Exclusive Interview: The Nothing

StreetWave Media presents an exclusive interview with Hard Rock/Punk Rock/Gothic Metal band, The Nothing. The band consists of Nic Nassuet: Vocal, guitar – Ray Church: Guitar – Zach Caine: Bass – Marc Craine: Drums.

1. What made you decide to jump into the music industry or music business?

ZACH: I derive much joy from music. I see the potential to build a life through it.
MARC: Personally, I do music for my uncle, and my Friend Eli, they deserve to be on these
stages.
NIC: I was a professional actor in Hollywood and really didn’t like the roles I was being offered
and became kind of jaded. My heart was in music, so I listened to the music inside and allowed
it to come out. From there, it became a career.
RAY: Jesus y’all get deep I play music on my own because I like to play music I play in a band
to be cool, and being cool sells.

2. What do you think makes you stand out from all the other aspiring and upcoming artists in
your genre of music?

MARC: I think we stand out cause we all come from different backgrounds. Yet we all bring a
great style to the table
ZACH: I’m unapologetically me. No one has my perspective, and i’d like to share it.
NIC: I don’t really know, and I don’t really compare. I know that audiences respond and
resonate with what we do, and when we get that sort of energetic feedback it makes us do
more of what we were doing. I guess that’s kind of a bullshit answer. Sorry.

3. If you could collaborate with ANY artist/band… Who would you choose and why?

NIC: I can’t think of any. I collaborate with other artists when it feels right.
MARC: I would love to collaborate with turnstile, I saw them live a couple years ago, and ever
since I’ve been hooked on their style of music.
ZACH: Alive? Thundercat. I appreciate some good bass playing and groove. Dead?
Frank Zappa. I’d like to have a glimpse of that musical madness.

4. What do you think is your biggest Advantage and your biggest Disadvantage about being an
Indie artist?

ZACH: The ability to have complete freedom is definetly a plus. This does also come with
great responsibility.
MARC: Well the industry doesn’t like indie artists. We like to do it by our rule book. And it fucks
with their system.
NIC: Isn’t everyone an indie artist now? I mean, even big names end up on their own labels.
The top one percent of the industry is a collection of dozens of people producing tracks. It is
corporate. That isn’t really being an artist as much as it is being a figurehead for a music
corporation. Some of the biggest names I know globally are independent, and that’s how it
should be for the most part. Labels don’t really offer much in this era.

5. Do you prefer the Independent route or would you rather sign to a major record label, and
why?

NIC: I have never had a label offer that was worth taking. I made the mistake of singing with a
couple back in my early days, and got ripped off. I have had other offers, but none of them were
able to do anything for me that I wasn’t already doing for myself. They basically just wanted to
get their hands in my wallet without doing any work.
MARC: At some point, if the values of a record label matched my values, then yeah why not.
Makes it easier on me.
ZACH: It would have to be miraculously opportune for me to sign to a record label.

6. Out of all the songs you are preparing to release, what do you think is your Best song and
why?

MARC: I really like “when it falls”, it’s got a good groove through the song. And I try and keep
the energy up as the drummer.
ZACH: When It Falls. I love a song that speaks to the inner self and tells a well lived story.
NIC: I’m really fond of “You Can’t Kill The Boy Who Was Never Alive.” I think it is very
unique, lyrically poetic, and an assertion of Self against a backdrop of personal
suppression.

7. Do you miss the era of CD sales OR do you prefer the new wave of music streaming?
Explain…

ZACH: The era of CDs had a great culture around it with presentation, but time marches on,
and the internet is easily the way to go with networking. It’s more convient to open your
phone and stream than load a CD player. Though things like vinyl still have relevance, so
there must be value in physical copies.
MARC: Look, cd sales definitely helped get bands out there. But the new wave of music
streaming might be good for the new wave artists, cause now our music can instantly get to
anybody around the world.
NIC: That’s tough. Back when labels ruled the airwaves there was a finite number of recording
artists. If you showed promise you could get major attention and income. Now, even the most
talented get lost in the 100,000 tracks released every day on spotify, but it has become
democratized so that anyone can participate without appeasing the gatekeepers. Personally, I
like touching, smelling, and owning the piece of work on a physical medium. Buying an album is
like being physically present with the artist, whereas streaming is like watching porn.

