Safekeeper is one of Fort Collins’ most well-known bands. Called “slacker rock”, Safekeeper was created with a ragtag group of friends, with all the frontmen being Zachary Visconti and Matt Scorca. On Live & Local, Zach and newest member Gail McDonald-Crook play a few of their songs, including “us little devils”, “western slope”, and “ono”. The two reflect on how Gail joined the band through intense enthusiasm watching Safekeeper at The Atrium, as well as how they came about playing music professionally, with both having roots as middle school band kids. Gail was also involved at KCSU years ago, so they reminisced about the On-Air studio and how much has changed since they graduated.

Live & Local is available to listen to anytime on our website and major streaming services, and is live on the air every other Sunday from 11-1 p.m.

Transcription of episode (provided by Ava Barbieri)

Riley Hilbert (intro)
Hi I’m Riley Hilbert, KCSU’s local music director, and you’re listening to my show “Live and Local”. My show invites local bands and artists into the studio for an in depth interview and a live performance on air. “Live and Local” airs every other Sunday, 11 to 1pm. This is a pre recorded broadcast.

Riley Hilbert
You are listening to 90.5 KCSU Fort Collins. My name is DJ Retrograde, and we are here in the studio on my show, “Live and Local” today with Fort Collins’s very own Safekeeper. And we’re super excited to have you guys here. If you don’t know which, if you’re from Fort Collins, of course, you know Safekeeper. Safekeeper was formed in Fort Collins in 2018, they have been playing the Fort Collins scene for the last six years. And if you like bands like Modest Mouse, Built to Spill, The Breeders, Pavement, you are in for a treat today, because these slacker rockers are ready to rock. And this very first song that we have live in studio today is “all us little devils”. So thanks guys for hanging out and take it away.

Zach (“all us little devils”)
Hear your fortune calling, ghastly whispers down the hall, slender figures float, and make their way up to your window. Make yourself at home here, pretty pictures on the wall, and a garden outside, specters hide in the mirror’s glow. I don’t know what to call it, this sinking feeling in my chest, all us little devils, chanting hymns of nothingness. Mazes stacked on buildings, leading up into the clouds, dreams of falling downl not a care to go around. All us little devils, with our spooky little games, try to find the ending, burn the bridge and leave in chains. I don’t know what to call it, this sinking feeling in my chest, all us little devils, singe our palms and break our limbs. In a revelation.

Riley
My name is DJ Retrograde, and you are listening to 90.5 KCSU Fort Collins. We are here wivth Safekeeper. Hi guys.

Zach
Hi.

Riley
How are you? Thanks for hanging out.

Zach
Yeah, thank you.

Riley
To get us started, tell us what your name is and what you do. What do you play?

Zach
Yeah, I’m Zach, and I mostly play guitar and vocals, Although, technically I have played shows as every instrument in the band over the years, yeah.

Gail McDonald-Crook
You have been everybody.

Zach
I played drums once. It wasn’t a very good set.

Gail
That’s wild. That’s so cool. My name is Gail, pronouns they them, and I play synth and use some backup vocals. And today the drum machine, so a little bit of everything.

Riley
I love it. I love it, and it sounds amazing so far. That first song was called “all us little devils” live in the studio, and that’s out on all streaming platforms. Correct?

Zach
Yep.

Riley
Awesome, awesome. So to get us started, tell us how Safekeeper started, the evolution. Give us some history and tell us about the band.

Zach
Yeah, so I was actually playing in a different band at the time, and my oneband member in that project had moved away. Simultaneously, we also had a friend of mine that I grew up with in California named Matt, who is on most of the records. He came out and was unemployed at the time, and so he just stayed with me for a month, and we just worked out this first kind of this release that would go on to become the “on sludge summit” EP. And then after that, we weren’t really planning on booking too much, but had some show opportunities come up, and kind of pulled together a ragtag band of friends and, yeah, been playing ever since.

Riley
Awesome.

Gail
Yeah, that’s we are: ragtag.

Zach
Ragtag, indeed.

