Weekly Playlist #23: Vic Fuentes of Pierce The Veil takes over

This week, the AP editorial staff hand the playlist reins over to PIERCE THE VEIL frontman Vic Fuentes. We chatted with the singer on a day off from the Spring Fever Tour to find out what he’s been listening to lately.
 

Which song in your music library has the most plays?

VIC FUENTES: My favorite album is the self-titled Third Eye Blind album. The first song on that album is called “Losing A Whole Year,” so I’m assuming that would be the most played on my iTunes because I still love that record. It hasn’t lost its touch yet.

What’s your biggest guilty pleasure?

I listen to that Ed Sheeran “The A Team” song a lot. I love that song. It’s super, like, sappy and stuff, but I think that guy’s got an amazing voice. That’s definitely one I listen to with headphones.

What have you been listening to the most on the Spring Fever Tour?

I’ve actually been listening to that new Bring Me The Horizon record [Sempiternal] a lot. I love finding music when you get really bored of all your old stuff. That record came out, and I was really stoked on it. That first song, “Can You Feel My Heart,” is pretty amazing. On that record, and also when we toured with them on Soundwave in Australia, it seems like Oli and the band have a new fire to them, and it seems like they really are into their music and really proud of it. You can kind of see the emotion, and you can hear it in their songs and in the lyrics. I really like what they’ve done.

What song gets you most psyched up before a show?

I think for years, we’ve been playing that Slipknot song “Psychosocial” on the bus before we play. At least once a week, that song will be on before we go on. It’s just a super-pump-you-up, start-moshing-on-the-bus [song].

Moshing on the bus?
Yeah, it’s that kind of vibe.

That sounds dangerous.
[Laughs.] Yeah, a little bit.

What’s your favorite song by your favorite artist?

I think I’ve gotta go back to “Bohemian Rhapsody” from Queen. They were a huge inspiration to me when I first found out about them. I remember when we were a local band just starting out, one of the first guys that recorded us gave us A Night At The Opera, which that song is on, because he could tell that I had kind of a knack for harmonizing and doing lots of layering of vocals. So, he was like, “Hey, you should listen to this album if you like that kind of stuff,” and I remember that song being the end-all, be-all of layering and just making really cool sounds out of you voice. I’ve always been a huge fan of songs that kind of sound like they maybe took a year to write. Like, somebody put a ton of work into them, and you’re just kind of wondering how they were even written.

Usually, when kids are getting into music, they use their favorite artists as a gateway to other music, so what is a song you would recommend to your fans?

Any band or song, [that] doesn’t sound like they’re trying to sound like somebody else, because you hear that in a lot of the new bands; everybody’s trying to copy each other. I don’t like it when people can’t get out of the box and take risks. I think one band that takes a lot of risks is letlive. They’re a lot different than a lot of the stuff out there, both in their songs and in their live performance. They have a new record coming out, too, that’s fucking awesome, I’ve heard. They showed me some of the new stuff, and it sounds great.

If you’re bummed out, what song cheers you up?

Honestly, when I’m bummed out, I listen to more sad, slow, depressing songs than happy songs, you know? I feel like a lot of people are like that. It’s almost therapeutic to listen to that stuff. I don’t remember any time when I’ve been bummed out, and I’ve tried to force myself to be happy by listening to something cheerful. I think songs should be listened to in the mood that they were written. If somebody writes a song that’s slow and sad, it should be listened to in that mood. I think a good example would be City & Colour. They have a song called “Waiting…” and that song is pretty awesome for those kinds of times.

Is there any other song you just want to shout out because you just want it on your playlist?
If anybody’s ever heard a song called “Across The Night” by Silverchair, it’s one of my favorite songs. Give it a listen. It’s pretty amazing.