After summer camp in 2006, Brandon Bachrach, 31, developed an interest in playing the guitar. It wasn’t until high school, though, that he committed to learning how to play after being inspired by a good friend. After most of the singers for the bands he was in left to pursue solo careers, he soon learned how to sing.
“I never wanted to sing. It took me a really long time to find my voice,” he said, “until probably a few years into The Schwam existing, I would say my voice wasn’t any good. Now I have more control.”
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The Schwam started during Bachrach’s senior year in high school; he and a few other friends got together and jammed out, playing some covers. When going around asking how everyone felt about what they did, primarily tens were given. His answer, however, was Schwam, meaning “somewhere between 14 and 15,” according to Bachrach.
It soon became a joke that everything they found cool was called Schwam. Not long after their jam session, they got a gig for a battle of the bands at a local coffee house. It wasn’t a problem deciding a band name, as they have been saying for some time. The first performance went great for them; however, not even an hour later, Bachrach was in the hospital and soon learned he has Vasculitis, a rare condition that causes inflammation of the blood vessels. A condition that can be painful; however, this didn’t faze him when it came to performing.
“When I’m playing, I don’t feel any of that,” he said. “If I was nervous, in pain, tired, or going through any of that stuff that’s all gone when I’m on stage, it can wait until later.”
Over the summer, the band released Raise Highways, an album that’s been in the making for six years. Bachrach is happy with the most recent album but is ecstatic to move into The Schwams’ next era.
“The songs you’ve heard us playing before, they are probably taking a break for a little while and were going to go into whatever number phase we’re in,” he said. “Whenever we have a new album, we make it that it was that era and move forward to make new strides.”
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Other than performing in The Schwam, Brandon Bachrach is also a member of the New Jersey Gamer Symphony Orchestra. He had to learn how to play the flute specifically for them. Also, he met his fiancé and sax player of The Schwam, Casey Ringo Fulvi, in the orchestra.
Although a lot of time, energy, and effort was put into the recent album release, Bachrach is ready to get back into songwriting, collaborating, and playing more shows with his bandmates.
“Once time from a project passes, I’m happy for more time for new projects.”
