Alternative Music Reimagined: IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ

If you’re on the lookout for a completely new genre, IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ has just what you’re looking for.

Meet IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ: Felipe, Ethan, and Carter, three guys on a mission to make music something completely different than what you have heard before. Starting long before the depths of quarantine, the group’s roots lie in a high school battle of the bands.

According to Ethan and Carter, this first musical venture “sucked”. Although it wasn’t exactly the performance they would have given today, the two of them recognize how important it was to the eventual formation of their current group.

A few years after this first performance, Carter and Felipe had tried out several different bands with several of their friends. However, once the trio all got together, something must have clicked as the three have been playing continuously for just over two years.

The perfect musical combination for the group places Felipe on vocals and guitar, Ethan on drums, and Carter on bass and back up vocals. Initially, the group started drafting ideas and experimenting with different sounds at “Lil Audrey’s” a former gym and spa for women in Ogden. The closed down gym featured royal purple carpets, blank white walls, and even an olympic sized swimming pool. This location was where many of the band's songs were first imagined and rehearsed.

After the group lost access to Lil Audrey’s as a rehearsal place, they moved to “The Unit”, a storage unit in an undisclosed location. The infamous unit, or their “Sound stage and dojo” is an all purpose venue, practice area, and hangout spot for the band. With no one around for a mile or so, it works great for playing loud music and practicing whenever it’s convenient.

The group’s latest single, “Signal” is just starting to gain traction among the Utah music community. The song itself is inspired by a variety of artists, as each member of the band has a unique musical background.

Some of Ethans main inspirations lay in the grunge and rock scene, with Taylor Hawkins and Dave Grohl as major

influences.

Carter is inspired by early 2000s punk, but also by a lot of jazz and modern hip hop artists. Several of his all time favorites include Thundercat, Mac Miller, and Marcus Miller.

Felipe on the other hand is most inspired by music from the 60s and 70s. “My dad showed me a Beatles song,” he said, “that’s where it all started.”

In the group’s Weberstock performance, I could clearly see how they managed to blend such unique influences into their alternative fusion style of music. Playing their fan favorite songs and several unique covers, the Weberstock crowd was completely energized by the band’s performance.

My favorite cover of theirs was a unique mashup of Weezer’s “Say it Ain’t So” and Pixie’s “Where is My Mind?”. When they first started playing, I thought it was going to be a regular cover of “Where is My Mind” which isn’t a bad thing, but I was totally caught off guard when the song switched over to “Say it Ain’t So” during the chorus! Everyone in the crowd was singing along during both parts of the cover.

During this same performance, I was impressed by their song “It Gets Better”, and their current most popular one “Slow Motion”. I’d say my favorite song by IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ, however, is “Beach Bum” which was not featured in this show.

Anyone interested in seeing IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ live should check out their upcoming show at Kilby Court on May 26th. They’re playing this nearly sold out show with The Button Ups and The GoodFellas, and it’s expected to be a show you won’t want to miss.

Stream IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ’s music on Spotify and Apple Music

Check out them out on Instagram here @imaginary.friendz

Get Tix for their May 26th Show here!

*All photos in this article are from IMAG!NARY FRIENDZ (thanks guys!) :)