Badflower At JBTV

Words by Hillary Hedstrom | Photos by Bobby Talamine

There is no wrong time for a dark and gritty rock show, as Badflower rocked out our studio at 1:30 p.m. on a Monday afternoon.

(L-R): Bassist Alex Espiritu, Singer Josh Katz, Jerry, Drummer Anthony Sonnetti, Guitarist Joseph Marrow

Dedicated fans starting showing up early, trying to secure their place and to catch a glimpse of the band. The first fans showed up before 11:30 a.m, a whole two hours before the show. ​

Badflower dropped their first LP “Ok I’m Sick” only a few months ago, but had already built a strong and steadily growing following. Some fans called off work and drove 9 hours to come to this show.

The stage was lit up for a big show, not an intimate crowd. Lights made by Katz stood in the background, ready to flash green and blue. 

“Thanks for waking up early. I know it’s the afternoon, but I’d usually still be in bed,” joked Katz after taking the stage a little after 1:30 p.m.

Their first song, Jester, had everyone singing along, and their next song, Die, had everyone screaming along. The crowd were screaming out the political lyrics with Katz, dancing to the heavy rock.

Their biggest song, Ghost, was performed last. People in the crowd were crying as they sang the raw and emotional lyrics. Like many of their songs off “Ok I’m Sick,” it deals with Katz’s struggles with anxiety and depression.

The band went into the green room, but the crowd still hung out by the stage. They wanted to catch the band exiting the green room. Some people had brought albums and other merch they wanted autographed.

Katz and Joey Marrow, the lead guitarist, headed into the lobby to have a meet and greet with the fans. While they ate the food they got before the show, they talked to everyone who came. They gave hugs and took pictures, they autographed albums and posters. Fans were able to mingle with each other and with Katz and Marrow. 

They had to be dragged away from the lingering crowd to do the interview. 

During their conversation with Jerry, fun tidbits were released about each song off the album. The oldest song on the album is Jester. It wasn’t written specifically for the album, but it had been performed before. So they decided to add it to the album.

The song “Die” is one that causes some of their fans to stop being into the band. They shot a live video of it from the Epicenter music festival in North Carolina. 

“During the video you can watch people who liked our band just crumble,” Katz joked about the song’s strong message. It’s a song condemning the political state in the United States and the meat industry. Katz and bassist Alex Espiritu are both vegans, and, even though Marrow and drummer Anthony Sonetti aren’t vegan, all four members are very conscious of what they put in their body.

Katz said that they are the superheroes here to save America. Espiritu is the biggest superhero fan in the band. His favorite hero is Spiderman. “He has been borderline kicked out of the band” Katz joked about the fact Espiritu claims that Batman would destroy Superman in a fight. 

They are also on the lookout for aliens. They live together in the desert, in California City. Although they haven’t spotted any UFOs yet, they have heard some sonic booms from the nearby Air Force base.

Owning a house in the desert helps them creatively. Katz is able to work and write songs in peace.

Katz likes to be very hands-on with all creative production work. He writes all of his songs, helped build the lights that were on stage, and mixes all of his music. He said he would be just fine wearing all black and doing tech work. Although he loves to perform, it’s his least favorite part of the job. Although, watching their live performance, that’s impossible to tell.