8. Between creating in the studio OR performing live on stage, which is your most enjoyable one
and why?

MARC: Always gotta love playing live, the adrenaline, the people, just the love from everyone
watching. It’s nothing that can be topped. Especially with our upcoming show, it’s gonna be at
Lansing penitentiary, gonna be one hell of a show
NIC: It depends on who I am recording with. Sometimes a good studio session can be really
motivating and magical as the project comes to life. As much as I love live, there are venues,
audiences, and gigs that can make it unbearable.
ZACH: Performing is definetly more enjoyable for me. A mistake on stage isn’t as decisive
as a mistake in a recording scenario.

9. During your entire journey through the music business, what would you consider your Worst
experience?

ZACH: The pedalboard not working or having an amp blow on stage. It blows!!!
MARC: My entire journey? Well I haven’t had much of a journey yet, so nothing too bad, maybe
not getting paid for a show I did. Nothin too bad.
NIC: Maybe it was the broken speaker in Tijuana. Maybe the guy from Africa who jumped on
stage to tell us that he watches his grandfather masturbate before he threatened to bomb the
venue. I guess it could have been that place where the parking lot was covered in human
feces, people were throwing fireworks at us from a nearby rooftop, and when we went inside
there was a guy with a ukelele on stage telling the audience to kill him… No, it’s the suicides.
The suicides are the worst part. I’ve had two music partners take their lives, and lost plenty of
others to a living death of drug addiction. That’s definitely the worst.

10. What would you consider your most successful or proudest moment in your music career, so
far?

ZACH: The many musical self discoveries that come with dedication! Effort is worth it.
MARC: Just being able to do what I do, that’s my most proudest moment, it’s right now, being
able to play in multiple bands and do what I love.
NIC: I have no idea how to gauge success. Getting in Billboard as best emerging artist was
cool, so was the first time I went to the Grammys with a porn star, but I don’t know if that’s
success.

11. If any, what discourages you the Most about music industry these days?

ZACH: The focus of product and a lack of appreciation of the process. Expression must be
free to make anything worthwhile.
MARC: To be honest, what discourages me the most is the fact that not everyone makes it, and
the small few that do, you really gotta fight to keep your name relevant.
NIC: The money is in direct sales, and I hate sales. I just want to wreck shit on stage and
scream into microphones in front of pretty girls who take their clothes off.

12. What inspires you the Most about the music industry these days?

MARC: Now on the contrary, what inspires me the most, is the fact that we could make it. And I
could end up not having to work a normal job and be able to just live my dream of being on the
road.
ZACH: The culture that comes from it. There’s a lot of potential out there.
NIC: The fact that it really is what you make of it. If you learn the rules, and keep up to date
with what is current and adapt, anyone can find their audience and create a career. It just takes
a lot of smart work.

13. If you weren’t in the music business or industry, what do you think you would be doing with
your life instead?

MARC: If I wasn’t playing music, I would most likely be a mortician helping my mom with her
mortuary in California.
ZACH: I’d playing music with or without a market attached to it. Maybe i’d climb Mount
Everest.
NIC: This is all I’ve done for so long that I am certain I would die.

14. In your own opinion, What is the current music scene like in your local area?

MARC: The music scene in my local area is… decent. There’s a good amount of bands and
talent. But the people here never wanna go out to a show. So we play these kick ass shows. For
a small ass crowd.
NIC: I’m split. For the most part, nobody tours through town and it’s the same 12 artists night
after night in the same five venues. That said, the town supports the scene and people are
actually getting out and playing without a lot of hassle. I think improvement will come from
setting up regional tours through the other smaller midwestern cities where we essentially
exchange talent. I’m trying to do that with the events that I am creating and hosting by bringing
people in from out of state while featuring local acts.
ZACH: Topeka needs more love and care bottom line. There are plenty of talented and
devoted individuals in it. Repairing our community would enrich what we already have in
place.

15. When will you make your first release and where fans can find it?

MARC: I think it’s a lil too soon to say when our first release would be out, but you will be able
to find it when it does drop on any music platform.
NIC: I was hoping by year’s end, but we really need to figure out our studio situation first. I
think we may have some rough old-school style live tracks before year’s end. Those will be on
all platforms, but Spotify is king right now, so that’s were I would keep my eye if you want to
catch it first.

16. What is on your agenda or what can fans expect to see from you in 2025?

MARC: My agenda? Well I’m gonna hopefully try and be touring by the end of next year.
NIC: The release of our first studio single, “You Can’t Kill The Boy Who Was Never Alive,” and
the release of our first album, “But Am I Your Monster.”

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