Interview: Flamingos in the Tree

Interview by Miranda Urbanczyk // Photo by Eric Rodriguez

Flamingos in the Tree is an indie band based out of Reno, a city known for its punk scene. The group consists of Daniel Escovar, Spencer Thomas, James Pizzo, and Jarvis Humlick. I spoke with Daniel, Spencer, and Jarvis about their journey as a band.

The group was never particularly concerned about how their sound would be perceived in a punk-loving area. Their sound was unlike most in town, which didn’t affect them from playing and having hope. “There is always an audience for happy pop music,” said Spencer. They explained that Reno has an indescribable feeling. The city makes them feel a certain way that cannot be compared. Reno will always follow them, even after their move out of the area. They also clarified that their name ‘Flamingos in the Tree’ describes a feeling of being out of place in the music scene there. “Normally, flamingos are seen near water and never in trees,” said Jarvis. Don’t let this name deceive you, flamingos are none of their favorite animals. Spencer and Jarvis proclaimed the animal was top 10 in their ranking. Spencer likes giraffes and mentioned that he has a tattoo of one on his leg. Daniel favors flamingos a little more, putting them in his top 5. Not only does the band have preferences for animals, they are always on the hunt for the best pizza. Pub N’ Sub has won the award of “Reno’s Best Pizza” in their hearts. Aside from pizza, the group enjoys playing a multitude of games including spike ball, frisbee, and soccer. They do everything together and have grown immensely close throughout their time as a band. Dan explained that their first two years of being a band were exclusively spent playing music. At the beginning of their time as a band, the songs were more based on Dan’s experiences. The others also related to the lyrics and collaborated to ensure they resonated with the message. Now, they tend to write as a group and all feel connected to different songs. Jarvis prefers ‘Toes’ and its focus on composition and instrumentation. Dan finds himself relating to the lyrics of ‘Thorned Rose’ and ‘Hearts Tied’. Spencer struggles specifically choosing between songs, as he relates to many of them. Although, he did explain how ‘Asking for a Friend’ is about an experience he watched his friend endure. Each of the band members got into music differently, but ultimately they were all at the right place at the right time. Jarvis had a musical family and was encouraged to get into music, so he started playing drums and took private lessons. He continued playing music in high school and joined a club in college which is where he met Spencer. Dan started playing guitar in high school after his friends encouraged him to do so. Music became an outlet for him, and he found himself emotionally attached. For Spencer, music was just a pastime and never a serious inquiry until recently. He started playing trombone to fulfill an elective in middle school. Eventually, he learned the guitar and met Dan in college. The ‘Let You Go Tour’ is their biggest tour yet, occurring this summer with over 30 shows. The song ‘Let You Go’ serves different meanings for each band member. Whether this is letting go of a person, an experience, or even Reno. Moving will be a new step for them, along with their upcoming tour. Each member is excited to explore during their time on tour. They will have around 4 hours in each city and are looking to sightsee and experience each place in its entirety. Spencer and James haven’t done much traveling in their lives. Spencer has never been across the country, or on the East Coast. The group is excited to get a taste of Chicago. “It’s one of the biggest cities in the US yet we’ve never played there before,” said Jarvis. Catch them at one of their stops on tour to experience their outgoing energy and original sound!