March 15, 2009
By BD Marie Hughes
Charlie Royal – Lead Vocals
Cole Kidd – Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar
Darrell Wallace – Lead Guitar
Kevin Walsh – Drums/Backing Vocals
Dan Bradimore – Bass/Keys/Backing Vocals
I have been closely following the Canadian punk/hip hop/rock band Hello Beautiful for about 3 years now. The accomplishments of this band are nothing short of astounding. When I first logged onto their myspace, it had maybe just shy of 50,000 profile views. Today, it’s reaching in excess of a quarter of a million.
Earlier this week, I sat down with Hello Beautiful at their jam space in Whitby, ON. We were catching time between a fast-tracked weekend east coast double bill and another west coast blockbuster. This is the band’s second across-Canada tour in less than 6 months. Clearly, they are in demand by their growing number of fans. And clearly, they know how to hustle.
BD: Gentlemen! I can’t believe I actually got you pinned down for some face time to do this interview! You guys have been smokin’ busy since I last interviewed you! Let’s get right to it! (laughing) How were your shows this weekend on the east coast?
HB Charlie: Playing Saxby’s in Riverview, New Brunswick is always fun! We get good treatment from the people out there. It’s always really lively and it’s good to be on the east coast. The Pavillion in Halifax is somewhat of a haven for all of our younger fans. It’s good that there is a venue like that in the community. Those guys are doing something real and big for the kids out there.
BD: What has touring across Canada taught you? What was it like? Any differences or similarities in reception by your fans of your music and your live performances?
HB Charlie: Touring across Canada was a lot of hard work. It stressed us out but it also helped us to bond. There were some cool moments and some others we could do without. (smiles) There were some mega-long drives but some magical cookies actually helped to make the trip easier and more tolerable. The fans across the country are amazing, too – can’t wait to do it again! That's the thing. Maybe we're just too young but we LIKE to tour and play every night.
BD: Please describe your sound for us. (smiles) It’s a little something for everyone, isn’t it? (laughing)
HB Charlie: Yes! The sound definitely has a little bit for everyone to relate to and, hopefully, enjoy. There's an element of rock, punk and hip hop... but we do not confine ourselves. If it “sounds good”, regardless of genre, it rides. (laughs)
BD: And your writing methodology?
HB Charlie: I've, personally, been exploring a new writing technique where I live with the music for a good while, always taking notes, then, at the last possible moment, I write from those ideas. It’s worked for some new material and I've noticed it’s more thorough.
BD: What can you tell us about your song, “St. Andrew’s Bridge”? The lyrics are compelling.
HB Cole: St. Andrew’s Bridge is a bridge in, if I remember correctly, New Jersey that is used by people to commit suicide. We related this song to a friend of ours who experienced abuse. A lot of people have been through, or know someone who has been through, abuse. We decided to try and open the subject to debate and discussion through song – things tend to start to change when they are exposed, brought to the surface and discussed – even if ever so slightly. Any kind of positive progress is good.
BD: You’ve got some new songs on the front burner – “Broken Knees” and “Raising Change”. What can you tell us about them? What other projects are on the go?
HB Charlie: We're in the midst of writing a new album so we have quite a few tracks on the go right now. Those 2 songs were written last summer and may be on it. We're not sure yet. When writing for “Raising Change”, I thought about the courage it takes to fight a life-threatening ailment. After all, if you really want the stars, then why complain about short arms? Just find something to step up on. “Broken Knees” is about progressing through over-whelming obstacles. At the time, I heard about the unfair treatment in the Jena 6 situation and I was inspired to speak about it. The rest basically revolves around the climate of that situation.
BD: Hello Beautiful is enjoying a lot of college and university radio play – how much of that is feeding into building your reputation and growing momentum? Tell us about your 2 videos now on rotation on MTV.
HB Charlie: Having college and university airplay is very helpful. We are a lively, uptempo band, with upbeat grooves made for moving! (laughs) College and uni kids all love to dance and party so it’s a good platform for us to express ourselves. We have been fortunate enough to have had the amount of airplay we have received, especially from the start, with stations like The Edge playing us on feature shows, and so on. It feels good to have that support system and we've found the Canadian music community to be good for that. We have been blessed by having our first video “Virginia Symphony” reach number 2 on the Daily Much Music Top 10. “Saint Andrew's Bridge” made it to number 5. We have just released another single from Soundtrack for Scenario cd “Say Hey!” and another vid may be in the works. I'll leave that one for the mystery books. (smiling)
BD: Recently you had a change in your line-up, with your lead guitarist, Buddy Taylor, leaving Hello Beautiful and Darrell Wallace joining you. I understand Darrell was guitarist in the now-defunct indie rock band Spies (formerly What the Funk). What can you share with us about this and how do you feel it will affect your music’s evolution?
HB Charlie: Yeah, Buddy had to attend to personal issues and his leave of absence allowed Darrell to enter the fold. It's been a smooth transition due to the fact that 1) he's a crazy guitarist who simply refuses to dream of missing a note, and 2) he's also a cool guy who we were familiar with before the opportunity to work with him came about. His talent and hard work ethic have allowed us to write some different stuff – at times in a different direction. So it's making a lot of sense. We're just working hard and enjoying whatever happens next.
BD: Where do you see Hello Beautiful heading? What’s next?
