The idea that our world is the result of musical vibrations and clang phenomena is an old one – fortunately, there a bands like Glad Hearts that, by means of their musical sense and harmonious interplay, remind us of the truth of this philosophical perception. While listening to this New Jersey based four piece it may easily happen that you find yourself in another world where bells are broken or “a needle melts wax”. Although at times melancholic and thought-provoking, Glad Hearts, as their name suggests, succeed in bringing forth the joy and naturalness inherent in music, shining with a uniquely diverse and dense sound derived from a huge instrumental assortment that brings the fantastic into the everyday. Their country-tinged indie folk rock album “The Oak and the Acorn” is a promising and multifaceted output – you’re in for a treat!

Since when does Glad Hearts exist and how did you guys meet?
The short version:
Glad Hearts started as me and a handheld tape recorder a long while back. We've been through a few iterations since then. John and I started playing together about three years ago, and the four of us (Me, John, Cass, and Mal) have been playing together as Glad Hearts since March of 2009.

The longer version:
John and I met in New Brunswick about three years ago from a flier I put up looking for band mates. For a few years we played with a rotating cast of other musicians. Our buddy, Jimmy Valentine (who played drums on The Oak and the Acorn) would play with us live when he could. For a lot of shows, though, it would be just me and John. John would use this special set-up where he could play drums, bass, and keys all at the same time. We always wanted it to sound like a full band, even when it was just the two of us.

We first met Cass and Mal when we played at Junkyard Palace, their old house in New Brunswick. They were playing in another band at the time,but we stayed in touch and played a few shows together. After their old band stopped playing out, we all started playing together in Glad Hearts. That's been really great. I love to play as a full band, and I love going on tour with three awesome friends.

Let’s talk about your first full-length album “The Oak and the Acorn”. How long did you work on it?

The honest answer would be since I came home from my first DIY show at 13
and started trying to write songs.

Another answer would be that I started writing most of those songs around January of 2008 we started tracking in June of 2008 and put the record out in March of 2009. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done, but at the same time it's one of the things I'm most proud of doing, and I can't wait to do it all over again with the next record.

What was the best moment while working on it?

That's a tough one, and I don't think I could give just one answer. For me, one of my favorite parts was seeing and hearing other peoples' contributions to the song skeletons I wrote. I wrote and demoed most of the songs with just me and an acoustic guitar, but we really didn't want to make a singer-songwriter record, so I loved it when everybody else on the record wrote their parts and played them.

Hearing the rough mixes for the first time was really cool for me, too, because that too was other people putting their marks on the songs. We made a conscious choice to try to use production technology as a creative part of the songs, so it was exciting to hear how John and the other engineers involved did that. A lot of times John would take the lead there. I'd sometimes favor a more conservative mix with less production or tinkering, and John would usually say, "Let's experiment." I'm glad he did! I didn't know John had been practicing the saw as much as he had, so when he brought that out and was able to track these saw parts in just a few takes, that was really impressive to me.

We were in the studio on the 4th of July, and the studio where we recorded is right next to the river in Williamsburg. When it got dark we climbed up the fire escape onto the roof and had front-row seats for the fireworks. There was also a ton of just general fooling around and having fun while making the record. Jimmy and John are two of my best friends, so playing with them was a blast for me. We would record for crazy long hours. After sixteen hours in the studio we'd get pretty punchy and pretty much everything seemed hilarious.

What’s your favorite song on the album and why?

I couldn't pick a favorite. "Your Heart is a Muscle the Size of Your Fist" is my probably favorite to play live because it's loud and John and Cass do double drumming together when we do it live.

As far as recorded versions, people comment on "Nothing If We're Not Moving" a lot. I like Bethany's vocals on that, and now that Mal is in the band, I'd love to do more male/female vocals. I also like the tremolo Matt Shane threw on the guitar. A few people have told me their interpretations of the story in that song, and it's always different than the story I had in mind when I wrote it. I like that the song's open to interpretation in that way.

You guys create a very dense sound using a whole range of instruments, for example banjo, accordion, mandolin and trumpet. How did you find your distinctive sound?

First, thank you for saying that. In answer to your question, though: Almost wholly by accident. We tried out as many different things as we could and went with whatever served each song best. It ended up being a big mess of different instruments. It means now we have to bring a ton of gear with us when we tour, but I think it's worth it. We get great exercise carrying it all.

What are the unique talents of each band member?
Everyone in the band is a multi-instrumentalist, so that is great because we can change up instruments in the middle of a set (or song).

Mallory plays keyboard and accordion. She also has the most classical training out of any of us. John, Cass, and I all came to playing music through the guitar, so it's cool to have Mal's perspective as a keyboard player. She knows the names of all the notes and can remind us that a B sharp is the same as a C flat when we guitar players get confused about that. Mal can sing, too, and it forces me to try to be a better singer and it's more fun for me to sing when I have somebody to sing along with. Mallory's a visual artist as well, and she's done some really great posters and handbills for us.

John is a great all-around multi instrumentalist, and he's our producer, too. He has a great handle on all the technical aspects of our sound, both live and in the studio. Many a time on tour, he's been able to jury rig a PA when the sound guy didn't show up, or set it up so we can play in someone's bedroom and the people standing in the kitchen can still hear the vocals. In the studio, he's totally in charge of how everything gets done. I wouldn't have the first idea of how to work all that gear.

Cass plays a ton of different instruments as well, so he has no problem popping out from behind the drums to play banjo or mandolin or pretty much whatever else. Cass has played in a ton of different bands with pretty varied styles, so when we're working on a song, Cass is often the one who says, "what if we try this…" and the song is usually better for it.

Me, I write the basic skeletons of the songs, and I write the lyrics.