Written By: JoAnn Snavely

From Geography class at 14, to where they are now In The Middle is an alternative duo who creates their sound in cohesion with illustrated works via comic books. Telling a story completely of their own- rooted in dystopian films and a passion for their craft. Orlando-born, New York-based Mars and Apollo are immersing fans into the minds of In The Middle. No Regards got the chance to sit and chat with the duo before their Mercury Lounge show about all things film, production, and even dentures!

Let’s hear a little bit about who the band is.

Mars: We are a duo from Orlando, Florida. We are New York-based now.

Apollo: We are not just a band. We are also a comic book- the first album we put out was basically 10 songs and 10 chapters. It’s an immersive experience.

You've been making music together since you were 14. How have you watched each other grow and evolve musically, and how has that translated into how you create now?

Apollo: I feel like we've evolved so much. When we first started, we were just playing a little ukulele and we were like, ‘Hey, this kind of sounds good’. I figured, you [Mars] have a halfway decent voice and we can work with it. Throughout that [the early stages] we put out a lot of songs, took them down, put out a lot of songs, took them down. We figured this isn't the professional quality we'd always wanted. And so we saved for a long time and went from Florida to New York to LA to record with the best people we could. Then at the last minute, we were like, Hey, why don't we make it a comic book too? So we kind of went from ukulele to comic book.

Mars: I think what's cool is that it’s not even just career growth, but just the way that it used to be so much of ‘I'll do the lyrics and the melodies and then you'll pick up on the drums’. And it was very much like I had my role, he had his role. Now it's so 50-50. We’re both equally involved in the sound, the lyrics, the melodies, the rhythms, the storylines. It's just so equal. And I think that's so cool that we both met each other in the middle and were able to just learn from each other. I think I learned so much of what I know about production and writing instrumentals from watching you. I never had lessons, and I hope to say that and vice versa. So yeah, I think that that artistically is a really cool way that I think we've grown from each other.

Your music coexists with comics that you create to match. How has adding that visual element to your music pushed you creatively?

Apollo: I think it’s completely changed our course as a band because we basically said, spoiler, this is going to be a trilogy. We're going to do three albums, and the comic book is going to immerse those three albums. I think that changed it because it was no longer seeing it as just music, but seeing it as a movie. So when we take inspiration from bands that we like, we're also taking inspiration from the movies that we like to see.

Mars: And I think a lot of the concepts of our songs, they're very dystopian. They're very, I think, relevant to today's climate, I would say. Being able to take the songs and have a way where people can interpret it whatever way they'd like to and however their personal experiences are. And then also have this complex storyline where there are these characters you follow along, like movies we grew up with Hunger Games, maze Runner, the Giver, Divergent, things like that. We loved those dystopian movies growing up. We don't exactly have the budget to make a movie, which would be so cool, but we do not have that. So a comic book was the next best thing.

So then with your comics, what gave you the idea to give your music a mixed-media style?

Mars: I think we were just really inspired by other artists that we look up to and the way that they do visuals. Also just trying to figure out how do we tell a story. How do we have lore if we don't have the same access to the resources that someone backed by a big label might have? Doing a comic book was kind of like a happy medium, we could tell a story very well visually. We wanted there to be colors associated with the story, just something that translates into all the senses. I think that was just kind of how it happily accidentally happened. Honestly, it was never planned from the beginning.

So then if In The Middle was any inanimate object, what would it be and why?

Apollo: Okay. You're going to love this one. I'm going to go with dentures, and this isn't going to make any sense to anybody, I think besides us, but when we were younger, we were like, we really want to be sponsored one day, but not by Guitar Center or by whatever. We want to be sponsored by something weird like a dentist. Pearly whites, no cavities. And so we're always like, 'hi we're In The Middle' And we love teeth just because we're trying to get, I guess, a dentist to sponsor us. I'm going to go with dentures.

Mars: If he says dentures, I'm going to say toothpaste. I'm going to say a nice bottle of fresh minty toothpaste.

You're getting ready to play the Mercury Lounge tonight. What's something fans can expect from the middle show?

Mars: Have fun. You're going to have a good time.

Apollo: Besides having just fun, we are going to, for the first time today, debut the comic book characters coming to life. So all of the visuals are going to be the comic book characters running around and kind of fully immersing you in the story.

Continuing with that, what songs are in your pre-show playlist? Do you have any pre-show rituals?

Mars: I think maybe not a pre-show ritual, but we never do anything new on a show day. We won't drink something new. We won't eat something new. We won't do anything out of the normal routine that we know.

Apollo: No tying my shoes the wrong way. It all has to be the same.

Mars: No new conditioner, nothing. It all has to be very, I would say safe. I wouldn't say we have a pre-show ritual, just maybe just day of, don't mess with the equilibrium.

So then with In The Middle’s music and art, what's one thing you want fans to be able to take away from it?

Apollo: I think for us, something that's really important is that people make their own storyline with it. We wrote the songs to be very broad in a sense where it's like, for example, our song "Mind Control", people have taken it as anti-government, taken it as an abusive relationship. So we purposely made this album a little bit broad to let people immerse themselves in the way they wanted to, the same thing with the comic book characters. We've had a few fans already that kind of made their own characters and they're like, this is how I imagine myself and the story. So yeah, I think it's about the fans at the core of it.

Mars: I would say as corny as this is, fight for your happiness. That's what characters in our comic book do. Their whole thing is they're tired of being suppressed. They just want to feel happiness for once. And don't be afraid to fight for that in real life.

So then looking back to when you first met in geography class, would Teenage Mars and Apollo believe where you are now? Or would they think they were dreaming too big?

Apollo: I feel like we would believe it because when we were kids, it was kind of like everyone was like, oh, you're not really going to do anything. Your kids, nobody really does anything in the music industry. And we were like, no, we're going to do it somehow. We're going to find a way.

Mars: We've been our number one fan since day one. If no one's going to do it, you have to do it for yourself.

Apollo: If ITM has no fans we’re dead.

Mars: I wholeheartedly believe we'd think all right, we did it, yeah. Lowkey, I think we kind of thought it would happen sooner. We also did not realize what that took at all. But now seeing what it takes, I've always known we could do this. Just took a little more time.

What is your No Regards moment?

Mars: Moving to this city. I sold everything. I sold my car and I spent the exact money that it took to sell everything on moving here. And I kind of didn't really think twice about it. It was just kind of either do the band or don't. And that was kind of an obvious answer for me.

Apollo: I mean, it's the same answer. For me, it was kind of just like, okay, move to New York or don't follow your dream. And I did the same thing. I completely sold everything I owned, especially my car, just to be able to pay rent and move. And I actually came here first and then I convinced her, even though she hated it when she visited me, you got to come here. This is where music is happening.

Mars: I have a love-hate relationship still.

What’s on the horizon for In The Middle? Any upcoming events or shows that fans should be aware of?

Mars: Album number two. It's really good. It's just sounding really good. That's all I can say.

Apollo: Album two, we're excited about it. There's almost more of a grunge aspect coming in with some dirty guitars and some deeper drums, and there's going to be part two to what happens when they go through the door of the last comic book.

In The Middle Interview

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