haha charade |
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First State Studios had the privilege of shooting the breeze with haha charade, a band who has built up their roots right here in Delaware. The four members tell us what inspired the formation of the band, their writing and recording process, and what's set up for their future in this exclusive interview.
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Band Members and Roles:
Alex (Singer/Guitar/Songwriter) Justin (Backup Vocals/Guitar/Songwriter) Matt (Bass/Songwriter) Brendan (Drums) Justin, Matt, and Brendan are all born and raised in Wilmington, Delaware, having been high school friends, while Alex is from Muskegon, Michigan. Listen and Download haha charade's latest music by clicking here... |
How did you guys all meet? How long have you been playing together?
Matt and Brendan met while forming a cover band called Eleanor & The Roosevelts. Eventually, through some lineup changes, Brendan brought in Alex and Justin, and the lineup has been set in stone ever since. This was about 5 years ago now. We made the transition from cover band to an original band a little less than a year ago. Needless to say, we aren’t looking back.
Matt and Brendan met while forming a cover band called Eleanor & The Roosevelts. Eventually, through some lineup changes, Brendan brought in Alex and Justin, and the lineup has been set in stone ever since. This was about 5 years ago now. We made the transition from cover band to an original band a little less than a year ago. Needless to say, we aren’t looking back.
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What genre would you guys fit into? Or do you not fit into a genre? What artists inspire you?
Good question. You could fit us into the Alt-Rock/Indie catch-all genre, I suppose. I don’t think we fit into a genre, per se, because we draw from so many different genres of music, that it would almost be unfair to label us (I bet all the bands say this). Our inspiration is heavily drawn from dark, minor melodic sounds i.e. Arctic Monkeys, State Radio, Portugal. The Man, Rebelution, Incubus, Local Natives, etc... But above all others, there will ever only be one Beatles!
How has being a band in Delaware treated you? Do you have roots here, is it just a stepping stone along the way?
This is our home. Our roots here are deep. It’ll always be home, but we’d like to expand.
Good question. You could fit us into the Alt-Rock/Indie catch-all genre, I suppose. I don’t think we fit into a genre, per se, because we draw from so many different genres of music, that it would almost be unfair to label us (I bet all the bands say this). Our inspiration is heavily drawn from dark, minor melodic sounds i.e. Arctic Monkeys, State Radio, Portugal. The Man, Rebelution, Incubus, Local Natives, etc... But above all others, there will ever only be one Beatles!
How has being a band in Delaware treated you? Do you have roots here, is it just a stepping stone along the way?
This is our home. Our roots here are deep. It’ll always be home, but we’d like to expand.
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Describe the writing and recording process. Is there anything that is unique about the way you come up with a song? Could you give some examples of songs that stemmed from a certain event or idea or concept.
Our writing process is all over the place. For starters, Matt, Justin, and Alex all write. So the sounds and styles may vary depending on whose brainchild the song was. Sometimes we write separately and bring a song to the table at practice. Most of the time, however, we will get together and see what we come up with. |
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A good portion of our songs were written and recorded in a day. Some songs are inspired by other songs, and some songs literally come to us in a dream. Because we don’t have a set process, the songs all feel slightly different from one another. That being said, I think we’ve done a good job at cultivating our own sound. Writing is really where we shine because we none of us can stop. It’s our addiction. There will never be a shortage of songs (just a shortage of time to record them all!). Most lyrics are inspired by observing the world with a healthy cynicism.
Please explain this quote we pulled from your site.... “somewhere between starting up and selling out we lost our way peddling recycled notes and a retired phrase”
— haha charade
This is a lyric from the pre-chorus of our song Summer Sunrise. It’s meant to be tongue-and-cheek. All it means is that in between the early grind and stardom you could hit a rut where you use the same chord progressions and song lyrics, or worse, someone else’s. This happens to a lot of bands. It hasn’t happened to us yet. Hopefully it never does!
What message could the world use right about now?
There is no such thing as “your truth.” The truth is the truth is the truth. Everything else is perspective, but you still have to follow your heart. Also, this 'Us vs. Them' mentality has to go. We’re diving face forward into an antiquated path.
— haha charade
This is a lyric from the pre-chorus of our song Summer Sunrise. It’s meant to be tongue-and-cheek. All it means is that in between the early grind and stardom you could hit a rut where you use the same chord progressions and song lyrics, or worse, someone else’s. This happens to a lot of bands. It hasn’t happened to us yet. Hopefully it never does!
What message could the world use right about now?
There is no such thing as “your truth.” The truth is the truth is the truth. Everything else is perspective, but you still have to follow your heart. Also, this 'Us vs. Them' mentality has to go. We’re diving face forward into an antiquated path.
haha charade is available on Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube. All songs are also available for free download on their website hahacharade.com The band plays about two times every month in Delaware and will continue to do so until we go on tour next year. As of right now, the band has recently released an EP titled, We Are The Wolves which is available through the streaming services included above. In the time leading up to their next album release, haha charade will be releasing 3 singles every other month until the album is released, which should be sometime this Fall of 2019. Be sure to follow haha charade on Instagram for all upcoming tour dates and keeping up with the band by clicking here.
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