New York City’s Hello Mary released their new album Emita Ox via Frenchkiss Records last week. Despite only being in their late teens and early twenties their new LP sees Hello Mary building out their own universe of attitude riven, imaginative alt-rock. The band co-produced the album alongside Alex Farrar (MJ Lenderman, Indigo De Souza, Wednesday, Snail Mail) in Asheville, NC. They’re an exciting emerging proposition, possessing a sound that pushes further into adventurous realms of dexterous vocals that shift from intimate to primal, heavy distortion, percussive left turns, and psychedelic dreamscapes.
They teased the LP with the release of new single ‘Down My Life’ which the band’s Helena Straight says she wrote after “one of the saddest experiences” of her life. The song features her angelic vocals on top of warped piano and menacing bass. Straight adds, “Down My Life is possibly the most lyrically powerful song for me on the record. The lyrics are somewhat vague, so the meaning behind it is not totally obvious to the listener, which is how I’d like it to be considering the state I was in when I wrote it.”
The LP’s labyrinthine production reflects how the band’s musical tastes have expanded from Elliott Smith and Radiohead to encompass experimental post-rock acts like Black Midi and Swans. “This album encompasses a lot of our inspirations,” says Oppenheimer. “It also shows what we’re like as a trio, collectively.” We sent them some questions to find out more.
Hi, how are you today?
Good! Currently on a plane to London for our first UK tour :)
How did you meet?
HS: Mikaela and I met in 6th grade in our home room. We were connected to Stella when we were 15 and Stella was 18 when somebody asked Mikaela and I to play a house show but we didn’t have a drummer.
Where does your name come from?
HS: Pretty boring story. Me and Mikaela were thinking of two word combinations that started with H and M (like our names), and I guess Hello Mary was the best option.
What was the first thing you released?
HS: We put out a couple of demos on SoundCloud back in 2018, but those are not available anymore. I honestly kinda wish they were because I would love to hear them. I have no idea where to find them. The first thing we released on all platforms that IS available is the song ‘Apple’.
What’s the music scene like back home?
SW: When we were first starting out we were part of a pretty close knit scene, but once people went off to college, it basically died. Perhaps we’re just not keyed in, but nowadays it seems like most of the New York based bands that we like aren’t really part of a collective scene. Also we’ve noticed that the majority of bands based in New York aren’t originally from here, which could make it harder for there to be a solid and long-lasting scene- vs. a place like Asheville for example, where it seems many of the people in the scene have grown up there and developed strong ties with one another.
How would you describe your music in five words?
SW: playful, intricate, dynamic, sincere, heavy (in multiple meanings)
Which artists do you admire?
HS: Some of favourite artists of all time are Radiohead, Adrianne Lenker, Air and Fiona Apple.
SW: PJ Harvey, Radiohead, Water From Your Eyes, to name a few. But there are too many to list.
MO: jockstrap, Alex g, DIIV – for some reason these are coming to mind.
I hear some 90s textures and influences I like the dynamics in your songs, is that a time in music you go back to?
SW: We all enjoy music from the 90’s, it was a very cool time in music. Although, we hope that our music can offer something new as well.
Which albums do you share a love of?
SW: OK Computer by Radiohead
MO: Dogs by Nina Nastasia
What would be your dream collaboration?
MO: I feel like it would be Sufjan Stevens….
Can you tell us about your new single?
HS: ‘Down My Life’ is my favorite song on the record right now. That will probably change in a month from now but lately it is especially hitting for me. It is very satisfying because I had so many production ideas for the song going into the studio and they came to life very seamlessly.
What’s the best band you have played with so far?
HM: We were big fans of Deerhoof when we got invited to play with them and they were even better than we anticipated, so that was really exciting. But we love a lot of the bands we have played with.
What’s on your rider?
SW: We try to take the money instead of asking for the rider…
What do you do to fill the time on tour when you aren’t playing?
HM: Shopping, reading, talking, laughing, crying, eating
What’s on your playlist?
HM: we have a tour playlist on our spotify you can check out!
Are you looking forward to your dates in the UK and Europe?
HM: Yes!
Thanks for your time
Thank you!!
