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Meet Ben Peterson of The Dares in Whittier and Santa Ana

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ben Peterson.

Ben, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
The Dares started in a basement in Burlington Vermont by my twin brother Matt Peterson and me. We were nine years old when we first performed for our third-grade class. Since then we moved to southern California and have restarted the band a few times. Each “era” of The Dares is very different. The constants between eras are my brother and me and the name “The Dares”. The music has always been evolving.

The latest iteration of the band started in 2011 when we were freshly dropped from our label. Our bassist left and we were once again back to two brothers with a bunch of songs and a need to prove ourselves. We found two new members, Brandon (bassist) and Anthony (guitarist). Since then, we have released one album, 2 EP’s, and a handful of singles. Most recently, we have returned to our indie/alternative roots (with hints of grunge and punk thrown in). “Western Bloom” was released in 2019. Our next single is “No Way Out” which will be released on July 10th.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
We’ve experienced many highs and have gotten to travel around the country playing music. Challenges include getting “shelved” by our old label and subsequently dropped. From there, we restarted the band with new members and new batch of songs.

Can you give our readers some background on your music?
We are an alternative/indie band from the LA/OC area. After the initial move from Burlington, we were a band from Whittier for about a decade. Since then, we are mostly based out of Orange County now. Currently, we practice in Santa Ana. I think our songwriting sets us apart from other bands that are similar in genre to us.

The song is called “No Way Out” and will be released on 7/10 (Friday). I think the Soundcloud link would be easiest since you don’t need a profile to play the song.

Here it is:
No Way Out by The Dares

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Luck has led us to many unique experiences. From touring with bands such as The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus and Cartel to performing the theme song for the game Free Realms.

Contact Info:

Image Credit:
Danny Heredia (pic 1) and Lily Ordunez (all other photos)

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