Vents MagaZine Music and Entertainment Magazine
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1. Hi guys, welcome to VENTS! How have you been?
Trev: Thank you for having us. Great! It’s an exciting time for us Levara guys. We finally get to release new music we have been working on since January and our Europe tour is coming up. Feeling grateful.
Jules: It’s good to be back!
Josh: Stoked! We’ve been working hard, lots of fun things coming!
2. So you guys have built serious momentum before the pandemic, including touring arenas with Foreigner and appearing at Hellfest and Graspop, only for everything to come to a halt. Looking back, how difficult was it to watch all that momentum disappear almost overnight?
Trev: Well, we were supposed to open for Foreigner on their European arena tour. We were booked to play Hellfest, Graspop and Rock am Ring. Steve Strange signed us to his company X-ray, and I’ll never forget him calling me and telling me that our album was the best new artist album he’s heard in a decade. This guy helped break Coldplay. He was Eminem and Rihanna’s agent. He was THE guy. We felt that with Steve Strange behind us, we were gonna make it to the promised land. We mastered our debut in February 2020 and the world shut down in March. They were saying only a few weeks and the world would be back to normal, and we all know what happened from there. Everyone suffered and we lost all momentum we built up for 2 years. Our first single was supposed to drop that April with the tour and festivals to play and promote but it got pushed back a year and a half. Steve Strange unfortunately passed away as well. Devastating on all levels.
Jules: It’s crazy how it feels like a past life in my head. It’s not that many years but feels so far away. We were in a great place and then all of a sudden, the world stops. And then things start to crumble from within…
3. Your debut album eventually came out in 2021, but by then the band had already broken up and you never really had the opportunity to properly tour or promote it. Does getting back together feel like you’re finally getting to finish a story that was interrupted rather than simply starting a new one?
Trev: Absolutely. It’s truly all about timing. It’s all about growth as well. We all have lived through such big moments in the last five years and we each really grew on our own. We have joked about it since we all reconnected. There is no way we would have lasted, even if the break happened, without Covid. We would have killed each other because we were not on the same page personally. Friction was apparent back then, with a lot of miscommunication.
Now, it’s a different band with different guys. We get along better than we ever did. The adult versions of us really love and respect each other and what we each bring to the table. Jules’ voice is on another level from all the gigging he’s done since 2021. Josh has been doing sessions and his pocket speaks for itself. My production career started during the pandemic and I really worked on my engineering, writing and production chops throughout the years apart. I’ve been fortunate to work with some incredible and legendary artists. It’s really pushed me to own what I do more now being back on the artist side of the fence.
Jules: For sure, it’s a new lease on life, a second chance, an unexpected new chapter in our evolution, and the music is also evolved and very exciting to create. That first session together, we knew what we had left behind, and it just felt so good to make music again. I remember thinking, “So what wasn’t working again?” We were meant to do this together! Not only do we have a killer debut album to bring to the world, but the new album…
4. “Underneath It All” is the first glimpse of this new chapter. Did you deliberately want the first song back to feel like a statement, almost saying, “This is why we came back”?
Trev: Matt Pinfield told us “Underneath It All” was the first single, and we trust Matt, being the legend that he is. We have been blessed to have Matt as a champion for the band. It made sense, though. We knew it was an album opener and we knew the message was a perfect reintroduction. Matt pushed us to release it as the first single and it clicked. It’s funny because it seems so obvious now, but when you’re in the recording and writing process of an album, you can get too used to what you’re creating. That’s why it was important to have that outside ear of an A&R legend like Matt to help make that decision.
Jules: To me, the song is a clearing about our past, all the shit we went through, it was all for this moment, the music, the thing that holds us together even after 5 years apart. The love for what we do together is the guiding force, unites us.
5. After five years apart, what was it like getting the whole gang back in the same room again? Did the chemistry immediately feel familiar, or did you have to rediscover how Levara worked together?
