Photos by Rachelyn Remz
Last Call is an interview series where I, Brittany Marino, ask talented folk all about their lasts: last time they did something, last time they felt something, etc. This time I hopped on a zoom call with Sabrina Fuentes of Pretty Sick. This interview actually took place a few months ago, so some references may be a bit dated – but nevertheless we get into some interesting recommendations.
Pretty Sick has been playing the NYC scene for quite a long time. Having started the band at the age of 13, she’s got a decade of experience rocking out with the kids of the Lower East Side and all over the world. She even played one of our shows back in 2016 when Alt Citizen use to have a gallery called Alt Space. Sabrina is a certified pro at this point, and part of me feels like she is only just getting started.
This summer she released her EP ‘Streetwise’, which you can listen to below.
Brittany: Who is the last person you texted and what was it about?
Sabrina: The last personal text that I sent was to my friend Alex because she’s going to Paris and she asked me for recommendations, so I sent her a bunch of recommendations.
Brittany: Oh nice. What were some of the recommendations? This is actually a selfish question because I’m in Paris right now so I could use some.
Sabrina: She asked where to go dancing. I don’t really know where to go dancing anymore in Paris. There’s not that many clubs still open that I know of. I know of one, but I don’t know the name. It’s like a techno club, I just know how to get there on foot. It’s near Belleville. And then for shopping I told her to go to Come On Eileen.
Brittany: Is that a thrift store? Why do I recognize that name?
Sabrina: It’s a thrift store. They are mostly designer or really old dresses from the twenties vintage. Or like really boutique French designers. But it’s not super expensive for what it is. A lot cheaper than anywhere in London or New York. So I said there, and to go through just every regular thrift store because Parisian women are better at dressing anyways. There’s always gonna be better stuff in French thrift stores than in American ones.
Brittany: I agree.
Sabrina: I also said to go to La Chope des Artistes and to Ave Maria which are two bars I like and L’international which is like a venue.
Brittany: What was the last song you wrote or recorded? Either or.
Sabrina: I write songs everyday but I don’t always finish them or give them a name. So I just write words everyday, and melodies. The last one I recorded was ‘I Wish That You Would Listen’. I think it’s the last thing that we tracked. But we did like literally seven songs in a day. So that’s the one we finished with. I did the harmonies on that. Then we were like “we’re done for the day”.
Brittany: What’s the last movie you watched?
Sabrina: The last movie I watched in theatres was the Sweet East.
Brittany: What did you think? I don’t think I know that movie.
Sabrina: It’s an indie film that just came out. I thought the cinematography was great, I thought it was fun.
Brittany: What was the last movie you watched, not in theatres? Are you someone that likes to watch movies a lot?
Sabrina: I do watch a lot of movies. The last movie I watched at home was with my parents. I don’t know, clearly it was forgettable. (laughs) I have no idea.
Brittany: When was the last time you cried?
Sabrina: Two weeks ago.
Brittany: Are you someone who cries often? Or are you an emotional person?
Sabrina: I’m an emotional person but I’m not a big crier or wallower.
Brittany: Do you ever happy-cry?
Sabrina: Pretty rarely.
Brittany: A lot of people’s answers to that question have been “Oh I happy cried the other day”. And now I am curious, is that something that people do often?
Sabrina: Other people know a different kind of boundless joy than I do because that does not happen to me [laughs] but good for them. I cried at the Magnetic Fields concert for like a split second.
Brittany: They played pretty recently in New York, right?
Sabrina: Yeah, last week. And then the time before that I actually cried was just the week before for like ten minutes and then I was like “okay whatever move on.” [laughs]
Brittany: That’s funny because my next question is, what was the last concert you went to? Was it the Magnetic Fields?
Sabrina: Yep. I saw day one and day two of 69 Love Songs at the Town Hall concert.
Brittany: Had you seen them play before?
Sabrina: That was my fifth time.
Brittany: Okay nice. So you’re a big fan?
Sabrina: (laughs)
Brittany: Where did you say they played?
Sabrina: At Town Hall in Times Square.
Brittany: I’ve never been there.
Sabrina: Stephin Merritt said on stage that they used to a lot of shows there. And he saw Laurie Anderson, and Hole and a bunch of other people play there in the nineties and early 2000s. I was like that’s neat. I’ve never even heard of this place. But it’s a gorgeous old theatre that’s seated.
Brittany: Cool. Did you do anything in Times Square afterwards?
Sabrina: No I didn’t because I was shooting both days. I was shooting a Vans advertisement both days and I had to be up at 5am to get to set. So we would finish at 10:30 and I was just immediately going home and taking like ten melatonin and trying to sleep until 5am.
Brittany: Did it work?
Sabrina:I look like a hag, so. [laughs] I wanted to go out in Times Square. I love Times Square.
Brittany: I grew up right by Times Square, and everybody’s a Times Square hater, and I obviously understand why, but I have Times Square pride.
Sabrina: Where did you grow up?
Brittany: I grew up in Hell’s kitchen, so 46th St between 8th and 9th. So like one avenue over and you’re in the heart of Times Square.
Sabrina: We used to practice at Funkadelic for years and years and years and years, so I was like at Times Square everyday from the age of twelve till seventeen to practice. So, I’m fond of it there.
Brittany: What was the last album you listened to front to back?
