An In-Depth Discussion With The Ohio Rockers, COLDSWELL!

Get to know the Cleveland, OH band, Coldswell!

These Ohio rockers recently released their latest album, ‘Void Calls’ on June 21^st. “Fairweather” was the first single they put out from this collection. Check it out here- Spotify/YouTube.

The Cleveland natives deliver an intricate and lyrically enticing brand of rock, nods to a variety of influences from grunge to shoegaze. A simple accessibility that balances with a deft and fine-tuned musicianship from the Midwest rockers.

Learn more about Coldswell in the following All Access interview:

Thanks for your time! What is on tap for the rest of your day?

“As of today, ordering screen printing supplies for making band shirts and earplugs to protect the hearing of the people who will hopefully be wearing those shirts. I’ll probably try to get caught up on either Altered Carbon or Black Mirror, and get ready for an uneventful Friday. Thank you for asking!”-Ian Hudson

“Walking my dog and listing to our new album on Vinyl! Just got the pressings in the mail the other day!” -Brandon Krise

Now that we are into the 6th month of the year, how would you say that 2019 is treating the band so far? What have been some goals this group has had this year? How close are you to reaching them? 

“Right now our main focus has been getting this album out there. We’ve been working really hard on this record and we want as many people as possible to hear it and hopefully some are able to relate to it and get something positive out of it.” – Evan Krise

“Well, the motif with this band is that we’re taking baby steps. Things feel like they have been moving slower than expected due to setbacks, some within our control, and some not so much and I personally feel like more could have been accomplished thus far…but that’s merely the personality flaw of me being a “go-getter” with a lax sense of realism that all three of us are adults with families, bills, and day jobs. But, in hindsight, everything is coming to fruition, for the most part. I think the only things left to do for us that I wish we had done so far was film some promotional videos, do another photoshoot where we’re not on the verge of frostbite, and making sure our release show for the full length is a-go. Other than that, we got the album mastered, had it pressed to vinyl and cassette, hired an excellent Publicist, and got some merchandise designed.”-Ian Hudson

“2019 has been a lot of work so far but we have gotten awesome feedback from the songs we have released from the album thus far. Cannot wait to share the rest of the album with our fans!” – Brandon Krise

Can you recall the moment when you thought you could be in this group together? Was it hard to think of a name that you could agree on? Has anything surprised you about this musical journey so far? 

“The group just kinda formed naturally there wasn’t much deep thought about it. Brandon and I worked well together and I knew Ian would fit perfectly with us. As for the name, i had the name ‘Coldswell’ in place before Brandon and Ian officially joined the band. In relation to our journey so far, I think its really interesting to see the musical progression between all of our releases. Starting with our first EP which I recorded myself and our follow up material that really showed how we all work together as musicians” – Evan Krise

“Evan had originally asked me to be in the group. He sent me the Weary EP via email, and after listening to it, I was elated to be part of the project. This was four years ago. I met Brandon, our drummer at our first practice together, and the three of us all had this awkward, shy energy together at first…not very comfortable, but that quickly went away. However, from the beginning, I knew this was always something I wanted to be a part of and was confident in our success due to our chemistry together as creative entities. – Ian Hudson

“Before this band I wasn’t a drummer. I have always been a guitar player at heart. I guess I can say I am surprised with how my drumming has progressed over the years.” – Brandon Krise

Anything surprising?

No. We definitely have our Spinal Tap moments…only more Kafkaesque. You just sort of have to expect the worst, hope for the best, and roll with the punches. There’s a lot of weird stuff that’s happened so far, both in the studio setting and at performances, but it just adds color to the experience”-Ian Hudson

“I feel like the universe doesn’t want us to realease this album. There have been so many weird setbacks that drew this album out. But like it our not the album is coming out next week.” – Brandon Krise

How do you think your hometowns have influenced the sound and how you all carry yourselves in this group? If not, what do you think does influence this group?

“For me I’m not sure if my hometown has really influenced my songwriting, I’m sure there is some subconscious influence but nothing that I’m consciously thinking about. It’s mostly just the different music I listen to mixed with the other twos influences” – Evan Krise

“Hometown-wise for me, I grew up in a very Caucasian suburb where there was a mutual loathing between the adults and youth. I was your prototypical long-haired edgy, angsty kid who listened to things no one else my age was really listening to: Joy Division, Nirvana, Magazine, Dinosaur Jr., Interpol…it was before hipster culture really hit and everyone was exposed to a more diverse array of music. I was the weird kid who played Devo while everyone else was raving about N’sync and Britney Spears…so needless to say, my musical tastes were contrary to those around me (among other tastes)…but I really didn’t socialize too much in grade school, so my growth as a musician began around me spending hours in my room, practicing bass and guitar, imitating Peter Hook and Kurt Cobain…both of which are very prominent influences on my stage presence, wanting desperately to find a way to hybridize post-punk brooding with 90’s alt grittiness.