Trev: It was very organic. It wasn’t forced. It seemed like the universe was pushing for it before us. A session opportunity came up that put Jules and I in the same room to write and record again together for the first time since the break up. This was after a long phone call of burying the hatchet and letting go of the past. When we were in the same room for the first time, not only was the positive vibe and growth as people very clear, but we quickly realized our collaborative connection was still there. It was even stronger than before.
Jules: Yes, it felt like so much water had flown under the bridge, and the bridge was still strong! For real, that first song we wrote after the break was so good I wished it was for Levara. And then we FaceTimed Josh, both separately since he never answers the phone. Surprise! Then the 3 of us in the same room felt great and a bit surreal. We were able to catch up as bros and also got a lot of work done with music videos and getting ready for our European tour.
Josh: Honestly, it was like no time had passed. As Trev said, it wasn’t forced, it was natural and fun. First and foremost we were friends before band mates, so it was beautiful to reconnect on a personal level too. I feel like musically we have always all worked so naturally well together, so it was great!
6. Trev, growing up as the son of Steve Lukather meant you were surrounded by an extraordinary musical environment from an early age. At this point in your career, how do you separate the influence of that upbringing from the identity you want to establish for yourself as a guitarist, songwriter and artist?
Trev: I believe it all molds together through time. We tend to Frankenstein all of our influences to create
our own sound and identity. I was influenced at such a young age that my first memory is playing drums. It was like any kid throwing the football with their dad, but I jammed with mine. I was playing in time at age 4, but I always heard music and melodies in my head. Even though I was a drummer for the first 8 years, I kept hearing riffs and changes. After Toto reunited with their original singer Bobby Kimball, they played LA, and I’ll never forget the opening song of their show. Pop ripped his solo and the crowd was reaching out for him. I thought, “I want to be that guy!”
Hanging with Pop and his friends who were mainly guitarists like Eddie Van Halen and Michael Landau, there was a swag and energy that I was drawn to and connected with. I felt like a guitarist even before I became one. I knew it would be a rougher road because my Pop is one of the GOATs. But I couldn’t ignore that it was my calling. My Pop gave me the best advice. Focus on your songwriting and your rhythm. Don’t even try to solo for years. That songwriting and rhythm is what paid for our home. Since I was a drummer before, my timing was there but it was apparent when I picked up a guitar and instantly knew how to play, it was my calling no doubt. There will never be another Steve Lukather. There can only be one Steve Lukather. I am me. My road is paved differently, but there are moments that clearly show I am his son.
7. Having Steve Perry contribute background vocals to your debut was obviously an incredible moment, but Levara has always had to exist beyond those impressive connections. Do you feel there’s still a perception you have to overcome because of the legendary musicians surrounding your story?
Trev: I think it solidified our confidence. SP wouldn’t sing on anything because of my personal relationship with him. He was inspired to sing after connecting to the music he heard in the studio while we were making it. He was just going to pop in, hang out, meet the guys and listen. We never thought in a million years he would offer to put his legendary pipes on a song, let alone four or five of them. He ended up coming to the studio almost every day. He was a big part of the debut. Not just singing, but a lot of guidance, particularly with me and my guitar solos. I had to bring what he called “front row licks,” which was the main advice I got from Steve back when I first met him, when I was just starting in the business. I was getting my shred chops up, and he heard me “shredding” and stopped me immediately. He asked who I wanted in the front row, guys or girls? I laughed and said “Girls, of course.” He said, “Then stop doing that and sing with your guitar. Play the front row licks.” He told me to sing with my guitar, that a guitar solo needs to be as hooky as the rest of the song. Truly another pioneering moment for me as a player, and what I would focus on from that moment on.
Jules: Perry was so into the chorus of “Can’t Get Over,” he wanted to read the lyrics so I wrote them to him. Next thing you know, he’s asking if he can go in the booth to record some gang vocals! He was like a band member by the end of the production, giving us so many great ideas and wisdom from his career and life experiences. That was truly epic. Now it’s up to us to forge our own way without the accolades and family ties. The music we make will speak for itself and who we are.
