Houston is a gold mine when it comes to musical talent. It has been the birthplace to a great deal of artists that have seen mainstream success, such as DJ Screw — who popularized Houston’s signature “Chopped and Screwed” — all the to the chart topping queen Beyoncé Knowles-Carter.

I sat down with “The Rest of the Guys” front man Raul Menjivar.

“The Rest of the Guys” have played at local Houston hot spots such as Fitzgerald’s and Notsuoh. These guys have been playing music since 2012 and they soon plan to release a full album and also go on tour. “Music is something I cherish a lot in my life, music is something I want to do as a career,” Menjivar explained.

“We are a mix of different genres from alternative rock to a little bit more hard rock to punk rock and some indie,” said Menjivar about the band’s sound. The band’s influence is diverse when it comes to its members. Some are influenced by Iggy Pop, Weezer, Led Zeppelin, Arctic Monkeys, and Aaron Carter.

Menjivar is the lead rhythm guitar and vocals, while his closest friend Brandon T. Cane is also a lead with rhythm guitar and rap vocals. The brains of Cane and Menjivar are one of the main driving forces of the band. “I have a cosigner and cowriter, we kinda switch back and forth with being the lead singer and lead guitar,” said Menjivar. The rest of the members are the backbone of the band. Matthew Gennaro, who is the backing vocals and lead/rhythm bass guitar and their drummer Andy Cuellar.

Menjivar talked about the origin of the band’s name, “We had other names such as piggyback slappack…but we could be either be taken seriously or as a joke, but we have to make sure we present us as a band that is not supposed to be a joke.”

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You can check out The Rest of the Guys on Facebook.com/TheRestOfTheGuys, Instagram:@TheRestOfTheGuys and at Youtube.com/TheRestOfTheGuys