Sabrina: I listened to Tommy Airline by Tommy february6 from front to back recently, and I listened to Psychos by yung lean because it just came out.
Brittany: Do you like the new album? I haven’t listened to it.
Sabrina: Yeah you should listen to it. It’s really good
Brittany: I’ll have to do that right after the interview.
Brittany: What is the last thing you splurged on?
Sabrina: I’m not a big spender in general. I think if anything the things that I’d splurge on are like nice dinners. I don’t really buy myself stuff that often.
Brittany: Do you splurge on instruments or anything like that? Or travel?
Sabrina: I’m actually quite a frugal person [laughs] When I travel, I couch surf, and I make do with what I have as far as instruments. I don’t really buy any of my clothes. I’ve been wearing the same clothes my whole life and most of them are just hand-me-downs or just random shit that I was given. I did go to The Carlyle last night and got a cocktail that cost me thirty fucking dollars. So I guess that counts.
Brittany: Was it worth it?
Sabrina: We weren’t even in the main room. They have like a little Moroccan-vibe tea room right next to where the piano room is and I could just hear everybody singing along to like ‘Sweet Caroline’ in the other room. And I was like “this is delicious and I’m having a very zen time, but I’m kinda mad I’m not included in what’s happening in the other room” [laughs]
Brittany: I love to splurge on food. I’m a big food person. Don’t get me wrong, I love little hole in the wall places, street food, fast food, but I’m super down to spend money on a good meal because I just love to eat good food.
Sabrina: I will spend any amount of money on sushi, I won’t even look at the bill. I don’t even think twice.
Brittany: Do you like omakase?
Sabrina: I do like omakase.
Brittany: Do you have a spot you like to go to?
Sabrina: A lot of my best friends work at Nublu 151 either DJ’ing after hours or waitressing and hosting at the sushi bar. And it’s really fire, and more reasonably priced than a lot of other places.
Brittany: I’m the same, I’ll drop like $500 if there’s a special omakase spot where it’s like, ‘only five seats in here’ -that’s a gimmick that where I am like yes, I’m down.
Brittany: What’s the last note written in your notes app?
Sabrina: False pleasures breed true pain.
Brittany: Is that a song lyric? Where does that come from?
Sabrina: It was like a grandma-style sign in a thrift store that said “false pleasure breed, ‘something else’ pain” and I changed it to true, and I wrote it down just to have that good reminder. I like writing down anything that’s true or poetic enough and then when we’re in the studio, I’ll just run with that as a starting point from somewhere in the song. And build the rest around it sometimes, or write in one sitting.
Brittany: Do you use your notes app a lot for lyrics? What do you have in there? Is it To-Do lists, groceries, what does it encompass?
Sabrina: To do lists, but as soon as I finish them I delete them most of the time. It’s almost all writing or like letters to people that I write. I love doing the “write a letter that you don’t send” thing when you’re mad at someone. Or if a relationship is ending. Or I write gratitude lists. I make lists of things I’m happy about often, random goals, random ideas but mostly songs.
Brittany: I do the letter thing too, and I assume everyone does this, but I’ll do a letter I even plan on sending but one where I want to formulate my thoughts on correctly. And sometimes I’ll make like the first draft and it’ll be really angry or something and I’ll read it the next day and I’ll be like “whew okay let’s take out that part”.
Brittany: What was the last thing you obsessed over?
Sabrina: Lemme look because I save pictures of everything in my camera roll and I never delete anything I just keep buying more space. I became pretty obsessed with getting a new pair of glasses. That was like a three week endeavor where everyday I was posting a picture in a new pair of glasses like “this one guys?” [throws deuces] I couldn’t make a decision and no one I know, or any of my followers were giving me any advice until I started grid posting it multiple times like “please”.
Brittany: Are the glasses you’re wearing now glasses new?
Sabrina: Yeah.
Brittany: I need a new pair too.
Sabrina: yeah I went to Fabulous Fanny’s to get these. I went to some of the more normie glasses stores and it like wasn’t working. I couldn’t find anything so I had to go find a vintage pair.
Brittany: I will buy the vintage pairs with the plan to replace the lens with my prescription but then I never do. Somehow I have just a bunch of glasses that aren’t my prescription so I’m like okay cool.
Sabrina: Yeah. I want more pairs now. I’ve become obsessed. I wish I could wear like a different vibe for every outfit but that’s so expensive. Lenses cost like a minimum of $160 and the frames normally cost anywhere from $150 to $700 so I’ve maybe chilled with this new obsession.
Brittany: I’ll buy sunglasses or glasses but then I’ll change my look a lot. Like I’ll get a crazy haircut or like, I was blonde for a really long time and now I have red hair and the glasses I had when I was blonde don’t look good with me and my red hair so I’m like “cool, great.” [laughs]
Sabrina: I’m the exact same way. It’s so annoying. The way that I dress regularly and the outfits that I’ll wear- the glasses just won’t fit so I won’t wear them and I’ll just be blind.
Brittany: I do that too. And my friends will be like “Brittany you can’t see that ” and I’m like “yeah you’re right. I can’t see it but that’s fine.”
Brittany: When’s the last time you created something you were proud of?
Sabrina: I’m pretty proud of this EP. I’m proud to call the people that I worked with on it ‘friends’ and collaborators. And to be releasing it super soon *already out*. Those are all things I’m super proud of.