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How To Kill Your Band #10 – A Conversation With Hopesfall’s Adam Morgan (Part 2 of 2)

Hello and welcome to the tenth installment of Eric Morgan’s How To Kill Your Band. This column offers advice to up and coming artists from the perspective of a professional musician who has thrived with and without label support over the last decade. If you have any questions regarding the content of this blog, or if you would like to learn more information about the services offered by Haulix, please email james@haulix.com and share your thoughts. We can also be found on Twitter and Facebook.

An Introduction:

I’ve been in the music industry as an artist for nearly 10 years now. In that decade I’ve achieved nearly all of my childhood music dreams, but I’ve also made just as many mistakes that run over my mind before I fall asleep each night. A wonderment of how a few different decisions, rerunning in hindsight, would work out in some alternate universe. This ever creeping determinism is a fallacy I’m quite aware of but one that I will never completely shake, though it’s these experiences I’ve learned the most valuable lessons. These are the things I’d like to share in a series of mini-blogs I call How To Kill Your Band.

Part 9 – A Conversation With Hopesfall’s Adam Morgan (Part 2)

This week on the HTKYB, I will be sharing the second half of my interview with Hopesfall founding drummer Adam Morgan. Part 1 can be found here. Hopesfall was founded in 1998 and quickly developed from a regional favorite to a national force that blurred the lines between metal and hardcore with unconventional song structures and spacey melodic soundscapes. The group dealt with the entire spectrum of band troubles ranging from a multitude of member changes to publicized confrontations with their label all while their music continued to grow and become a pillar of the hardcore scene. Adam was kind enough to take part a series of back and forth emails over the past weeks where we discussed his experiences in the band and shed light on the lessons he had learned during his time in the industry.

E: So I was very curious and went back and listened to track 6 of The Satellite Years “A Man Exits” to see if I could spot any differences in the mix compared to the rest of the album. All I could pull out was a little bit of tone variation in the guitars compared to the other tracks but obviously nothing I would of picked up without a hint.

A: Yeah…I guess it’s not too big of a deal. Something about the guitar mix, right at the 0:47 mark, just irks me.

E: The grass is always greener. I think your experience resonates with many other touring musicians when it comes to deciding how to move forward in life. Like you mentioned earlier, there’s that initial period of being proud of the work and adventure you get to experience everyday on the road, especially when you know people who are trudging to the same boring cubicle day after day. But the other side of it is that when you come home you realize that these people have the financial security, relationships, and other comforts you miss out on while traveling.

It’s interesting to see the advice you’d give your younger self to enjoy the moment and to keep working on what you’ve put so much effort into building. When you’re in a position where comfort and security take a backseat to everything else, the propensity to feel that your time is running out only gets stronger. It’s what bands succumb to most often. Do you think it’s possible to find a balance between being a touring artist and living a “normal” life or is it mutually exclusive in your eyes?

A: Thats a great point and question. I actually do think it’s possible to be a touring musician while still retaining all those securities you mentioned. I’d say it’s extremely rare, but I’ve seen and met members in bands who have great, secure jobs, and understanding, encouraging spouses that help allow them to enjoy both aspects of normal life and road life.

However…I think in most cases, there will always come a time when you just have to weigh out what matters most to you.  Looking down the road, into your financial and post-band future, can be extremely hard, especially while you are in the middle of living your dream, but it’s definitely something you have to consider because let’s face it, the chances of your band becoming your full-time job, for the rest of your life, is slim to nil.

E: You said you left the band prior to tracking A Types for several reasons including not being entirely happy with the writing process. That record ended up being Hopesfall’s most commercially successful release, but also pivoted the sound in a way that separated it from what the band had been known for. You mentioned that you had agreed to push in a more traditional song based direction with a bigger emphasis on choruses and hooks. Now that a decade has passed, how do you view that record and the shift in sound? At the time, the band had already released two albums and an EP in that “original” style. Was going in such a drastic new direction viewed as a necessity for sustaining creativity among the group?

