The latest one I have been able to get typed up properly was with Tim from Melbourne melodic hardcore band, Hopeless. They have a lot of really big things happening at the moment and I had a really good chance to ask him all the details in regards to their tours and new record. Read on.
Hi I'm Tim and I play guitar in Hopeless and I am 10/10 siked to get on the road with my friends.
I guess the big thing going on for you guys at the moment is your new record. Nigel (Trial And Error) was hoping to have it shipped before the Ruiner dates but its now looking like mid May is more likely, what happened?
Nothing really "happened" per se, we didn't put out a street date for a reason as we know how pressing plants work and there are high chances of unforeseen delays. Luckily this was on the money because it's taken a little longer than we'd like for us to get it but it should be out this week.
Nothing really "happened" per se, we didn't put out a street date for a reason as we know how pressing plants work and there are high chances of unforeseen delays. Luckily this was on the money because it's taken a little longer than we'd like for us to get it but it should be out this week.
Are you guys happy with how the record has turned out?
I am really happy with how it came out. The dude who engineered and mixed the record is a mate of mine and we've always talked about coming together on something. I know the guy knows his way around a studio and has similar ideas to us in regards to how things should sound, so it was really good to be on the same page. Also it was different to actually be there for the mixing process and have input on that aswell, seeing as Dear World was mixed overseas and our opinions were voiced mostly by email and stuff. I love the record and can't wait to hold the 7" for the first time and smell that new vinyl smell.
I am really happy with how it came out. The dude who engineered and mixed the record is a mate of mine and we've always talked about coming together on something. I know the guy knows his way around a studio and has similar ideas to us in regards to how things should sound, so it was really good to be on the same page. Also it was different to actually be there for the mixing process and have input on that aswell, seeing as Dear World was mixed overseas and our opinions were voiced mostly by email and stuff. I love the record and can't wait to hold the 7" for the first time and smell that new vinyl smell.
How did you guys all get together originally? Was it someones idea that lay dormant for a while or was it a 'Lets just have a jam and see what happens' sort of deal?
Well the stories vary from band member to band member, but my recollection is the following: Me and Brett have been friends for 17 years. We played together in a band called Bear Trap that pretty much just fizzled out into non-existence with a big dramatic (stupid as fuck) last show with members not showing up and us only playing 4 songs etc. I have been playing in bands since I was 12 years old so its foreign to not play shows most weekends to me. After the fucking around of Bear Trap and stuff I wanted to do a band with dudes who were committed. I also knew this dude Jase who did a band called the stallion (which he sang in) who was also breaking up around the same time. He wrote some stuff for his band on guitar and used to play back in the day, so I told him to dust off the axe and do this new band with me. We both wanted to do something different from our previous bands. At first I was going to do another band in the same sort of style as Bear Trap but with Brett singing and me playing guitar, but when Jase was added to the equation we changed things up and wanted to do something melodic. Me Brett and Jase started writing songs together and when things looked real enough to start thinking about other members, Chris was the first dude I thought of when it came to bass players. I'd been friends with him for a long time already and he had played in some bands. He played in cut your losses and some others (even some that Id been in that had never left the jam room) and I knew he could play bass well and had a good musical head on his shoulders. We then wrote a bunch of songs and recorded a demo just while it was fresh in our heads. At the time we had no offers or interest from anybody to play drums so I just recorded the drum tracks on the demo as I can kind of play (shittily.) After a few weeks of making like a myspace and getting demos around Skan offered to help us out and play some shows, we were totally shocked. We were friends with all the dudes in Carpathian but it was still surprising. Of course we jumped at the chance to have one of the best drummers in this country play in our band and we have kept on truckin' ever since.
Well the stories vary from band member to band member, but my recollection is the following: Me and Brett have been friends for 17 years. We played together in a band called Bear Trap that pretty much just fizzled out into non-existence with a big dramatic (stupid as fuck) last show with members not showing up and us only playing 4 songs etc. I have been playing in bands since I was 12 years old so its foreign to not play shows most weekends to me. After the fucking around of Bear Trap and stuff I wanted to do a band with dudes who were committed. I also knew this dude Jase who did a band called the stallion (which he sang in) who was also breaking up around the same time. He wrote some stuff for his band on guitar and used to play back in the day, so I told him to dust off the axe and do this new band with me. We both wanted to do something different from our previous bands. At first I was going to do another band in the same sort of style as Bear Trap but with Brett singing and me playing guitar, but when Jase was added to the equation we changed things up and wanted to do something melodic. Me Brett and Jase started writing songs together and when things looked real enough to start thinking about other members, Chris was the first dude I thought of when it came to bass players. I'd been friends with him for a long time already and he had played in some bands. He played in cut your losses and some others (even some that Id been in that had never left the jam room) and I knew he could play bass well and had a good musical head on his shoulders. We then wrote a bunch of songs and recorded a demo just while it was fresh in our heads. At the time we had no offers or interest from anybody to play drums so I just recorded the drum tracks on the demo as I can kind of play (shittily.) After a few weeks of making like a myspace and getting demos around Skan offered to help us out and play some shows, we were totally shocked. We were friends with all the dudes in Carpathian but it was still surprising. Of course we jumped at the chance to have one of the best drummers in this country play in our band and we have kept on truckin' ever since.
