The Gallery is special: a perfect mixture of killer vocals, upbeat melodies, and lyrics that leave you speechless.

I had the opportunity to interview one of the members via email, and it was a remarkable experience.

Ileana Alvarez-Diaz: Where are you all from?

Dave Mozdzanowski: Ryan, Brendan, and I (Dave) are from Western Massachusetts, near Springfield. Ben is from Riverside, California. We met him about a year and a half ago while he was going to Berkley in Boston.

IAD: When did you all first become interested with music? Did anyone inspire you? Role models?

DM: We’ve each been playing our respective instruments for at least 10 or more years. We have a lot of similar influences such as Dylan, Petty, 90s hits like Oasis, Third Eye Blind, and much more. We all appreciate great song writing, and those artists hit that nail on the head. It’s definitely something that inspired us to start playing and keep playing.

IAD: Did any of you take lessons or did you teach yourselves how to play?

DM: We’ve all taken some sort of music lesson, but not necessarily on the instruments we play now. Music is music, but we got the feel for our roles by playing with each other.

IAD: Where did the idea for this project from? Have you had any recent collaboration?

DM: The idea for an album comes as soon as we start compiling song ideas. There’s never a whole album idea prior to that, yet. The batch of songs always has some sort of central idea though, just naturally. We’ve actually been collaborating individually with a couple friends on different hip-hop/pop, rock projects. We all love great songs and melody, so it’s fun helping friends with that.

IAD: Did picking the genre (folk-rock) come easy?

DM: We tend to have a hard time telling people what sort of music we play, but we really like those individual genres, so it makes sense.

IAD: How long does the music process take? How about songwriting?

DM: Songs can take as short as a week or two to write, or up to several years or more. Recording as well, but we try to keep it somewhere in the middle.

IAD: Where do you all get the inspiration for the songs? What is it you want to convey to the audience?

DM: Inspiration can come from almost anything, but most things we want to say come from personal experiences. If there’s something we’ve learned or are still learning, we want to share that with whoever will listen.

IAD: What was the first song (or cover) you all preformed and how did it make you all feel?

DM: We don’t cover a lot of songs, but I think one of the first covers we did as a band was “The Waiting” by Tom Petty and Heartbreakers. We still play some Petty or Oasis here and there.

IAD: Where have you preformed? Is there a favorite place you’ve played at?

DM: We’ve been blessed to be able to play all over the country, and tend to prefer cities in scenic areas, or venues with good sound.

IAD: Are you currently on tour? If not, do you plan to? Where would you like to go first?

DM: We’re booking shows right now for a 2013 summer tour. We’ll be working cities from LA outward as far as we can make it financially.

IAD: What steps do you take in preparation for a show?

DM: We’ll take a few weeks to practice a set for tour, and hammer it out to get comfortable with any songs or covers we need to relearn.

IAD: Any embarrassing moments while performing?

DM: I have a good laugh when I trip over my own cord, back into one of the other guys, or dance some awkward stage presence. Nothing too major yet.

IAD: Do you all have any other interests?

DM: We all love watching the Celtics (Lakers for Ben), Red Sox, or Pats, or playing those sports ourselves. I love art, history and cooking.

IAD: Are there any artists you’d like to be compared to?

DM: We’re pretty flattered when we hear Petty comparisons, but moreover, we’d like our careers to be able to be compared. He could retire, but he’s still doing it strong!

IAD: Are you signed? If not, do you hope to be or are you leaning towards being independent?

DM: We are not signed at the moment. If the right opportunity comes around, a major label deal isn’t off the table, but I think we would take an independent route if we could make a good living that way.

IAD: What are some of the challenges you all face? What’s the fun part?

DM: Finances are a challenge for anyone these days. Being in a band, not making consistent money is a constant annoyance. Luckily the fun of playing, writing, and recording outweighs the cost of tour, equipment, merchandise, and keeping a business running.

IAD: What are your rehearsals generally like? Do you have a set time each week or are rehearsals more spontaneous?

DM: They’re pretty spontaneous unless we have a show or tour coming up. Either we just feel like jamming, or have songs or a setlist we want to work on and practice.

IAD: What’s your ultimate direction? Where do you see yourselves in five years?

DM: We’d really love to get on a solid tour and meet some other bands. Playing live is the crux of what we do, and we love to do it, so I would love to be on the road spreading the love.

IAD: What does “The Gallery” mean to you? Its origin?

DM: Our name doesn’t have a whole lot of deep significance. We wanted to keep it pretty simple and easy to remember though.

IAD: Any last words? Any other things readers/listeners should know?

DM: Keep in touch with us online on www.Facebook.com/thegallerymusic or every day on Twitter @thegallerymusic. We’ll be updating with new tour dates soon. Come hang out with us at a show! We love to hang out!

I’m really thankful that Dave took some time out of his really busy schedule; he gives you insight as to what’s it like in the music industry. The Gallery will be on tour again pretty soon— if you want to know specific dates, you have to check them out.

Like Dave said, check them out on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/thegallerymusic, on Bandcamp http://thegallerymusic.bandcamp.com/, and last, but not least, http://thegallerymusic.com/