Run River North Having ushered in a new era of the band with the
release of Monsters Calling Home, Vol. 1 earlier this spring, the
alternative Los Angeles-based group Run River North are set to embark
on yet another exciting chapter with the second half of that EP
collection, Monsters Calling Home, Vol. 2. With a fistful of their
most ebullient, catchy, and radio-friendly songs to date, the trio -
Alex Hwang (guitar/vocals), Daniel Chae (guitars/vocals), and Sally
Kang (keys/vocals)—have completed their journey into the light,
focused fully on a fresh, joyful sound while embracing their true
communal identity and feeling-driven instincts. And with lead single
“Wake Up” paving their way, it’s clear that 2019 will be looked
upon as the year Run River North truly began. Fully functioning as a
three-piece since the departure of three founding members of the band
in 2016, Hwang, Chae, and Kang have come into their own as a unit,
forging a complementary axis from which to write, record, and play.
Their bond is made even stronger by the level of trust and respect
they share for one another. “We have a really nice perspective of
what it means to be a band now,” Hwang says. “Whether in
songwriting or being a good tour mate, everyone wants to help each
other out and knows how to do that within the group. It’s made for
the perfect environment to make songs.” Seeking to expand not only
their scope and reach but their methods of creation as well, the trio
met with a number of other established musicians for songwriting
sessions and discussions about their art. One such meeting with noted
producer and TV on the Radio co-founder Dave Sitek resulted in a total
re-thinking of their process. “What he had to say about writing and
being an artist was a lot about feeling rather than thinking: ‘Once
you start over-thinking things, you’ve lost the feeling involved’
is how he put it,” Hwang says. “And for me, so much of songwriting
or being a musician had been in my head. What Dave said put us on a
path of trying to write stuff that simply feels good, first and
foremost.” Taking that fresh feeling-driven mentality into other
sessions with artists like Hannah Hooper and Christian Zucconi of
Grouplove, Chris Chu of POP ETC, and Nick Anderson of The Wrecks, Run
River North began to settle into their own comfort zone. Comforted by
learning that all artists share those early feelings of anxiety or
doubt when beginning something new, the band were encouraged to follow
their biggest visions and highest hopes for building a sound that
reflects who they are and where they want to go. During the session
with Anderson in particular, they realized that not only could they
follow their hearts to whatever musical corner of the map they
desired, but something golden was waiting for them there as a reward.
This time, it came in the form of “Wake Up,” their biggest,
boldest, and best song to date. “We’ve always wanted to write
bigger pop songs, but we were unsure of what our voice would be like
in that world,” Hwang says. “This feels like the right time for
‘Wake Up.’ It doesn’t need any explanation to tell you why
it’s a good song. We’ve always been chasing after that. It almost
felt like we were being led by the song, and every time we went in a
new direction we weren’t comfortable with, we just said ‘yes.’
That was the difference: ‘Why not do what we haven’t done
before?’ That shaped the song and is the message of the song as
well.” Guided by Anderson’s propensity to challenge the band with
sonic left turns, the song maintains a playful, free-spirited vibe and
explores another new avenue for Run River North’s lyrical themes:
joy. Lines like “We ain’t got no money but we got lots of time”
and “set heaven on fire” reveal where Hwang and the others are
coming from in their new 2019 skin, and that feeling has already
started being transmitted to their live audiences. “Every time we
play it, it gets an immediate response. Our songs sometimes take so
much emotion to perform but this one feels effortless. It allows us to
stay present and just have a lot more fun while playing. We all can
feel it: this is the song.” While that sentiment will undoubtedly
hold true, “Wake Up” is followed by four other songs that
complement its epic scope with similar vibes and feel. “Monsters”
is a supremely catchy banger co-written with the husband-and-wife pop
duo Vinyl Pinups that is propelled by a frenetic energy and anthemic
chorus. “OK Cool” is a fun, poppy jam that stems from a Michael
Jackson-inspired beat created by Chae, and “I’m Amazing,”
co-written with POP ETC’s Chu, maintains the EP’s level of
bravado, confidence, and exuberant enthusiasm. The closing piano
ballad “Let Me Down” was co-written with producer Derek Fuhrmann
(Andrew McMahon, KYGO, O.A.R.) and ends the record on a sentimental
yet sweet note. Vol. 2 is produced by engineer Miro Mackie, who worked
as the drum tech on the band’s previous full-length, Drinking from a
Salt Pond. With Miro’s assist, the beat-driven sound of the EP and
its attention to sonic details serves as an extension of the joyful,
feeling-based songwriting. For Run River North, that sensibility
serves as their guiding principle and has allowed them to finally
reach the musical heights to which they have always aspired. With the
collaborative, communal effort of Monsters Calling Home, Vol. 2, the
band will surely see themselves atop the airwaves for many years to
come. “To us, the record feels new and youthful and at the same time
very pure and happy,” Hwang says. “That contagious, genuine sense
of joy is something we’ve been wanting to get to, and it’s been
really fun to discover while working with other musicians we respect
and looking inside ourselves as well.” New Dialogue
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02/02/2020 Last update