PA hardcore scene has been breeding ground for many great bands and Troublesome is no exception. They have just released their debut Ep called This Hell and it's packed with some real dope and groovy tracks. They keep things heavy, but aren't afraid to play with their sound. It's one of the bands that definitely needs some more recognition so take few minutes and read what they had to say!
PA hardcore scene has been breeding ground for many great bands and Troublesome is no exception. They have just released their debut Ep called This Hell and it's packed with some real dope and groovy tracks. They keep things heavy, but aren't afraid to play with their sound. It's one of the bands that definitely needs some more recognition so take few minutes and read what they got to say!
Hey guys! Could you introduce your band for those unfamiliar?
Kevin: Sure. Troublesome is a hardcore band hailing from the suburbs of Philadelphia, PA. We have all been or are in other bands. John currently plays in Daylight and CDC while Kyle and myself left CDC about 3 years ago. Adam used to be in a band called Straight Up!, and Cody is in Barricade.
Tell us a little bit about This Hell. What bands, books, movies or ideas were a main source of inspiration for this album, both musically and lyrically?
Kevin: Personally, while writing the music for our EP, I was listening to a lot of Buried Alive, Trapped Under Ice, Alpha & Omega, and Terror. Movie wise, I watch True Romance at least once a week. It's my favorite movie of all time. One of our songs entitled "Manovan" I actually wrote for CDC. We even recorded it without any vocals in 2005. It just never fit the mold of what we were going for then. Once we started Troublesome John, Kyle and myself decided to dust it off and revamp it. The end is completely different from the original song. I like it better now. Plus I think Adam made the song one of my favorites lyrically.
Adam: I wouldn't really say a lot of movies, books, or bands inspired me much during "this hell" I watch a lot of cheesy comedy's and love 90's R&B. I actually wasn't going to write anything, or even go through with being in the band still until last minute. I got the tracks and had some shit to get off my chest. So I went with it and now I'm glad I did.
Is there a concept behind the artwork? Has it any connection with the lyrics?
Kevin: Cody really came through with the art. Looks so cool and professional. I almost felt it was "too" professional looking at first, but it did such a great job of reflecting the mood of Adam's lyrics.
Cody: A lot of Adam's lyrics are very dark and depressing, which I love and wanted to express for "This Hell." The image of a person walking down what seems to be a cold dark road really fit exactly what I felt Adam was going through. Props to Kurt Fowles from Years Spent Cold for the logo; he designed it for a flyer advertising the release of the demo and I totally ripped it. The artwork for the Pre-order cover was for Kevin and his love for The Warriors, and the Record Release cover was for Adam since he thinks he's as hard as Tupac. Haha.
Adam: I love Tupac...
What was the hardest part in terms of actually creating This Hell?
Kevin: Honestly, me, John and Kyle have been playing together for so long that it all came pretty naturally. I would bring the majority of a song to practice, Kyle would add his parts and ideas, then John would bring it all together. Adam would even give his own input. Dude has a crazy good ear for what works.
Adam: Recording. I get side tracked and forget words. My voice wasn't very strong. It had been a while since I recorded last and I blew it out a couple times.
Kevin: We self released our EP "This Hell" as a demo entitled "The Lonely Street of Dreams." Literally like a week after it hit the internet Timo from Street Survival asked if he could release it on vinyl in Europe. We got like 100 copies to distribute in the US. It was a small release. Worked out nice. We have been friends with Sammy from OTA Records for years since our CDC days. He used to book us in NYC all the time. When we released our last record I initially reached out to him to put it out in the US but the label had kind of slowed down a bit at that point. After our record came out, Sammy had started to reboot OTA and asked if we wanted him to put out our next EP. It all fell into place. We still design our own merch, pay for our own recording, and drive our cars to the shows we play. We are DIY all the way, which is why we said yes to Sammy. He runs a small DIY label.
How important was for you to have it out in vinyl format? Are you vinyl collectors yourself?