Gail
I’ve been playing with Safekeeper for about a year. A little over a year, Zach and I met working at a lovely local coffee establishment, and just yeah, became friends, and Zach was looking for some support on synth.

Zach
On multiple instruments, actually.

Gail
Yeah, and the rest is history.

Riley
The rest is history. That’s awesome. And what about, what’s up? What’s coming up for Safekeeper? Shows, new music?

Zach
Yeah, so on Saturday [10/26/24], which I understand might be Homecoming for CSU, is that a thing?

Riley
Yeah.

Zach
Yeah, I saw that. But on Saturday, we are playing at The Coast with Xiu Xiu, and Hotel WiFi is playing a solo set. We’re playing this kind of unique duo arrangement for that one. And then we also have on, November 1 [2024], we’re doing our most recent album is called “halloweekender”. So we’re doing a Halloweekend bash at The Atrium for that one, that’ll be with A.M. Pleasure Assassins and Elke.

Riley
Awesome, super fun. Well, I’m very excited, I will be at those and I’m looking forward to it.

Zach
Thank you.

Zach (“western slope”)
I’ve been runnin’, on the western slope, for the long haul. Concrete slab, for the holy ghoul, silhouetted. Sunrise, and it smells like smoke, well… In frame gesture, for the audience, from the extra. Shadows dancing, on the gravel road, by the burn pile. Handsome devil, with the pitchfork phone, and a halo. Angel dabbled in the underworld, how do you even recognize it? See my reflection, in your pocket knife, my locket got caught up in it, and you got me good.

Riley
My name is DJ Retrograde, and you are listening to 90.5 KCSU Fort Collins. Just a few minutes ago, we heard “western slope” live in the studio by Safekeeper. Hi, Safekeeper. How are you guys doing?

Zach
Hello, so good. Happy to be here.

Riley
Yeah. Well, this break, we want to focus on the Fort Collins music scene. And just to get started, tell us some of your favorite memories within the Fort Collins scene.

Zach
Favorite memories.

Gail
So many.

Zach
Yeah, a lot of memories. This scene has been through a lot of cycles. Even, I’ve been here since 2017. I feel like new venues, house shows, will pop up for a while. They’ll go away, other new venues, old venues will close.

Gail
Yeah, I have a very different time frame of Fort Collins. Yeah, KCSU, CSU alum, and so like, 2009 to 2013.

Zach
Yeah, different world.

Gail
Whole different world.

Riley
Tell us about how KCSU’s changed. Being back here, how does it feel?

Gail
It’s so different. It’s really, really cool to actually see these changes in the physical space that were nothing but rumors at the time that I was a DJ here. It used to just be this dark hole in the back of student media. There was no light and no one could see what you’re doing in here. So I think having this remodel where you can actually see out into the student center and people can see you is very cool.

Riley
Yeah, super cool. Yeah, it’s, it’s super fun out here, but yeah, tell us, so you have a show at The Atrium coming up, and you guys have some good memories at The Atrium. It sounds like.

Zach
Yes.

Riley
FoCoMX years ago. Tell us about your favorite venues, favorite shows you’ve played.

Zach
Yeah, yeah, a lot of good ones over the years. The Atrium Safekeeper played, I guess it was 2022, and Gail was an enthusiastic attendee, who was also my friend already by that time.

Gail
I was hyped!

Zach
They weren’t just like random or anything.

Gail
No, I was so excited. I brought some of my friends with me who are really just, you know, those friends who, when you get together, you can do anything and you should stop.

Zach
Or not, like, maybe you’ll get inducted into a band by taking this approach.

Gail
But yeah that, after that, The Atrium incident of 2022. Zach approached me at work and said, Yo, you want to be in the band. So that’s a sweet memory.

Zach
Earned it. Very sweet, very sweet. Gail was our biggest supporter at that show, and in general.

Gail
FoCoMX, I think in general, had some pretty great experiences, yeah, seeing a lot of local music…

Zach
Definitely.

Gail
…through that, a lot of fun at that throughout the years.

Riley
Yeah, FoCoMX is something that’s so unique to Fort Collins and so fun every year. I think you could go every year and never get sick of it.

