Exclusive Interview with GROUNDSTATE

The rock group Groundstate, comprised of brothers Aidan and Connor Smith, has released their new track “Floating Away” on streaming services. During the pandemic, the band recorded the effort with producer Jim Wirt (Incubus, Hoobastank, Centershift) along with other tracks for their forthcoming third studio album ‘The Things We Leave Unsaid’. Since 2014, the duo has maintained a close relationship through creating music that resonates on a deeper level with their listeners and radio stations throughout Cleveland and beyond.

In 2014, the brothers began writing music with a hard rock edge that pays respect to the heavy, alternative sounds of the late 1990s while adding their own contemporary stamp to each composition. After performing spectacular early gigs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Tri-C Rock Off, the group immediately gained a devoted following in the Ohio area. In the past eight years, the band has served as direct support for major national performers (Crazy Town, Saliva, etc.) and has received national airplay on rock and alternative radio stations.

Instead of relying on current production techniques such as programming and effects, the ultimate result of “Floating Away” and the next album is raw and unapologetic in its melodic yet heavy approach, according to vocalist Connor Smith. Check out the song and the exclusive interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

GROUNDSTATE: We’re from Bay Village, which is this tiny suburb on the west side of Cleveland, and we got started back in 2014 when me and Aidan were both still in high school.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

GROUNDSTATE: Neither of us have ever really had any formal teaching as far as writing music or playing it. Aidan had always been a skilled drummer and he kind of just picked up guitar on the side after a while. It was just sort of a hobby at first, but as he got better at playing he started working on a few of his own ideas on both drums and guitar which I then put lyrics to. Those ideas ended up becoming some of the first Groundstate songs.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘GROUNDSTATE’?

GROUNDSTATE: The name Groundstate was actually something our dad came up with. We liked the way it sounded and it just kind of stuck. True to the style of music we write, our biggest influences are predominantly 90’s/early 00’s rock and alt metal bands like Tool, Alice In Chains, Chevelle, etc.

4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?

GROUNDSTATE: Personally I would say our sound falls mainly into the alternative metal/nu metal category, with a few grunge elements at times too. I think we have a pretty accessible sound that is easy for people to get into, and a lot of the topics we explore musically are things I think a lot of people can relate to personally as well.

5. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as ROCK?

GROUNDSTATE:

Our journey artistically has very much just been a process of trial and error haha, we self-released two full albums that preceded this new one we have coming out, and looking back on them both now I think it’s definitely apparent that the songwriting slowly became more cohesive and refined over time. It was just sort of one of those things where the more we did it the better we got at it, and those early efforts are a big part of what shaped the band we are now.

6. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

GROUNDSTATE:

The biggest thing that’s always driven us as a band is seeing how much people enjoy the finished product after putting all our time and effort into writing and recording it. It’s fulfilling to us not only to see that people are enjoying what we create, but just the whole process of creating a record is as well. Everything from brainstorming the first random song ideas to doing whole days of takes in the studio and hearing it all come together is just what we love to do. And the amazing support people have shown for what we do is the biggest thing that gives us the motivation to keep making music!

7. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?

GROUNDSTATE:

The whole process of putting a song together from start to finish is something that varies quite a lot with us haha, usually the most common scenario is that Aidan brings me an idea on guitar that I then put lyrics to, but other times I’ve also come up with melodies for guitar that I demo for Aidan and then he adapts them and makes his own improvements. The same goes for the lyrics too; sometimes Aidan has an idea that I like that I then take and expand upon further and vice versa, so regardless of the where the ideas initially start it’s always a very back and forth process that we develop together over time and we both make our own unique contributions to each song as we go.

8. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?

GROUNDSTATE:

So far the most difficult thing we’ve had to navigate as a band was losing our original drummer who had been with the band for almost 8 years. There was a bit of a falling out of sorts over studio contributions during the creation of this record, and he ultimately decided to part ways which really threw a huge wrench in the works for us because we’d had the same core lineup for such a long time. Finding a solid replacement for him has proven rather difficult and is still as of the current moment still an ongoing process.

9. With social media having a heavy impact on our lives and the music business in general, how do you handle criticism, haters, and/or naysayers in general? Is it something you pay attention to, or simply ignore?

GROUNDSTATE: Haha I mean there have always been critics and haters in some form or another even before the rise of social media, And thankfully we’re fortunate enough to have not had to deal with very much of that up to this point. But I mean even when I do, the way I see it social media trolls are just the tech age equivalent of that annoying guy in the crowd that always booed and heckled the opening band at a show in the 90’s just to be a dick haha. Either way we don’t pay stuff like that any mind; after all, if someone thinks your band is worth hating on then it also means you’re something worth paying attention to right?

10. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?

GROUNDSTATE: There are definitely different things that we love about both of them. There’s always something to be said for the rewarding feeling of hearing a song slowly come together and take shape for the first time in the studio, that’s always a very exciting time. But on the other hand, the kind of electric energy we get from jamming onstage and engaging with a crowd and seeing people get really into it is just as rewarding, and for us it’s sort of the culmination of the studio process because that’s when we finally get to show everyone the stuff we’ve been working so hard on, and getting to see people hearing it for the first time and really enjoy it is always such a profoundly satisfying feeling as an artist, so I mean the excitement of both situations just kind of go together naturally. It’s all part of the same process.