Blood makes noise

Canyons and Locusts is a dynamic two-piece band made up of Boston’s Justin Keane on vocals and guitar, and Phoenix’s Amy Young on drums and backing vocals. Blending indie rock roots with raw, edgy soundscapes, the duo channels the chaos of the world around them into powerful, urgent music. Their latest release, The Red Angel EP (March 2024), honors Red on Red Records’ Justine Covault and features tracks like “Buck Dharma’s Eyes” and “Love Goes Down The Drain.” With a new concept album, The Goal Gigolo, set to drop in February 2025, including singles “Anna Save a Life” and “Day of the Canyon,” Canyons and Locusts are poised to continue pushing boundaries and making their voice heard.

How did the band form and what does the band name mean?

Justin Keane, vocals and guitars: Amy and I were in a band called Jumping Bomb Girls in New York City in the late-’90s and early-’00s, and after we all moved out of NYC we met a couple of times to record. We’d planned another record with that project but those plans fell through and Amy and I both said… hey, what if we do a different thing with this session as a duo! The name…I honestly don’t remember the exact moment we agreed on it but in my memory it was inevitable, like, it was just going to be Canyons and Locusts and we needed to figure that out together. 

Amy Young, drums: The name, Justin just said it, and it was perfect -- there was no question.

Previous musical projects? How'd you first get into music?

Keane: For me, it was the aforementioned Jumping Bomb Girls with Amy, The Vespers in NYC, Victory Spinners, Stir Stir Stir, and Helsinki Angst Orchestra in college.

Young: I always wanted to play drums. Started to in the desert before I moved to NYC and then it was really on. I’ve been in a bunch of bands. JBG, like Justin mentioned in NYC along with Naughty Fairies and Sunset Strippers. Currently, French Girls (Rum Bar Records) and Sturdy Ladies.

First concert that you ever went to?

Keane: Smithereens at the Orpheum in Boston and I think Eric Clapton at Great Woods shortly thereafter. 

Young: I’m from the Cleveland area so I came up seeing local greats like The Mice, Death of Samantha, and Hyper As Hell. 

What's your writing process like?

Keane: It’s changed over the years. I used to start with the title of the song first and then work backwards, like “what does a song called [title] sound like?” Now I don’t do that as much; I generally will sit at my desk with my guitar plugged in and start searching for a progression and a melody and go from there. The best moments are hearing what Amy does with the skeletons once we get into the studio. It’s like a plane taking off.

Young: We just know each other as people and musicians, so there’s the conversation about the songs with some words and without and it just happens. Part of the inspiration for me, as well, is to do justice to Justin’s vision for a song. We always know when it’s a lock.


What other artists or songs inspire your music? 
 

Keane: For Canyons and Locusts, I’m really taken by things that capture moments in time – little snapshots or short films. That Hole record Celebrity Skin is a big touchstone… it’s like this beautiful California record – real or imagined. Even though I live in Boston, in my mind Canyons and Locusts is a West Coast band, and with that comes some louder sounds, things that echo, spaces, and a little bit of a sheen on top of everything.

Young: I am all over the place with what I love and what moves me. My playlist is a tiny offering of some of the different sounds and styles of drums from bands and drummers that I love that show how each person fills the space or doesn’t fill the space – every choice no matter how simple or complex is fascinating to me. And with that Sugar record, the production of those drums is something I never stop thinking about when I listen to that record.

What's the live experience like and your philosophy on playing live? Do you think the music live should be identical to the recorded version or should it be its own thing?

Keane: We’ve only played, I think, two shows as Canyons and Locusts thus far! So it’s going to be a work in progress but Amy and I have a deep connection in music and on stage so it’s going to be amazing to be part of this unfolding.

Young: I think live, it’s important to let go as much as possible and play via the excitement of the personal connection and let those nuances come through. That’s a time, for me, to bend the rigid edges a bit and let the emotion and connection take over.

Has the band toured, or have any of your previous bands gone on tour? What has the touring experience been: Best shows, worst shows?

Young: I love traveling to play music and have done a nice amount of it. Getting out of town over the years has been awesome to be on bills with bands I love, like The Lyres or one of Pat Todd’s acts. Worst shows…once in D.C., a band I was in got our van broken into while we were busy rocking out inside. Luckily, our equipment was on stage with us!

What's up next for the band?

Keane: Some shows on the West Coast this April, recording here in Boston at New Alliance in June (the new album will be called Power Hymns & Blessings… this is a scoop and a change from the previous name…that project will come later).

Young: More of all of it, and I cannot wait!