Q: Cut Hairs is a project where the members were spread out across the US. How do you feel that played in the creative process of your release All Feels Lost?
Joe: It definitely took longer than if we were in the same location… but I wrote the majority of the songs while living in New York. So, just the competitiveness that city demands from you brings about quite a bit of anxiety, as well as motivation. New York is still in a lot of ways the art mecca of the world, so you have to feel confident about what you’re doing, otherwise things tend to come across as less than genuine or just plain boring.
We all grew up in the same town in Iowa, so there’s that Midwest/Heartland vibe throughout the record. I’ve always loved listening to Americana and country music but never felt totally comfortable playing it. I have an aggressive disposition that is often at odds with my melancholy, and I was kind of aiming for that dichotomy of rural vs. urban, punk vs. country, aggressive vs. laid back feel. But without polarizing the two and attempting to keep a sound pop sensibility along the way. I was always a big Uncle Tupelo fan—so maintaining a progressive ideology with an approachable aesthetic is always in the forefront of my mind.
Ben: It obviously would have been preferable to be in the same town playing these tunes together, but it’s pretty incredible that one can record music in this method. There’s more immediate feedback from all group members when you meet in person and jam. Joe and I recorded demos of his acoustic guitar and voice before we went into Matt’s studio. I got to spend time with the songs and experiment a little bit with what I thought sounded cool. I ended up changing some things or doing new things on the recording day based on input from everyone else, but the skeletons were created at home. Jon and Bob were kind of like the studio musicians. They listened to the tracks a few times and played what came to them on the day of recording. We knew what they were capable of, so had an idea of what the end result would sound like, but were still surprised by what we got. I mean that in the best way possible. It’s really cool to hear the song develop in real time by each person’s addition.
Q: The albums tones and textures reminded me of bands like Dinosaur Jr. and Guided by Voices. Can you talk a little bit about the aesthetics of the album?
Joe: That ’80s/’90s indie sound is my bread and butter. My older brother Ben grew up right in the middle of it, and he’s probably my biggest influence musically, even though he didn’t play an instrument. He’s thirteen years older than me, so while he was off at art school in the Twin Cities he’d always be sending me CDs. Eventually he would guide me towards the ‘mats, Husker Du, Superchunk, Sonic Youth, etc. I’ve been hooked ever since. So, I think a lot of those textures are unintentional, it’s just how I hear it in my head. Matt Hohmann (our dear friend/producer) made it much easier for that to come to fruition. I think Matt knew almost immediately what I was after, and asked very few questions concerning tone (haha).
Ben: We’re all fans of rock and roll music. I remember Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. coming up as reference points while initially working on the songs with Joe and recording them. We’re also classic rock fans, and I think that comes through on several of the songs. That’s more my bread and butter as far as my guitar playing goes. You can’t help but channel your influences. When I listen back, I hear Sabbath and Cheap Trick as much as the aforementioned indie bands. I try not to explicitly sound like a particular band. Because of that, I tend to try things that aren’t in the song style, like using clean voicings a la ’50s rock/country in a fuzzed out tune.
Q: You mention that the album is “A commentary and reflection of the current socio-political climate, as well as deeply personal exploration of self.” How are the two related through the album and can you be more specific about the “current socio-political climate” you are referring to?
Joe: Well, the inspiration behind the album is a culmination of our collective paranoia, fear, compassion, helplessness and hope in society. There are quite a few references to the end of the world, lost love and social injustices throughout. Some references are more metaphorical than others and some are very direct confrontations. The title track is probably the most overtly political with references to Ferguson, MO, “warrior cops,” “trapped inside a war,” etc. There’s a lot of deep-seeded fear throughout our country in regards to PoC, poor folks, immigrants etc. no matter which side you’re on. I really try to stay away from being too didactic or indoctrinating with my lyrics. Instead, I tend to just observe and call it like I see it. That being said, I was raised very liberal so maybe I am slightly biased towards rooting for the underdog.
Q: Most of the album felt like grade A indie rock. I was a bit surprised by how experimental and atmospheric “Night Noise” was. Have you given thought to creating an ambient album that is more indicative of that track?
Joe: That song was almost entirely improvised, and I absolutely adore it. We did it live with a cell phone and one mic, syncing up the two recorded tracks with a clap of the hands. This produced a visual “spike” on the software’s interface and allowed us to sync them up more precisely. This made the recording quite interesting because you can hear Ben (Eagle) harmonizing with himself. You can hear what’s coming out of his amp while also hearing him plucking away at his guitar because he’s sitting right in front of the mic. The levels worked out brilliantly. I was also into the idea of being able to hear my voice, but not necessarily understanding what I’m saying. Which, I guess is very indie rock…
I would love to do an ambient record somewhere down the line, but I was reluctant to wander too far down that road with this project because lord knows we don’t really need another indie bedroom dream pop record at the moment. I guess this song was a happy accident that happened to fit quite nicely.
