The band:

Phil Ritchie: vocals/trumpet
Derek Boening: guitars/vocals
Brian Luckett: guitars/vocals
Bruce Long: bass
Brandon Luckett: drums

Location:

You guys have been together for more than 10 years. What’s your secret?

That’s a good question. I think the fact that three of us are related has a lot to do with it. We all are passionate about the music we make and love to perform. It definitely has its highs and lows though.

How does Lennex’s family dynamic (Brian and Brandon are brothers, Derek is their cousin) affect how the band members relate to each other?

Even though only three of us are related, at this point it feels like a five-way brotherhood, or probably more like a marriage. It helps us be more honest with each other. If we don’t like the way someone is acting, we tell him. I actually think it’s helped us learn things about ourselves that no one else would have the courage to tell us.

When you were a contestant on CBS’ “Rock Star: Supernova,” you said that the only reason you were there was to gain exposure for Lennex. That must have meant a lot to your bandmates. What was the response from everyone when you got home?

Overall, people seemed to respect me for saying that. I had always told my band that that was the reason I was going on the show. I don’t know if all of them really believed me though until I actually said it on the show.

What were the best and worst parts about being on the show?

The best thing about being on “Rock Star” was the excitement of it all. It was a pretty huge thing in my life so far. The worst thing about it was having to perform songs you didn’t really like that much and therefore didn’t connect with, and then having to be judged for it. But I guess I knew what I was getting into when I auditioned.

Do you think the band might work with any of the musicians you met on “Rock Star” in the future?

Anything’s possible.  At the least, we’ll probably do some shows with some of them. We’ve already done shows with Matt Hoffer, Josh Logan, Lukas Rossi, Jenny Galt and Chris Pierson.

Right now, you’re working on a new album. How do you think it will build on your most recent release, “Part Math, Part Euphoria?”

I can only hope that as songwriters we have continued to mature. Each album we’ve put out so far has been an improvement on the one before, so hopefully we can continue that trend. The hardest thing to do is to write music that you find stimulating and at the same time can be commercially successful. That is our goal.

Can you tell us anything about what inspired the new single, “Thank You and Goodbye?”

That song is inspired by my observation that people are inherently inspired to be good even if they don’t always choose to follow that road.

What’s the songwriting process like for the band? Do the lyrics or the music come first?

Usually, at least some of the music comes first. It allows us to set a tone for what I want to sing about.

What role will your trumpet play on the album, compared to past recordings?

I’m going to try to fit it in whenever it makes sense. I don’t like to put it in songs just to have trumpet on the track. I do believe that it will play a much larger role on the new album though than it did on the last one.

You’ve played shows with bands ranging from Bon Jovi to Finger Eleven. Who did you most enjoy getting to know?

We played a bunch of shows with Saliva this year and had a great time becoming friends with those guys. They never acted like they were better than anyone else.

What are your goals for touring in 2008? Any areas you haven’t played before that you’re hoping to hit?

It’s kind of hard to say right now. We still have a lot of work to do on the new album. We’d love to have something to tour on by this summer.  Hopefully we can tour as much of the country as possible.

What’s the most important thing for TWRY readers who might be unfamiliar with the band to know about Lennex?

We are honest about the music we write. Never will we try to be or sound like anyone else, and if you come to one of our shows, we will melt your face off, respectably.

Any parting words or messages for your fans?

Thanks for being our fans. We love you all… seriously, we really do!

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Lennex on MySpace
Official Lennex Website

**Photos used courtesy of the Lennex MySpace page (Ron Schock artistpromo.com)

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