Florida-based band Sister Hazel is celebrating its 30th anniversary, quite the accomplishment with all five original members still in the band. With their catalog running the gamut from rock to alternative to country releases, a sense of musical rapport and unity pervades all of the band’s music. Their latest album, “Sand, Sea & Crash Debris,” is 10 songs deep and, in the words of bassist Jett Beres, explores the idea that “something beautiful can come from something broken, and that putting back the pieces can create a stronger and more beautiful something than ever before.” We sat down with Beres, drummer Mark Trojanowski, and guitarist/vocalist Andrew Copeland to discuss the amazing new album in detail.
Hi Mark, Jett, and Andrew! Sister Hazel has a terrific new album out in November called “Sand, Sea & Crash Debris.” How did these songs come together and what broad strokes can you tell us about the collection?
Mark Trojanowski: With everyone writing songs in the band, there has been a lot of music written that has not been released. There was a lot of passion around several of these songs, and we brought them into the studio and finally gave them the opportunity to be heard by the fans. As we were in the recording process, guys were also writing in and out of the studio, and several of those songs are on this new record. So there was a good balance of new material and other songs that guys were really passionate about getting them heard.
One of the songs on your new album, “Beautiful Rain,” is really great and stood out to me. What can you tell us about this song? What inspired you to write it and what is it about?
Andrew Copeland: This song is pretty special to me for a couple of reasons. First, it’s one of a collections of songs that I co-wrote with Kyle Jacobs, who passed away recently. Billy Montana was also a writer on this song, and I really love the stuff we come up with together. Two really great writers!! And second, the song has a unique time signature, and it actually switches time signatures throughout the song. It’s kinda cool, because it enforces the idea that there are no rules when it comes to being creative and writing songs. The inspiration for the song was a discussion about relationships, and how we get caught in ruts sometimes and we need some refreshing!!
What was it like recording this album overall? How did this song, in particular, come together?
Mark: We would go up to Nashville and work on two or three songs at a time. We have been working with Ben Jackson for several years now, and during the pandemic he completed construction of a studio on his property. It is a great vibe and a fun space to go make music. We would usually do pre-production on the songs for a few days and then go out and play some shows. We would have some time to listen to what we did in pre-production and then go back to the studio and track those songs.
You asked about “Beautiful Rain.” Like Andrew said, it was a song that he had written with Kyle Jacobs and Billy Montana a while back. Andrew was going to Nashville once a month and writing a lot of songs. The band tends to write a lot of 6/8 ballads, and sometimes really good songs don’t make a record because that slot gets filled by another song. Everyone liked “Beautiful Rain,” and we felt that it needed to be on this record.
What do you hope this album conveys to those who listen to it?
Jett Beres: In a word, hope. This collection of songs came into the studio in a seemingly random way at first. The songs were written at different times. Some were newly written and inspired by the creative process of making a record. And some had been in orbit around our creative sun for a while, but never found a home to land on. Our process in the studio this time seemed to breathe a different kind of energy into the songs we were tracking, and we found ourselves chasing that energy. As a result, these songs started to emerge as having a unified feeling to them thematically. At first listen from song to song, there is a wide range of influence and style. But from the wide-angle lens, we discovered that the record as a whole spoke to us of the real life challenges, joys, and struggles we were each facing at the time. I hope that our listeners feel from this music that something beautiful can come from something broken, and that putting back the pieces can create a stronger and more beautiful something than ever before.
If you look back over your career, you probably feel like quite a different band now than when you began for a number of reasons – life experience, industry experience, studio and performing experience all factoring into that. Do different things inspire you now? Where do you tend to get your biggest inspiration from these days?
Jett: As songwriters, we are students of life. In a way, we are voyeurs, but often our own life experiences get woven into the songs. At this stage of the game, it seems like we are all dealing with a lot of heavy shit. The older you get, it seems the more responsibilities and challenges are thrown our way. No one is exempt from this, but as storytellers, it’s our job to convey these experiences through our music. It’s what connects us to our listeners and grounds us as artists. To be able to be in a band with the same five guys for 30 years, and to have a vehicle to have this cathartic experience together in writing and recording our music and then putting it out into the world, is highly therapeutic. And it’s still really fun!
Songwriting can be a really personal endeavor, yet when you release a song or an album or an EP, you share the music with so many people. How does this make you feel, and is it ever difficult to share songs widely like that?
Andrew: It used to be really difficult, because everything was so precious. I used to take things so personally, and that made things really hard. Now, I understand that everyone is not going to like every song you write, and most of time you have to write 10 bad songs to get to one good one. Don’t get me wrong. It feels great when you finish one, and people tell you how much they connect with that song. I’m always thankful for feedback, and when it’s positive it inspires me to go back and write again!!
What kind of feedback do you get from fans who have connected with the music or had a song impact them in a deep and meaningful way?
Andrew: It’s super rewarding. I have a few songs that people have chosen to be a part of their “special day.” That’s always a huge honor to me. I find a lot of satisfaction in knowing that people connect with something I’ve written enough to attach it to the making of a memory that will last forever.
What has been the most exciting thing to happen for you this year?
Jett: I’ve had a rough year personally. In fact, each one of us in Sister Hazel has had some very significant challenges this year. This record, and being able to put out music that we are still proud of after this long of a career, is really a shining light for us. We have had some great events and great shows this year. The Hazelnuts are as strong and supportive as ever. As 30 years is an incredible milestone, especially with the same five original members, I feel like there’s some things left to do. There’s definitely more music to be made. There are more fan-driven events to be experienced. There are more places to go that we haven’t performed. There’s so much more to do, and that’s what I’m most excited about!
We love live music. Where can fans see you on the road soon?
Mark: We are always playing shows throughout the year. We usually play three to eight shows a month in different parts of the country. In November, we will be heading out for some festivals in Tennessee and Alabama. Then, in December, we always play a run if shows at the House of Blues in Chicago and route some Midwest dates around that.
