What I’m Listening To

Aaaaaaaaand we’re back. After an almost-week-long break from the cutthroat world of blogging, I’m back with a vengeance, yo. That being said, I am now of the opinion that taking breaks makes you lazy. It’s been a long 48 hours, so forgive the brevity of this post. Here’s a quick look at some of the more interesting music I’ve been listening to recently:

Boy and the Bird EP

Merykid:

I had the pleasure of reviewing this guy’s album for Independent Clauses. It’s singer-songwriter, but with a fresh sound that evokes the likes of Temposhark and Keaton Simons. His Bird and the Bees EP came out recently; it’s only six songs, but it’s all quality stuff.

Interview: Nothing More’s Jonny Hawkins

This piece was first published on Independent Clauses. You can find the original article here.

Nothing More

Nothing More’s new release The Few Not Fleeting is coming out this upcoming Saturday. I had a chance to visit with lead singer Jonny Hawkins about the album and the processes behind it. The physical interview is below. I also compiled a video, which can be seen here.

Nothing More has had a lot of changes in lineup. Can you tell me a little about the band’s history?

We didn’t quite get it right the first six times around, so seventh or eighth time’s the charm for us. The core of the band was always Mark Vollelunga, Josh Kercheville, and me, Jonny Hawkins. We went through bass players and singers like fast food, basically.

We finally teamed up with Daniel Oliver a little after Josh Klaus parted ways with the band. That really formed I think the real core of the band right there. Then we got Travis as our singer and released Madhatter’s Bliss, and after that, we got Trey Graham as our singer when he got off tour with Kelly Clarkson, and released Save You/Save Me. And I think Save You/Save Me was our first big push, in regards to touring, and playing with 30 Seconds to Mars, and Burden Brothers, and on the Warped Tour – stuff like that. Then things went south with our singer Trey. The whole time through all these people we never really quite felt like it was there yet, like it had sunk in and… I don’t really know how to describe it; it just didn’t have that peace.

Josh Kercheville ended up leaving the band, which was a big blow too, so that left it to Mark and Dan and I. I can honestly say I don’t think we’ve ever been happier creatively, through the writing process, playing live… I play all the drums on the album, but we hire a drummer for shows. He’s on contract for now, I don’t think I’m ready to give up all the drumming right yet, but I can say I’ve never been with somebody that I’ve been as open to the idea about potentially joining the band. He’s an amazing guitar player, drummer, writer, artist, so he brings a lot to the table.

How did you go from being the drummer to being lead singer?

I got kind of into a depression in the last year. I had a lot of stuff going on in my life with my mom and cancer, and Trey – we parted ways and it felt like the band wasn’t going to go anywhere. And I had this revelation that I told Mark one night. I was like, “I want to sing for the band.” Let me say this: first of all, my biggest fear has always been speaking in front of people. I would lose sleep in high school if I had to speak in front of the class the next day. I wouldn’t sleep the whole night! So the idea of getting in front of hundreds of people and singing was enormous. Second of all, I couldn’t sing. I was not a singer, I’d been a drummer my whole life.

I was like, I’m afraid to be in front of people and I can’t sing. That’s not a good combination for a lead singer, right? But I felt very passionate about music.

So the last year all the guys were like, “All right. Jonny, we believe in you, even though it sucks right now and you sound like crap.” I’m lucky to be with guys that… we know each other well, we believe in each other to the point of, even if it doesn’t make sense now, we support each other. And they supported me and believed in me, and I never could’ve done it if they hadn’t been there and believed in me.

Music Review: The Few Not Fleeting

I don’t generally repost the music reviews I write for Independent Clauses on here, but this is a special case. I’ve been watching Nothing More perform for about five years now. This Saturday, they’re releasing their sixth album, entitled The Few Not Fleeting. Below is my review.

Upcoming 2009 album The Few Not Fleeting by Nothing More pulls you in, and it pulls you in fast. It has great continuity over the course of the album; the whole thing is a stunning emotional journey. For the uninitiated, Nothing More plays progressive/alternative rock; their sound is equal parts 30 Seconds to Mars, Coheed & Cambria, Dredg, and Fair To Midland. This San Antonio-based rock band has been around since 2000, and they’ve been busy the whole time, mostly playing across Texas and Louisiana, including performances in the Taste of Chaos tour in 2007 and Warped Tour in 2008. The Few Not Fleeting is their sixth release.

Consistent across the songs on the album are a thick, richly blended sound from guitarist Mark Vollelunga and bassist Daniel Oliver, strong lead vocals by Jonny Hawkins and excellently harmonized backups, and perfectly matched drums, also by Jonny Hawkins (interestingly, Jonny transitioned from drummer to the role of lead singer over the past year; a temp drummer fills in at live shows). Production value on this CD is quite good, especially for an independent band. Despite all this, what I found most striking about the album are the lyrics; they are all inspired by things the band has gone through. It lends a genuine quality to their performance.

“Gone” is my favorite track for the album. It opens with an ethereal electronic effect, and quickly transitions to Nothing More’s more typical guitar riffs and pounding drums. Over everything else, Jonny sings about the pain of his mother’s death; “I wish I’d never seen cancer / I’d die just to find that answer.” The emotional impact is practically overwhelming.

Rock anthem “Fat Kid” gives the album a helpful mood swing to the positive. Its tongue-in-cheek nature and rebellious nature are great fun, and when the chorus rolls around, you’ve just got to cheer. Lyrics proclaim, “I’m gonna rule the world, steal your girl / Not bad, not bad for a fat kid.” It’s an energetic song, celebrating the triumph of the underdog. Who doesn’t like that? I’ve had this album for a couple weeks now, and every time I hear the song I start singing along. If I’m alone, I might even dance.

Promo Video: Nothing More

This is a video I threw together to complement a CD review + interview that I wrote for Independent Clauses. After the pieces have been published on IC, I’ll repost them here. If you’re into prog/alt rock, Nothing More is worth a listen. Their latest album, titled The Few Not Fleeting,  drops in five days on February 21st.