Its pretty widely known that your drummer also plays in another quite well known melbourne hardcore band. Did you guys try to keep from telling people this in the beginning as to avoid 'hype' or didn't it really worry you?
Not at all I mean...the kids are gonna think what they want to think, regardless of what you say or what you try to put out there. People are gonna talk. We knew it would definitely help us in the sense that having someone in your band that knows a lot of people around the country and knows how to tour, but we weren't even really thinking about the "ex member factor" as I don't think it's a free pass to do whatever you want anymore. For everyone that likes what you're doing there will be 10 people to disagree and put them down for voicing their opinion so I don't think 'hype' came into it at any stage.
Not at all I mean...the kids are gonna think what they want to think, regardless of what you say or what you try to put out there. People are gonna talk. We knew it would definitely help us in the sense that having someone in your band that knows a lot of people around the country and knows how to tour, but we weren't even really thinking about the "ex member factor" as I don't think it's a free pass to do whatever you want anymore. For everyone that likes what you're doing there will be 10 people to disagree and put them down for voicing their opinion so I don't think 'hype' came into it at any stage.
How do you feel about people who say the only reason you were signed by such a large label so quickly was because Skan helped people take notice?
It's weird because like, to us it doesn't seem that way at all. I can see how someone looking in from the outside would think that had something to do with it but it's really just not the case at all. We did everything we have up to this point as a group of 5 dudes and nobody is more important than anyone else, and at this point nobody really has more influence on our surroundings than anybody else. I wouldn't really consider Trial And Error a "large" label either. I mean they are perfect for us and Nigel has completely shaped the band and put us where we are today, but it's not like a label that has money to throw away for us to do what we want. It's an independent label and he's a hardworking guy. If you are into hardcore for money then you're deluded and in the wrong industry because everybody around me is broke haha.
It's weird because like, to us it doesn't seem that way at all. I can see how someone looking in from the outside would think that had something to do with it but it's really just not the case at all. We did everything we have up to this point as a group of 5 dudes and nobody is more important than anyone else, and at this point nobody really has more influence on our surroundings than anybody else. I wouldn't really consider Trial And Error a "large" label either. I mean they are perfect for us and Nigel has completely shaped the band and put us where we are today, but it's not like a label that has money to throw away for us to do what we want. It's an independent label and he's a hardworking guy. If you are into hardcore for money then you're deluded and in the wrong industry because everybody around me is broke haha.
Does the fact that Skan has another project sometimes make it hard when it comes to booking tours? Or has it more or less worked itself out so far?
I don't really know how to answer this question. In a sense it is "harder" because it's hard to try and find time for Skan to do stuff with us while he has a bunch of other shit on his plate like trying to keep his job while doing 5 tours a year between two bands. So far we have just gone with whatever and tried to sort it out as we go along. We just say yes to the tours and if Skan can play them, then we're fucking stoked because we get to hang with our mate, but if he's doing something Carpathian wise we totally understand and we try and find someone to help us out for the tour. So far we haven't missed out on anything because of it, which I feel we are super lucky for.
I don't really know how to answer this question. In a sense it is "harder" because it's hard to try and find time for Skan to do stuff with us while he has a bunch of other shit on his plate like trying to keep his job while doing 5 tours a year between two bands. So far we have just gone with whatever and tried to sort it out as we go along. We just say yes to the tours and if Skan can play them, then we're fucking stoked because we get to hang with our mate, but if he's doing something Carpathian wise we totally understand and we try and find someone to help us out for the tour. So far we haven't missed out on anything because of it, which I feel we are super lucky for.
The new record is called 'Human' and really has some quite detailed artwork on the cover. Is their a lyrical theme presented in the songs or even a concept?
Shouts to BLACKOUT (dfaxxx@mac.com) for the artwork. It's definitely not a concept record. I mean I don't write the lyrics personally but from what I have spoken with Brett about the content of 'Human', it seems to be a much happier record. Dear World is pretty sad I suppose but basically that is one record and this is another. It speaks on different topics and views towards them and the things we wrote about on Dear World aren't really addressed again.
