Higher Ground Music Festival Artist Preview: The Bell Hours
by Tim Wenger
The Bell Hours are ready to cash in. From what angle, is what they are trying to figure out. Whether it is riding the indie-folk wave that has dominated Denver over the last few years, or front man Klaus Larson’s experiences playing out in California shining a new light on our scene, one this is clear- 2015 is poised to be a big year for the Denver five piece. We’ll be putting their souls on display August 21-22 at Higher Ground Music Festival, so we thought we’d give the guys a chance to speak out beforehand.
CMB: First things first. Give us the story of the band.
TBH: Klaus Larson, the songwriter and producer of the music, started the Bell Hours. He had compiled a list of songs over the last couple years that he had written on the side of other groups he was performing in. He teamed up with Joseph Chudyk on Drums to record the first album. Though The Bell Hours went through several line up’s since then, the current members are Klaus Larson (Vocals, Guitar), David Goodheim (Lead Guitar), Austin Trotter (Bass), and Joseph Chudyk (Drums). They’ve been together through the second album’s release late last year and are still together.
CMB: How is the process of gaining traction in Denver? Is the scene there very supportive, or have you guys felt that you’ve had to claw your way up?
TBH: We’ve found support mostly in our fellow musicians in Denver. There are many groups that we have supported in the indie rock scene that have supported us back. The most successful shows were made through teamwork and audience members have noticed this teamwork. When groups come together regularly this gives the feeling of belonging to a scene that musicians and fans both need. For playing for two years here in Denver I think we’ve had a steady increase in success. We’ve definitely gotten a lot more notice this year so far than last.
CMB: What direction do you see indie rock heading this year?
TBH: We’re not sure where it’s heading, but we know where we’d like it to go. For us the big area for development in the Denver Indie Rock scene, is in diversifying the live performances. Making them bigger and better. Meaning more impactful, either through developing show effects like lighting and other visuals, or in working better with venues to get the sounds bigger and better sounding live. There are a lot of great songwriters in Denver and what we as a band are looking for is the ability to provide greater live performances along with our fellow other groups.
CMB: Other than HGMF, what is The Bell Hours up to this year?
TBH: We’ve been doing about two shows a month in Denver, one a month in Boulder, and the occasional Fort Collins show. On top of this we’ve participated in supporting the Denver Handmade/Homemade Market and the UMS Festival. We’ve supported other local groups a few times this year in the promotion of their own music, opening and supporting both Clouds and Mountains’ and Glowing House’s EP releases.
CMB: What is the best place to check out your tunes?
TBH: We have our own web page; www.thebellhoursmusic.com. There are links to the music and where to purchase it. It is also on Spotify, iTunes Match, and Google Play to be streamed.
Category: Buzzworthy
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