A: I think A Types is good for what it is; that being: a transitional album. We were trying something brand new to us, and just like anybody trying something new for the first time, it’s usually not going to be perfect. I wouldn’t consider it a “necessity” for sustaining creativity. I think if we wanted to put out another hardcore record at that point, we still could have produced something creative and interesting. It just felt like a good time to move forward, especially since Jay was our singer now, and had proven he could take on more of a melodic singing role.

After all, our music was always heavily influenced by bands like Hum and Smashing Pumpkins. That’s the sound we were always striving for. I believe the departure from screaming and breakdowns was actually more of a step toward remaining true to ourselves and playing the kind of music we wanted to hear.

E: In late 2005 you rejoined the band after Adam Baker left. Why did you decide to come back? You ultimately left again in 2006. Did you view it as a temporary situation from the onset?

Hopesfall toured Brazil in October of 2005. You guys had toured internationally before but Brazil is more of a rare musical opportunity. Describe what it was like to tour in that country? Was that part of the reason for rejoining for a bit?

A: The decision to come back after Baker had left the band was just a temporary thing. At that time, Josh had come to me and asked if I’d be willing to help them out with a few tours that they had already committed to; one of those tours being a Brazil tour.  It was really a perfect situation for me because I was really starting to miss touring and performing, but at the same time, I still didn’t want to be in a full-time touring band. Oh…and it was a chance to go to BRAZIL!

That Brazil tour was incredible. Up until then, the only other foreign countries I had played were Canada and the UK. It was the first time I was in a country whose native language wasn’t English (well, besides Montreal, Quebec, and a couple parts of Central Avenue, here in Charlotte). Even though a lot of the fans over there didn’t know English, or I, Portuguese, it didn’t stop them from trying to communicate to us just how much it meant to them that we were there, playing for them. They were some of the nicest people I’ve ever met, and they went off at every show. It was definitely an experience that I will take with me for the rest of my life.

E: Wow, that show in São Paulo looks insane. It’s hard to argue with taking an opportunity to play packed out shows while traveling Brazil.

Since you went into the rejoining as a temporary position, were you part of the process in preparing what would be Hopesfall’s final album, 2007’s Magnetic North, or was another album never in your personal plans? That record is clearly an evolution of the sound found on A Types but also reintroduces some of the aggressive dynamics found on earlier works. Do you feel the record was an appropriate way to bookend the band that you had such a significant presence in?

A: I didn’t have any hands in the preparation, or recording of Magnetic North. After we finished up those tours, the band recruited an incredible drummer by the name of Jason Trabue. He came in and wrote/recorded Magnetic North with the guys. I think it’s a great album to bookend the Hopesfall discography. I can’t say enough good things about that album. I think it is a fantastic rock record.

E: In 2011, Hopesfall reunited the No Wings to Speak Of era lineup for two one-off reunion shows in Winston-Salem and Charlotte, NC. Can you talk about how the idea of the reunion came about and why this specific version of the band was chosen? I was lucky enough to attend the Charlotte date and was impressed with how the band was able to re-learn the entire Frailty of Words album after so many years and member changes between. What was it like personally for you to go back and learn those first songs and to perform them live for the first time in over a decade?

A: The reunion shows came about because we were approached by our good buddies, and old touring mates, Codeseven. They told us that they were playing a reunion show in Winston-Salem (their hometown) as part of a grand reopening of an old rock venue (ZIGGY’s) we all use to play at. They asked Josh to check with the rest of us about playing with them. It worked out with everyone’s schedule and it felt like a good idea.

I don’t really know why we decided on the No Wings To Speak Of line-up. I guess it just felt natural because we were playing in Winston, with Codeseven. It was almost like hopping in a time machine and going back to relive those early Hopesfall days for just one last time.

