Mint is originally from southern California and, most recently, inspired by what they call the “darker hues” of Interpol, Joy Division, and The Cure. Recorded at Different Fur Studios in the Mission, the quartet’s last EP Dividing Lines churns noisy dream pop into a tasty semisweet styling of dancey post-punk.
What’s your earliest memory of connecting with music?
Speaking for myself, I have a distinct memory of being in pre-school where we would take naps in the middle of the day and our teacher put on some Enya to relax us. I still really love Enya.
Where did you grow up? If you moved here, when and why did you move to the Bay?
Three of us grew up in Southern California while our drummer Zack grew up here. The band moved to San Francisco incrementally between 2015 to 2020. We initially came for college and were excited to continue playing music in such a welcoming and diverse music scene.
Does living in the Bay Area influence your music?
I cannot say that living here influences our music, but we are often in awe at how many amazing musicians and bands live in this area. It’s really other Bay Area artists who often have an influence over us.
Why are you called Mint?
The story tends to be that Hayden and I worked at Baskin Robbins with the first two other members of the band, and we all really liked Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream. It felt like Mint was a simple and catchy name that resonated with the music we were making at the time. Now we say to others that we’re called Mint because we’re fresh to death.
How did the remix with Ezmiuski come together?
Our friend Jack reached out to us about remixing “Light” and we really enjoyed what he did with it.
What do you love about the Bay Area music community?
Firstly, I would say how welcoming people are. Everyone does their best to uplift and support one another’s projects, and I think that’s a rare thing. In other scenes (LA lmao), it can be a little more competitive. It is clear everyone playing music loves doing it and wants everyone to succeed to some degree. It’s really a beautiful thing and something we don’t take for granted.
Is there something missing or anything you’d like to see change?
In regard to the music scene? Absolutely not.
Are there any artist-centered communities in the Bay that you love?
None that comes to mind, but really just all the bands that make up the San Francisco Bay Area music scene. I’d like to shout out all the bands that we admire and love playing along with. I do apologize for such a long list. Polka Dot, Outer Sunset, Peña, The Moondrops, Pure Hex, Pocket Full of Crumbs, 11111angels, Catapult Stevens, Plum, Uncle Chris, Wander, Fake Fruit, Dinner Date, Juicebumps, Buzzed Lightbeer, Hit me, Harold, and so so many more.
Dividing Lines (2024) by Mint
Do you have any new releases coming up?
At the moment, we are playing less shows and hunkering down on writing a full length that hopefully will come out next year. We released our EP Dividing Lines late last year.
Which artist/show are you most excited to see at Total Accord?
We are most excited to see Peña live as we’ve been told he’ll be changing up his sound compared to his previous album. I love when artists are able to pivot in different musical directions.
Do you have any hopes or predictions for the local music scene?
My only distant hope is that all the musicians are able to make a living releasing and performing their music and for the Bay Area music scene to get more attention! There’s amazing stuff out there!