HB Charlie: Right now we're working on the next record. Probably going out across Canada one more time before hitting the studio. Overall though, the answer from the last time is still the same. With enough hard work, effort, perseverance and swagger, we'll go to the top of an era and that's what we plan to do!
www.myspace.com/HelloBeautifulSpace
By BD Marie Hughes
Charlie Royal – Lead Vocals
Cole Kidd – Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar
Darrell Wallace – Lead Guitar
Kevin Walsh – Drums/Backing Vocals
Dan Bradimore – Bass/Keys/Backing Vocals
I have been closely following the Canadian punk/hip hop/rock band Hello Beautiful for about 3 years now. The accomplishments of this band are nothing short of astounding. When I first logged onto their myspace, it had maybe just shy of 50,000 profile views. Today, it’s reaching in excess of a quarter of a million.
Earlier this week, I sat down with Hello Beautiful at their jam space in Whitby, ON. We were catching time between a fast-tracked weekend east coast double bill and another west coast blockbuster. This is the band’s second across-Canada tour in less than 6 months. Clearly, they are in demand by their growing number of fans. And clearly, they know how to hustle.
BD: Gentlemen! I can’t believe I actually got you pinned down for some face time to do this interview! You guys have been smokin’ busy since I last interviewed you! Let’s get right to it! (laughing) How were your shows this weekend on the east coast?
HB Charlie: Playing Saxby’s in Riverview, New Brunswick is always fun! We get good treatment from the people out there. It’s always really lively and it’s good to be on the east coast. The Pavillion in Halifax is somewhat of a haven for all of our younger fans. It’s good that there is a venue like that in the community. Those guys are doing something real and big for the kids out there.
BD: What has touring across Canada taught you? What was it like? Any differences or similarities in reception by your fans of your music and your live performances?
HB Charlie: Touring across Canada was a lot of hard work. It stressed us out but it also helped us to bond. There were some cool moments and some others we could do without. (smiles) There were some mega-long drives but some magical cookies actually helped to make the trip easier and more tolerable. The fans across the country are amazing, too – can’t wait to do it again! That's the thing. Maybe we're just too young but we LIKE to tour and play every night.
BD: Please describe your sound for us. (smiles) It’s a little something for everyone, isn’t it? (laughing)
HB Charlie: Yes! The sound definitely has a little bit for everyone to relate to and, hopefully, enjoy. There's an element of rock, punk and hip hop... but we do not confine ourselves. If it “sounds good”, regardless of genre, it rides. (laughs)
BD: And your writing methodology?
HB Charlie: I've, personally, been exploring a new writing technique where I live with the music for a good while, always taking notes, then, at the last possible moment, I write from those ideas. It’s worked for some new material and I've noticed it’s more thorough.
BD: What can you tell us about your song, “St. Andrew’s Bridge”? The lyrics are compelling.
HB Cole: St. Andrew’s Bridge is a bridge in, if I remember correctly, New Jersey that is used by people to commit suicide. We related this song to a friend of ours who experienced abuse. A lot of people have been through, or know someone who has been through, abuse. We decided to try and open the subject to debate and discussion through song – things tend to start to change when they are exposed, brought to the surface and discussed – even if ever so slightly. Any kind of positive progress is good.
BD: You’ve got some new songs on the front burner – “Broken Knees” and “Raising Change”. What can you tell us about them? What other projects are on the go?
HB Charlie: We're in the midst of writing a new album so we have quite a few tracks on the go right now. Those 2 songs were written last summer and may be on it. We're not sure yet. When writing for “Raising Change”, I thought about the courage it takes to fight a life-threatening ailment. After all, if you really want the stars, then why complain about short arms? Just find something to step up on. “Broken Knees” is about progressing through over-whelming obstacles. At the time, I heard about the unfair treatment in the Jena 6 situation and I was inspired to speak about it. The rest basically revolves around the climate of that situation.
BD: Hello Beautiful is enjoying a lot of college and university radio play – how much of that is feeding into building your reputation and growing momentum? Tell us about your 2 videos now on rotation on MTV.
HB Charlie: Having college and university airplay is very helpful. We are a lively, uptempo band, with upbeat grooves made for moving! (laughs) College and uni kids all love to dance and party so it’s a good platform for us to express ourselves. We have been fortunate enough to have had the amount of airplay we have received, especially from the start, with stations like The Edge playing us on feature shows, and so on. It feels good to have that support system and we've found the Canadian music community to be good for that. We have been blessed by having our first video “Virginia Symphony” reach number 2 on the Daily Much Music Top 10. “Saint Andrew's Bridge” made it to number 5. We have just released another single from Soundtrack for Scenario cd “Say Hey!” and another vid may be in the works. I'll leave that one for the mystery books. (smiling)
BD: Recently you had a change in your line-up, with your lead guitarist, Buddy Taylor, leaving Hello Beautiful and Darrell Wallace joining you. I understand Darrell was guitarist in the now-defunct indie rock band Spies (formerly What the Funk). What can you share with us about this and how do you feel it will affect your music’s evolution?
HB Charlie: Yeah, Buddy had to attend to personal issues and his leave of absence allowed Darrell to enter the fold. It's been a smooth transition due to the fact that 1) he's a crazy guitarist who simply refuses to dream of missing a note, and 2) he's also a cool guy who we were familiar with before the opportunity to work with him came about. His talent and hard work ethic have allowed us to write some different stuff – at times in a different direction. So it's making a lot of sense. We're just working hard and enjoying whatever happens next.
BD: Where do you see Hello Beautiful heading? What’s next?
HB Charlie: Right now we're working on the next record. Probably going out across Canada one more time before hitting the studio. Overall though, the answer from the last time is still the same. With enough hard work, effort, perseverance and swagger, we'll go to the top of an era and that's what we plan to do!
www.myspace.com/HelloBeautifulSpace
