\n<\/p>\n
\n\t \n\tLlobet, 36, and Prussack, 29, have both spent years working with students of \u201call ages, from seven to senior citizens,\u201d at School of Rock<\/a> programs and private lessons in New York<\/a>. They\u2019re also the core members of youbet<\/a>, an indie-rock<\/a> duo that\u2019s been gaining a steady buzz. And right now, they\u2019re sitting down at a diner in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, to talk about how they made a thrilling creative leap of their own.<\/p>\n \n\tThe band\u2019s new self-titled project, out May 1 on Hardly Art, is the first album that Llobet, a singer and guitarist, has written and recorded since enlisting Prussack as their bassist and \u201cpartner in crime,\u201d and it shows. Teeming with hummable melodies and unusual hooks, from the grunge snarl of \u201cReceive\u201d to the lighter-than-air guitar-pop of \u201cWorship,\u201d youbet<\/em> is the sound of two rock musicians who\u2019ve found their wavelength.<\/p>\n \n\tPlenty of current and former students will be cheering them on this spring. Just ask Geese<\/a>\u2019s Dom DiGesu, who took lessons with Llobet for several years starting around age 11, right up through the time when he and his friends began what is now the biggest New York rock band<\/a> in a generation. \u201cNick knew that I actually cared about music and I actually wanted to be there learning from him, so he treated me as a musician and friend instead of just another student,\u201d DiGesu says in an email to Rolling Stone<\/em>. \u201cI look back on my lessons with Nick as the first time an adult took my playing seriously\u2026. I\u2019ll forever be grateful for Nick.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tGrowing up in southern Florida, Llobet was 14 when their dad, a hard rock fan from Cuba, took them to see Metallica<\/a>\u2019s St. Anger<\/em> tour in November 2004. \u201cIt was a life-changing moment for me,\u201d Llobet says, sipping a decaf Americano. \u201cI was completely obsessed with the idea of being a guitar player. It would eat at me all day long, all day long, all day long.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\tF<\/span>
\n\t\t<\/span>or a music teacher, there are few things as rewarding as seeing a student master their instrument at a new level. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the best feelings ever to watch someone improve,\u201d says Micah Prussack. \u201cI experience that, like, every day of my life,\u201d adds her bandmate Nick Llobet. \u201cIt\u2019s fucking great.\u201d<\/p>\n