After playing together for just a single day, the members of Numans knew they were meant to make music together.
The band Numans consists of four friends, most of whom are in college. Theodore Wilson sings and plays guitar and keys, Austin Morel plays guitar, Andrew Scott plays bass and N.C. State student Lucas Kessler plays drums.
“The group formed in June 2013 after meeting to jam on some songs Teddy [Wilson] wrote toward the end of his senior year in high school,” Kessler said. “That same evening, we were able to perform the three songs at an open mic in Carrboro and enjoyed the experience so much, so we kept going with it.”
Wilson goes to UNC-Chapel Hill, Morel goes to UNC School of the Arts, Scott is in his final year at Chapel Hill High School and Kessler is a sophomore in creative writing at N.C. State.
“While balancing schoolwork and meeting most weekends to work on our music seems like it would be difficult, I don’t think Numans really adds any pressure to our lives,” Kessler said.
Kessler said the group incorporates different genres into its music, but one genre is more prominent.
“While I think we like to incorporate different genres while writing, most of our songs have a strong pop feel to them,” Kessler said.
As far as getting their music out to the public, Kessler said it was not as difficult as they thought it would be.
“Getting exposure has actually been a lot easier than we expected,” Kessler said. “While I don’t think our name is broadly recognized, even locally, we’ve had a pretty easy time hopping on bills at venues like The Cave, Deep South, Slims Downtown and the Local 506.”
According to Kessler, the band is pleased with how many shows it is booking with bands that travel the country.
“Also, a few touring bands have reached out to us through Facebook, and we’ve been able to perform with them on their dates in the Triangle,” Kessler said. “Just this month, we played four shows in fewer than 10 days, including two with a band traveling from Florida.”
Though the band members said they are grateful for the shows, Kessler said the group needs a break.
“Following that quick series of shows, however, we have decided to take a several-week-long break from performing to relax and work on music,” Kessler said. “We may have some shows scheduled for March, though.”
Kessler said he and the band hope for audiences to enjoy their shows.
“All we can really hope for is that people leave our shows having had a good time,” Kessler said. “Even though some of our songs are deeply personal to the band, we write them all so that people can dance and enjoy themselves while listening.”
As for the group’s future, Kessler said making music is enjoyable to the members of the band, so they will continue to do it.
“We will continue to write songs that make us and the people who enjoy our music happy and begin performing in more cities across North Carolina,” Kessler said. “We’re all best friends, and making music is our favorite thing to do, so Numans feels as leisurely to all of us as going to the movies or hanging out.”
Kessler said he doesn’t know exactly where the band will go, but for now, being in the band is rewarding for all of them.
“I think all of us would agree that both making music and seeing people or hearing about people enjoying it is the most fulfilling part about being in a band,” Kessler said. “We really like getting supportive emails from people who have listened to our EP through Bandcamp Discover and talking with new people after our performances.”
For more information about the Numans, visit the band’s bandcamp page.
