On November 25, the members of Avenging Poor Yorick (Carl Romines, Kyle Duncan, Marshall Wilson, Peter Washington and Brad Zeis) played at Threadgills’ U18 Next Up Finale as the headliners, their biggest gig yet.

This punk‑pop‑psychedelic‑funk ‑rock band was making its way to fame through appearances on Fox’s Good Day Austin Live Music, gigs at the Red 7 and other local venues and winning Battle of the Kid Bands 2 at Antones.

The band says that’s where they owe their success so far, being at the right place at the right time.

Starting out at Kealing Middle School, Romines, Duncan, Wilson, Washington, and Zeis had the idea of combining their talents. They got together, and decided that they were going to be famous.

“We were friends and wanted to be in a band,” Washington said.

So that’s what they did. The band’s leader, Romines, named them Avenging Poor Yorick in a reference to Shakespeare, and not long after, they started rehearsing. They practice every week or so for several hours. The band takes priority, but school, acting, and writing also fill up the lives of APY.

“I personally try to practice once a day, but as a band we practice at the most once a week,” Duncan said. “It’s hard because we’re all involved in extracurricular activities.”

The personal style of each member doesn’t really change that of the band, but it shows up in the variety, and uniqueness of their music. They use the usual instruments: bass, guitar, and drums, but they add their own uniqueness with a fiddle and keyboard.

“Of course the music I listen to influences my playing, but at times I can also detach from that and come up with something completely different,” Zeis said. “What I play more depends on what mood I’m in and what I enjoy playing.”

This is the same for the other band members who all listen to music varying from Soundgarden, Guns N’ Roses and Red Hot Chili Peppers to The Beatles, Led Zepplin, Oasis, Bob Marley, and Pink Floyd. Their genres may be diverse, but that’s what makes them so distinct. When it comes to lyrics, their inspiration really comes from anywhere and everywhere. Romines writes most of the lyrics, with the occasional help of Washington, expressing their outlook on life and society with a dose of teenage angst mixed in.

“All of our songs have meanings, but they aren’t hidden by really confusing metaphors or phrased so that no one can understand them,” Duncan said. “For example: Shampoo Road is about a peculiar Austinite, and Consumer’s World [is] about [how] we feel things are in the U.S. But it’s more fun if you get a personal meaning out of it, and we won’t tell you what to think about them.”

Romines is a source of inspiration on his own. Although he was born without a left hand, he plays the guitar. With long hours of practice and hard work, he found out he could do anything.

“I like when I play guitar and I sing and then everyone is happy and I can express an emotion to them of being able to play music,” Romines said in a News 8 Austin interview. “And usually by that point I don’t think it really matters what my physicality is.”

Some of their plans more practical than others, APY knows exactly what they want out of their music careers. They don’t want to be the normal rockers to just get rich, but to be known, to be something truly inspirational.

“Maybe they’ll build monuments of us, or add our faces to Mt. Rushmore,” Duncan said. “You know, nothing too special.”

Each member is resolute in his goals as they all stay true to their passion for music and individuality. The future is bright for Avenging Poor Yorick; they have the talent, the plans and the determination.