Introducing Transviolet: 9 Important Facts About Your New Favourite Band

16 February 2016, 14:23 | Updated: 8 May 2017, 17:09

By Alim Kheraj

We met the band who are heading out on tour with Twenty One Pilots.

As purveyors of great taste *ahem* and with our fingers constantly on the new music pulse (we mean have you listened to the PopBuzz audio stream?), we're on a mission to bring you the acts we believe are gonna be HUUUGEE.

One such band is LA-based four-piece Transviolet. Comprised of Sarah McTaggart, Judah McCarthy, Michael Panek, and Jon Garcia, the band make sublime and haunting alt-pop, blending soaring melodies with powerful lyrics and massive instrumentals. They've even had shout outs from Katy Perry and Harry Styles.

We wanted to get to know a bit more about Transviolet. So ahead of their support slot for Twenty One Pilots in the UK this week, we headed down to their label to ask them some truly important questions...and to make some GIFs!

What Makes Transviolet Angry?

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Judah: I got a lot.
Sarah: People who don't have any spacial awareness. That bugs the shit out of me.
Jon: I can't stand when people leave their blinker on and they're just driving. It's not even legal. If you can't see a f*cking blinking light.
Judah: I hate old people!
Michael: You can't say that in an interview.
Judah: Why? They're not our target audience. They don't make me angry though... [laughs]

What makes Transviolet sad?

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Michael: Littering.
Sarah: People who hurt animals. That makes me sad. Why would you hurt a cute little animal.
Jon: Yeah, I'll go with the animal one.
Sarah: Or when people are rude to people for no good reason.
Jon: Instilling suffering on something.

What emojis do Transviolet love?

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Judah: Oh, the woman in the red dress! I always use that when I say something I shouldn't. Or the girl holding her hand up by flat.
Michael: The real kinda ambiguous smirking one. What does that mean? I put it after everything I say, usually, because it's hilarious.
Jon: If I could have two? When there's an awkward situation I use the two guys so you can make it look like their running because you can't really respond.
Judah: That's why I use the girl in the red dress. I can say something and you can't get mad at me.
Jon: You see the text bubble come up a few times and then BAM.
Judah: I like the eggplant. I don't use it that often, but I get sent it all the time.
Michael: How often are the tears after the eggplant?
Judah: I don't know...next question!

What songs do Transviolet love RIGHT NOW?

PopBuzz

Jon: "Pillowtalk" - Zayn Malik.
Judah: "Seven Swans" - Sufjan Steves.
Michael: Currently, "Shadows of the Night" - Pat Benatar.
Sarah: My favourite one right now is "Roses" by The Chainsmokers.

What makes Transviolet throw shade?

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Judah: Coming from Los Angeles, something you get accustomed to is people walking into a room with a lot of arrogance. They think they're this big creature in the music industry, but really they're some joe shrow living off mom and dad.
Jon: It's definitely music related.
Sarah: Name dropping.

What was the last song that made Transviolet cry?

PopBuzz

Sarah: "Lighthouse" by Patrick Watson. I don't if the lyrics are meant to be sad, but something about it makes me sad.
Jon: "Twilight" by Elliot Smith.
Michael: It was a Bon Iver song. I was with someone so I didn't cry, but I felt the sensation of wanting to cry. It was the first song on that good album he made. "Perth"?
Judah: "The Ocean" by Manchester Orchestra.

When did Transviolet know they were musical?

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Jon: Before I turned three, I used to grab all the pots and pans out of my parents' cupboards and start hitting them, so they got me a drum kit.
Sarah: I was singing before I could talk, according to my parents. And then I'd tell my mom that, "I wrote a song" and I'd sing it to her and it'd be nonsense.
Judah: Before I started playing music, I'd always have a cassette player with me all the time. My parents would be like, "How do you know every stupid word on this stupid cassette?" I'd just listen to the same thing for eight hours everyday.
Michael: Growing up I just had an old shitty piano in the house, and I'd just play it and make some noise.

What kinda dreams do Transviolet have?

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Judah: I scooped my teeth out into my hand.
Jon: My dreams are vivid every night.
Sarah: I was actually an old man in this dream. Apparently having a dream where you're someone else doesn't happen to everyone. I was this old man, and I was sitting at the dinner table with my family and we hear a noise upstairs and everyone's looking to me because I'm the patriarch of the family to go and deal with this noise. I go upstairs and it's this tiny little attic and I'm crawling around and suddenly this big rat monster jumps out and I wake up. Isn't that weird?

Where do Transviolet search for inspo?

PopBuzz

Sarah: I draw inspiration from all over the place. Listening to new music is one.
Jon: I'd say from my surroundings. Everything being all encompassing; music, art, my friends, noises outside, the things I see.
Sarah: I'm really into non-western music, too. It's not on the same scales that we have. Also for writing, past experiences are interesting to look back on and try to interpret them differently than how I experienced them initially.