Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
"I like what you guys are doing. Def progressive and different but not alien, if that makes any sense." - on Century Media Records...
"Your bass player is honky, he is all over the place on the fretboard" - Zing Studios
Discography
"A Study In Motivation" EP, (c) 2006. Recorded at Zing Studios with Eric Arena (Under Falling Skies, Endwell), mixed by Jim Fogarty (Killswitch Engage, The Acacia Strain), and mastered by Alan Douches (Between the Buried and Me, Misfits, Dillinger Escape Plan).
1. Initial Evaluation
2. The Graceful Fall of Ancient Kings
3. Blood Spilled On Black Roses
4. Tears In A Sandstorm
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
“If we?re gonna do this, let?s do it right…”
A guitarist mutters those words to his fellow musicians and band mates in a dimly lit local bar in downtown Newport, RI; their tabletop already consumed by a barrage of empty beer glasses.
“We?ve been playing music now for years together in one form or another with nothing to show for it. This is our chance to change that. “ The other 4 members of the progressive metal band The Hawthorne Effect nod in agreement. And after the hefty bar tab is paid, and hangovers are slept off, they begin putting plans together to write and record their ambitious first release.
Their idea is simple in concept, difficult in execution: create heavy music that?s catchy and melodic, but complex and interesting. Take the best elements of metal, and mix in elements of jazz, funk, and pop. Do away with the regular 4-4 and 6-8 time signatures and verse-chorus-verse structures; yet make the songs memorable and listenable. And most of all make an EP that embodies something that everyone in the band can enjoy, and resonate that feeling to a live audience.
The result is The Hawthorne Effect?s debut EP “A Study in Motivation.” Recorded at Zing Studios with Eric Arena (Under Falling Skies, Endwell), mixed by Jim Fogarty (Killswitch Engage, The Acacia Strain), and mastered by Alan Douches (Between the Buried and Me, Misfits, Dillinger Escape Plan), the album is ultimately heavy at its core, melodic in its delivery, and ambitious throughout. The combination of grinding but intricate guitars laid over a playful and captivating bass line and polyrhythmic drumming can be heard throughout the EP. And just when the song seems to be heading towards a path of normalcy, a quick tempo shift seamlessly takes it to somewhere completely new.
The band?s greatest strength may just be in its use of 4 different and distinct voices both on the EP and during live shows. The use of low to high range screams combined with 3 and 4 part harmonies and lead vocal tradeoffs keeps the melody driving while still maintaining a memorable feel. Incorporating piano, keyboard, organ, and percussive instruments creates a unique sonic blend of aggression and tranquility, compounded by the contrast of minor and major scales not typically found in heavy music.
Currently, The Hawthorne Effect is taking “A Study in Motivation” on the road, proving their sound is not just the result of studio magic. Having played together in one form or another for nearly 5 years, the band is just now discovering its own unique sound, which finds them sharing the stage with several different genres of music. The EP and the very band itself represent the culmination of years of involvement in the ever-increasing local New England music scene. For the 5 members of The Hawthorne Effect, the result so far has been well worth the effort. Their hope is that fans of heavy music will agree.
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