Adam Panic is barely legal, but his brand of pop music is timeless.
By Whitney Weiss


18 year old Adam Panic has been writing, recording, and playing in Arizona since he was 15 years old. In the fall, he’s going to take his sound to Boston, where he’ll be attending Berklee. In Panic’s case, age really is nothing but a number. There are hordes of 20 and 30 year old musicians incapable of writing songs as thoughtful, catchy, and well-crafted as Adam‘s.  

Movement: You just played the Moonsplash Festival. Is that the largest show you've played so far?
Adam Panic: As Adam Panic, yes. I just played a show for The Format as their bassist in front of 4,200 people. And actually, I've played bigger in a club. Wow, I’m bad at this.

No you're doing fine! Are you in The Format full-time, or were you just filling in?
Filling in for two shows.

So what is the largest show you've played thus far?
I played the bash on ash a year or so ago, which was pretty big. It was the format CD release, I opened.

That’s awesome. how do you know The Format, and have they helped you out with getting shows and whatnot?
We just became friends because of the whole music thing in AZ. I've opened for them a couple of times, which has been great.

What is the music scene in Arizona like? Have you found it easy to get shows?
The scene is very spread out. It’s easy to get shows, but not easy to fill a club, unless you get a handful of bands. I’ve heard about how in LA, it’s a packed house every night just ‘cause people want to hear music. And all the good clubs in AZ are getting shut down or turning into raver bars or something. Hah.

That’s too bad. In another interview, it mentioned you wanting to go to Berklee in Boston. Did anything come of that?
Yeah! I got in and I am going to be going in September. Moving there and the whole bit. Mainly I’m going so I can put together a great live band

Congrats! It's a really great school and in Boston it's great, there's always places to play, clubs or basements.
I hear it’s a good scene. Good food, too.

Are you still working on assembling a live band in Arizona, or are things going to be on hold until Boston in the fall?
No, I stopped looking. I got a great band together for this last show, but I had to use my producer, assistant engineer, and my sister. [Arizona] is a tough place to find young musicians that are really into the music. I wish I was in my twenties a lot of the times. It would be easier to get some people together.

What  kind of other difficulties have you found being a younger musician? It looks like you started doing EPs as Adam Panic when you were...15?
I released my first CD, The Vamp, when I was 16. I wrote it when I was 15. The problem with being in high school and having a band is that it’s all a big competition. The musicians at my school really only play music at the school. No one knows what a scene is or how to support your friends…A lot of people also don’t take you seriously because they are used to so many "high school garage bands." People thought it was funny for me to say this is what I want to do in life, let alone say that I do it as a job. The last show I played was 21 and over…my friends had to be snuck backstage to get in.

And now you're going to Boston, where there actually is a scene...how do you think that's going to influence your music?
I’m sure my music will be pretty much how it’s always been, as far as how it comes to me. But the live shows will definitely change.  I'm excited to play constantly live. That’s really the only thing I miss out here in Arizona.

Would you rather be playing a show or recording in the studio?
Hmm. Recording is a blast, but it gets old after a week of 10-hour days. Playing a show is pretty much different every time

Do you find that recording is more difficult as a solo artist?
No, it’s probably 100% easier! Really the only members of the band are me and my producer. That’s only two people that have conflicting or similar ideas. It also allows me to be the only hold back. If I can't sing a harmony, its me who I get to be mad at.

Right. Is it just about the musical aspect of Adam Panic, or do you also want to do things like the site and the tee-shirts and whatnot?Yeah I really wanted to do everything when I first started. I made my own website and merchandise. I just started working with professionals a little bit because I want to be able to do everything that I want to do. I only know as much as I taught myself.

That sounds like a really good balance. So are you just graduating high school now?
Yeah, I think there are 10 days left or something.

Wow, that's great. What is the one thing you've done as a musician that you're thrilled you've accomplished so soon? Because having so much recorded work and so many shows under your belt and being in high school still is really quite an accomplishment.
I just got rotation on the edge 103.9 FM here in Phoenix! I always read all these books on how to get signed and they all said that getting on the radio is the hardest part.

Yeah, especially the radio right now. What song are they playing?
"We All Do."

Has the radio play gotten you a lot of response?
Well, it just started playing less than a week ago. I've only heard it twice but my friends keep saying its being requested. So I guess so! It’s pretty great though. My mom called me crying ‘cause she heard it on the way downtown.

