Born Loser and the Hangers On

The spunky group has quickly carved their way into the local music scene with style and spark, and very catch tunes to boot. - Echo Magazine

The spunky group has quickly carved their way into the local music scene with style and spark, and very catch tunes to boot. - Echo Magazine

We caught up with Born Loser and the Hangers On and spoke to Chelsey Louise, the lead vocalist. Find out what the funny and talented singer had to say about the band and learn some things you never knew about them.

GTG: How did you come up with the name Born Loser and the Hangers On?

BLATHO: One day, as I was strolling through the thick shrubbery of North Scottsdale, a hipster ran me over with a fixie, and I landed flat on my back staring into the vast Arizona sky. SUDDENLY AND WITHOUT WARNING, the clouds parted and this tiny, spinster, old lady (who had many cats) was all, "Sup." And I was like, "Sup."
And then I went home and my dad suggested it because he didn't use it in the 60s.

GTG: How and why did you get started in music?

BLATHO: Well, I got started in music at a young age, when my mother would plop me down in front of the T.V. and made me watch "Rocky Horror Picture Show" and danced with me to "Love Shack." I also did musical theatre for 8 years, and that's why our stage performance is a bit theatrical. We call our genre "theatrical rock" because we all come from different backgrounds to create music that a lot of people call "unique" and "interesting." Jenny is a classically trained pianist, and has been playing for 15 years. Benny is a metal guitarist, Robert plays bass now, but he started playing guitar because of Dave Matthews, so his style is very jammy. And Adam, our drummer, is more punk inspired.

GTG: Tell me about the song you entered into the contest and why you chose that song.

BLATHO: We entered with "The MosquitoSong," which is the single off of our debut EP "BLATHO" (available for free download at www.BLATHO.com). The album is recorded with our old line-up (different drummer and bassist) by Michael Beck at Sound Vision Recording (www.soundvisionrecording.com). The song is really pop-influenced, and has been featured on KISS 103.9FM and KWSS 106.7FM. We also did a music video with Ber Co Productions (www.bercoproductions.com), and it has gotten a lot of good public response. Our sound is not entirely genre specific, so this song doesn't really sound like what we usually play. We think this song has a mass appeal, and it's so much fun to play a show and see our fans singing the words in the audience!

GTG: Who is your biggest influence when it comes to music and song writing?

BLATHO: We are all influenced by different bands. I am very influenced by musical theatre, and Nirvana and Queen. The stage presence of Kurt Cobain and Freddy Mercury are incredible and of course I hope to inspire and be as out there as they were. Jenny, the pianist, is inspired by Regina Spektor, who is very folksy and lyric-oriented. She writes a lot of the songs. Benny, the guitarist, is inspired by metal, like Trivium and Metallica. Robert, the bassist, is all about Dave Matthews Band, and their chill, jam style. Adam, the drummer, likes Led Zeppelin and Blink 182. He just set his drum set up like Travis Barker, even! We always try and find bands that we "sound like," but it is really difficult. People have said: The Cranberries, Smashing Pumpkins, Radiohead.. But I think we sound just like Born Loser and the Hangers On!

GTG: What would you say to Don Was if he were sitting next to you?

BLATHO: Honestly, I'm a bit socially awkward, so I'd probably start off with something like, "How do you feel about grilled cheese and ranch dressing?" and then continue the conversation from there. Of course, his life must be full of amazing stories, but I can imagine he would get bored of people asking what Bob Dylan was like in person. I'd ask about our music. What could we do to make us better? How does he feel about our songs? How do we look and present ourselves on stage?

GTG: Can you tell us something interesting about yourself that your fans would never know about?

BLATHO: 1) I can't play anything on the piano except Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven, and the beginning of the Entertainer. But nothing else. No scales or anything. Weird, I know. 2) We all live together, except our drummer. 3) We support the GLBT community through our "I'm A Loser" Campaign (www.imaloser.org).

GTG: What other talents besides music do you have?

BLATHO: I can speed cup-stack (www.speedstacks.com) and I'm an actor/dancer.
Benny (guitarist) can do parkour (free-running). Robert (bassist) is an amazing oil-painter (http://ciucacreations.jimdo.com).
Jenny (pianist) writes fiction and poetry (she was a Fiction major at SUNY Purchase in New York).
Adam (drummer) has an uncanny knack for remaining. After jumping out of 2 planes, plummeting off a 100 foot cliff, and being in nearly a dozen car accidents, he still remains.