8. The pandemic ultimately changed the trajectory of Levara, but five years can also change people creatively and personally. What has each of you brought back to the band that wasn’t there when you made the first album?
Trev: Gratitude. We truly respect each other and what we each bring to the table now. Looking back, I feel we took everything for granted, but with the world shutting down and outside influences talking in our ears and pulling us apart, we weren’t in the right mindset to keep our communication and
relationship solid. Now, it’s a whole different beast. I produced, engineered and mixed this album. To have the guys respect me in that seat, trust my direction and believe in me to bring home our new statement to the world, means the world to me.
Another thing, and I told Jules this during the recording process, is his confidence as a singer. He really found himself, and I think the pressure of being younger, getting a record deal and fearing the first statement to the world caused a lot of overthinking back in 2020. I told him during a session that not only was he crushing every song and having these unreal moments in every song, showing his incredible range as a vocalist, but he never questioned himself once. He owns it now, and that’s why it’s truly our time to push this band through.
Jules: So much life has happened, apologies and lessons learned, two children for me…a whole new perspective which allowed us to start fresh. And the music is also fresh with Trev’s production and our ability to create exactly what we want. We still have our unique taste which differentiates us from each other and the fundamentals we abide by; we want to write the best song ever, every time. I’m excited to share this new body of work with the world. We’re still Levara, but you could definitely add a bold 2.0 at the back of it.
9. Josh, you have experienced an entirely different scale of touring through his years playing with One Direction, while Trev and Jules have their own experiences and musical journeys. How do those different backgrounds influence the way the three of you approach Levara today?
Josh: Yeah, the One Direction stuff was another scale of touring. It was a huge blessing to be involved in something so big for so long. I think all of our experiences, big or small, helped shape everything we do. I think for me, I thrive on tour and playing live. I love being involved in making great live music and creating moments, so I’m excited for us to put our best foot forward and get out there and bring the arena sound and show, no matter what the size of venue!
10. The new Levara music will also launch Trev’s new label, What IF Records. What made this the right moment to move beyond simply being an artist and start creating a platform for music yourself, and what kind of identity do you want What IF Records to have?
Trev: It is the frustration of the current industry that really pushed me to find the opportunity to start my own label as a producer and writer. Jim Kaufman, who is a killer producer that developed bands taking off at the moment, and I became fast friends. I played him a few songs I was writing and producing with new artists, and he said artist development is what I should do. It’s a bigger risk, but it’s worth it if it takes. This business is a risk in itself, so I really connected with that.
I also want to help artists that might not have a sound or the funds to make an album get to the promised land. With all of the amazing people I’ve developed relationships with in this business, it should benefit some new blood out there trying to make it. The universe would align to meet Cheryl, who believed in my vision to make it to a reality. Levara is going to be the proof of concept.
We were on a label and we wanted to talk about our new album and how important it was to release new music. They were more about our old album and doing a bunch of TikTok content. We didn’t feel that was the right move, so when this opportunity to start my own thing became real, we parted ways with the label. We will now get a proper push to make our presence known instead of relying on people that might or might not want you to succeed.
Jules: It’s a great thing to build your own table rather than paying for a seat at someone else’s.
11. With more music coming later this year and a full album planned for next year, what do you want this second chance to look like? If the first chapter of Levara was about discovering what the band could become, what is the band determined to accomplish this time around?
Trev: We are going to ride the wave wherever it takes us. We know there’s hard work ahead and we are ready for it. I know we can truly own what we do coming out of the gate now more than back in 2021. We appreciate this new lease on life, this new opportunity to right the wrongs of the past. You don’t get that opportunity often, if ever. We will not take it for granted this time and we will be able to show the world what we got in full form.
Jules: The new album is a “return to the world” kind of statement, especially to our fans who have been with us from the beginning. We are so grateful to them, because it is also their excitement about our return that inspired us to really do this. Ultimately, our goal is to connect with many new souls, so the discovery of Levara is in a way, just begun.
Josh: The future is exciting. We’re all very excited and proud of this new music and this new chapter. Live shows, new music, good times ahead!
