Play the Ace
Words by Smo Ostrowski. Photo by Brelyn Bashum.
Play The Ace is a Dallas-based all-female pop punk band with a new EP, All My Friends Are Ghosts. Their sound is a mix of classic pop punk with a refreshing, youthful perspective gaining inspiration from bands such as My Chemical Romance and All Time Low. I had the chance to interview these ladies and get a better idea of what they’re bringing to the table.
OTR: Your debut EP All My Friends Are Ghosts came out recently, how does it feel to release your first EP?
Iris: It’s been such an amazing experience because it took us so long to get there! This was actually the second time we recorded the EP. The first time, it was just us three clueless kids, a crappy desktop mic, and Garageband on a laptop that never worked, so clearly we were going for quality haha. We ended up scrapping it and completely starting over in an actual studio (shoutout to Michael Briggs for dealing with our mess) and we’re so happy with how it turned out!
Molly: I think we all agree that we want our sound to evolve but to have created something that people are enjoying is truly special.
OTR: You said you were inspired by the bands My Chemical Romance and All Time Low for your new EP All My Friends Are Ghosts, can you elaborate on that? Was it a specific album that inspired you? A song?
Dena: When I was 6 or seven years old, I was introduced to My Chemical Romance for the first time. My oldest brother pulled out his iPod and played Welcome to the Black Parade. He told me to focus on one instrument, and the one I picked was the drums. That’s when I knew I wanted to play the drums and create my own music.
Iris: With All Time Low, they’re just kind of the band that’s been with us since the beginning of our journey as a band. Our first official band practice was actually the same day that Future Hearts was released. We did more jamming out to the album than we did actually practicing.
OTR: What makes Play The Ace different from other pop punk bands?
Iris: Our music is young and just has a refreshing tone that younger audiences can really relate to. We see our audience as friends not fans, and we really put 100% into making sure we connect with every single one of them, whether that means talking to every single person at shows or replying to every single comment or starting up conversations over DMs. At the end of the day, we’re just music nerds who want to make friends - we just happen to also play instruments. We’re also all-female, ⅔ POC, and LGBT inclusive, so we represent all kinds of people. There’s this image of bands being only for straight white dudes, and we’re here to show people that they don’t have to fit a certain image.
OTR: What's next for Play The Ace? Any summer plans?
Iris: We just announced a show on 5/25 in Denton, TX to kick off the summer! It’s a whole night packed full of all-female bands, and the venue has the SICKEST tacos. Nothing more pop punk than crowdsurfing while eating a taco, am I right?
Dena: Later this summer, we plan on playing more shows around Texas, and hopefully maybe even out of state. We’re also currently in the works of writing more music for our next EP!
OTR: What's everyone from Play The Ace currently listening too? Favorite songs or artists?
Molly: I'm listening to a ton of Neck Deep, and I'm really not sure why, but I'm really diggin it. And then there's one Mellow Fellow song called Dancing that I'm really into. And I always always go back to the same A Day To Remember album no matter what mood I'm in just because I think it's one of my all time favorites: Common Courtesy is playing through my earbuds so so often.
Dena: I personally like to listen to a lot of indie music as well as pop punk. Some of the artists I have been listening to nonstop recently are Broadside, Sleep On it, Speak Low, Harry Styles, Declan McKenna, With Confidence, Neck Deep, Cigarettes After Sex, YUNGBLUD etc... and that’s just to name a few.
Iris: I’m just a complete pop punk nerd, so my playlist (which is called Bop Bop Bop - dedicated to HSM aka the masterpiece of the century) is a lot of State Champs, Neck Deep, Broadside, and the list goes on and on. Basically give me a pop punk song, and 110 percent chance that I’ll love it!