Thanks for taking the time to speak with us guys! All BLATHO fans, make sure you vote for them on Gimme The Gig. - Gimme The Gig II (Blog)

After listening to the album BLATHO by Born Loser and the Hangers on for a full week, I feel ready to review the 8 song EP. One thing I must say first, this band is very unique. Not only in the way they are but also in the way that they do not try extremely hard to be unique, which is something that many musicians struggle with today. This EP, I feel, has something for every type of listener and while their songs express specific situations, they are broad enough to apply to your own life. The songs have a good balance between ultimately personal and completely bland and broad, a very helpful skill to have in order to keep listeners interested.

While the songs on the album are generally long, between 3 and 5 minutes, none of them get boring as many long songs do. I had absolutely no trouble listening to all of the songs in their entirety. Another thing that BLATHO accomplished is giving each song its own identity. None of the songs on the EP sound the same as another, and they all relate to different situations. While their is this individualization between songs, it seems as though a recurring theme throughout the album is that of emotions, as well as that of challenging common ideals among society. The latter theme can be heard very prominently in the 3rd track “Parasite.”

The first song on the album, and also the only track with a music video is called “The Mosquito Song.” This song is very much a narrative. It tells the story of a mosquito searching for its next victim. This can be applied to situations in anyone’s life, especially in love. This was the concept used when creating the video for the song. Aside from concept, this song is very fun to listen to. The vocals and instrumentation have a great balance with each other, which makes neither distracting from the other and keeps it interesting the whole time, because their is always something new to listen to. Though some of the lyrics are repetitive, this balance of vocals and instrumentation keeps the listener from getting bored.

The second track, “Electric Pennies,” is very catchy and struck me as a song that would be very easy to dance to. The use of tambourine in the beginning of the track and also throughout really set the vibe as fun and moving. The lyrics were very unique and easy to sing along to with their catchy rhythm.

The third song, and my personal favorite, “Parasite,” is a very powerful and very intelligent song. I have never described a song as intelligent before, but I feel that because of the use of allusions and references in this song, it is very accurate. This song uses biblical references to challenge the Christian view on sex before marriage. The lyrics are not hateful at all, but they are used in a way that makes it clear a challenge is present. They are speaking out against certain ideals that come from the Bible. The line “it’s only biblical” makes this clear. While this song does speak against some of the ideals, it does not speak directly against the Christian religion as a whole, which I think is brilliant. Along with this, I also found a double meaning to the title in the lyrics of the song. The parasite is not only referring to the way the person in the song wants to feel, but also of how religion can be a parasite to some people’s lives, draining to them, and making life easy, yet nearly meaningless. I got a lot of powerful messages out of this song, these are just the general overview of what I got from it. One other thing I loved about this song, which may have very well been an accident, was its placing in the album. By this I mean, the order in this it came. I feel like putting this song after “The Mosquito Song” and “Electric Pennies” was a very good choice because both of those are very upbeat and this song acts as a good slower and relaxing song compared to the first two. In all, I felt this was the best song off the album.

The fourth track, “Noise,” again, I feel had very good placement in the album, right after the intelligent, slower “Parasite” is this rocking song about just letting go and letting the noise take you away. With easy, but definitely not boring, lyrics and a steady beat, this song is perfect for rocking out. the guitar part on this song was my particular favorite of the album. Headbanging and dancing around would be perfect for this song and I can see it being very fun at a concert.

Song five, “Devil’s Theory” was very interesting. The lyrics were odd and confused me a little as to what the song was trying to say. I was too busy concentrating on attempting to decide the meaning of the lyrics to actually listen to the song as a whole. After listening to it several times, I started to come to the conclusion that the reference to a “hotel buffet” throughout the whole song was a symbol for greed, but I am still unsure. I didn’t feel this song was as enjoyable as others on the album, though it wasn’t necessarily bad, it was just okay.

The song “Underwater” came next, and I have to say this is my second favorite off of the album. The lyrics, in the beginning of the song especially, are very forward. This song is very emotional and clearly talks about how some people think that happy and sad are the only emotions in the world, when clearly that is not true and it applies this thinking to the situation of a romantic relationship. This is clearly the leave-me-alone-I-need-to-think song of the record. The title “Underwater” is very fitting and is used to describe being under pressure to feel a certain way. I enjoyed this song a lot and I feel that anyone could relate to it.

