Irfan Malik holds down drums in So Long Goodnight and occasionally fills the seat for The Dick Beldings. He got pulled into music the way a lot of kids do, by watching someone else do it first. Nine years old, his older brothers had a band rehearsing in the garage, and Irfan watched them play and decided he could do that. He just started playing. Years later, that same impulse still drives him. The urge to put in the work and then show people the result.
What he brings to the kit is something his bandmates can plan around. Stability and preparation. He is the player who would rather practice the song wrong eighty times alone than miss a transition in front of a crowd. But the technical side is only half of it. The other half is the math you have to do live. Concentrate on the hit, the solo, the click, and at the same time look up and make sure the room is having a good time. Both halves matter to Irfan. A great SLGN show is when both land in the same night.
Read the full interview with Irfan
What first pulled you into music?
I was a little kid. My brothers had a band — I think I was nine, and they were playing in the garage. I saw my brother playing and I thought, "Man, I think I could do that." So I just started playing.
Nothing really got me into music more than that. I just saw them and was like, "That looks fucking awesome." So I started playing, and that's what fueled me getting into it in general.
What has music given you that nothing else really has?
A sense of fulfillment. Something I can be proud to have as a thing to do. It's an outlet — and I'm good at the outlet, I feel like. It's just a nice thing to have. And to be part of a band, as well.
But yeah — fulfillment, ultimately.
What do you feel like you bring to the band?
Stability. I try to make sure I'm prepared. I practice. So I think stability, and just being reliable in general. I don't ever want to drop the ball — whenever we have to learn something or do something, you know? I think that's what I bring.
What do you care about most when you're performing live?
A lot of things. I care about how I play, because I do practice, and I want to play well because I put time in. But I also want to play *with* the band. Like, I know we're all playing together, but I want to be part of the core of what we're trying to do — not just playing to the click, not just playing to a track.
And I want the crowd to have a good experience. I want our dedication and the hours we put in to show. I want people to see, "Oh shit — these guys actually put time and effort into this. It's not just some random dudes getting up and half-assing it."
What do you want the crowd to feel when they watch you perform?
*That last answer was really the next question.* — I want them to see the time and effort we put in, and to feel like it shows. Not just for them to appreciate it — I want them to *see* it.
What is one song you always look forward to playing live, and why?
I was thinking about this one while Kevin was talking. "I Write Sins Not Tragedies." I love playing that song because as soon as the piano starts, everybody perks up — it's like, "Oh hell yeah." Everybody comes up. It's such a cool, nuanced song. There are a lot of highs and lows and driving parts. It's such a good singalong. Probably one of my favorites we play.
What separates a decent show from a great show?
A decent show is just not being into it on our end — kind of phoning it in, being tired, not totally engaged.
A great show is being way more engaged, having practiced, being prepared. But also bringing energy and being fresh, which is hard to do — when you play two nights in a row or two-three weeks in a row, but you still bring it. Still thinking that somebody out there hasn't seen us before. If I don't really bring it, they're going to walk away thinking, "I've heard so much about this band and they are not that good." That separates a great show from a decent one.
What makes a great cover or tribute performance?
It depends on what kind of vibe you're going for. If you want to replicate the band as a tribute act — exactly how that band sounds — that's one of the most important things you have to do for that style. But if you're in a cover band, or even a tribute band that's more of a happy, fun, loose play of a certain version of the song that you make your own — if you do *that* well, it works for itself, too. It depends on what your goal is to have the band be awesome.
What is harder than people realize about playing this kind of music well?
In our band, it's staying to the click track and staying together — because there's more production that goes into it. It's a show.
And outside of that, the balance between thinking about playing well and putting on a good show at the same time. You're trying to concentrate on your instrument — playing well, hitting the solo, hitting the transition — but also being like, "Oh, I need to look up and engage with the crowd. They're having a good time too." That balance, between entertaining and playing well, is one of the harder things people may not realize.
What does being part of Echo Play Live mean to you?
It's like a family atmosphere. Everybody looks out for each other. Everybody cares about each other and what they do. There's not a lot of people you have to worry about — like, "Oh man, if they're going to fill in for this other band, are they going to be prepared?" Everybody's accountable to everybody. We're all there for each other — band stuff or personal. It's like one big family. Like a fraternity, in a way.
What can people expect when they come to one of our shows?
Energy. With So Long Goodnight specifically — as weird as it sounds, the *replication* of the song we're playing. If you come to hear "The Kill" from Thirty Seconds to Mars, you're going to hear "The Kill." It's not going to be some weird rendition. We don't veer too off-script.
They're going to see and feel energy, see us perform the songs the way they're intended to be performed. And a sense of community. There's a good following of people who come to almost all of the shows. We're all there for the same reason, and everybody hangs out with each other. It's just one big community. That's what SLGN specifically brings to the scene.
What would you say to someone who has never seen one of our shows before?
Just come. Come to the show and see what it's about. It's hard to explain — at least an SLGN show is a production. So come to the show. Come be with us. It'll be fun, I promise. Wherever we are, usually it's a good time.