by Lexi Bissonnette
Local rock band, Memphis Hat, will be releasing their debut full length album on November 30th. The band, comprised of JD Dronson, Matt McGovern, Rory Flynn and Steve Clarke, formed late 2008 in State College. With an unusual name, all Dronson would say was that it involved an unfortunate incident with a hat in Memphis. Now, it’s this band’s name.
But this band is more than just a rock band. According to Clarke, the band’s drummer, it is a mixture of many styles from soul to country twang and, of course, rock and roll. “The album was made to portray the songs in a more refined way than our live show,” he explains.
The release of their album was the band’s main goal for 2013. Recording it was a dream come true and they all agreed with this sentiment from Clarke. “For five days we were all living out the dream. We were all focused solely on creating the album…it was a culmination of all the work we had put in during the year and was exactly what we all wanted to be doing at the same time.”
According to McGovern, listeners can expect to learn a lot about the band by playing the entire album. “It’s a record of songs that we believe encapsulates how the band was feeling and interacting with each other at that time.” So, knowing music and pairing it with Clarke’s comment about it being the best time of their lives, listeners are probably in for an upbeat rock album.
With the release only a few days away the boys are certainly ready for it. ” We are looking forward to people hearing what we’ve put together. We’re proud of the music that’s on the album from start to finish,” says Flynn. “Also, [we have] some anxiety about how people will react to the album and whether or no they’ll enjoy what they hear.”
With their album dropping soon, that begs the question – what’s coming in 2014? Clarke was more than happy to answer. “More shows, more fans, more recording.”
A final message from Memphis Hat- stop by their album release show Saturday November 30th at 8:30 at World Cafe Live