Kevin: I know that John and I both collect vinyl. But to be honest, I think I am the worst in the band. I have hundreds of records. This is the first release I have ever had for any of my bands actually come out on vinyl so needless to say I was super stoked.
John: Records are cool. I have some.
Adam: Kids dig the vinyl. I don't have any actually. But it's cool with me.
How is PA hardcore scene at the moment?
John: PAHC is the top tier. We got bomb ass greats as well as current awesome bands. Shows are poppin and support can be great across the state. Hard mosh all over. From Erie, to Pittsburgh, to Philly and its surrounding suburbs, shit be off the hook.
Adam: The whole state has nothing but the best to offer. Shows, bands, & kids.
Kevin: The PAHC scene is finally starting to bounce back after a couple years of dormancy. Granted, Philly has always had bigger shows, but our scene was missing the suburban aspect that we used to have. Our singer Adam, has with a little help from some friends revitalize our scene with Stay On Point Booking (http://www.myspace.com/stayonpointbooking, http://www.pahardcore.com/stayonpointbooking). We have a full time venue at our disposal, security and a steady flow of bands looking to play some fun shows. It's amazing.
Which other bands from over there (PA) are you listening to at the moment?
Kevin: There are a couple bands from Pa that I cannot stop listening to right now. Bands like Agitator, Rock Bottom, Daylight, What It Takes, Balance & Composure, Title Fight, Hard To Kill, & Steel Nation are really starting to make a name for themselves. Wisdom In Chains is of course a PAHC staple.
Adam: Balance And Composure (my favorite in the area right now), Run For It (good new pop punk), Twin Killing (so under rated), the new Strength For A Reason album was mighty. Mother Of Mercy is doing big things which is cool. Agitator and Rock Bottom are something to definetly look out for. Hard To Kill, Rivers Of Nihil, Dead End Path, Concrete Reality. My Turn To Win are soo good (they're only half PA but it counts).
John: Mother of Mercy, Unit 731, Steel Nation, Taste the Steel, Title Fight, Rock Bottom, Agitator, Derek Skis Redbull song, Balance and Composure, Tigers Jaw, Dead End Path, Vow of Hatred, Trainwrecker, Bad Seed, Manbreed, etc.
Cody: Twin Killing, Look on the Bright Side, River's of Nihil, and John's other band Daylight have been on repeat for me. Also, congrats to Mother of Mercy on their recently signing to Bridge Nine; one of my favorites for a while now.
John: Drunk sloppy guitar and high pitched/pre-pubescent yelping. Maybe a cover that we don't know how to play.
Kevin: Hahahaha! I would say fun. That's why we started this band. To play music with our best friends, have fun, and play some shows.
Adam: Not always drunk playing. It's a good time.
Do you still have the time to go to shows other than the ones you play?
Kevin: I go to as many as I can personally. I got married this year so it's a little harder to get out hahaha. I know John, Adam and Cody frequent shows a lot more than Kyle and I.
John: All the time.
Adam: All the time.
So what should we expect from Troublesome in the future?
Kevin: Well, in May we head into Skylight Studios to record with Vince Ratti (The Wonder Years, Rock Bottom, Shattered Realm, Circa Survive, A Life Once Lost). The EP has no name yet, I can tell you that it is 4 brand new songs and on the cd version our "This Hell" EP will be thrown onto the end.
Adam: Live nude set.
John: KTHC
Any last things you'd like to say?
John: France sucks, sorry French.
Adam: Top 5 worst things in the world. In order.
5. Gnats
4. Sneezing
3. Raisins
2. The band 311
1. Cotton
Kevin: Everyone should try to come to PA for the East Coast Tsunami Festival this year. It features Sick of It All, H20, Earth Crisis, Mushmouth (Reunion), Dysphoria (Reunion), Fury of Five (Jam), Death Threat, Troublesome, and many many more! Go here for more info --> http://www.pahardcore.com/eastcoasttsunamifest/
Cody: Keep checking out http://www.myspace.com/troublesomepa for updates with merch, new songs, and shows.
