YO Media team member Georgia caught up with the band Two Steps Forward for a quick chat—so you can get to know them a bit better!
Georgia: Some of our readers mightn't have listened to your music before, where can they find it, and what song would you recommend they start with?
Answer: Two Steps Forward states that as of right now, they haven’t released any of their originals just yet. But when they do get a chance to do so, they will hopefully have music on all streaming platforms, such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and more. their first two songs, ‘Tidal Wave’ and ‘Pushback’ would be two diverse songs that demonstrate what they can do as a band and share their message to their listeners.’
Georgia: Can you tell us a little bit about your band including how you originally came together and the story behind your band name?
Answer: Their vocalist, Kai, was the one who came up with the band name. He stated, “I wanted to go with something grounded but still optimistic, and Two Steps Forward was just the culmination of that mindset and a lightbulb moment.” they started as an ensemble group at Bendigo Senior Secondary College, but as the class shifted, they found out who was serious about making the band a long-term commitment. The first of them being Kai and the bassist, Harley, and shortly later they found their lead guitarist Josh. they all ended up sticking together as they shared a similar taste in music, approach to performing, approach to rehearsing, and overall becoming friends inside and outside of the band. while many of their friends supported the band from watching their gigs, Megan, their rhythm guitarist, found herself moving away from the sidelines and onto the stage with the band after a year of Two Steps Forward being active. Harley outlines that “we had asked Megan to fill in for a school set that only required her to learn and play one song with us. We knew she hadn’t done much performing to that scale, but she was very eager to say yes and very easy to work with. After realising that having her as a friend beforehand made working with her incredibly easy and positive, we knew it was the right thing to do to ask her to join us on stage as a permanent member, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to have her on board.”
Georgia: Which artists or bands have influenced your style the most?
Answer: They primarily take a lot of inspiration from Linkin Park, but they also love the style of many other rock and metal artists from the 2000’s, such as Green Day, System of a Down, and sometimes softer artists like Coldplay.
Georgia: What's the first song you ever wrote as a band, and do you still play it?
Answer: As of right now, they only have two completed original songs, with a couple more in the bank waiting to be finished or have ideas drawn upon. Tidal Wave was their first one they started a year ago, with it only being complete about a month ago. Both of their original songs occur in their regular sets, with the hope that many more will come along.
Georgia: I would love to know more about your songwriting process! Are there any themes or messages you try to explore in your music?
Answer: Although their writing is often shared with many ideas from different bandmates, Kai has suggested many instrumental drafts that act as a building block towards big ideas. He said “I put off writing for a while because I was scared to death that these thoughts that our songs are built around are near and dear to me, and I’m not great at being an open book. I want the songs to be something that people can take and apply to their own situations while still having a theme that is more or less easy to interpret. This writing style is heavily inspired by Mike Shinoda.” Most of the band starts their ideas as voice notes or testing out melodies on guitar, sometimes recorded to ensure our ideas won’t be forgotten. If they make something of it, the bandmates are really good at writing their own parts while following the main structure. For instance, Josh writes his own solos, and Harley follows the bass structure while adding some flare to keep the variation alive.
Georgia: Do you have a favourite track to perform live, and why does it stand out for you?
Answer: Collectively, the band believes that their original, Pushback, has been really fun to play and sounds exactly how we wanted it to, showing off our skills in all aspects of music. Our lead guitarist, Josh, explains that “playing originals live is crazy to me, and doing it with my closest friends is one of my favourite things in the world.” A few other favourites include One Step Closer, Leave Out All The Rest, Smells Like Teen Spirit as a closer to get the crowd incredibly hype and ensure the audience remembers us. Another favourite from Megan is Forgotten by Linkin Park, as she outlines “despite being the official rhythm guitarist for Two Steps Forward, I have a soft spot for the times I’ve jumped on the bass. As for guitar, I enjoyed playing at a fast pace with high energy for American Idiot by Green Day, even if my hands disagree by the end due to the pain.”
Georgia: What's the most memorable or unexpected thing that's happened at one of your gigs?
Answer: Everyone in the band has their own most memorable experience. Megan’s favourite was “during the Bendigo Senior Secondary College got talent in 2024, Harley and I made some last-minute decisions to really up our stage presence and performance with things like jumps, poses, and working together to create that connection on stage to really draw in the audience. The quick, hushed conversations before our time to shine really gave us all that confidence and energy boost just as we walked on stage, and to see it pay off in the photos and videos, along with the post-performance feedback really made me feel accomplished and showed we had the ability to go with the flow and improvise.” Josh’s favourite moment came from that same performance, as he played the guitar solo of Linkin Park’s What I’ve Done behind his head, stating “little me would have been so proud.” Kai states that at the first ‘Biggest Morning Tea, Cancer Council’ set that Two Steps Forward volunteered at, someone in the crowd anonymously donated $100 to all the band members of every band that played that night. Kai recalls that “we were still finding our feet and it wasn’t our best performance, but it felt very rewarding and endearing that someone wanted to support all of us in that way. It became a moment of inspiration to keep growing and doing better henceforth.” As for Harley, he states that “playing covers well in a band is amazing to get the crowd singing and having a good time. However, nothing will ever beat the feeling of playing your own songs in front of people. At Rock The Vine Part 3, we had a chance to debut two original songs for the very first time, and the audience ate that up, cheering and erupting, they loved it. Even ending that set with Smells Like Teen Spirit, engaging with the crowd and playing in amongst the crowd, their long cheers really showed how much talent we have to not only play, but to also entertain. Personally, I can’t wait to get to the point where I hear the audience singing out own songs back at us. I bet the feeling will be unexplainable, I might just drop dead.”
Georgia: Before we finish, what's next for Two Steps Forward?
Answer: ‘What isn’t next for us? We’re serious about making it big and we’re gonna do whatever it takes to accomplish that. We’ve made some amazing connections and friends so far, and I can only see that getting bigger and better each year. We love playing music and pushing the boundaries of our own and everyone else’s expectations. Having just come out of debuting our originals, we can only hope that those who love our covers can become fans of our originals too. Let’s focus on our first album before anything else, and everything after that is a surprise for the rest of the world. We know for a fact we can make it, but if we win this year’s Bendiglow’s Battle of The Bands, we will have all the connections and opportunities to make ourselves known and heard!!’ and great news, They won!!
Interview by Georgia