Shouts to BLACKOUT (dfaxxx@mac.com) for the artwork. It's definitely not a concept record. I mean I don't write the lyrics personally but from what I have spoken with Brett about the content of 'Human', it seems to be a much happier record. Dear World is pretty sad I suppose but basically that is one record and this is another. It speaks on different topics and views towards them and the things we wrote about on Dear World aren't really addressed again.
You guys have done some pretty big tours lately with some great bands, no doubt this has brought some kids that have never seen you before. Is it good to play to people that have never seen you before? Or is just shit playing to people that don't know your songs?
It's definitely good. I mean of course it sucks it's not a crowd full of people that are there to specifically go off for your set or anything, but the way we see it is for every show we play where there are 300 kids to see the amity affliction or something, 10 kids or in the worst case 1 kid is gonna see hopeless and maybe dig it and come to the tour next time or check out our music. I've seen it happen and its one of the best things about being able to tour with different kinds of bands.
It's definitely good. I mean of course it sucks it's not a crowd full of people that are there to specifically go off for your set or anything, but the way we see it is for every show we play where there are 300 kids to see the amity affliction or something, 10 kids or in the worst case 1 kid is gonna see hopeless and maybe dig it and come to the tour next time or check out our music. I've seen it happen and its one of the best things about being able to tour with different kinds of bands.
Is it cool to be able to get out on the road with The Broderick? You all know each other pretty well hey?
Yeah we are good friends with those dudes. I'm especially excited for them because it's been a while since they've toured or even played, really. They are hilarious in day to day situations so i can't imagine the sort of shit that's going to happen when they are locked in a van together for 2 weeks. They are also from the same area of Melbourne as most of the dudes in our band so we have a lot in common. It's going to be great.
Yeah we are good friends with those dudes. I'm especially excited for them because it's been a while since they've toured or even played, really. They are hilarious in day to day situations so i can't imagine the sort of shit that's going to happen when they are locked in a van together for 2 weeks. They are also from the same area of Melbourne as most of the dudes in our band so we have a lot in common. It's going to be great.
Finishing up:
Who is the worst driver when you guys are on tour? Or do you even have a designated NON driver?
Out of the actual drivers, I'm without a doubt the worst. I can't sleep for shit when I'm not driving so as soon as all options are exhausted and I have to do a shift I get into the seat and within like 15 minutes my eyes are all heavy and Im nearly killing us all. The designated non-drivers are the dudes without licenses who sit in the back and sleep the whole time, yet still feel they have the right to complain when I swerve and save our asses from destroying skippy at 140 km/h.
Out of the actual drivers, I'm without a doubt the worst. I can't sleep for shit when I'm not driving so as soon as all options are exhausted and I have to do a shift I get into the seat and within like 15 minutes my eyes are all heavy and Im nearly killing us all. The designated non-drivers are the dudes without licenses who sit in the back and sleep the whole time, yet still feel they have the right to complain when I swerve and save our asses from destroying skippy at 140 km/h.
Whats the best thing about Melbourne?
Food, hardcore, graff, babes, Mindsnare. I know thats 5 things but it's hardcore nobody can ever decide on anything.
Food, hardcore, graff, babes, Mindsnare. I know thats 5 things but it's hardcore nobody can ever decide on anything.
Who has the worst taste in music?
This is a three way tie because Skan likes Hed p.e, Jase always puts on all the shitty Saves The Day albums that suck so fucking bad, and the rare occasion Brett gets the iPod on tour he will put on something you completely forgot existed and while being funny he legitimately likes it and is annoying.
This is a three way tie because Skan likes Hed p.e, Jase always puts on all the shitty Saves The Day albums that suck so fucking bad, and the rare occasion Brett gets the iPod on tour he will put on something you completely forgot existed and while being funny he legitimately likes it and is annoying.
Anything you want to add before we wrap up?
Thanks for the interview, sorry if my replies were long winded.
Check out the following
My other band warbrain - http://www.myspace.com/warbrainmelbourne
My friend's clothing label strangers - http://wearestrangers.wordpress.com/
My internet hardcore gossip website - http://www.realtalkhc.com/
Thanks for the interview, sorry if my replies were long winded.
Check out the following
My other band warbrain - http://www.myspace.com/warbrainmelbourne
My friend's clothing label strangers - http://wearestrangers.wordpress.com/
My internet hardcore gossip website - http://www.realtalkhc.com/
These guys are on tour with Miles Away, Break Even and The Broderick in mid to late June. Pre-Orders for the new record 'Human' ran out sooooo long ago. But it is being released very soon so just hit up their myspace or Trial and Error Records.
Also The Broderick are such a gnarly band and I havent seen them since they toured with Antagonist in 2007. So get to those shows on time and make sure you see them play their new songs.
http://www.myspace.com/hopelessmelbourne
http://www.myspace.com/trialanderrorhardcore
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