Zach
Totally.

Gail
It’s genuinely, I think the best weekend in Fort Collins.

Riley
Yeah, yeah, totally. And we were just talking about Pinball Jones before we came on air. So tell us a little bit about that.

Zach
Yeah, Pinball Jones Campus West, where… what’s the thrift store? I don’t remember.

Gail
It was Funktional, and now it’s Collective Vintage.

Zach
Right. Okay. Yeah, where that is used to be a second Pinball Jones location, but they also threw a bunch of shows there, including many of Safekeeper’s first shows. I booked there, so I feel like it’s silly of me to be bringing it up, but I feel like a lot of bands, even who are still in the scene today, would think fondly back on that space. And like, you know, it was kind of one of the only venues in town throwing, like, some of the heavier shows. And so, like, I feel like the hardcore scene at that time and the metal scene was kind of becoming what it is now. I feel like those scenes are, like, super robust, and Fort Collins now, and so that’s kind of cool to see that that growth as well,

Gail
Yeah, yeah. It was a really, also, just as a venue, that was a really cool space, like the sound was fun, the environment was fun.

Zach
Pinball is fun.

Gail
Pinball is fun. And yeah, the also, the other Pinball Jones location from when I lived here in 2009, 2010 before it was Pinball Jones, it was a DIY music space.

Zach
Legendary.

Riley
I didn’t know that.

Gail
With that new gallery. Yeah.

Riley
Everything’s evolving, and now we have The Neighborhood, a new venue.

Zach
And right, yeah.

Riley
Yeah, it’s everything Fort Collins, so much music.

Zach
Yeah.

Riley
Awesome.

Zach
Yeah, we need the venues. Yeah, open up a venue if you’re listening right now, please.

Gail
What are you waiting for?

Zach
Stop listening now and go do it.

Riley
Well, thank you guys so much for hanging out. Tell us about the song that we’re going to hear next from you guys live.

Zach
Next is a bit of an older song. It is about, well, I don’t know. I guess it’s about kind of like climate anxiety and dealing with the world that you’re born into, as a lot of my songs are, I guess.

Riley
Totally, totally.

Zach
And it’s called “ono”.

Riley
Awesome.

Zach (“ono”)
Swam up from the bottom, to dry myself out, too late for the autumn, a fire broke out, last laughs unrelenting, no more lagoon around, few decades of plenty, and we’re all dried up now. Long way from the landing dock, and I’m all out, ever since I’ve been alive, there’s been a drought, atmosphere relentless, we wade through the crowd, think after the harvest, I’ll see myself down, I think I’m headed out. oh no, how did we get so bold? oh no, how could we get so bold?

Riley
You are listening to 90.5 KCSU Fort Collins. I’m DJ Retrograde, and today we are here on “Live and Local” with Safekeeper. And that last song of Safekeeper’s you heard was “ono”. That was amazing. Thanks so much for hanging out today.

Zach
Thank you.

Riley
This morning, I guess. I guess it’s afternoon now, yeah, well, to kind of wrap things up, unfortunately, this is our last interview portion, but don’t worry, we have one more song, so that’s gonna be super fun. Tell us about the name Safekeeper. Where did that come from?

Zach
Yeah, it. I used it, I guess, in a poem that I wrote a long time ago. And like, the premise was kind of like feeling like responsible for everyone. It’s like feelings of codependency, like I had to, like, keep people safe. And so it’s actually kind of used, like, almost ironically, in my brain. It’s like a reminder, like, not to have that attitude, like it’s not very healthy to feel like you have to take care of everyone all the time, and it also just like probably makes people worse people ultimately. But yeah, it kind of came from this, like, this feeling of needing to take care of everyone all the time, and it was just a process of unraveling that and trying to address, like, why I felt that way.

Gail
I did not know that until right now. I’m proud of you, Zach, I’m proud of boundaries.

Zach
Thank you. Yeah, boundaries.

Riley
That’s very special, too, that you got to roll that into a name that you still are reminded of today. That’s awesome. Another question for you guys, what inspired you to start playing music?

