And one of the cool things about this project is that it’s the first project I would actually, honestly buy and listen to. Before I don’t think I would have bought my own music.
Connor Pledger
The track “Sabotage” by LA two-piece Moby Rich hits so hard, it’s almost offensive. How many times have you neglected work, making music, writing because you just ‘can’t deal’? How many times have you swiped on the wrong person—or worse, slept with them—because they were hot and you were bored or lonely? And if you think this is criticism, don’t worry, we’ve all been there, are still there, and will probably still be doing the same things in the future.
Oh, 2020, please save us from ourselves.
The pair—Maxwell Joseph and Connor Pledger—relocated to LA in 2015 from Indianapolis and Atlanta respectively in search of, well, anything. Connor initially made the move after a music mogul stumbled across a cover he uploaded on YouTube and invited him to Hollywood to join a “folk boyband” he was putting together. Quickly realizing that was a bad idea, Connor began to do the rounds as a pop songwriter.
“I’m living out here and I’m writing for pop artists and thinking something’s going to happen, then a year goes by and I’m getting terrible depression. I don’t know what the fuck to do with myself. I’ve moved out here, I’m songwriting, nothing’s happening, I have nowhere to stay. So I decide I need to do something, I need to get out of this funk.”
In a moment of synergy, Connor began attending open mic nights in the part of town where Maxwell was living (sidebar: does he go by Max?). The rest you could say, is history.
Reminiscent of Twenty One Pilots (who, by the way, I love) Moby Rich has made the perfect rock pop song with “Sabotage.” The lyrics hit home, the instrumentals are fun and don’t take themselves too seriously, and together you get a tune that could, instrumentals aside, be slightly depressing, but when paired with the guitar and drums, feels like you can dance to the fact that you’re self-sabotaging.
“We just want to say, hey, we feel the same way you do. I think that’s where the beauty lies.”
Connor Pledger