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Hoobastank's origin can be traced back
to Agoura Hills, California in the early 90s when vocalist
Doug Robb and guitarist Dan Estrin found themselves
competing against one another in a high school battle
of the bands. Each impressed with the other, they began
collaborating and eventually quit their respective groups
to join forces. When their creative chemistry began
to bubble with the addition of bassist Markku Lappalainen
and drummer Chris Hesse, they took their show on the
road. Since they were headed in exactly the opposite
direction of a then burgeoning rap rock stampede, the
group stood out the moment it hit the West Coast club
circuit. It was a difference that fans caught on to
immediately.
"There's a sense of realness about us," says Robb. "We
don't put up any fronts. We're just four normal guys
who play music and I think that kids have always appreciated
us for it. We've had people come up to us after shows
and say that we look like we're having a good time when
we play and I don't think that comes across enough these
days. Fans want to see players who connect with their
music rather than some group that just wants to focus
on its image."
In 1998, Hoobastank went worldwide with their self-released
first album, They Sure Don't Make Basketball Shorts
Like They Used To. While the disc sold well at shows
and local retailers, it took off online, expanding the
band's fan base to places as far away as England, Israel,
Russia and Brazil. Within a matter of months, the band
had sold every copy.
Says Estrin, "It's an incredible feeling to know that
our music is finding its way to people around the world.
We couldn't believe it when one kid e-mailed us from
Brazil to let us know he had created a site dedicated
to the band after hearing our album for the first time.
That's just awesome."
With their self-titled Island debut, Hoobastank is preparing
to deliver on the promise of its earlier success. Listeners
tired of rock's same-sounding rap will rejoice upon
hearing the melodic resonance of Hoobastank an album
produced by Jim Wirt (Incubus, Fiona Apple) and mixed
by Jay Baumgardner (Papa Roach, Alien Ant Farm, Orgy).
The electrifying disc slices through the genre's stylistic
fetishes and goes straight for its emotional core, blending
invigorating melodies and sharp, insistent hooks with
blasting rhythm rock guitars.
There's much to like about Hoobastank, a surging rock
record of deftly written compositions. The album's stylistic
touchstones--sharp wordplay, soaring climaxes and a
raw, overriding energy--showcases the quartet's mercurial
talents and establishes them as a band with a sound
and vision all their own.
The disc kicks off with the thick groove of "Remember
Me," a song in which Robb recalls an encounter with
an old "friend." "I wrote this after running into the
most popular kid in high school several years after
we graduated," he begins. "As a teenager, I was really
quiet and shy and this guy was a football star and the
big man on campus. Back then, I really wanted to be
his friend and hang with his clique, but he'd dis me
all the time because 'I wasn't cool enough.' At the
time I ran into him, the band had already made a name
for itself around the L.A. area and a lot of people
knew who we were. He approached me in a supermarket
and said, 'Doug, I love your band! I heard you got signed--we
gotta hang!'
I thought it was pretty ironic how things had turned
around. I often run into people who wouldn't give me
the time of day way back when, but now want to be my
friend. The whole thing makes me pretty nauseous."
"Up and Gone" is about finding peace and hope in in
life. Says Robb, "This is about a friend of mine whose
father left when he was young, forcing him to grow up
a lot faster than he needed to. At 13, he was in a gang
and doing coke, while I was learning how to play guitar
and chasing frogs down at the creek. I was being a kid
while he had to work and help support his mom. The song
is told from the point of view of someone that wasn't
allowed to be a kid. Because he couldn't do any of the
things he wanted, he finds himself somehow trying to
regain his lost innocence."
"Crawling in the Dark" is a look at life choices and
the self-doubt that sometimes accompanies them. "This
was written during the band's early days," recalls Robb.
"Back then, there were often times when we were unsure
of what was going to happen to us. It took us six years
to get here, but every time we'd get down on ourselves
or begin to feel doubt, we'd get positive feedback from
our fans or someone in the industry telling us that
we sounded great. That was the sort of stuff that kept
us going--not to mention the fact that we love making
music."
"I'll never forget loading our equipment into the recording
studio on the first day and thinking, 'I can't believe
this is actually happening,'" adds drummer Chris Hesse.
"After all those years, it was such a great feeling
to know that we were finally getting a chance to make
a real record.
"There was this collective feeling of excitement and
anticipation on the first day of recording," says bassist
Markku Lappalainen. "We were in the studio for six days
a week, ten hours a day for two months and it was awesome.
At the end, after sitting back and listening to the
rough mixes, we all hugged because we were so happy
to have finally finished our first album. We had waited
so long for that day to finally come." And this is only
just the beginning for Hoobastank.
Doug Robb - Vocals
Dan Estrin - Guitar
Markku Lappalainen - Bass
Chris Hesse - Drums
Video Clips
Crawling
In the Dark [Windows Media 56K]
Crawling
In The Dark [Windows Media 128K]
Crawling
In The Dark [Windows Media 256K]
Interview
Clip
1 [56K]
Clip
2 [128K]
Relevant sites:
Hoobastank.com
Crud Magazine 2002©
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