By
now you’ve probably looked at the header of this article, focused your
eyes on the picture above, recognized the last name, thought it sounded
vaguely familiar, perhaps from a mid-late '90s pop trio, and thought no
way in hell would a music blog that covers local independent rock music
be interviewing one of the Hanson
brothers. Well, ladies and gentlemen, sometimes we like to throw a
little curveball here at WCR. Yes, I did indeed have the opportunity to
talk with Isaac Hanson, the drummer/percussionist and singer for the much
adored and much derided pop group Hanson. No, I was never a fan myself,
but I couldn’t possibly pass up this opportunity after it was presented
in an email. Besides, weren’t you curious/ecstatic to find out that
Hanson is not only still performing, but releasing new material as well?
In fact, they are in town for two nights, tonight and tomorrow, at the House of Blues.
The shows are a part of their Musical Ride Tour which allows fans to
pick an album for them to play live. Time constraints and a rambly Isaac
didn’t allow me to ask all of my questions, but we did have a chance to
talk about the music industry, the band's recent charity work and the
legacy of none other than the infamous "MMMBop."
WCR: You’re probably sick about talking about this song, but I promised I would ask it for a friend. He wants to know if you came up with the concept for "MMMBop" when you were eating peanut butter while you were trying to sing.
WCR: You’re probably sick about talking about this song, but I promised I would ask it for a friend. He wants to know if you came up with the concept for "MMMBop" when you were eating peanut butter while you were trying to sing.
Isaac: Definitely
not. That was definitely not how we came up with "MMMBop" [laughs].
Actually--how we came up with "MMMbop"--we grew up listening to a lot of
'50s and '60s music. We were young kids memorizing late '50s
rock’n’roll stuff, everything from Chuck Berry to Eddie Cochran to
Little Richard. Taylor and I knew how to play piano, but for the most
part the easiest thing for us to do as performers was to get up and
sing. All three of us could do it and we had the ear for harmonies, we’d
just stand there and do it and sing songs we’d memorized. That’s where
it kind of all began 20 years ago. And you know, definitely not sick and
tired of talking about that song--that’s the thing about a song like
"MMMBop" or anything like that when you first burst out onto the
scene--it's just the kind of thing that every band and every artist
hopes for; they hope they will have a song that will be significant and
synonymous with what they do, so that people will care what they do at
all.
What do you think about the Rolling Stone top 10 worst songs of the '90s, a reader’s poll. That one actually made the list.
Oh it did?
What do you think about the Rolling Stone top 10 worst songs of the '90s, a reader’s poll. That one actually made the list.
Oh it did?
Did you heard about that one yet?
My
reaction to that is if being one of the worst songs of all times means
you have a number one in 27 countries then I’m OK with that.
Very good reaction. So you’ve been playing together for about 20 years. You’re all brothers. Has there been a lot of conflicts at all? I’m sure there’s already enough tension just as family members but to be in a band on top of that…
Very good reaction. So you’ve been playing together for about 20 years. You’re all brothers. Has there been a lot of conflicts at all? I’m sure there’s already enough tension just as family members but to be in a band on top of that…
Being
in a band with your brothers is like…guys who are in a band with their
friends or whatever, half the time they’ll say “You know, it’s like
we’re brothers.” And then guys who are in bands with their brothers
probably say something to the effect of “Oh yeah, it’s like being in a
band with your friends” or something. So I think more than
anything…being in a band is kind of beyond any of that stuff. Because
what really makes the band work has nothing to do with whether or not
we’re related. It’s gotten far beyond that a long time ago. Obviously we
were able to begin the band because we were related and even as young
kids were singing together. And that was the part that made the band
work early on because it was easier for us. When you have a
six-year-old, a nine-year-old and an eleven-year-old singing together
and doing a hundred gigs a year, it’s not possible unless you live in
the same house.
I didn’t know this until recently myself, but you guys are involved with a lot of charitable works. I’m curious, is your motivation to do all this, is it just based on compassion or do you feel there is an obligation as an artist to spend time on humanitarian works?
I didn’t know this until recently myself, but you guys are involved with a lot of charitable works. I’m curious, is your motivation to do all this, is it just based on compassion or do you feel there is an obligation as an artist to spend time on humanitarian works?
For
us, the charitable stuff we’ve done, which has primarily been HIV/AIDS
and poverty relief in Africa…that is fueled by a personal experience
that we had while we were traveling through Africa and it really just
felt like there were a lot of tangible things that we could do that
would have a positive impact on the circumstance. We were focused on a
one-on-one kind of basis thing. It’s not purely focused on the numbers,
it’s saying look, if we can help one person’s life, one day at a time,
then that’s what you’re really trying to do, you’re trying to provide a
hand-up to people who need it and who will make good with that
opportunity. Whether it be kids going to school who need shoes, whether
it be kids who don’t have a school and building a school for them,
people who need fresh water, people whose life depends on sanitary
circumstances.
Based
on your experiences, advice for the Hansons of today, to the Justin
Biebers, growing up in the spotlight, having to deal with a cutthroat
music industry. Any advice for anyone going through that?
Well,
everybody has their own circumstances and certainly our circumstances
are unique compared to others and you can never really give a perfect
comparison. One thing I feel like you always have to do, and something
that we’ve stuck by from the beginning, is having a long-term
perspective on things, not being concerned with what is or is not
popular. You have to do what you do and be passionate about it. That’s
where songs like "MMMBop" came from...it's that same kind of passion for
R&B and pop music and all that kind of stuff. I think you have to
stay true to yourself no matter what. I think that’s the first and
foremost thing. Because no one else has to live the career that you
have. Your manager can move on. Your label can move on. Everybody in
your band can move on. You, on the other hand, will always be you.
That’s why if you’re unhappy with what it is that you do, you’re gonna
have trouble. You will feel very frustrated.
Click here for more information and tickets for Hanson's show tonight, September 27 and here for tomorrow, September 28.
Click here for more information and tickets for Hanson's show tonight, September 27 and here for tomorrow, September 28.
NICE
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