Baltimore-based Moraine is a heavy alternative rock quartet. The band draws inspiration from the far reaches of 90s alternative rock, emo, and hardcore; their sound is anchored by huge guitars, earnest vocals, and an airtight rhythm section. It is a raw distillation of years of experience colliding with a bold step forward.
Moraine’s upcoming debut album’s lead single, “Life In This Haunted House,” is the sound of them getting things going quickly. It perfectly captures the band’s propensity for blending driving riffs, earworm melodies, and earnest, intensely emotional lyrics. It was produced and mixed by Phillip Odom (Code Orange, Turnover, La Dispute).
The song tells the story of Jason Brohm, a guitarist and singer, and his grandmother, who raised him from an early age and bought a house for them to live in until Jason moved out when he was an adult. She remained there up until she received a diagnosis of advanced vascular dementia and had to relocate to an assisted living facility. ‘Life In This Haunted House’ is about returning to the house the artist grew up in and finding it completely silent and devoid of life, as well as the eerie feeling that comes with such an experience, according to Jason. He adds, “There are only memories left, both good and bad. I keep hoping that my grandmother will just appear and give me a hug, but I know that won’t happen. The lyrics of the song are about accepting the past and figuring out how to move on with your life. It’s about watching a house literally fall apart, just like the mental state of a loved one.” 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?
MORAINE: We hail from Baltimore, MD. We were brought together by the need to rock and shake the earth. Tanner and Jason were in the band Solitary Set together. After that band fell apart we wanted to keep playing together, but go in a different direction. We chose the name Moraine for the new project. Jason was playing with Drew in the band Still Mountains and Drew expressed interest in being the bassist. Through him and his connections we got Chance on Drums.
2. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘MORAINE’?
MORAINE: We chose the name Moraine because we feel like our musical lives were brought together by life moving on and everything falling into place. We are what life has left in its path. Moraine is material left behind by a moving glacier.
As far as musical influences, we are heavily influenced by alternative and post-hardcore bands like Quicksand, Hum, Failure, Shiner, and Sparta. Our listening taste is diverse so you would likely hear influences we haven’t listed here. We always love hearing what a fan/listener hears when they listen to our music. Reach out to us on our socials and tell us what influences you hear in our songs!
3. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
MORAINE: Our music can be described as loud, dense, and dynamic. Coming from a background playing in hardcore, post-hardcore, and emo bands, the lyrics and emotion behind them are a key focus in the songs. Most of the songs have driving riffs, earworm melodies, and earnest, deeply emotional lyrics.
4. 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?
MORAINE: Jason: Honestly I mostly create for myself. Since childhood I’ve always put my feelings into music and it’s always something that’s been important to me. It’s helped me get through many tough times in my life and has also kept me alive and a sane person. My life is in my music. If people like it and connect with it, it’s a bonus.
MORAINE:
Typically, every song starts with a well-developed idea on guitar from Jason or Tanner. That may be a verse and a chorus part recorded as a demo and shared with the rest of the band. From there we typically develop and finish the song together while rehearsing in the room together. Once the music is mostly finished, we usually will make a demo and Jason will then write lyrics to it. Other additions of leads and vocal harmonies usually come along as we play the song more at practice. While most of the ideas start with Jason or Tanner, it is a group effort to make it a Moraine song. Everyone brings their own unique addition to the sonic creation of each song.
6. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
MORAINE:
Mostly it has been the challenge of just keeping a band together and a project going. Beyond the interpersonal challenges of working with other creative minds, as time goes on and life goes on, it becomes more and more difficult to find the time to get in a room together and create music. Even though a few of us in Moraine have young kids (collectively we have 9 kids!), we have a good balance and dedication to the project. We are hopeful that this band will be a band that stays together for many, many years to come!
7. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
MORAINE:
We just wrapped up the recording of our debut album, and for many of us it is the most excited we have been of any music we have written and recorded. We cannot wait to share the finished album with everyone.
8. 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?
MORAINE:
While it can be hard to ignore the haters, we usually follow the way of Jay Z. As he said, “You gotta get that dirt off your shoulder”. We mostly create music as a vessel for our emotions and as a way to express that, so in a way it is more for us then the fans. That said, of course we love to make music that people will hopefully enjoy and identify with.
9. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?
MORAINE:
We love the process of creating, recording, and producing the music we release, but ultimately it is the personal connection through live performance that we really love.
10. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?
MORAINE: While the songs we create are typically quite personal in nature, once that song is out in the wild for people to hear and experience, the song is theirs really. It is certainly up for interpretation and can become whatever they want it to mean to them.
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Photo credits: Matthew Smith