Three piece alternative rock band Hardship stems from Cleethorpes, UK. Although they consist of only three members, the band definitely doesn't lack any sound with their raw solos, complemented by a driving bass and powerful ostinato's. We're definitely picking up some influence from bands such as Royal Blood, Queens of The Stone Age and Rival Sons when it comes to Hardship.
Lacking no sound whatsoever, the band pulls together a heavy and full sounding track titled, “Chains”. The guitar riffs are really raw and cutting edge while the bass is punchy and gritty adding to the intensity of the song. The delivery is amazing due to the arrangement of the repeating bass line which really balances everything while providing a full sounding band. This trio has a lot to offer and are ready to give their listeners a hitting and powerful sound. As the track progresses we see each part get a little spotlight of their own. The drums have a cool rhythm as well as the groovy bassline with the striking guitar solo. The vocals themselves are punchy and complement well with the instrumental counterparts, providing the basis and mood of the song. Hardship is sure to gain momentum and be heard by listeners all over the world.
Check out "Chains" on Spotify, and get to know the band through their interview below!
Care to tell us a bit about your band Hardship?
We are an alternative rock band called Hardship from North East Lincolnshire that formed early last year. We are a big sounding 3 piece band that have raw solos, groovy breakdowns and powerful riffs. We have built the band on influences from bands such as Queens of the Stone Age, Royal Blood, Rival Sons and Highly Suspect.
How was the band founded?
Myself (the bassist David) and the drummer (Adam) have been good friends for around 10 years now, we both love music and have been in projects together, played gigs and had a mutual interest in the same kind of music. The latest project, which is now the band Hardship, was created when we invited Tom (guitarist and lead vocals) into the fold for a couple of jams. As soon as we started playing together we felt all three of us had exactly the direction for the band, and the rest is history!
Who chose your band name? Is there a special meaning behind it?
Naming a band is always a huge thing, but this time round, there was no real meaning behind it. We just chose that word and it stuck. There is meaning behind the actual word, poverty, austerity and the like. But it honestly just boils down to us agreeing that Hardship should be the name of our band.
Do you think that being a trio heightens your sound and makes your band more unique?
Being a 3 piece band is where we are comfortable, we seem to have something good going on between the 3 of us and we have found this ability to bounce off each other with writing music and create what we think are pretty awesome tunes. So in that respect being a trio does heighten our sound. But i wouldn't say it makes us unique. There are thousands of amazing bands out there that are trios who have been extremely successful, so in that way we're not unique. As for our sound, i honestly don't know if it's unique.
Was it a collaborative effort when writing the song “Chains”?
We seem to have a process throughout most, if not all of our songs. Our singer and guitarist Tom literally just sits at home, and writes mountains of riffs. He brings them to practice and we listen, go over a few of them and then work together to expand on those riffs. Every so often the foundations for a new song is born, so it is very much a collaborative effort, though Tom is very much the lead on writing our tunes (it's actually quite scary how much he will write). This process is how Chains came about!
What is the concept behind your song “Chains”?
The song is about people who become trapped in religions, relationships etc, it takes over their lives for the worst. And they become or feel chained down, sort of trapped. This isn't us bashing religion or anything though, we're just more than aware that certain aspects of anything in life can be overwhelming, used for the wrong reasons and to benefit others and not yourself. Kind of like an oppressive relationship.
What are your future plans for upcoming release, shows, etc?
Chains is out there now, for everyone to listen to on all streaming platforms (whack that volume on nice and high when you do). We've got another 2 songs along with Chains coming out in an EP in April as well called 'Extended Player One' (date TBC), which will be coming with a new music video and all that usual stuff. We're planning up some UK dates right now, we've got dates in leeds, sheffield and grimsby so far. If all goes well we'll be visiting a few more cities as well. We can't really give specifics because we're waiting for the details to be set in stone. But we're trying our damn hardest to get these shows solidified so we can melt some faces this summer. We want this year to be the year everyone hears about us, we appreciate we've only been gigging since October last year and have actually only been a band for just over a year. It's going to be a challenge, but we're well up for it.
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