In the wake of their etherial set at UCLA, I got to catch up with Dominant Legs in a particularly collegiate courtyard outside of UCLA’s Kerckhoff Grand Salon.  They were a curious pair to see.  Ryan Lynch, the guitarist, is jockey-like in stature–short and small–but with a striking bone structure and big eyes that give him an inquisitive gaze. On the other hand, Hannah Hunt, the keyboardist, is soft and delicate, with a small, round face and button-like features.  Her long hair gives her pixie-like qualities, but her voice is unexpectedly low and soothing (despite her high falsettos in Dominant Legs’ songs).  Watching them interact was a treat, and the quiet energy they posses as a duo on stage was even more electric face to face. So while we sat shivering outside in the wind, the smoke from their cigarettes whirling around us, and I got to learn about their lives in San Francisco and their exceptionally eclectic aesthetic.

Claire Gallagher: So, where are you guys from?

Hannah Hunt: We’re from San Fran.

CG:  Did you grow up there?

HH: Ya, I grew up there.

Ryan Lynch: I grew up about 25 minutes south of there.

CG: Where did you guys meet?  In San Francisco?  Did you go to school together?

HH: We had a lot of mutual friends.  It’s kind of weird that it took us so long to meet cause…ya, the roots run deep.  We didn’t meet until about a year and a half ago I guess.

CG: So is it a pretty tight knit community in San Francisco? Like, is it a small-big city, in a way?

HH: It does feel that way, definitely.

RL: I think so, ya, I mean I feel after living in San Francisco for, like, 7 years, parts are closer than others–you’ll go somewhere and see someone you know. It’s a big city in terms of–people think of San Fran as a big city, but it’s only 7 by 7 miles, so…

CG: So how did you decide to form a band and come together?

RL:  It was something I had been doing on my own at first, but I was in another band at the time but I had just quit to concentrate on doing Dominant Legs.  It was pretty much only a month after she had moved back from school.  It was initially just for the shows, to sing back-up  and stuff and ever since…

CG:  Where were you at school?

HH: I went to school in New York at Barnard.  It’s a women’s college [laughs].  I really liked it there, but I’m happy to be back in California.

CG: (To Ryan)  And you’re in the band Girls, too, right?

RL: Ya.

CG: How do you manage both of the bands?

RL: Well, Girls takes up most of my time.  We’ve spent a lot of time touring.  The way that we were able to do it at the same time at first was because we just sorta supported them [Girls], but then after that it’s just been like whenever we find time to do shows.  Which is fine right now because we only have an EP out and don’t really have enough to do a big tour and push forward.

CG: So then does Dominant Legs feel more like fun then work?

RL: Well there’s aspects of work and fun to both of them.  I mean, that’s just the way it goes with music and being in a band.  One isn’t any more fun than the other.

CG: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

RL: I would say Bob Dylan…but, I mean, it’s a funny question…that doesn’t come out so much. Like, I don’t think hearing us you’d get that at all.  But, he’s definitely my biggest influence.

HH: We were talking about in the car, maybe [Bob Dylan is influential] with his lyrics and sentiment-wise…sounds, quality.

CG: Do you have any other influences outside of music?  Like art, people, places, film, or literature?

HH:  I guess, for me personally, when I first started playing with Ryan, I was thinking about a lot of musicians that I really like and admire their whole vibe and style and singing quality.  Like Hope Sandoval from Mazzy Star and Elizabeth Fraser from Cocteau Twins. Kind of from that era.

CG: Any particular places?  Like your hometown–does that influence your work at all?

RL: San Francisco is more inspiring in the way that–not so much in the sound of its music–but that recently there are a lot of great bands coming out of there, so everyone is really supportive.  

CG: Sort of like being in the right place at the right time?

RL: Ya, but all the bands coming out of there sound totally different.

CG:  So, what bands do you guys think you sound like, if any?

HH:  We always get Aztec Camera. People like to say Belle & Sebastian a lot, I guess cause they have a very like, varied sound…

RL:  I didn’t understand the Belle & Sebastian comparison until I listened to the one…I think it was before the newest one came out [The Life Pursuit, 2006]–it was a little bit more soulful.  Initially, one of my main influences for sound was The Style Council which Paul Weller did after The Jam. It’s just kind of what I was going for.

CG: What do you guys think you’d be doing right now if you weren’t musicians?  What did you want to be when you were kids?

HH:  Well I’m in school right now. I go to Berkeley.  

RL: I only really had two aspirations: either to be a professional athlete, and then it became just to be a musician. I’m only 5’4″ [laughs], so there’s not a lot of sports I could be a professional at.

CG:  What were you focusing on when you were younger?

RL:  When I was younger I wanted to play football. That’s my view…or passion.  I guess something I could think of to be passion-wise would be like a sports writer or something.

HH:  I always did a lot of performing when I was a kid and kind of abandoned it.  So it’s been nice getting back into it–it feels very natural, right.

CG: So what’s the story behind the name Dominant Legs?

RL: It was just something that I said once. I was with some friends and we were skinny dipping [laughs] in the ocean and my friend had really muscular thighs.  It doesn’t really mean like–because sometimes it means someone has a more preferred leg–but that’s not what I mean by it at all.  

CG:  So it was more of just a visual thing?

RL:  I think it was just maybe that ‘dominant’ was the word that came out of my mouth for lack of a better word.

CG:  So what do you guys think about on stage?  Are you really immersed in the music, or does your mind wander at all, or are you thinking about the crowd that you’re playing for?

HH: My mind definitely doesn’t wander at all…

RL: I do have a tendency to let my mind wander when I’m performing and I try to…remember what I’m doing

HH:  I find I’m always looking at the crowd.  I think I stare at people a little bit and maybe it creeps people out.  I don’t realize I’m doing it until it’s probably been too long [laughs].

RL: I also always worry about sound a little more than I should.

CG: So, what’s next for you guys? Any full length albums or tours?

RL:  For the time being, we’ll be doing small shows like this [the UCLA show], not big ones or tours.  There’s a lot of stuff we have ready to go but we haven’t figured out what we’re doing with it yet.

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You would expect that behind Dominant Legs‘ catchy riffs and dreamy keys lies the image of two bright and breezy youth, smiling and strumming and swaying. You would be right. Ryan Lynch and Hannah Hunt are soft spoken, intriguing, and on some exclusive, untouchable, Ryan-Hannah wavelength that translates into the enlightened feeling that distinguishes their music.

Check out their latest EP, Young at Love and Life, on Itunes.

Also, have a super-awesome day filled with kittens and music.