Graphics by: Bas Spierings
PSO is made up of the 4 Prescott brothers (Simon-vocals, Nate-bass, Noah-guitar and Zak-drums). They call Lemon Grove, CA home and live for skateboarding and punk rock music. Their latest release is the 10 track "My Way Out" CD which came out in September on Not Like You Records. With Nate currently going to school out of state they have David Orozco filling in on bass but it's still really rare to see any band in this music genre to have 4 siblings sharing the same passion for being in a band together. We caught up with Zak in this interview which was done in December of 2015.
IE: What's up Zak? Can you start us off by introducing PSO and what you guys are all about?
Zak: PSO is from Lemon Grove California, a small town in east San Diego county. We're all about punk rock and skateboarding and at the end of the day, we love it, we live it. We played our first show in May of 2012 and quickly started making moves with the band.
IE: What does PSO stand for? Don't see it on your CD or anywhere else for that matter. Why is its meaning on the down low?
Zak: There once was an original meaning, and it's kinda changed along the way depending on where we're at in life.
IE: PSO is made up of 4 brothers which is a pretty unique thing in any music genre but even more so in punk rock and hardcore. What are the age differences between all of you and how did you first find out about punk and hardcore?
Zak: The cool thing is that our dad grew up in the first wave of punk so we were all raised around it. We didn't even know what "punk" was until we started going into middle school. But at the same time we grew up listening to bands like Angelic Upstarts and Pennywise and just never knew that it was called "punk". Haha we're all about 2 years apart from ages 18-25. We're close enough in age that we can still have things in common.
IE: How have your parents taken to having four punk rock skateboarding sons at home? I know when my younger brother and I brought home the first Suicidal Tendencies album my mother bugged out over the lyrics and tried to take it from us. How did punks introduction go over at your house early on?
Zak: Our dad is a pretty gnarly dude, and our mom supports the whole thing, she's awesome. Neither of them ever played music, but were supportive of us wanting to play music. We all taught ourselves, so you can imagine how much unorganized noise there was in the beginning that they had to deal with. If we're playing in Lemon Grove, they usually come by and watch our set. It's pretty rad to have their support.
IE: What are some pros and cons that you can see to having 4 brothers in a band as opposed to having just 4 friends getting together to be in a band?
Zak: Being brothers we sometimes butt heads, but that's honestly the only bad thing I can think of. We're all best friends. I'd rather skate with them, and be on the road with them than anyone else, and I think we all feel the same.
IE: All over your CD there are references, photos and songs all related to skateboarding which is obviously a big theme for you guys. Does everyone in the band share the same feelings towards skateboarding or are some of you way more into it than others?
Zak: Yeah man we lucked out, our dad introduced skateboarding to us at a real young age. "Learned to skate before I could walk, engraved in my heart skateboarding and punk rock". We're all at different skill levels. But we're all about it. It's fun, it makes us happy. And it's something we can all do together with our friends and family. No coaches, no soccer moms, just good times and positive energy. "It's a way of life, much more than a trend, it brings together my family and friends".
PSO'S NOAH, SIMON, & ZAK GETTING AT IT
IE: You guys are from a San Diego suburb called Lemon Grove which is a bit east of the city. What was it like growing up there? From seeing some of your videos on YouTube it seems like there is a ton of interest in punk and skating.
Zak: LG is super diverse… being white at school definitely made you a minority. We grew up hanging out with everyone, and we grew up with the idea that punk rock doesn't have a look and because of that the scene has flourished. Doesn’t matter if you're a cholo, emo, goth, thug, if we were friends with them, you'll see them in the pit in Lemon Grove.
IE: Tell us a little bit about the 2nd track on your full length called "Worthless Name Part 2". Lyrically at first I thought it was a straight up anti-police track but after hearing it some more it seems like this may be a more personal experience with someone you know who became a cop. What's the story behind it?
Zak: It's not necessarily about a certain individual, but it is about people we know. The idea that kids we grow up with who are all about punk and hardcore, but then take a job position such as a cop. It's obvious you didn't get it, you weren't ever punk because if you really were, you would have learned that we hate those dudes.
IE: Your “My Way Out” album has some pretty cool artwork. Who is the artist behind it and did you give them any ideas as to what you wanted or did they just do their own thing with it?
Zak: The legendary Jim Howard drew it for us. He's tattooing in Sacramento as of now, but we know him from Lemon Grove. Great friend. We had ideas but a lot of the detail was "artist interpretation". The four of us going into the sewer is similar to the cover of the first Ninja Turtles movie, which was also four brothers. The cover represents life and all its craziness, and “My Way Out” is the escape which is why we're going underground. Underground punk, underground hardcore, underground skateboarding. Finding things that make us happy that allow us to escape the reality of how insane the world really is. I think he did a great job portraying that on the cover.
IE: The PSO sound is rooted in that West Coast punk style but you definitely have some East Coast vibes in there too. What East Coast bands have played a bigger part in developing the sound the band has today?
Zak: West Coast punk is definitely a huge influence in our music. As far as East Coast bands go I'd have to say bands like Bad Brains, Reagan Youth, Gorilla Biscuits, but even West Coast hardcore bands like Undertow, RKL, and Take Offense have all influenced the heavier side of our music for sure.
IE: You've kept busy since this band got started in 2012. You have the new one which is a full length but before that you've put out a couple of 7 inches, and a split tape as well. Add to that some tours and it's obvious you all take the band pretty seriously. Are you guys still in school or working or a combination of both? Can you see things moving along at this fast pace with the band for a while to come?
Zak: We definitely wanna keep going. Looking to do an East Coast tour in 2016 along with any others that may come our way. We all work, and two of us are doing the school thing right now, so we just try to make it work between everyone's schedules. But as long as we're having fun, we'll do it forever.
Jamey Prescott, father of the 4 Prescott brothers
IE: One of you broke your leg about a year ago which had PSO cancel a tour in December of 2014. What happened?
Zak: Simon broke his leg a week before the tour while we were out skating and had to have a metal rod put in his leg. He's back to killing it on his skateboard. It definitely hasn't slowed him down at all.
IE: What has been PSO's best show so far and what made it the best one? Who else played?
Zak: In July we had our record release for “My Way Out” in Lemon Grove and that would definitely be our "best show". There were over 200 kids there, and it was absolutely insane. The full line up was Atlas, Sustivity, Black Heads, Cold Stare, Meth Breath, and PSO. All of our friends and family were at that show and it was nothing but fun. Our brother Nate goes to school full time and doesn't get to play with us very much and the show had all four brothers on stage at once, which for us made the show that much more important. There's a lot of hometown pride here, and it was felt very strongly at this show.
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