Relearning the songs from Frailty was a little strange for me, personally. Those songs are a reflection of where I was at as a young 16 year old drummer. I like to think that I’ve come a long way in the last 17 years. So, to get in a room and practice playing those songs that were written during the early years felt like such a digression. It was like I was practicing sucking. But overall, it brought back some great memories, and most importantly, it was a such a great opportunity to hang out and play music with some of my best friends.  During the course of the band, and line-up changes, some of the guys never had the opportunity of knowing that they were playing their last show with the band. I think the chance to play those 2 reunion shows was a perfect way to bring closure to that era of the band.

E: Quickly, I have to ask. In percentage form, what are the chances of another reunion show in the next couple years? I mean you already did the hard work of learning those songs…

A: Haha! Well…since I can only speak for myself; I’d be willing to do it again if the conditions were right. So I guess since there are 5 of us, that would make it a 20% chance of another reunion show. Haha!

E: Being a dad must be a fairly full time deal, but are you working on anything music related in your free time? When the reunion shows were announced you mentioned a new project with Josh Brigham, is that a project that is still in development?

A: Yep.

E: Finally, I don’t think I could complete this interview without mentioning your ridiculous vinyl collection. Have you always been a vinyl aficionado? You frequently showcase albums on your purgeb4ubinge Instagram account, what about vinyl encouraged you to take such an active role in collecting and discussing the median?

A: It’s definitely something I’ve really gotten into in the last few years. There are a lot of aspects to vinyl records that make collecting them very rewarding. It brings back a lot of that excitement that use to go along with buying music before MP3s became popular. Just think about all those experiences that are lost now when you click a “download” button on your computer. For me, the artwork for an album is just as important as the music itself. It’s always gone hand-in-hand. Having that first visual impression of the album in the record store, tearing the shrink wrap off the album, being able to hold a large format album cover, feeling the paper, the ink, pulling the insert out, looking over it, handling the record, putting it down on your turntable, and dropping the needle onto the record. To me there is something special about that ritual. Something that is totally lost now. On top of all that, I believe vinyl produces a warmer and overall more organic sound. The only thing vinyl lacks is convenience, which is why I still love my iPod and can acknowledge the importance of mp3 and other digital files.

E: It’s been great talking to you about your experiences as a founding member of Hopesfall. You’ve brought up and discussed many of the hard choices that today’s touring musicians are currently going though. Do you have any last words of advice for aspiring artist who are trying to make sense of the modern musical landscape?

A: I’m not sure I’m in any position to be giving advice, but since you asked: Write the songs and play the music that you want to hear. Use all the tools you have (social media, music streaming sites) to get your music out to the public. Play out as often as you can. Interact with your fan base in a positive way. Be creative. Work harder on your songs than you do your image. Have a music lawyer thoroughly explain any label contract. Never sign away your publishing. Never buy into your hype. Most importantly, have fun and cherish the time you have creating music with your friends.

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How To Kill Your Band #9 – A Conversation With Hopesfall’s Adam Morgan

Hello and welcome to the ninth installment of Eric Morgan’s How To Kill Your Band. This column offers advice to up and coming artists from the perspective of a professional musician who has thrived with and without label support over the last decade. If you have any questions regarding the content of this blog, or if you would like to learn more information about the services offered by Haulix, please email james@haulix.com and share your thoughts. We can also be found on Twitter and Facebook.

An Introduction:

I’ve been in the music industry as an artist for nearly 10 years now. In that decade I’ve achieved nearly all of my childhood music dreams, but I’ve also made just as many mistakes that run over my mind before I fall asleep each night. A wonderment of how a few different decisions, rerunning in hindsight, would work out in some alternate universe. This ever creeping determinism is a fallacy I’m quite aware of but one that I will never completely shake, though it’s these experiences I’ve learned the most valuable lessons. These are the things I’d like to share in a series of mini-blogs I call How To Kill Your Band.