I’d say that Evan and Brandon had very similar mindsets growing up, to some degree: Introverted and musically eclectic, so the way we carry ourselves is very nonchalant, stoic, but retains that whim of angst that punk, goth, and grunge bands had 30-40 years ago. I think Coldswell is a very accurate representation of what I was looking to accomplish years ago when I first started writing songs at 14.” – Ian Hudson

“Honestly my hometown has not really influenced my tastes/musical abilities. I find influences from artists all over the globe. I feel like some people get caught up in the “local scene” and put blinders up to other amazing artists from other states and backgrounds.” -Brandon Krise

I always like to ask bands if you all hang out socially apart from the music? In other words, when you aren’t working on music, do you guys enjoy hanging out for fun? 

“We don’t as much as I wish we could. we all have pretty busy schedules so whenever we can get together we are focusing on the band.” – Evan Krise

“Yeah, we’ve hung out from time to time. Not as much as I’d like to, but if there’s a concert that we all want to see, we’ll meet up and see it. Evan and I went to college together, so we were constantly hanging out and bonding. I’d definitely like to keep it up, as it’s been less frequent spending time with both of he and Brandon since graduating and taking on multiple jobs. I’m always afraid of us growing distant and losing sight on what we were originally working towards with Coldswell…it’s mostly about not letting adulthood engulf and drown you, and invest in methods of self-care. Part of that is making time for the people you care about.”-Ian Hudson

“We all have jobs outside the band so it is hard to make time just hang. I wish we could more.” – Brandon Krise

Let’s talk about your new album “Void Calls.” What was it like putting this collection together? Did anything surprise you about the overall process?

“After we recorded ‘Ruminate’ we started writing new material. Most of this was put onto the new record. the only two songs that have seen the light of day so far that aren’t on the record were released on the ‘Cars & Planes’ single. The songs on the album, in my opinion, really show off what we can do as a band and has our sound that I always have a hard time describing to people. The songs are really personal to me and i hope some people are able to relate to the subject matter.

“Hahaha! Putting the songs together was probably the easiest, quickest, and most enjoyable part of the album-making process for us thus far. It has otherwise been one heck of a learning curve, mostly due to our lack of a budget and having time constraints. Between us living our separate lives and coordinating practices, recording sessions, which we conducted ourselves, renting or buying the equipment to do so, endless computer crashes, dried up funds (since this was coming out of our wallets), and little to no media presence, which meant we were going silent for awhile, I’d say it was a living Hell. You know how I mentioned baby steps before? This is because Murphy’s Law kept playing a part in our endeavors to make Void Calls. This week, opening the first box of LP’s, I was in shock that we finally got them done since this has been such a tantric process. Not to speak too soon, but I’m feeling hopeful that this will take us somewhere already…”-Ian Hudson

“Hearing the drums for the first time on our vinyl records blew me away. Im glad we took our time with this one. You only have one debut album and I believe we did everything in our power to make it sound like the best representation of our band at this point in time.” – Brandon Krise

How do you think your first single out from the album, “Fairweather” prepared listeners for the rest of the album?

“Actually, Dark Eyes was the first single we released, which is primarily an Evan song, which means it’s very riff-based. I always think he writes very catchy riffs, phrases, hooks, whatever you want to call them…it’s also a bit heavier than something I would normally write, and the album fluctuates like that. I think Fairweather is on the opposite end of the spectrum, being written by me, and having a sadder timbre to it. The funny thing is, both songs have this “tongue-in-cheek” upbeatness about them that I think is very indicative of our sound, despite the definite contrast between Evan’s and my compositional styles. The whole album is of that melancholic nature while each song retains its own identity independent of the others.”-Ian Hudson

While it’s hard, can you pick out a few favorite songs on this album and talk about the inspiration for them and how they got to be on this album?

“I’m rarely consciously thinking about my influences while writing. Usually once the song is written i can hear them coming through in the track. As for my favorite songs on the record, Id have to say two of my favorite tracks are ‘Nervousness’ and ‘Giving Up'” – Evan Krise

“L’appel du Vide began as a riff Brandon had brought into practice. Funnily enough, despite it being the first track on the song, it was the last song we wrote for the album. I think it definitely has its own sound, being very chill in the verses, almost psychedelic at times, but full-heavy elsewhere. It was a great way to start the album because of its slight contrast with the other songs. It makes me very eager to hear Brandon incorporate more of his material into the band.” -Ian Hudson

“I love Fairwaether. Super easy to play on drums but also very fun in a live setting.” – Brandon Krise

Generally, how do you go about writing your music? Do you write together or separately?

