Three years ago, I found myself watching MoonFuzz’s set at The Smell in DTLA. They were closing the show and things must have been running late because it was already past midnight. Despite the time, my friends and I stayed for their entire set. We didn’t really have a choice. The sound — and especially the solos — were intoxicating. All three members took hold of the audience with their presence and we couldn’t bring ourselves to leave. It didn’t matter if a single soul in the audience was tired; we were all jumping, dancing, and moshing — completely taken by their music.
MoonFuzz’s entire discography crosses genres with every song such that their sound is ever-growing and truly impossible to pinpoint with a single descriptor. The span of this sound has been even expanded with their latest release, “Wait, Please!”
I caught up with Miranda, Heav, and Brandi on Zoom to talk about their lives in quarantine and their latest release.
Slumber: Could you tell us a little bit about how the name MoonFuzz came to be?
Brandi: We were what, like, 17? We were young and it was just like a random word. We had a different name before but we didn’t like it so we changed it. I think it was more just a panic.
Miranda: We had a show the next day that was going to be our very first show.
Brandi: We were texting at 11 pm just trying to figure out something. It’s nothing crazy.
Slumber: If you had to choose a new name on the spot, what would it be?
Heav: I don’t know!
Brandi: I don’t know either.
Heav: Something more serious?
Brandi: I would want something… I don’t know! Agh!
Miranda: I think something more serious or not serious at all.
Brandi: I don’t think MoonFuzz is that serious? What do you think?
Heav: I don’t have one… it’s really hard!
“The beginning of quarantine was really depressing... I found myself practicing less and being less involved in music, but we still try to make it work.”
Slumber: If you had to describe your sound with an existing movie title, what would it be?
Heav: Interstellar, Inception.
Brandi: Oh Inception is a good one!
Heav: The Fourth Kind.
Brandi: Yeah, The Fourth Kind.
Slumber: If you could design a supergroup of any genre, who would you put in it?
Heav: The frontman would be Tommy Wiseau.
Miranda: Oh my god!
Heav: And on drums would be John Bonham. On guitar would be Albert Hammond Jr.
Brandi: That’s a good one.
“Normally, we write music disconnectedly and it takes a long time… we never finish a song in one sitting. It takes months.”
Slumber: Your music contains a lot of solos, something that seems to be disappearing from a lot of modern music. What’s the inspiration and motivation behind your musical style?
Brandi: The inspiration has to do a lot with classic rock. [Miranda], you’re the one doing the soloing. Wouldn’t you say the inspiration is 80s rock?
Miranda: No, no, no! It’s just rock. It’s just rock music in general.
Slumber: If you could go on tour with any 3 other artists (dead or alive), who would you choose?
Brandi: I would do honestly… I would wanna play drums for…
Miranda: No, who would we tour with.
Brandi: Dead or alive? Oh man!
Heav: The Growlers. That’s the scene that I feel like we’re in. We’re in the smaller version of that scene… the indie alternative scene.
Brandi: I was gonna say Claypool.
Miranda: King Gizzard.
Heav: Wu-Tang!
Miranda: Temple is a good one.
Brandi: Our lineup would be King Gizzard, Claypool, and The Growlers, and then us… headlining!
“I think it’s not what to expect but what not to expect. Don’t expect any similar sound.”
Slumber: If you weren’t musicians, what would you be doing right now and in the future?
Brandi: Honestly I think I’d be more into poetry. If I didn’t do music, I would focus my life on poetry and cooking.
Heav: When I was a baby, I always thought I’d be a writer. But when I grew up I realized I wasn’t that good. I always thought I would be a poet, but I wasn’t that good. So I was like, I’ll be a musician.
Miranda: Well I’m currently in college for engineering, so I’d probably work in aerospace.
Slumber: What is your favorite song you’ve ever written? Favorite song to play live?
Brandi: I really like “Everything That’s Mine.”
Heav: My favorite is “Wait, Please!”
Brandi: That one’s good too!
Heav: But my favorite one to play live is “Creature.”
Brandi: Yeah, that’s a good one.
Slumber: How has quarantine impacted your music-making process?
Heav: I feel like it hasn’t. Normally, we write music disconnectedly and it takes a long time… we never finish a song in one sitting. It takes months. So I feel like it hasn’t impacted us that much.
Brandi: We were together less in the beginning.
Miranda: We hadn’t seen each other for a few months, but it didn’t really impact anything.
Heav: It did impact me. I got really depressed and I didn’t write at all for the first five months of quarantine.
Brandi: You write music the most.
Heav: I didn’t even pick up an instrument.
Brandi: Honestly, the beginning of quarantine was really depressing, just watching a bunch of bad news. I found myself practicing less and being less involved in music but we still try to make it work.
Miranda: I didn’t play either, until recently.
Heav: I was waiting for everything to get back to normal, but I realized that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
Slumber: Aside from music, how have you been spending quarantine?
Heav: Travels!
Miranda: We went camping together! Like two weeks ago. Unfortunately, that’s when the fires started so it was very hard to breathe and we left earlier than we expected, but it was fun! Brandi’s been working.
Brandi: I’ve been working this entire time since I’m considered essential, so my schedule didn’t change that much.
Miranda: I’ve been going to school.
“I wasn’t going to just come in and write similarly to how you had written. That’s why it’s so inconsistent, because we’re still trying to figure out how it is together.”
Slumber: What can fans expect from your new release, “Wait, Please!”
Miranda: It’s high energy.
Brandi: This is definitely my favorite song we’ve written so far. Every time we write something new it’s always my favorite song.
Heav: I think it’s not what to expect but what not to expect. Don’t expect any similar sound. For as long as I’ve been with them, everything we’ve released has been inconsistent and this just as inconsistent as everything else.
Miranda: We’re still trying to find our soul sound. And I think this song is getting closer to that.
Brandi: Yeah I think more rock n’ roll.
Miranda: I was inspired by The Strokes when I did the riffs for this.
Heav: We love The Strokes!
Slumber: Considering this is your first time releasing music since 2019, has your sound, vision, or anything else changed?
Heav: I think there was already a solid sound when I joined. So when I joined, you guys had to write with me or it would be fucked up. We were forced to find something in the middle. Because I wasn’t going to just come in and write similarly to how you had written. That’s why it’s so inconsistent, because we’re still trying to figure out how it is together.
Miranda: I don’t want to be poppy.
Brandi: Our first album was real poppy, yeah.
“This is definitely my favorite song we’ve written so far. Every time we write something new it’s always my favorite song.”
Slumber: There’s a lot of iconic trios throughout pop culture history, from the PowerPuff Girls to Charlie’s Angels. Which trio do you think MoonFuzz is the most similar to?
Brandi: Ok! Wait…
Miranda: Ok so… [Heaven] is Phineas, I’m Ferb, and [Brandi] is Perry the Platypus!
Brandi: It’s so true! I pop up out of nowhere! I scare them!
Heav: Perry the Platypus?! What are you doing here?
Listen to MoonFuzz’s latest single “Wait, Please!” below:
Don't Sleep on These
