Aaron Friend & The Enemies Release Colors
MUC: How did you form your band?
The band originally was just me wanting to record some good songs and pitch them for placement. The idea of the project started with me singing the song "All the Things I've Done" by the Killers at a Karaoke Bar. That is where my friend Leticia Wolf of "The Dead Deads" introduced me to Producer/Co-writer, Jackson Eppley the first time. We got into a conversation about alternative music and some of the great talent emerging in Nashville. We ended up working together on my song titled "Don't You Worry" which propelled us into writing an EP's worth of material with his partner at the studio Ryan Truso. Once the songs were mastered and ready to be released, I got the itch to start performing live again. I scouted for band members and live musicians online, at bars, at work, wherever I could. I ended up meeting Chris Hampton, aka Champton, through a friend at a thinly-guised multi level marketing scheme hosted by an acquaintance. We both decided that pyramid schemes weren't our thing, but bonded over a mutual appreciation for the band Thursday and good whisky! Next, I met Cole Harper, aka Hollywood Harper, at BMI. We really didn't talk much at work besides having a few drinks at company happy hours. It wasn't until Cole left BMI to pursue music performance that he posted about looking for friends who wanted to jam and write music on Facebook. I reached out to him to get together, and we quickly clicked on several of our music influences and eagerness to put on a great live show. Finally, our drummer Sam Page, aka Sam Page Rampage, and I met about 4 years ago at BMI through an inter-office Magic The Gathering trading card group. Both of us hadn't played the game in several years but we both had cards from years ago. Sam became a close friend and drinking buddy, but it wasn't until this past year that the rock project he was drumming for split up and I really had the opportunity to get together with him and nail down some songs. Sam was able to dedicate time to rehearsal's and the project was off the ground running.
MUC: Where are you and your band members from?
I'm originally from a suburb of Cleveland, OH and grew up surrounded in rock music. I moved to TN to pursue a degree in the recording industry at MTSU in Murfreesboro. I worked in a couple of studios on and off, until I landed at BMI working in licensing. Since then, I have been able to really start developing my music, and dedicating more time to it.
Sam Page - grew up in Naperville, IL, a Northwest Suburb of Chicago and went to college at Western Illinois University in small town Macomb, IL. After visiting a long time friend going to MTSU, I landed a music internship in Nashville the summer before my last year of school. Being a big city with a small town feel, Nashville felt like a perfect place to move to after graduation, because of great music and musicians everywhere.
Chris Hampton hales from east Tennessee, by way of Boston. I moved to Nashville after his former band parted ways with the hope of finding a new sound and a new project.
Cole Harper was born and raised in Mount Juliet TN, and has grown up seeing Nashville become the city it is today.
MUC: Are you touring and what can your fans expect from you guys this year with this new release?
We will be doing some regional touring this summer from Nashville up to New York. Dates are tentative still but should be posted towards the end of June. What our fans can expect from us is optimism, catchy hooks, and a curveball or two during one of our sets.
MUC: Favorite performance to date and why??
The entire band really enjoyed our EP release show March 29th at the East Room. We put a lot of hard work into promotion, and the fans responded. There were 3 other really professional bands that supported us that night, and everything ran really efficiently. Some shows have hiccups or technology issues, or a person isn't feeling 100%. That show everyone was firing on all cylinders and it showed! Runner up was definitely doing the BalconyTV live performance on the 30th floor of the Fifth 3rd building in downtown Nashville. It was really cool to play some many stories up in the open air of February.
MUC: Any pre-show rituals?
We're not sacrificing any animals or anything, so no crazy rituals. We like to get together before the show for dinner and grab a drink to loosen up, and meet some of our fans. Oh yeah, and we take a minute to stretch because our bodies aren't what they used to be :)
Links to website and socials.
https://www.instagram.com/aaronfriendandtheenemies