“For the most part on this album we all wrote separately, except for the opening track which Brandon and I worked on together. Recently we’ve all been working on writing songs together, so hopefully there will be more of that in the future.” – Evan Krise

“We do collaborate a lot on certain songwriting aspects, such as song form, phrasing, and what else to add during the tracking process, but overall, we normally come up with riffs by ourselves. My writing process has pretty much remained the same since I was 14, locking myself in my room with my bass, a guitar, and a looper pedal coming up with each individual part of a song. To the others’ chagrin, it’s made me a bit of a control freak whenever I bring in a song for us to learn. Evan is much more relaxed about alterations and creative input.”-Ian Hudson

“Before this band I didn’t real play the drums much. I came up with a few guitar parts for this album. Its nice to be in a band that listens to the drummers songs lol.” – Brandon Krise

How has your sound grown or changed over the years? What has remained the same?

“Our sound began very raw, unrefined, and was drowned in reverb; I loved it! Then, come our second EP and two singles, Car and Planes and Home, it was a little more conventional and tame. Void Calls intended to be its own thing…sort of combining the greater aspects of each EP and going further with it. It began as a passionate endeavor where we would spend as much time recording and mixing as we needed to make sure it sounded perfect; we didn’t have that luxury before. We still play aggressively, I still dance on stage, and Evan is still awkward at talking to the audience…so needless to say, our image has been pretty consistent over the past four years…though I do miss the sound clips Evan used to play off of his looper in between songs whilst tuning; there was a theatrical quality to it.”-Ian Hudson

Where do you think you are all happiest- in the studio recording new music, on stage performing or elsewhere?

“I have the most fun performing live, in that setting its all in the moment, its not perfect but its human. When we are working on recording I’m trying to make sure everything is exactly like i want it to sound.” –
Evan Krise

“I love performing. However, writing new material is always a blast, and aside from the many computer malfunctions we face during recording, hearing a final product is unbelievably gratifying.”-Ian Hudson

“I love playing live. Awesome release of negative energy the world beats down on you.” – Brandon Krise

Where can fans see you perform next? What do you think makes for an ideal show for this group? What has been a favorite show of yours in the past?

“We’re planning an album release show as we speak. It might be at Musica in Akron, it may not. We’ll know as soon as we have a couple supporting acts on board, cuz’ everyone needs a friend, as Bob Ross would say.

An ideal show is one where we have limited mistakes during the performance, people other than our close friends and relatives show up and are receptive to our music, and all the bands interact with each other instead of going off in their own corners of the room and they and their posse leaving after their set. Honestly, the latter conditions contribute more to the ideal show than the first instance, because if we at least have the presence that we have had at our best, no one will notice the mistakes except for the three of us.

That being said, I loved our first show at this venue that has since closed called Pat’s in the Flats. Despite being the epitome of a dive bar (the toilets hardly worked and didn’t have doors, it was the only building on the street, and the only traffic were Semi-trucks and drifters), the bands we played with, Retirement, Maluck, and Space Funeral, were amazing musicians and people, in general. Everyone was supportive of one another, staying around the stage area to hear one another play, buying each other’s merchandise, and we all even went out for tacos after the show. Musicians networking like professionals.”-Ian Hudson

How has social media impacted this band? How often are you all on your different sites interacting with fans?

“Not much that I’ve noticed [Laughs] I’m sure the presence of social media has helped introduce our band to some people but for me its just one of those necessary evils that you need to do or else your band would be completely irrelevant” – Evan Krise

“As mentioned before, all three of us are notoriously introverted, and that follows suit on social media. I am a lurker and frankly despise engaging in social media. Evan and Brandon even more so. Brandon handles a majority of our social media presence, being on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Due to how busy our lives usually are outside of the band and primarily wanting to focus on the actual process of making the album, we haven’t invested too entirely much into social media, especially compared to our regional counterparts, who constantly share memes, promo videos, and whatever else. Heck, this album has limited our frequency of gigging out, too, so hopefully that will change, soon, too.

Considering my disposition on social media, perhaps it’s best we find a manager soon to handle the talking for us. I don’t mind certain parts of it, but the energy it takes to constantly update people who usually are indifferent about your endeavors doesn’t seem so productive…but that’s just me being cynical and the main reason why I shouldn’t be in charge of our social media presence. Haha!

