daniel says. “I like our music, and want to show it to people.”
Their first house show is Friday, February 16th at 9pm (doors at 8pm) in Garland and you can send me a message for more details if you’re interested in coming! It’s 18+ and will be a great time with great people.
“We’re not gonna hold back so we don’t expect anyone else to hold back. Just don’t break my shit,” Daniel jokes (kinda, not really). “It would be cool to turn people on to this type of music, I think it’s important.”
They’ll also be performing at The Point in Allen on Tuesday the 20th at 9 pm.
Watching them live, it’s apparent that they definitely aren’t holding back and have the time of their life while performing. Their second to last rehearsal before the show, the boys gave it their all and managed to break two guitar strings and a drumstick.
“There’s no right or wrong way to play music,” Nash says. “Fuck the kooks and just play.”
But there’s no doubt they’ve created something special. Even with their own very distinct styles, Mo, Daniel and Nash have managed to seamlessly come together to create music that is fun and crazy and entirely infectious all at the same time, and I for one am very excited to see where they go from here.
Mo has one last thing he’d like to add: “Come to our show, get fucked by our music. Girls bring W’s and bring your bushes.”
Listen to their demos now: Chocolate Drop | I Spy
Check them out on twitter: Mo | Daniel | Nash
& I hope to see you guys at the show!
Need some inspiration or something to listen to?
Nash’s influences and favorite artists include Black Lips, Minor Threat, Misfits, The Stooges, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, and The Rolling Stones
Mo’s influences and favorite artists include Kid Cudi, Jimi Hendrix, The Doors, AC/DC, System of a Down, Linkin Park, WZRD, and NERD
Daniel’s influences and favorite artists include 68, Deftones, Milo, Flying Lotus, Mono/Poly, The Gaslamp Killer, Hail the Sun, Circa Survive, and System of a Down