Whatever happened to the raw rock ‘n’ roll attitude? Is it sleepy? Is it dead? No, it’s alive and well, and you can find it in Nathaniel Punty, along with all his projects. Punty keeps the spirit alive by sounding cool, looking cool, and being cool.
Bouncing around the San Francisco bay area, a stint in Massachusetts, and then back to Bay Area, Punty started to gravitate towards rock ‘n’ roll in his younger days. His biggest day one supporter of keeping the fire of interest lit, being his mother.
“For, like, my seventh birthday my mom got me a JVC boombox, that shit was sick, and some CDs. I remember she got me a Nickleback CD and Satellite by P.O.D., and I heard that and was like, ‘This shit is hard!” he laughs. “My mom pushed to get me into music, which was a little strange because she didn’t play anything; she just listened. She knew I liked rock music. One time back when Good Charlotte was big and the “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous” music video just came out, she goes, ‘Nate, come look at this. I think you’d like this song.’ And I was like, ‘This is fucking amazing; this is the best shit I’ve ever heard,’” he explains.
But Punty wasn’t satisfied with just listening to rock; he had to create the rock as well. “I actually started out on drums and then showed interest in guitar. The movie School of Rock came out, and I was like, ‘Holy fuck, that’s what I wanna do.’ Then when I got a little older I got into BMX and skateboarding and started to meet the people who played in my first band. These guys were a few years older and just really cool, ya know, when you’re 13. And I ended up rolling up to my first show because I knew those kids were gonna be there.” He says.
The scene and vibe was starting to materialize. “It was a free outdoor show at a gas station. It was a deathcore show, and people were slam dancing, and I was blown away. I witnessed that and was like damn, I wanna be involved in whatever this is for the rest of my life. I always wanted to be a rock star, as long as I can remember.”
Fast forward some years and bands, and Punty finds himself drumming again for the hardcore band Fentanyl. “I was playing drums for Hands of God for, like, a month, and it was just too impractical to work out, them being in San Jose and me coming down from Vallejo. So, this guy Kenny I knew through the internet is starting a project and needs drums, and Jaffy (Hands of God) recommends me to Kenny. What’s funny is I think I knew him first through playing video games with Jaffy and the guys, and he hops on the game, and I’m like ‘Is this that guy on the internet?’ and they tell me it’s Kenny, and I’m like, ‘This fucking guy.’” He laughs.
“He reached out to me and we jammed; it went really well. But I think I express myself a lot better through guitar, so we had a conversation and moved me to being the third guitar. We’re probably one of the first band to have three guitars all playing rhythm parts.” He laughs. “I don’t write anything for Fentanyl, just play guitar and make it look cool.”
But another opportunity for rocking arose for Punty in Spiritual Cramp. “When I moved back to the bay around a decade ago, I didn’t really know anyone. So, I joined this emo band and started networking again, playing small venues, and talking to people. That’s when I met Mike B (Mike Bingham), who is, like, ‘The Guy’ in the scene. I’d only known him in passing but he was then working at Thee Parkside and I was kind of star struck but introduced myself. I then gave him Slumped’s first LP and he was so cool about it, and started to come out to Slumped shows,” he says. “Then Spiritual Cramp was going on tour with Angel Du$t and needed someone to fill in on guitar, and he asked me, and I was down. It worked out and was like ‘Hey, this is what I’m gonna look like on tour.’ So, I jumped in and set this new standard of collared shirts, sweater vests, sporty jackets, and we’ve never looked back. When we got back he asked if I wanted to be in and I was in.”
But Punty’s heart belongs to another project, Slumped. “Slumped has been a collection of songs I’ve been writing since I was a teenager. I just didn’t know what to do with them or what direction to take them honestly. It took me a long time to get the formula down for how I want it to sound. It took a lot of unlearning of everything I knew, to write how simple Slumped is right now. There are complexities, but essentially, it’s just two or three riffs per song, and I like it that way. It’s simplistic but tasteful.”
Inspiration for Slumped came from bands that had a similar less is more mindset. “I really like Weezer and Diamond Youth, and I was like, ‘How do I write music like this?’ finding these cool chord changes. And now the only way I write is with intention. Slumped started out as emo pop-punk kind of project just cuz I didn’t have my formula yet. I knew what I wanted but it took a while before I could actually produce that. It took years of studying other bands and listening. I finally got that pop-rock instead of pop-punk, which is what I call Slumped.
“I just love distorted guitars; that’s why I love Slumped so much, because I can just turn the distortion pedal up to 10. It’s almost ironic really, having these heavily distorted guitars playing in a pop band. I’m trying to create a timeless sound that people can listen to 40 years from and now, and when I’m 50, I can listen to these songs and not feel weird about them. It is tough to be that vulnerable putting out stuff that is so personal. All the shit that I write is very diary-style, like how I’m feeling in the moment,” he says.
“What they are is just little acoustic songs that I plug into an electric guitar but they’re in a campfire acoustic format. But I’m like, what if that campfire song was played out of a fuckin’ crazy distorted amp and bass and just sounded huge and in-your-face. It’s being as authentic as I possibly fuckin’ can to myself and hopefully that can inspire people too. Punty also credits his bandmates as being forces that help Slumped be what it is. “I also have these brilliant fuckin’ people in my corner too, that motivate me to be better. I have Blue Broderick from Diners; she’s a genius, Will Jenkins who is a crazy wizard at drums, and Reise Moran, who has this crazy ear for pop melodies that you can’t even imagine,” he adds.
Slumped are now the focus for Punty. “So now, Slumped is a very serious thing for me; it always has been, but now I’m trying to give it more credit.” This coming year is looking to have a good forecast for Slumped. “I’m having some really cool conversations and offers coming up. Slumped is in really good hands; it’s just a matter of playing shows and staying in the conversation. There’s plenty of Slumped to come, and hopefully I’ll have a small EP out in the spring 2025. You can look forward to seeing plenty of Punty this year rocking with a cigarette in mouth and a swagger that will have you saying, ‘Fuck yeah, rock ‘n’ roll!’
“What I’m gunning for is Slumped being your favorite band’s favorite band.”
Slumped just put out a new album called Last Day on Earth in September, and it’s available now on Bandcamp. Follow Slumped on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for future updates.
Photo courtesy of Slumped