And fan-wise, I run into more people in person who have shown appreciation for us than people who contact us online, at least in a non-professional sense, so maybe the album release will yield more people who reach out so we can reciprocate.”-Ian Hudson

“If social media wasn’t necessary to get people to keep up to date with your band I wouldn’t use it. I think most social media is a waste of time and promotes bad habits. But this is the world we live in so you have the play the game to some degree.” – Brandon Krise

We are currently living through a very trying and politically charged time right now so I am curious to know how you all think being musicians and in this band still gives you the most joy in life today? Do you find that your music is an escape to all the current events?

“Playing music is always an escape for me. its in a way therapeutic” – Evan Krise

“There are many means of which people escape the world they find themselves living in, and this has always been the case. I think right now is a better time than anytime prior for escapism due to the Internet bringing people closer together in niche’ interests. The people we’ve surrounded ourselves with with our music are like us in the way that politics in general frustrate us and drive us to a defeatist sense of Nihilism…peak Postmodernism. Our escape as musicians is paradoxical as we are escaping to an exaggerated sense of reality in a selfish, adolescent perspective: themes of self-loathing, depression, anxiety, partially influenced by the pangs and complications of our own upbringings, but also by our disillusionment of existing as adults and realizing there’s less we can change about the world as a whole than we thought…so we attempt to compartmentalize ourselves and change what we can about ourselves to better accommodate for this disillusionment.

I don’t want to venture into politics too deeply, as, you’re right, it is a very heated topic, but the issue with that is that there are people who are of the mindset that everything is black and white: If you’re not for us, you’re against us; two extremes that are more like each other than different. We are transitioning to the point, as a western culture, that not everything is that way, and that there is a wide grey spectrum between what is black and white. While I can’t speak for Brandon or Evan, I feel ensnared on both a personal and musical perspective, ensnared in this spectrum and that there is nothing I can easily do other than drive towards my own pursuits of happiness. I think everyone is doing that in their own way, regardless of ethical or philosophical alignment.

Music, like all arts and expressions, is politically-charged, in some way or another. We take influence from music from our childhoods because it helps us cope with the present. It’s a nostalgia boom that is going to perpetuate as long as people are unsatisfied with their current environment. Regardless of what Coldswell’s genre would be categorized as (because we are always at a loss for what to call it: shoegaze, alternative, emo, goth, indie, 90’s revival…), it still brings me joy to be a part of the project because, yes, it is a bit of an escape from the 60-hour-a-week grind, is one way for me to express myself as a thinking and feeling being, and provide myself an identity as well as a potential legacy via benign means. That always has potential to change, though. Ansel Adams was a musician but later became known for his photography. Virtues change when we feel like we have expended them completely.”-Ian Hudson

What musicians would you love to work with in the future? What artists have really been inspiring this group and your music since day 1?

“Being able to work with Robert Smith of The Cure or Rivers Cuomo of Weezer would be a dream come true for me” – Evan Krise

“I couldn’t even begin to think of names as most of my idols are either passed away or on a completely different social tier…but given the choice, I’d say Brian Molko of Placebo would be wonderful to work with; I’ve always adored his voice and style. Billy Corgan and Brian Aubert would be interesting options, too. I think it’d be awesome to work with Butch Vig, Steve Albini, Brian Eno, or Mark Mothersbaugh, though! From day one, for me, Joy Division, Nirvana, Dinosaur Jr, System of a Down, Placebo, Mission of Burma, Bauhaus, Sonic Youth,…as a band, Silversun Pickups, Weezer, The Cure, Dinosaur Jr. (again), Death Cab for Cutie, HUM, etc…”-Ian Hudson

“John Frusciante just to name one. He is my musical hero. His songs helped me through some really tough times in my life.” – Brandon Krise

What do you hope is the message of your music? What do you hope people continue to take away from your songs?

“not to keep your emotions bottled up inside of you. If you’re going through something talk to someone about it odds are there are plenty of people in your life that would gladly take time out of their day to listen to you and help you in any way you can.” – Evan Krise

“It’s really difficult to answer a question like this when a lot of our themes entail mental illness and existential nihilism. What can one take from that, especially someone emotionally-susceptible? A lot of that is theatrics, painting a figurative picture, and expressionism…The big takeaway to someone listening to us is that they’re not alone in life’s struggle. Everyone, no matter how happy they seem or how vocal they are about their innermost feelings, has experienced crippling low points in their lives, and most of these people have found a way to rise up from the struggle via reevaluation or some other means. Our music is meant to instill hope in people and combat the alienation that envelopes living in a fast-paced, impersonal, ingenuine, culture that only appears to sometimes be disintegrating.

However, it is only a matter of perspective…”-Ian Hudson

Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers about this group?

“If no one else has said it yet, we have a website www.coldswellmusic.com, are everywhere online (though seldom active), and we’re loud, so bring earplugs!”-Ian Hudson