Part 8 – A Conversation With Hopesfall’s Adam Morgan (Part 1)

This week on the HTKYB, I will be sharing part 1 of my interview with Hopesfall founding drummer Adam Morgan. Hopesfall was founded in 1998 and quickly developed from a regional favorite to a national force that blurred the lines between metal and hardcore with unconventional song structures and spacey melodic soundscapes. The group dealt with the entire spectrum of band troubles ranging from a multitude of member changes to publicized confrontations with their label all while their music continued to grow and become a pillar of the hardcore scene. Adam was kind enough to take part a series of back and forth emails over the past weeks where we discussed his experiences in the band and shed light on the lessons he had learned during his time in the industry.

E: For those who may not be familiar with you, let’s start by stating your name and position:

A: My name is Adam Morgan, and I played drums for Hopesfall from 1998-2003.

E: Hopesfall formed in 1998 and found success as one of the cornerstones of a budding hardcore scene. Can you tell me a bit about how the band came to be and what the local music scene was like as you were first getting involved?

A: Hopesfall started out as just a bunch of friends playing music together. We were always a tight-knit group of friends, in which music played a huge part in our lives. We were all at that point in our lives where we were discovering and sharing our newest musical findings. The further we got from the radio, the more we were learning about the underground punk, emo, and hardcore scene, and it was an exciting time. We were all so hungry for new, cool music. Eventually, we just kind of decided to make our own music.

At the time, I thought the local scene was great. There seemed to always be a good show going on at Tremont Music Hall [Charlotte, NC], and especially in Winston Salem and Chapel Hill.

Bands like Prayer For Cleansing, Undying, Learning, Aria, and Codeseven were amongst our good friends, and we were constantly playing incredible shows together.

E: That same year you recorded your debut album, The Frailty of Words.  Can you tell me about the writing and recording process for that album? Was it your first time in the recording studio?

A: Well I was still in high school at the time, while everyone else was either in college or working.

As far as writing the album goes, I don’t think we ever had that in mind. We would all just get together every single chance we had. I think I can speak for everyone when I say, there was nothing more we’d rather be doing. We just wanted to play, write, and create music together.

Eventually, we had just written enough songs to make a record.

The studio where we recorded our first album was just a small building, behind someone’s house, in Columbia, SC. If I recall correctly, we would leave our gear down there and drive down on the weekends until it was finished. For the most part, it was our first time in a studio. We were young and severely limited with what we had to work with. I don’t think we realized that at the time, but looking back now, it was somewhat of a guerrilla approach at recording an album. Nonetheless, we were having the time of our lives.

E: That debut album was released in 1999, was it a situation where you guys started touring as soon as you graduated? Did the others have to chose to leave college to tour full time? What was the decision like for you between choosing to do music full time vs applying for college or starting a non-musical career?

A: We didn’t really start touring full time until later down the road. In 1999, up to around 2002, we were mainly playing weekends around Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, and the Carolinas. During “summer break” we’d play longer stints and get further away from home. Mostly east coast and a little Midwest stuff. No one really had to compromise their schooling, or career at that time, but eventually, as we started entertaining the idea of taking on more shows and signing with a new label, we did end up losing our singer, due to choosing to pursue his non-musical career path.

For me, personally, I never really had college on mind. Even before I was involved with a band – which I regret.

I started working, right out of high school, which was when our first album came out. I ended up having to quit that job shortly after, due to tour scheduling conflicts, and ended up getting a new job that allowed me to take off whenever I needed to, for however long I needed to. After that, I never had to choose work or tour. I was lucky enough to have job security while hitting the road.

E: Musicians, even within the same band, seem to have drastically different personal feelings towards tour. What was being on the road like for you initially? How did it compare to your expectations?

A: Initially, I thought it was great. It was an incredible feeling of freedom, adventure, and sense of “living the dream”. I would often think about all my other friends and co-workers back at home, while riding around in the van, heading to a new city, and think to myself “This is incredible. Everyone back at home is heading to work right now, or making the same drive down I-77, toward school, and I am lucky enough to be on the road, playing music, meeting new people, seeing new skylines, all while hanging out with my best friends.”

