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| Hint: Have a band you'd like to see interviewed? Tell us. | | Hidden Hospitals - 3.26.12 | The following is a mini interview of generic questions that we posed to all bands that wanted to answer:
Hidden Hospitals
hiddenhospitals.com
music.hiddenhospitals.com
1. How did you get your band name?
It's an idea. It serves both functional and aesthetic purposes.
Hidden Hospitals: Places revealed to those seeking resuscitation, rejuvenation, decompression, atonement? all manner of mental healing. They may be permanent or provisional - comprised of the elements, or divined during reverie. Be it a song or rooftop. A bus ride or a night in the woods. Faith or trust in another. Danced, read or walked. Swam, watched or wandered. Breathe.
2. How did this band get started?
While auditioning ideas for what to do "next" with a previous band, the decision to create from a blank canvas became more clear. It had been years between releases, and we'd grown into a different place entirely.
3. What bands are you influenced by?
A wide range of other bands/artists. The farther you're willing to listen outside of your own genre, the more rounded your music can be.
In rock music: Weezer inspired me to write music and sing, Hot Rod Circuit inspired me to start a band, Counterfit inspired me to be a tighter band, and Snapcase inspired me to be a performer.
The greats: Queen, Michael Jackson, Prince, Al Green.
More recently Mutemath, Mew, and the life-changing experience that was The Refused.
4. If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Seeing Thrice play live was inspiring. So collected, controlled, and their sound was nothing short of awesome. I had never seen them perform until this past fall at the Metro in Chicago. Seeing that level of professionalism (in rock music) was necessary for me. They presented themselves very well, and seemed very aware of their opportunity being on stage in front of a sold out crowd. So many artists squander that opportunity. It'd be an honor to travel with Thrice.
5. Best food to eat on tour?
Subway is often overlooked. Five dollars buys you a foot long helping of vegetables and carbohydrates, that spans two meals easily. When you exist on a Per Diem, this actually saves you money and keeps your body happy.
I keep supplements and vitamins in my bag that are part of my every day. This helps your immune system, especially while touring in winter. As much as I would love for that bag of vitamins to make me invincible, it simply doesn't. Sleep, water, and being aware of playing the next show is the best thing for you.
6. Why should people listen to your band?
I don't think that people SHOULD listen to our band.
Should someone choose to give us a clear mind and the short amount of time it takes to digest a band's music, I can assure them that their time is appreciated. People's time is a gift, and without it bands would be exactly nowhere but stuck in the rehearsal space.
7. If you could be any athlete, which athlete would you switch places with?
Steve Prefontaine circa 1972.
8. If you won a Grammy, who would you thank?
J.Hall (Nashville based Producer / Mixer including EP 001).
9. If you could change something about the music industry, what would it be?
Nothing. The flux that IS the music industry is the most real and living that I believe it has ever been. Bands are forced to embrace their freedom in order to really make connections with a fan base (and keep them). It's transparent and real.
10. Memorable tour experience?
I could write in volumes about eclectic experiences on tour, but the truth is that touring has tattooed each date/place in my head and heart. It creates bookmarks. Touring is like a complete set of encyclopedias. Each (date) able to be found easily, and within each - real travels, real events, and real consequence able to be revisited. Without that cycle, life can pass without demanding much attention.
11. What does AP.net mean to you?
When I hear AP.net, I think of Tony Pascarella, and a handful of extremely kind/supportive writers that helped make our previous bands have a place in this world. AP.net was writing and blogging about our bands when the rest of the world wouldn't.
12. What is your favorite song to play?
"From Finish to Starting Line" by Counterfit.
13. What is your vacation spot of choice?
Home, in NY.
14. What music reminds you of your childhood?
Phantom of the Opera, Bruce Springstein, Knight Ryder, and Chopin.
15. If you could have any super power, what would it be? Why?
Teleportation. I'd be without excuses for anything, ever.
16. Any pre-show superstitions or rituals?
I try to empty my mind of anything but the people I'm playing with. I know them the best, regardless of the ever changing environment around us. I count on them and it makes every other concern fleeting.
17. What is something that most fans don't know about you?
I hate rock n roll.
18. What is your assessment of the current state of radio? Do you think it's a place where your band could flourish?
Spotify, Rdio, and sites like them have reinvented listening to music. The accessibility enables me to be a listener anywhere, anytime. Respectively, it empowers artists to share their music through a familiar platform without requiring fans (or potential fans) to purchase. We are all part of this unique time in music where the book is unwritten. We have the highest level of tools at our disposal to spread our art around the planet and for the first time in decades, that beaten path is disappearing. You/we can do anything you want to and the challenging part is deciding how to do it. If radio is where you want to thrive, then shoot for it. If not - it doesn't matter…because it's not the only way to do things anymore.
19. What do you like to do in your spare time?
Get to know my friends better. I've spent most of my life leaving, or being gone - I'm trying to put things back in balance.
20. What kind of hidden talents do you have?
I know a lot about coffee, and can beatbox (really) well. |
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