Tracker Pixel for Entry

​Running with The Pack A.D.

Music | October 25th, 2017

Drummer Maya Miller on reading, writing, and rock n’ roll

The Pack A.D. is a dynamic two woman firestorm of heavy psychpop/garage-rock based out of Vancouver, British Columbia. We had the opportunity to catch up with drummer Maya Miller.

High Plains Reader: I’ve read multiple interview on the Pack A.D. and they all mention that you are highly influenced by film and music--

Maya Miller: We were always that way but I think when we first started out we were a completely different band. We were trying to go for more of a blues thing and ultimately it wasn’t really a fit for either of us. When we started we were just so new and wide eyed. I think that we wrote lyrics that we would never write today--that were really not based on anything, but since then we both read a lot and at least the last four albums had one or two songs that were directly about a book that one or both of us had read.

HPR: What are you reading right now?

MM: Right now, I’m reading Hillary Clinton’s “What Happened”--it’s really really hard to read because I’m just constantly upset while I’m reading it. I think it’s really important to read and I think she’s being completely fair but it’s a tough read because it’s still all happening. It’s very interesting to read something that feels so present like reading an extended news article.

HPR: Do you foresee a future song stemming from “What Happened?”

MM: I don’t know--if there is it will be in our usual very obtuse way. It certainly won’t read directly as that but maybe.

HPR: What’s your writing process like when you write for an album?

MM: Becky comes up with riffs on her own and she’ll record song ideas and then bring them to our band space then I write lyrics on my own. We do a lot of stuff on our own and then kind of just bring it together but this album in particular was a lot of Becky bringing her riffs in and then we just jam it out and create a song. We actually didn’t write a lot of lyrics on this album until we were in the studio -- which used to be the way we did things. Lyrics always seem to be the last thing that happens.

HPR: Do you you ever write--like more than lyrics?

MM: I do, before this I was focusing on writing for film and TV and I’ve written a couple of short films that have gotten made. Scripts and stuff… I’ve written tour zines for our band and then written a couple of poetry zines so right now I’m really focused on the poetry aspect. One day I’ll write a book about the band and being in a band.

HPR: I have to ask...as a two-piece do you ladies ever get offers for bassists?

MM: For bassists? (laughs) Not that often. I could probably say the entire time we’ve been a band it would be under five people--all men.

IF YOU GO

The Pack A.D.

Sunday, October 29, 8:30pm

The Aquarium (Dempsey’s upstairs), 226 Broadway N

$8, 21+, 701-235-5913

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comNorth Dakota communities will join a “nationwide day of defiance” against authoritarianism and President Donald Trump’s policies on Saturday, June 14. A range of "No Kings" events…

Back-to-school season is on the horizon, but there's still plenty of summer left. Check out our favorite August attractions and events in North Dakota and western Minnesota. And if if you missed them, here are a few excellent May…

June 21, 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., Fargo“We Watch Shudder,” Fargo’s favorite horror podcasters, bring on the darkness during the longest day of the year. The Darkest Day of Horror Film Festival features…

Fighting the good fightBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Over two thousand rallies took place nationwide June 14 as part of the “No Kings" protest. Ten of those protests were held in North Dakota, with thousands in attendance.…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comWe need Paul Revere on a Harley: “ants and autocrats are coming!”The Asian needle ant has been nesting in the American South since at least 1932. It probably hitched a ride on a freighter from…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com The weather warmed up quickly here in the upper Midwest this spring, sparking prime eating season. This means burger battles, food trucks and lake-season food travel. The 2025 Downtown Fargo Burger…

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comThe Moorhead Public Library will offer three free, all-ages outdoor concerts featuring regional bands this summer. The series begins on June 12 with the Meat Rabbits, a group that blends…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com The June 9 death of musician Sylvester Stewart, known much better by stage name Sly Stone, saw an outpouring of tributes, memorials and appreciations from some who knew him personally and many…

By Deb Wallworkdwallwork@icloud.comI first met Catherine Mulligan at a party at her house. It was a small gathering, spontaneous, just a few people over for dinner. Directed toward a stack of plates and bowls and a big pot warming…

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.comAct Up Theatre, in partnership with Minnesota State University Moorhead, will present “The Sound of Music” on June 10-14. All shows are at 7:30 p.m. at the Minnesota State Moorhead’s…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

The drug that keeps re-purposing itselfBy Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There is a drug that is getting a lot of attention nowadays all over the world. It has various commercial names (Ozempic, Wegovy and Rybelsus), but…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson@rocketmail.com Working in the Bakken oil fields of the Williston Basin is so different from my home in Fargo. I'm not judging, because the people working and living in western North Dakota are very…