Shadow Phoenix: The Band
When I was brainstorming Zen’s book, I knew I wanted him to be in a band with at least four other guys. But I had no idea what kind of band or what their name would be.
Fun fact: The band was originally named Dark Phoenix but then I realized that was the name of an X-men movie and I had to come up with something else. I used the shit out of the thesaurus and came up with the new name.
I’m not terribly attached to the name, mostly it just had to be something band-ish enough and not girly because teenage guys named this thing. I’m not (nor have I ever been) a teenage guy, so I just had to try and imagine what their thought process would be like.
And to the reviewer who gave me shit about calling the band name cool through Zen’s dialogue—I’m with you. To me, Shadow Phoenix is just a name. It’s not meant to be amazing because that’s not the point of the series. The point is the relationships, not the band (although, of course the band is important. It’s a rock star romance after all).
Alas, I think I do deserve some props, though, because holy fuck, the guys in the band are HOT and I swear every one that comes along is hotter than the last. When I write them and I read back, I think, “how did that come out of my brain?” It’s like I go into a trance or something and magic falls out.
(I swear I don’t actually think that highly of my work, I actually have a lot of issues thinking I’m not good enough. But fake it ‘til you make it, amiright?)
Okay, so back to the band…
I imagine Shadow Phoenix’s music to be a mixture of 21 Pilots and Linkin Park. Some rock, maybe not so much on the rap side of things, and also a little bit of slower stuff, too. Like Heavy by LP and Leave the City by 21P. But they can definitely rock, too, like Heavy Dirty Soul by 21P.
In my mind, when I’m writing them as artists and their creative process, I imagine them a lot like 21 Pilots, but their band makeup is more Linkin Park, or at least what Linkin Park used to be.
Which bands do you picture when you think of Shadow Phoenix and their sound? I’m curious who you imagine them to be like. Leave me a comment and let me know!