Iris: The band that ‘preys’ together, stays together

To stand out among the many bands in the local San Gabriel Valley music scene, it takes talent and luck. Iris has both. The alternative four-piece from Covina have an acute sense of songwriting and ear for blurring the lines between many genres of music.

No matter what band or show they are playing, they can fit the sound, even if the band was the progressive stalwarts CHON, and the show was the first night of The Super CHON Bros Tour, which featured three instrumental progressive rock/metal bands on March 11 at the Glass House in Pomona.

That night, Iris vocalist/guitarist Michelle Malley was the only singer, but the band meshed well because they do not limit themselves to one style. The band can ebb-and-flow between progressive and alternative, between bleak soundscapes and poppy, dream-like vocals.

“I feel like with this kind of music, the crowd is just really welcoming and accepting,” Malley said. “They’re all so into it and excited and they don’t know who we are.”

Since the band usually plays local shows, playing bigger shows like the Glass House gig was different for them, but their contrast between the heavy guitars and feminine vocals made for a memorable combination that evening.

Though the band could have been overshadowed by the more technical music on the bill, Iris’s ability resonated with the audience. Their combination of fuzzed out heavy alternative rock of the late 90’s like Smashing Pumpkins, mixed with soulful and powerful vocals reminiscent of Janis Joplin won them some new fans that night, and that’s no surprise for them.

“I think we give you the calm before the storm and the storm,” bassist Michael Maldonado said. “We hit you with everything.”

Iris has never felt like they fit a certain mold or type,  despite there being loads of bands in the Inland Empire and L.A scene they call home.

“We’ve always been the outsider. We never fit that sound or scene,” Maldonado said. “We were doing our thing. It was different but we were still able to bring it.”

Iris began as a guitar and vocal duo in 2010 and became a full band after the duo’s self-released E.P.

Malley and guitarist Alex Moreno met through mutual friends when they were 19.

“I think we both knew what we wanted to do. I think we wanted to start a band together even before we liked each other,” Moreno said.

Though they hardly knew each other, they put themselves out there and decided to meet up with their guitars at Edna park in Covina. There they realized how well they work together and decided to form a band.

In the beginning, the two had opposite taste in music. Moreno was influenced by Alice in Chains, Mark Lanegan, and Queens of the Stone Age, while Malley mainly listened to ‘60s and ‘70s music like the Beatles, Karen Carpenter, and Carole King.

With Malley’s broad vocal talent, she could have sang anything but chose to take a more alternative route.

“I want to play music that means something to me and means something to other people.’” Malley said.

It was this diverse array of influences that melded its way into what would be Iris’ sound. From the start, Moreno and Malley never planned on playing a certain genre of music, but the writing process has always gone smoothly, Moreno said.

“It blew my mind. She showed me all this music I never knew about and that’s when my taste started changing,” Malley said.

Moreno and Malley knew Maldonado before he joined Iris because he was in another local band. They happened to play a show the same night and met there and has been the bassist ever since, Malley said.

The band recently added new drummer Glenn Chu who has fit in perfectly with the band’s style and sound.

Growing up in a band together, the girls have gone through their fair share of arguments that most bands have gone through, but the one thing that has always kept them together are the goals they share as sisters bonded through music.

“Although [Iris] has tested our friendship in the past, there was always one thing that remained static above all else in both of our lives and that was Iris,” said Malley.

“We have gone through a lot of stuff together throughout our ‘20s that would tear most friendships apart but it has just made ours stronger,” Moreno said.

Their main goals are Iris and traveling as a band.

The two are not only band mates, but used to also work serving at the same restaurant.

Their chemistry on stage translates to the workplace as well.

“Me and Michelle definitely created a system that worked for us and made work easier and far more productive,” said Moreno. “We also joked around a lot and got really goofy at work.”

Working together could be a struggle because the two know each other so well.

When they are not working, the band practices rigorously to prepare their material for shows.

Being kind and respectful to everyone at their shows has led to their fans becoming a group of friends that goes to their shows. Because they have been making the effort to talk to their fans at shows for years, there is no one that would badmouth them, Moreno said.

Although they had big goals in mind for the band, at no point in time did Moreno and Malley really know what they were doing or how long it would last. “Me and Michelle always knew we would play music forever with or without Iris,” Moreno said.

Although the band recently released their latest E.P. “Prey” in Oct. 2015 through Future Force Records, the band already has a new song written for their future album of next year, and is filming their first music video next month.

The song being used for their music video is “Loser,” a more poppy song compared to their more somber tracks off “Prey.”.

The album has a great sense of balance and dynamic, with “Loser” being Moreno’s, favorite song to perform live because of its catchy guitar part. The rest of the band agreed that “Wolves” is their favorite because of the heaviness the song. Moreno’s ominous chords and Malley’s haunting vocals create the pained atmosphere of the song that continues to resonate even after the song has finished.

Though there is no premise in mind for the music video, the band agreed that it is definitely going to be dark.

The set of the music video is a friend’s house in La Verne that was built in the ‘70s where the band practices. The Kubrick-esque house belongs to a friend of Maldonado and is at the top of a long, windy road and has long, dark hallways, a wooden spiral staircase, a wine cellar, and a grand piano, all which have not been cleaned in years.

The man who lives there, “only lives in one section of the house and the rest of it kind of just stays dark,” said Moreno. “So when you give someone a tour, you have to know where the light switches are otherwise you’re walking in blackness.”

The band is always pushing themselves, said Maldonado, and hopes to either headline their first tour or continue playing bigger venues and consistently opening for bigger acts.

Although they all have varying personalities and musical styles, Iris is the bond that the four share.

“It kept us together,” said Moreno. “It’s given us something not to give up on, which makes us not give up on each other.”