Ben: I’m open to the idea. Will it likely happen though?—well, it could I suppose.
Q: Do you have any plans to play live or is this a studio project?
Joe: I would love to do these songs live, but that doesn’t seem all too feasible considering how busy we all are with other projects, families and jobs. I guess we’ll have to see if fate brings us together in the future. Until then, I’ll admit that I’m not shy about performing some of these songs with other projects of mine. Keep your ears peeled for an alternate version of “Boy in Love” by the Butter Boys!
Ben: Getting the full group together would be difficult. Recording works well for us now. If we could book a few shows that worked for all, or even some of the members, I’d be up to it. It would be a lot of fun to play these songs live.
Q: All Feels Lost was a culmination of years of work and multiple members moving. How does it feel to have those songs released after so many years? Is there anything we should we be aware of that is happening with the band in the not too distant future?
Joe: It feels like an enormous weight off my shoulders. I never had much money, nor the resources to record much during my twelve years in NYC. So, having this opportunity was hugely uplifting during a very dark time in my life. I’m extremely lucky to have such good friends that are also incredible musicians, who were willing to play on this record. I don’t know if that means the songs are that good, or that they’re just that good of friends. Either way, I’m very thankful.
Ben (Eagle) and I have been playing for over half our lives, so it made a lot of sense to do this with him. Beth went to a different high school when we were kids, but our circles would often intertwine. And I fondly remember her bands being very artful and sophisticated. Especially compared to the trashy rock bands I played in.
Jon and Bob are guys I’ve looked up to since I was in high school. They were the local rock stars. They had their own way of communicating through music that was so fucking intoxicating for a young person. I’m glowing as I write this. I’m always writing, and I always love playing with these cats, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we polish something off in the next year or so. Ben and I are already tinkering with a few new ideas.
Ben: Joe’s a great songwriter and I love working with him. I got to fully appreciate that more as we’ve been involved in our own projects over the years and developing different styles. When we played together in high school, we had similar musical tastes, but barely knew how to play our instruments. It’s nice that we got to make a record together after years of doing our own things.
Joe: It definitely took longer than if we were in the same location… but I wrote the majority of the songs while living in New York. So, just the competitiveness that city demands from you brings about quite a bit of anxiety, as well as motivation. New York is still in a lot of ways the art mecca of the world, so you have to feel confident about what you’re doing, otherwise things tend to come across as less than genuine or just plain boring.
We all grew up in the same town in Iowa, so there’s that Midwest/Heartland vibe throughout the record. I’ve always loved listening to Americana and country music but never felt totally comfortable playing it. I have an aggressive disposition that is often at odds with my melancholy, and I was kind of aiming for that dichotomy of rural vs. urban, punk vs. country, aggressive vs. laid back feel. But without polarizing the two and attempting to keep a sound pop sensibility along the way. I was always a big Uncle Tupelo fan—so maintaining a progressive ideology with an approachable aesthetic is always in the forefront of my mind.
Ben: It obviously would have been preferable to be in the same town playing these tunes together, but it’s pretty incredible that one can record music in this method. There’s more immediate feedback from all group members when you meet in person and jam. Joe and I recorded demos of his acoustic guitar and voice before we went into Matt’s studio. I got to spend time with the songs and experiment a little bit with what I thought sounded cool. I ended up changing some things or doing new things on the recording day based on input from everyone else, but the skeletons were created at home. Jon and Bob were kind of like the studio musicians. They listened to the tracks a few times and played what came to them on the day of recording. We knew what they were capable of, so had an idea of what the end result would sound like, but were still surprised by what we got. I mean that in the best way possible. It’s really cool to hear the song develop in real time by each person’s addition.
Q: The albums tones and textures reminded me of bands like Dinosaur Jr. and Guided by Voices. Can you talk a little bit about the aesthetics of the album?
Joe: That ’80s/’90s indie sound is my bread and butter. My older brother Ben grew up right in the middle of it, and he’s probably my biggest influence musically, even though he didn’t play an instrument. He’s thirteen years older than me, so while he was off at art school in the Twin Cities he’d always be sending me CDs. Eventually he would guide me towards the ‘mats, Husker Du, Superchunk, Sonic Youth, etc. I’ve been hooked ever since. So, I think a lot of those textures are unintentional, it’s just how I hear it in my head. Matt Hohmann (our dear friend/producer) made it much easier for that to come to fruition. I think Matt knew almost immediately what I was after, and asked very few questions concerning tone (haha).
