When reading that the band These Hearts were from Fargo, North Dakota, I sat there and tried to figure out what sort of scene, if any there was in Fargo. With the obvious reference to the Coen Brothers movie of the same name aside, I never really thought there was any sort of scene going on there. But for bands like the quartet These Hearts, they have parlayed that small but growing scene into something major.
Releasing selling 3,000 copies of their self-released EP “Mistakes and Second Takes”, the band caught the eye of Victory Records, who signed the band and gave them the first shot at major success. The band released their debut, “Forever Ended Yesterday” back in October and if you have a listen, you get a good taste of power hooks and heavy riffs along the lines of the getting massive A Day To Remember.
But as any band starts out, plenty of touring and paying your dues takes place. And the guys in These Hearts don’t take that for granted. When I spoke with guitarist Daryl Van Beek before a show in Georgia, he discussed how the fans help make the shows and life on the road better for them. In the interview, we also discussed where they see their biggest followings and traveling to shows from Fargo when he was younger.
Here’s my interview with Daryl:
AM: What do you see as the musical goal of the material on “Forever Ended Yesterday”?
DVB: I don’t see this album having one underlining theme, it’s more of just a blend and collection of songs based on different experiences we’ve had. The main message is to spread the love to the fans. As a Christian band, we want to spread a positive message to our fans through our lyrics and songs.
AM: How long did the material take to write and record from start to finish?
DVB: The whole process took about a year to finish from the initial writing to recording. The 11 songs that we wrote for the album are the ones that ended up making the record, so we just wanted to tweak up and improve those songs that we had worked on and I think they came out great.
AM: With the band growing up near Fargo, how did the scene help nuture the band?
DVB: We all grew up in the general area around Fargo, most of us grew up in very small towns outside. Everyone had to travel to check out big shows. I grew up originally in South Dakota and it wasn’t unusual to drive anywhere from three to five hours for shows, having to go to Minneapolis and Sioux Falls for shows. But once we all got together, we really just started playing any venue in Fargo that would play us until we got noticed.
AM: How did the band get Craig Owens involved to help produce the album?
DVB: It was kinda surprising, Craig heard us and sought us out. He had the people from 37 Studios (Owens’ studio) get a hold of us and it was great to have those guys work with us. There are a lot of new bands going through that studio and it can only help bands like us get exposure.
AM: With the band being on the road in increasing fashion, what do you see as the best parts and most challenging parts of touring these days?
DVB: I think the best part are the live shows and interacting with the fans every night. Whether it’s taking pictures with the fans, hanging out with them or whatever it may be- that is the time that we like the most. The biggest challenge is the fact that we’re still a new band and we’re in no place to be booking hotels. A lot of times, we’ll end up sleeping in a van and not trying to freeze to death some nights (laughs).
AM: The band is currently writing new material, how is that coming along?
DVB: We just started demoing some of the new songs. I think we’ll be going down a pretty similar path from the last album. I don’t think it will be as ADD as the last album though. I see it being more stable and consistent and having a bit more song structure as well.
These Hearts plays at the Active Room in Wyandotte on Friday, February 17th. Ticket prices and purchase info can be found at www.theactiveroom.com or www.facebook.com/theactiveroom. Additional tour dates and band info can be found at www.these-hearts.com.
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