Gail
I guess in my life, I always wanted to. I also was a band child. I played clarinet in middle school and high school band, and I really always wanted to play in a rock band, but thought like, oh no, my clarinet won’t take me there, which I now have doubts about. But, it could, clarinet, you can go anywhere.

Zach
It’s 2024.

Gail
Year of the clarinet. And yeah, I think for me, I just kind of thought it was something I wasn’t going to do, like I always wanted to do, but I wasn’t going to and then started playing with some friends. And then when Zach opened up this opportunity at The Atrium incident, it really, it opened up a lot of stuff for me, like I just didn’t think this was something I always wanted to do, and I thought I wasn’t going to do in my life. And so, hey, thanks. Thanks dude.

Zach
Heck yeah, glad to have you.

Riley
Special, special moments.

Zach
Oh yeah, oh yeah.

Riley
That’s awesome. And what about you? How’d you start playing music?

Zach
I started when I was pretty young. I also, for part of my school career, was a band kid. I played the trumpet, not very well. Also my band director would always get mad because I would also put a swing on the songs just for fun, or like improvise the notes, and he’d be like, What are you doing? That’s not… Yeah, that’s, that was part of it, and I started playing guitar pretty early on and trying to write little songs and stuff. So I’ve been doing it for a while. And I think I was just inspired by, I don’t know, I had much older siblings and they would take me to shows and so I was exposed to a lot of bands when I was pretty young. I think I just always had so much respect for music as an art form that, I don’t know, I had to do it as well.

Riley
That’s awesome. Well, that is so special. You guys have some awesome upbringings, and it’s so cool too how playing music at such a young age. It just makes the world of a difference.

Zach
Definitely.

Gail
I think it really did.

Riley
Yeah. Where can we find Safekeeper? Where can our listeners find you guys? Instagram?

Zach
Yeah.

Riley
Spotify?

Zach
Yeah, we’re on all the streaming, you know, Spotufy, Apple Music, Title, if you use Title. I heard they pay the best, I don’t know if that’s true. But all of those streaming platforms, Bandcamp if you want to give us money. And also, Instagram mainly is what we use for kind of show promotion.

Riley
Awesome, and what’s your at on that?

Zach
@safekeeperband.

Riley
There you go. Awesome.

Zach
Good luck remembering that one.

Gail
Also, November 1st [2024]. At The Atrium. Here we go!

Zach
Here we go. Get your costumes ready.

Riley
Yes. On Halloweekend.

Zach
On Halloweekend.

Riley
Your last song for us today, is your guys’ song, “halloweekend”. So this is the perfect little bridge.

Zach
Heck yeah. Happy early Halloweekend, y’all.

Gail
Thank you.

Riley
Get ready.

Gail
First of all, we thank you.

Riley
Well, thank you guys so much for hanging out today. It’s been awesome.

Zach
Awesome, yeah.

Gail
Thank you.

Zach
Thanks for having us.

Zach (“halloweekend”)
Oh what a laugh, I barely had to ask, haha. Didn’t get the joke, the punchline was bad, haha. Don’t want to pretend, but I want to have some friends, haha. Yeah it’s coming up again, apothecary entrance for me. Cop’s on holiday chase, for the long weekend, a plastic birth, endless thirst, you decide which one comes first. I’m on halloweekend, wearing my favorite mask again, to fathom hell, or go angelic ,try a pinch, oh you won’t regret it. van won’t start, won’t start again. Moon’s come out, just waiting for the haunt to begin. Getaway car, it’s just another halloweekend. Cop’s on holiday chase, for the long weekend, a plastic birth, endless thirst, you decide which one comes first. I’m on halloweekend, wearing my favorite mask again, to fathom hell, or go angelic, try a pinch, oh it’s so poetic. (i’m on a holiday chase for the long weekend).

Riley Hilbert (outro)
Thanks for listening to “Live and Local”. I’m Riley Hilbert, KCSU’s local music director. If you like what you’re hearing, you can listen to more on our website at kcsufm.com, our Spotify at kcsufm, or anywhere else you get podcasts. “Live and Local” airs every other Sunday from 11-1pm.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai