By: Taylor Magill
In an arguably over-saturated scene full of self-proclaimed lo-fi geniuses and high school metal bands, it’s hard to tell what will stick around for the long haul. Despite the over-saturation, once in a while a band comes along and you can tell that they are going somewhere. When I came across THIS HOUSE last week at the suggestion of one of my Twitter followers, I was immediately captivated by the sounds of their smooth production and effortless blend of vocals and melodies.
Although a relatively new band, THIS HOUSE has actually been in the works for quite sometime. Front man Cameron Kolar and Guitarist Austin Curtis have been playing music together as something just to pass the time since the “Bright Eyes” days back in high school. After a trip to DC’s 9:30 venue to see the Arctic Monkeys, Cameron and Austin were inspired to start their own band. After coming across bassist Justin Long and Drummer Guilmark Bruwer, they formed THIS HOUSE in someone’s basement in Acworth, Georgia about a year ago.
After becoming so intrigued with their music last week, I was lucky enough to sit down with Cameron and Austin and get the scoop on their unique band name, where they’re going with this, and why people can’t pinpoint their sound.
AMG:Your band name is extremely unique. Where did your name come from?
TH: Our name about because we have always practiced in someone’s basement. We were sitting around asking ourselves, “What do we sound like?” Guilmark in his infinite wisdom said, “We sound like This House”.
AMG: When listening to your music, I couldn’t really decide what genre your band fits into. What genre would you say you are?
TH: People not being able to pinpoint us is a big compliment to us. Not being able to pinpoint us is what keeps people listening. When people ask us what we sound like, we always answer “Just listen to us”. We do use a lot of ’60’s and ’70’s pop structures though.
AMG: Who are your biggest musical influences? Where does the inspiration come from for your music?
TH: Led Zepplin, New Order, and The Strokes. Vocal inspiration comes from The National and The Doors. We’re big fans of vocalists who know their voice. We like vocalists who can take a recording and make it something different live. Also bands that have a lot of guitar interplay. Guilmark brings a lot of rhythmic sensibilities to the band.
AMG: What’s your band’s biggest accomplishment so far?
TH: Getting interviewed by Atlanta Music Guide. Also, our last show at the Drunken Unicorn with Juno and Jupiter was an anniversary of our first show at 529 with Colossal Heads and Kid Stuff.
AMG: Any upcoming shows or releases you want to let fans know about?
TH: We just released Outside Looking In. It’s a three song demo with two songs tracked in the studio, with one live in studio recording. The live song, “Beer Spilt” has a really song live reception because people can catch on and sing along. We’re also playing another show at the Drunken Unicorn on February 16th with Suburban Camouflage.
AMG: What are your future plans or goals for your band?
TH: Right now we’re trying to book shows in Athens and Milledgeville. We have a forthcoming EP in April. We hope to be touring at least on the East Coast by the end of the year.
AMG: Do you have a Facebook, Twitter, or website for fans to follow?
TH: People can follow us on our Facebook or Twitter pages. We also have our music available on SoundCloud. We are in the process of building a website right now and are trying to coordinate it with the EP release.
At the end of our interview, Cameron left me with this statement about why people should listen to THIS HOUSE. “If 1000 people were to listen to us, maybe only 5 would really understand and make our music their’s. but maybe, just maybe, if 1000 people listen to us they will all find something in it for themselves. and we really wont know until people take it upon themselves to start listening.” So take his advice, do your ears a favor, and listen to THIS HOUSE.
THIS HOUSE is Cameron Kolar, Austin Curtis, Justin Long, and Guilmark Brewer and are based in Acworth, Ga. For more information follow them on Twitter, like them on Facebook, or visit them on SoundCloud.
