Articles

Ruth, Roving reporter

FReeZA Presents: Heroes for Hire

[listen to "Bright Lights in Paradise" by Heroes for Hire - lyrics at the bottom of this article]

Out of Sydney comes Heroes For Hire, a pop punk four-piece that have established themselves as an impressively solid and popular young band since their beginnings in 2006. Their hard work and commitment have seen them tour extensively to support some of Australia's biggest bands. With a new record and video in the works, vocalist Brad Smith took some time out to chat to us.

Please introduce us to each band member and what they bring to the band.

• Brad Smith - Vocals, doesn't bring a hell of a lot
• Duane Hazell - Guitar/Vocals, brings the brains
• Mat Hawthorne - Bass/Vocals, brings bad hair and baggy shorts
• Lee McGarrity - Drums, brings a ton of verbal abuse towards me (Brad)

How did Heroes For Hire form? What year? What is the story to how you started out?

We formed in 2006 when two other bands went the way of the dodo, and from the scraps we formed what you see before you today. Basically we never grew out of pop-punk so we thought we may as well give it a crack.

Who were your musical influences when you first started? Do you feel as though they have changed at all over time?

Blink 182, New Found Glory, MxPx and Fall Out Boy, and no, our influences have not changed (neither has our dress sense).

What role did FReeZA play in helping you out?

They were kind enough to put us on the 2010 Push Over Festival in Melbourne, as well as a bunch of other one off regional shows. We're also playing in late August with House Vs. Hurricane and Confession as part of the Escape To Oz Tour.

Your debut album Life Of The Party reached #3 on the AIR charts in May. Did you ever expect it to be so huge? What was it like when you found out it had gotten into the top 10?

I didn't actually know it charted that high until you asked the question (I kid, I joke). We were just stoked that the kids who've been listening to us and checking out our shows were excited enough to grab the record. Can't say enough nice things about the kids that support our band!

Your first single "Bright Lights in Paradise" won you the only Australian spot at the Soundwave Festival in Sydney in 2010. What was it like playing with so many huge international bands?

We weren't expecting many kids to be there that early, but our stage was packed by the time we played. Crowd went nuts and sung along to "Bright Lights…" which was awesome and then we got to do an on-air interview with the awesome people from Triple J. Spent the rest of the day watching Paramore, All Time Low, Alexisonfire, Four Year Strong and Set Your Goals, and pretty much everyone we met were super nice and were cool to hang out with.

Tell us about your Australian tour promoting Life Of The Party.

We've been lucky enough to tour with our friends in Fireworks (USA), as well as playing at Soundwave, Push Over and Come Together 2010. We recently completed a national tour with Boys Like Girls (USA) and Hot Chelle Rae (USA), and we're heading out in August with House Vs. Hurricane and September with The Wonder Years (USA). Stay tuned, coz we'll be announcing a new single, video and some special shows shortly!

As well as Soundwave, your band played at Sydney's Come Together Festival. Can you tell us what it was like playing alongside so much Australian talent? Did you get any good advice from the big bands?

It was awesome to spend more time with our good friends House Vs. Hurricane, as well as playing with Frenzal Rhomb and Strung Out, who we've all loved since we were kids. Once again, every band and everyone involved in the show was awesome to us. Don't enough nice things to say about it!

As a young band, what is the best piece of advice you've been given? What advice would you have for younger bands hoping to be successful?

Play as many shows as possible and tour as often as you can. Play each show as if there is 1000 people regardless of the turnout. Those people have paid to see you so you owe it to them to put on the best show possible.

What are you guys working on now? What can we expect from you at the Escape To Oz tour?

We are currently writing our second record, we can't wait to tell everyone who we'll be recording it with (so keep an eye on our site). We're also putting together a new video for a second single! Oh, and of course we're on the road in August and September. For The Escape To Oz tour expect a lot of singing along, lots of good times and plenty of on-stage hilarity with all our friends.

Check out Heroes for Hire on MySpace at www.myspace.com/heroesforhirerock (new window). For more information about the FReeZA program, check out www.freeza.vic.gov.au (new window), and for more articles about Arts & music, check out our Articles archive.

Lyrics: "Bright Lights In Paradise" by Heroes for Hire

Turn it up head for the bright lights,
we'll take a chance with no regret,
we're gonna drive straight through this sunrise just in time to watch it set.
As we look down from these rooftops,
to luminescent streets below,
we'll take a second to remind ourselves we're on our own.

We're the soundtrack to the nights we don't remember
with the friends that we'll never forget
and it's times like these we wish would last forever,
but all good things must end.

Take me back to the bright lights,
somewhere just past the sunrise,
someone please take me away.

As we laid back by the ocean
and disapeared into the tide,
we watched the streets light up like a million stars into the darkest sky.

It's gonna be a long drive home,
and now it's all over but the memories remain
(how could we ever forget)
and as darkness falls,
we're tired and worn but we'll do it all again.

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