Alt-Nation Interview: For the Love of Sloane

For the several years around this time, the staff at the Alt-Nation desk has put together a “Hot Women of Local Rock” piece that has profiled talented female musicians. Last year there was a bit of a stink over the cover and the whole concept came under fire. The last thing I would want is to offend anyone, especially people so passionate in their objections to the 6^th annual edition of the column. So to keep the peace, one can think of this as the “Hot People of Rock” if they really want to. I’ll be revealing one person a week in the new online edition of the Motif every Tuesday at www.motifmagri.com. That way it is always possible that both sexes could be represented. So anyone offended will have to hold their anger in for a month or otherwise give me the opportunity to include someone who would destroy their argument.

Now we’re ready to meet our first musician (drum roll please). She’s the lead singer of a local alt-rock band that was the 2009 WXIN Rock Hunt Champions as well as a finalist in 2009 WBRU Rock Hunt. This band has played everywhere from neighborhood bars to the big stage of Lilith Fair. They have recently finished their full length debut CD, Curses, Spells, & Charms, which is tentatively set to come out around the beginning of April. From the band For the Love of Sloane, Elese Morrone come on down!

Elese Morrone – For the Love of Sloane – vox

MC: Who would you say are some of your biggest musical influences?

EM: The first big musical influence is Blink-182. They were the first band that broke me from my typical teenage girl music – for this I am eternally grateful. The second biggest influence is Say Anything. I am absolutely in awe of the singer, Max Bemis, and his lyric writing as well as live performances. He makes writing sound so easy and he captures moments lyrically I would never imagine to. [I am] also a fan of Motion City Soundtrack and I still rock to old school No Doubt.

MC: You’ve recently finished your debut full length, Curses, Spells, & Charms, which I’ve heard. It does a remarkable job at capturing the energy and intensity of For the Love of Sloane’s live shows. How would you describe the process of making the album?

EM: The process has been a pain the butt. Our first studio has since shut down (Whitenoise Records).  We were told by another studio that they didn’t really dig our sound (yes, really). We replaced our second bassist with our third so some tracks still have Nick and others now have Michelle. Our producer, Mike Poorman, closed Strangeways Recording and moved to Vermont in the middle of recording so there was a lot of back and forth over email and it was all around more difficult because there was little in-studio time. In studio is where you really get to hash things out and we all had to do it separately, combine forces, and call upon Captain Planet just to agree and get on the same page. One thing after another just kept throwing us off trying to get everything recorded.

MC: Has anything surprised you with the music or in general?

EM: This April FTLOS will have been together six years. I don’t mean to say that is surprising, but for a local band I’d say we’ve given this whole thing a good run. While not every song can be a hit, I’d like to think that quality over quantity, in our case, really shines through on our upcoming CD. We rerecorded some stuff off our first EP and you can really hear how we have changed and grown and found our sound.

MC: What’s your favorite show you played and also your favorite show attended?

EM: Favorite show we played had to be Lilith Fair because it was the closest we have been to living the dream along with it being an honor to meet so many of the great artists who we got to open for. Favorite show I have attended? Say Anything a few years back in Connecticut – I was up front and Max sang some lyrics at me and the blockade fence fell and I almost got trampled to death. I would have died happy.

MC: What does For the Love of Sloane have planned for 2013?

EM: 2013 is our year to get back into the scene. We are looking forward to playing new venues and reconnecting with other local bands – old and new. We will be having a CD release show, which we expect to be huge. We’d like to do a mini tour and maybe get on the bill for some bigger festivals. We’re going to keep writing and recording new stuff, but we’re still focused on pushing the CD as a whole – we’re hoping for recognition, like any original band, but we are also celebrating getting this far and all we have accomplished.

Odds & Sods 2.0:

This next week is a huge week as far as local shows. Here are some quick picks that are bound to score big.

Koffin Kats, Tony Jones & The Cretin 3, The Fortune Healers, and The Evil Streaks @ Firehouse 13 on  February 27^th

I see at least parts of roughly 250 to 300 shows and it is rare that I’m excited or going to make the effort to see the early bands. That said, get there early! The Evil Streaks and The Fortune Healers are both worth it for fans of 60s garage, punk, surf, horror rock, psychobilly.

Vintage Trouble @ Fete on February 28^th

Fresh off from opening for The Who at the Dunk Tuesday night, Vintage Trouble have decided to stick around for a couple of days to play Fete. People RAVE to me about this band live. They kind of remind me of something like a Bruno Mars in terms of mixing rock and soul.

Fishbone, Alan Evans Trio, and Boo City @ Fete on March 1^st

Fishbone are straight up legends as far as mixing funk, punk, and rock into a formidable dance epidemic.  Boo City is worth getting there early for straight up Stax Records groves. 

Parquet Courts, Party Pigs, and Gavage at AS220 on March 2^nd

Parquet Courts are starting to blow up, earning comparisons to legendary bands like The Fall, Wire, Pavement, and The Minute Man. Check out their new album Light Up Gold and do NOT miss them at AS220!

Rebirth Brass Band @ The Spot Underground on March 2^nd

New Orleans’ Own: Rebirth Brass Band returns to The Spot Underground for what promises to be a great night of music and dancing. Those who have seen the HBO show Treme may be familiar with the Rebirth Brass Band who have been featured on the show.

Tenacious D @ Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel on March 3^rd

Tenacious D may not make the best movies in the world, but their television show was absurdly entertaining. This show will fuse comedy and rock ‘n’ roll like only The D can.

 Email music news to mclarkin33@gmail.com