Image via Christian Laliberte<\/p>\n
Q+A with Sweat on their new album, recording, and why 7-Eleven should sponsor them<\/p>\n
Pittsburgh rock band Sweat<\/a> recently released their incredible sophomore album, \u201cIn Dreams.\u201d The 4-piece prog rock band has been playing energetic shows since the band formed in 2019, including opening for national act Metric at the Roxian Theatre. The band recorded their new album at Mr. Smalls.<\/p>\n Over a phone interview, I talked with the band about their new album, recording, and why 7-Eleven should sponsor them. Band members include\u00a0Sue Pedrazzi (she\/her) \u2013 organ and lead vocals, Richard Stanley (he\/him) \u2013 guitar and vocals, Dan Hernandez (he\/him) \u2013 bass, and Kayla Schureman (she\/her) \u2013 drums and vocals.<\/p>\n Recording a New Album at Mr. Smalls<\/p>\n Josh: Congratulations on your new album, \u201cIn Dreams.\u201d It was recorded at Mr. Small\u2019s recording studio. How was that experience?\u00a0<\/p>\n Dan: That was great. We spent a lot of time getting these songs together and hammered them down as much as we possibly could before we went into the studio. I\u2019m part of the rhythm section, so your responsibility is to get it done fast and as cleanly as possible. I think there\u2019s just so much more going on with producing and mixing with this album that needed extra attention. That\u2019s a really big part of the new album.\u00a0<\/p>\n Josh: How did it feel to hear your original songs in the studio?<\/p>\n Sue: I really thrived there. It\u2019s a beautiful building. It has these stained glass windows, and it provides a great atmosphere. Especially when you record organs, there\u2019s a certain spirituality to it.<\/p>\n Dan: Our new music video was shot there. We worked with Nate Campisi, he also did the first record. We\u2019ve become really close friends. So, there\u2019s this unspoken understanding about things. It\u2019s just kind of a family operation at this point.<\/p>\n Opening for Metric<\/p>\n Josh: What was it like opening for Metric at the Roxian Theatre?\u00a0<\/p>\n Dan: Roxian was great. I\u2019ve never played somewhere where you pull up and there\u2019s people waiting to bring your gear in. It\u2019s cool playing venues like that with national bands. Because a lot of people have no idea you\u2019re a local band. That\u2019s something I\u2019ve always considered to be one of the highest compliments.<\/p>\n Kayla: Yeah, that was great because they don\u2019t usually pull in local openers. It was nice to get integrated with a national act here in Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n Sweat Concert Experience\u00a0<\/p>\n Josh: What\u2019s it like at a Sweat concert?<\/p>\n Sue: That\u2019s a really good question. To be at a Sweat concert means that you can expect to get an experience thoughtfully put together. A lot of thought not only goes into our songs but also in how we present them and the succession of the songs in a set. It\u2019s very honest. I feel like when I sing, I really mean what I say. If I don\u2019t, it\u2019s not gonna translate. I\u2019m really trying to communicate something to the audience that doesn\u2019t necessarily have to be through words, because you don\u2019t have to understand every word I sing, but more so on an emotional and energetic level if that makes sense.<\/p>\n Kayla: I joke with the band that I\u2019ve only ever played a Sweat show to three people. Just because I\u2019m not out front with the people.<\/p>\n Original Songs On the New Album<\/p>\n Josh: How did you choose to kick off the album with \u201cOpen my Eyes\u201d?<\/p>\n Kayla: I think it has an intro that draws you in. It\u2019s kind of this big sweeping invitation. I think it builds tension.\u00a0<\/p>\n Josh: I really like the chorus on \u201cHillary.\u201d How did that song come together?\u00a0<\/p>\n Sue: That was the first song we wrote for the new album. We came up with that chord progression. I remember Rich played that on guitar and everybody liked it. And then I remember sitting down at home at my synthesizer. Rich came over and he heard that and was like, \u2018What the hell is this?\u2019 and I was like, \u2018That\u2019s\u00a0Hillary.\u2019\u00a0We sat down together and spent a couple hours making a demo at my house.