“Hedgehogs Dilemma” is song number seven, and is very different from the rest. With overlapping vocals and heavy music, it borders on messy, but still sounds good. The vocals are also more whiny than those on the other songs. There is certainly a lot going on in the song, and I found it a bit difficult to concentrate on what the lyrics mean. It was easy to get caught up in the music and general sound of the song.

The final track of the EP was “Rude Kinda Solicitor,” and this song surprised me in more than one way. First, the use of harmonica throughout the song was ingeniously unique and definitely gave it a punk meets country vibe, something I’d never heard before. This song was also showcased very.. Real lyrics. Talking about drinking and smoking pot and how the “rude kinda solicitor” endorses these things. It also describes not knowing where you are or where you’re going and how that can be a good feeling at times. I found this song to be almost as interesting as “Devil’s Theory” though more enjoyable for me, personally.

As I stated before, I think this album holds something for everyone and each song is very much its own. Over all, it was one of the best albums by a smaller band I have heard in a while. It is definitely worth downloading. You can get the album for free, or make a donation, at the BLATHO website. - AZ Music Scene

Phoenix-based indie rock band Born Loser And The Hangers On have launched a new promotional campaign -- but it's not simply to promote their new EP, BLATHO. The five-piece band has signed on for a campaign called "I'm a Loser" to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender youth.

Sam DeCross, whose company EsDeck Entertainment represents Born Loser, writes in an e-mail that the campaign "aims to bring to light the fact that LGBT teens and young adults are not as alone as they may feel, and even when the world treats them as outsiders, there is a massive LGBT community that they always have a home in."

"The campaign also applies to every other 'outcast' in the world," DeCross continues. "Most members of the band went through these issues and continue to today, so when prepping for their new album release, they opted to promote with a meaning rather than try to appeal to the broad general market."

But the music of Born Loser And The Hangers On does have a "general market" kind of appeal, employing catchy, danceable drum beats, tight pop hooks, and singer Chelsey Louis' breathy, slightly twangy vocals (á la Jenny Lewis). Their debut EP was recorded by Michael Beck at SoundVision Recording, where such artists as Ke$ha and Marilyn Manson have recorded.

According to the band's website, the EP has songs to listen to "while washing dishes, jogging, baking, laughing, sleeping, weeding the garden, or even surfing. But nothing else. It is limited to those activities previously listed."

Check out the video for BLATHO's "The Mosquito Song" below and decide for yourself. - Phoenix New Times, Village Voice Media

Wowee. When I got this email I had to take a triple look at that name. Now try saying that 5 times fast. Born Loser and the Hangers On are a 6-piece band from Phoenix, Arizona. Now when I received this I will honestly say I wasn’t expecting much from sound. As I started emailing Chelsey Richard (vocals and front-lady of the band) I started to get more excited to hear the sounds of what this band had to offer. She sent me the track off the upcoming EP entitled, Hallucinations We’ve Had. [due out December], called “The Mosquito Song”. I was nervous clicking the play button, but soon realized that my pre-conceived notion turned out to be wrong, at least for some people. This band is far from cliche, normal, or an average sounding band outside of what the normal Arizona band usually sounds or looks like. The image in unconventional, and the songs are even more so. But whoever said unconventional is necessarily bad?

I listened to the song. I listened again. and I listened again. I could NOT put my finger on exactly what it reminded me of. I had a friend listen and we came to this conclusion; New-Age Cardigans mixed with an Old-Age, Arcade Fire. This probably makes no sense if you don’t listen to the track and judge for yourself, so here it is, for you to make your own opinion.

The Mosquito Song-Born Loser and the Hangers On

I really did enjoy this, as an acquired listen though. It took me a few times to get into though as it does with most indie-rock bands. Though listening to this, I definitely would love to see this type of song performed live as the band seems like they would put on an amazing show. Now, I know this type of music isn’t for everyone, but I feel like for the niche market this band is putting out to, it will hook you in and sell you hard. But as for some you may not have such an ecliptic ear to appreciate the mix of some really amazing bands into this great single. Even I can’t wait for the rest of the EP to give this band a chance to really amaze me. I feel the variety will be something different for every song, and I really hope I’m not disappointed when their EP comes out in December. Give them a chance, check out the website and go out and see a show, because I sure would if I was in Phoenix. I’m sure this band won’t disappoint as their quest to conquer the indie music world travels on. - Back-Pocket Letters