Awww. That's great. The new EP is fantastic. Do you have a favorite song off of it?
All of them! I got to pick out of 15 songs the best five to do on this record. I am so happy with how it turned out. I wish I could have recorded them all. When we were sitting down to decide on a single, we couldn’t pick one ‘cause they all just sounded so good.

That’s great, it gives you a lot of material for the future. What do you think the biggest difference is between the We All Do EP and A Siren EP?
With the We All Do EP, I really found 'my sound.' With A Siren EP, each song sort of has a different thing going on. "In Red" and "Set Set" were sort of the intro to the writing of We All Do. I loved the jangly guitars and tambourines that I recorded on "In Red." It seemed to be the best song on A Siren EP.

It's a great song. I put it on a mix for a friend and she immediately demanded to know who you were and if you had more material.
That’s great. What a good friend. You should have told her it was Hanson or something.

You mentioned finding your sound. How would you describe your sound to someone who had never heard your music?
I would say that if a 60's artist had the technology and sound of 2004 and was sitting next to John Lennon while playing a tambourine through a megaphone and got in a crash with a 18 year old songwriter…We All Do would come out of it. That’s assuming they were in a car.

I like that!
Thanks.

Is there one of your songs you think exemplifies that?
"Peach." If I had to pick a track that describes me, that would be it. I would have no problem going out with only that song. I love the harmonica. I thought I was all good until I went to record it and my producer just said, ‘You suck at harmonica.’ We did it until it sounded great. I love it.

How did you write that song? And what's your process for writing usually?
I wrote this great melody and I was really listening to a lot of Bob Dylan at the time. I was like, ‘I need to use harmonica on a song.‘ Aerosmith were the only guys I’ve seen use it. So I wrote it like that. I always write on just an acoustic guitar with a pad of paper and a recorder.

Do you do the arranging for the other instruments?
Yeah I usually go in with just a demo tape of the songs. Bob Hoag (my producer) and I just throw ideas about what could we use. I try to use all the tracks on every song. For "Peach," the lyrics were so great, my sister and I have both used them to get out of writing a poem for English.

Haha, very clever.
Anyone who doesn’t want to write a poem for school, you have my permission to steal it.

How many of the instruments on the new EP are you playing?
A lot. Piano, organ, guitar, bass, all the vocals. I do everything except for the drums. and unfortunately I'm not allowed to play the tambourine.  Bob is the most rhythmic guy out there. If anything is the least bit off, he hears it and then everything has to be done again. I arranged chorus parts for this record and strings for the last one.

That's quite impressive. What do you want to focus on at Berklee?
Songwriting. I really don’t think you can teach someone how to do it. But I said if I’m going to go to college, which I wanted to, why not go to one that is all about me? I just want to make sure I can survive there. I can’t read music. I only play it. And I’m not that great of a guitarist. I just write good songs on the guitar. And Berklee is all about the fundamentals. Note reading, theory...we'll see. I’m no John Mayer or anything, that guy can really play a good guitar.

Ironically enough, when I interviewed [John Mayer], he actually said he left because he got sick of music theory.
Yeah I figured. I heard that a lot of people drop out because of that reason. I can see why. When you're making art, you don’t want to be told what to do, ever. So when someone says ‘That’s not right because it doesn’t coincide with this chord chart’ or whatever, I can see how it could be a problem.

Absolutely. I think there's people who find a balance in listening to the teachers and doing their own thing. Speaking of which, how are you planning on balancing your music and your academic obligations?
Haha. Music first everything else second. Already I am going to have to miss a couple of days of school just as we start. September second I start, I have to be back in Arizona on the 18th to play The Edgefest. I’m not concerned with anything but my music career. I'd miss school to do a 15 minute acoustic set on the radio in Arizona. I can foreshadow a little of what’s to come of my school life. That also means the six hour plane ride back and forth too. I can’t wait.

Haha, that's dedication. Have you toured at all?
No, I like to be realistic with what I do. I would only tour if it was with an established band. Why drive to California to play to the same crowd as you would in Arizona? I guess it’s a bad approach, but it just hasn’t made sense to me yet. And I’ve been in school.

Being in school takes away a lot of the time you'd have to do that, so it's understandable. If you were going to tour and could choose any band in the world to tour with, what band would it be and why?
Maroon 5. Ugh I love that band. And their fans go crazy. I would love the energy. I would also like to play with Coldplay and one show with Green Day just because I owe so much Billie Joe Armstrong.

Very nice. That's all I have for you, is there anything I haven't asked or brought up you want to mention?
You can listen to my songs and buy the new record when its out on my website at adampanic.com

more info at
www.AdamPanic.com