It wasn’t by any means a feeling of superiority, just more so a feeling of gratefulness, and pride.

I’d say the only thing you really can’t prepare for though is learning how to live with four other guys in very close quarters. No matter how long you’ve been in a band, or have been friends with the people in your band, up until the point you all pile in the van together, you are use to doing things your way, on your schedule.

All of that changes immediately once you enter that van. That can be difficult to adjust to. So the more flexible you can be, the more easy going you can be, and the faster you can come to terms with not being in control, then touring will get easier.

E: I would have to agree that living in a van with even the best friends can redefine your relationship and really opens you up to vulnerabilities that are hard to hide in a 10’ by 5’ metal box. It’s hard to give up absolute control over your daily decisions, but like you said, the ability to be flexible makes things a whole lot easier for all parties.

It sounds like you were playing a lot of weekend and DIY type tours up until your EP No Wings to Speak Of was released in 2001. Takehold Records initially put that record out, what was the process like working with that label? How did they approach the band?

A: Prior to meeting Chad Johnson, (Takehold Records owner) we had played with a lot of the bands that were on his label. Bands like Underoath, Tantrum Of A Muse, Few Left Standing, Two Thirty-Eight, etc. So after our first album had been out for awhile, we had already met him a few times. Eventually, we were sitting on four new songs and Chad offered to send us to the studio and put out the EP for us. I don’t even remember signing anything. He was always such a great dude and the timing just kind of worked out. Other than just being friends with him, we never really had to deal with any “business” with him. We were never under any contract with him.

E: In 2002, Trustkill Records re-released the EP. Was that partly a consequence of Takehold being absorbed into Tooth & Nail Records? It looks like this lines up to when you said you guys started touring full time, was getting the Trustkill deal the catalyst that turned this into a full time band?

A: I’m not sure if that really had anything to do with Trustkill re-releasing the EP. That was all pretty much between Trustkill and Takehold. I guess it was just in Trustkill’s best interest to purchase the rights to that record.

Signing with Trustkill was definitely a time in the band’s career where we decided to start touring full time. Being on a label with Poison The Well and Eighteen Visions, and seeing how much they toured was sort of an eye-opening thing. It just clicked at that point. “This is what you need to do to market yourselves and get your name out there.” So that’s what we decided to do.

E: Around this time, things for Hopesfall started to spark and get national attention. At what point did you realize you were doing something incredibly special?

A: I think it really started to click when we went out to the west coast for the first time. At the time, a lot of our shows were sold out, and the kids were singing along to all our songs, and going crazy. Keep in mind, this was all before Facebook and Youtube. It was much harder to get a gauge on your fan base, other than weekly SoundScan reports.

E: That’s a great point, it’s probably impossible for today’s bands to think about developing at a time when there wasn’t Facebook, YouTube, or even MySpace – now these services let artist know instantly how far their music has spread and even how many people will be at a show weeks ahead of time. I imagine that it would of been a bit liberating to play music without having to worry about posting statuses everyday, maintaining twitter accounts, etc.

Would you have preferred to have this tools available when Hopesfall was born? Do you think it would of helped or hurt the band’s development? In your eyes, has this state of constant connectivity been positive or negative for the music scene in general?

A: Honestly, I could go both ways. I think if we had all the social networking tools that bands have now, it could have definitely helped us. Being able to broadcast new songs, tour schedules, links to ticket vendors, merch sites etc, would have helped tremendously.

Even now, if it wasn’t for Facebook, I might have easily missed out on an opportunity to catch my favorite band while they were in town. Even music streaming sites like bandcamp and SoundCloud have been great resources for helping me discover new bands.

The days of taking a blind chance at buying a band’s album, because you saw their name in your favorite band’s “thank you” list, in their CD liner notes, are over. I think the only problem I have with social networking within the music industry is that it makes it too easy to sell a bullshit image, and diverts the attention from the most important thing; the actual music.

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