Ben: We’re all fans of rock and roll music. I remember Sebadoh and Dinosaur Jr. coming up as reference points while initially working on the songs with Joe and recording them. We’re also classic rock fans, and I think that comes through on several of the songs. That’s more my bread and butter as far as my guitar playing goes. You can’t help but channel your influences. When I listen back, I hear Sabbath and Cheap Trick as much as the aforementioned indie bands. I try not to explicitly sound like a particular band. Because of that, I tend to try things that aren’t in the song style, like using clean voicings a la ’50s rock/country in a fuzzed out tune.
Q: You mention that the album is “A commentary and reflection of the current socio-political climate, as well as deeply personal exploration of self.” How are the two related through the album and can you be more specific about the “current socio-political climate” you are referring to?
Joe: Well, the inspiration behind the album is a culmination of our collective paranoia, fear, compassion, helplessness and hope in society. There are quite a few references to the end of the world, lost love and social injustices throughout. Some references are more metaphorical than others and some are very direct confrontations. The title track is probably the most overtly political with references to Ferguson, MO, “warrior cops,” “trapped inside a war,” etc. There’s a lot of deep-seeded fear throughout our country in regards to PoC, poor folks, immigrants etc. no matter which side you’re on. I really try to stay away from being too didactic or indoctrinating with my lyrics. Instead, I tend to just observe and call it like I see it. That being said, I was raised very liberal so maybe I am slightly biased towards rooting for the underdog.
Q: Most of the album felt like grade A indie rock. I was a bit surprised by how experimental and atmospheric “Night Noise” was. Have you given thought to creating an ambient album that is more indicative of that track?
Joe: That song was almost entirely improvised, and I absolutely adore it. We did it live with a cell phone and one mic, syncing up the two recorded tracks with a clap of the hands. This produced a visual “spike” on the software’s interface and allowed us to sync them up more precisely. This made the recording quite interesting because you can hear Ben (Eagle) harmonizing with himself. You can hear what’s coming out of his amp while also hearing him plucking away at his guitar because he’s sitting right in front of the mic. The levels worked out brilliantly. I was also into the idea of being able to hear my voice, but not necessarily understanding what I’m saying. Which, I guess is very indie rock…
I would love to do an ambient record somewhere down the line, but I was reluctant to wander too far down that road with this project because lord knows we don’t really need another indie bedroom dream pop record at the moment. I guess this song was a happy accident that happened to fit quite nicely.
Ben: I’m open to the idea. Will it likely happen though?—well, it could I suppose.
Q: Do you have any plans to play live or is this a studio project?
Joe: I would love to do these songs live, but that doesn’t seem all too feasible considering how busy we all are with other projects, families and jobs. I guess we’ll have to see if fate brings us together in the future. Until then, I’ll admit that I’m not shy about performing some of these songs with other projects of mine. Keep your ears peeled for an alternate version of “Boy in Love” by the Butter Boys!
Ben: Getting the full group together would be difficult. Recording works well for us now. If we could book a few shows that worked for all, or even some of the members, I’d be up to it. It would be a lot of fun to play these songs live.
Q: All Feels Lost was a culmination of years of work and multiple members moving. How does it feel to have those songs released after so many years? Is there anything we should we be aware of that is happening with the band in the not too distant future?
Joe: It feels like an enormous weight off my shoulders. I never had much money, nor the resources to record much during my twelve years in NYC. So, having this opportunity was hugely uplifting during a very dark time in my life. I’m extremely lucky to have such good friends that are also incredible musicians, who were willing to play on this record. I don’t know if that means the songs are that good, or that they’re just that good of friends. Either way, I’m very thankful.
Ben (Eagle) and I have been playing for over half our lives, so it made a lot of sense to do this with him. Beth went to a different high school when we were kids, but our circles would often intertwine. And I fondly remember her bands being very artful and sophisticated. Especially compared to the trashy rock bands I played in.
Jon and Bob are guys I’ve looked up to since I was in high school. They were the local rock stars. They had their own way of communicating through music that was so fucking intoxicating for a young person. I’m glowing as I write this. I’m always writing, and I always love playing with these cats, so I wouldn’t be surprised if we polish something off in the next year or so. Ben and I are already tinkering with a few new ideas.
Ben: Joe’s a great songwriter and I love working with him. I got to fully appreciate that more as we’ve been involved in our own projects over the years and developing different styles. When we played together in high school, we had similar musical tastes, but barely knew how to play our instruments. It’s nice that we got to make a record together after years of doing our own things.