1. I think everyone at home wants to know… who is Linda? 

We came up with the name Linda From Work while brainstorming potential band names with some of my family. They kept coming up with names like Blood Shower, or Scorpion Fight, etc. I said, “Hey, let’s try something else. What the lamest, least ‘rock n roll’ thing you can think of?”

One of my cousins just sighed and said, “Have I told you about Linda from work?” We all laughed because we realized we all work with someone like that. Linda is that person that won’t stop telling you weirdly personal info while you’re just trying to eat lunch – “Like, this is the only break I get today, Linda.” If your boss gives you a project to do with Linda, you’d rather do it alone because it’ll be faster. So, I guess there is a real Linda out there that the band is named after. I’ve never met her, though.

…that being said, most people assume I’m Linda since I front the band. So I just answer to Linda now haha. 

2. With venues staying closed, how has the creative process changed for Linda From Work? 

It’s obviously been a weird year! I really miss playing shows and hanging out with other bands. COVID really stopped us in our tracks. There is a silver lining, though – It’s given us more time to focus on writing and developing new music! Luckily for us, Linda From Work’s creative process has translated to quarantine pretty well. I am wildly Type A and hate jamming, so our songwriting process never really relied on us being in the same room to begin with. Once we can get back out there, we’ll have tons of new stuff to show off!

3. How did Linda From Work form? 

Sam and I are married and have been making music together for years. We had played in various other projects before, but always felt like we were following someone else’s dream. We started Linda so that we wouldn’t have to compromise anymore and we could bring our own vision to life.

When we moved to Seattle, Sam got a job working the graveyard shift at a hotel where Mary worked mornings. They met and would talk about upcoming shows, etc. We all became good friends and played shows together with our respective bands. Then, Mary’s project Biblioteka needed a new keyboardist, so I jumped in! A few months down the line, when we needed a bassist, she returned the favor. We’ve been rocking out together ever since!

4. Linda From Work will be performing on the BiG BLDG Grounded Livestream this Thursday, October 8th. Do you think livestreams are the future of music?

I think livestreams have been great. We have family and friends all over the country who hadn’t seen any of our gigs before COVID. This gives them the chance to see every show! Now that livestreams are becoming more popular, I certainly hope to be a part of more in the future. That said, there is something special about being at a venue and feeling the music, having the bands and crowd feed off each other. It’ll be a long time before livestreams can replace that.

Also, Grounded is great! We never miss it. You might recognize our bassist… from every single episode.

5. The group has been spending the 2020 quarantine season prepping for the release of your new LP, Burnout. What can you tell us about this LP?

We had planned to be in the studio recording an EP in late May, but then COVID. Obviously, we had to push that back. With the extra time, we decided to write a full length album instead. 

Burnout is inspired by my own 9-5 office admin job. It’s a familiar feeling to many; being overworked and underpaid. The songs speak to that anxiety, rage, and exhaustion, as well as a deeper appreciation for the people and things that make your world feel right again. 
Burnout feels like the next level for our sound. We’ve spent the last six months playing and writing almost every day. The songs are more complex and interesting. We try to do something different with every track on the album. Nearly every song is in a different key and we mix up time signatures and structure a lot. It’s difficult to do that and still make the tracks feel tied together, but I think we’ve really nailed it. We’ve really challenged ourselves while writing this album and I’m proud of the results.