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dan: We were practicing two or three times a week.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sue: Yeah. Some songs come together differently and sometimes you just have this song that just happens in a half hour. It comes from this place of shared creative energy. It just happens. And then sometimes there\u2019s songs that you might work on for months and months and months. So,\u201dHillary\u201d had a little bit of both of that. There was this spark.<\/p>\n 7-Eleven Inspiration<\/p>\n Josh: I love the B3 organ in \u201c7-Eleven.\u201d The lyrics were really interesting with how you made 7-Eleven as a metaphor.<\/p>\n Sue: We have a thing for 7-Eleven. We have really fun memories there from being on tour. We all have matching 7-Eleven socks. We would go in there and buy snacks and drinks. I was listening to something that Rich was playing and 7-Eleven just came out of my mouth. Yeah, metaphorically, it\u2019s a little bit more of a vibe than just singing about the corner store. I mash it with things that are going on in my own life.<\/p>\n Josh: They definitely need to sponsor Sweat.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sue: If 7-Eleven only knew that they could change our lives again.\u00a0<\/p>\n Josh: \u201cOn My Own\u201d has an epic jam. Have you played it live?\u00a0<\/p>\n Kayla: We\u2019ve played it live many times.<\/p>\n Dan: We went on a short tour with Ruby the Hatchet, and I remember we wrote it shortly before that. It\u2019s a lot of fun to play.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sue: I think we all love that song, right? It shows our prog side or maybe our psychedelic side a little more. I think it\u2019s the perfect example of this intersection that I think we have gotten to be pretty good at over the years. Where we intersect somewhere at digestibility and pop appeal but then also total prog monster influences.<\/p>\n Songwriting\/Deciding What Songs To Record<\/p>\n Josh: It feels like everybody brings different parts to the songwriting aspect.<\/p>\n Sue: I think everybody is very dedicated to their own parts and intentionality of it. I know that Kayla is extremely devoted. She would spend five days a week for multiple hours on the drum set working on new parts. I hope that dedication comes across.<\/p>\n Kayla: But it helps when they\u2019re good songs. (laughs)<\/p>\n Sue: We\u2019re pretty picky. These are the 10 songs that excited us most. I don\u2019t know how many songs we tossed in the process.<\/p>\n Josh: It\u2019s really tough to let go and never know if the song will be released.<\/p>\n Dan: We have a comprehensive Google Drive somewhere that is just absolutely packed to the gills.\u00a0<\/p>\n What\u2019s Next<\/p>\n Josh: What\u2019s next for the band?\u00a0<\/p>\n Sue: It\u2019s been a big push to get the album out. We\u2019re gonna see what\u2019s in store for next year. We were so immersed in making this album. We just need that sponsor. You can print that we\u2019re waiting for 7-Eleven.<\/p>\n To listen to Sweat, you can find them on streaming platforms<\/a>. Follow them on Instagram<\/a> and Facebook<\/a> for the latest news about the band.<\/p>\n Check out last month\u2019s artist of the month here!<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThis content was provided by a local, independent contributor to Made in PGH, a lifestyle blog.<\/p>\n \t\tTags: \t\t\t\t Josh has been writing for Made in PGH since 2018, where he writes about upcoming events. He\u2019s a Point Park University graduate and teaches high school English. In his free time you\u2019ll find him playing guitar and writing new songs.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t<\/a> \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tImage via Christian Laliberte<\/p>\n
Image via Christian Laliberte<\/p>\n
\n\t\t412<\/a>, Artist<\/a>, band<\/a>, best of pgh<\/a>, best of pittsburgh<\/a>, concert<\/a>, Events<\/a>, lifestyle<\/a>, live music<\/a>, local artist<\/a>, local band<\/a>, Music<\/a>, PA<\/a>, pgh<\/a>, pgh made<\/a>, Pittsburgh<\/a>, Pittsburgh events<\/a>, Western PA<\/a>\t<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/1794300249_644_255f67bc0f8e70a386fb35af964aa8dd1302fbbc2b203de94b9ded439c80efc7.jpeg\")
\n\t\tJosh McCann<\/a><\/p>\n
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