The Red Sneaker Diaries →{treehouse talk.} @hernameisEL
#152 ↔ Mister, What Have You To Say?
After hearing the music this band produces it was hard for me to understand why they are still college students when it’s clear they should be somewhere opening on the European leg of a Radiohead tour. They are just too big to be unknown. Period. The music is soulful and fulfilling, thoughtful and organic, planned and improvised. Alex Smith, Bryan Carey, Kyle Dobbs, and Grant Wallace, (the latter two band mates are also members of BABY BABY) have discovered the method to tame the madness, gave it harmony and became Treehouse Talk, the musical movement.
The inaugural 5 track EP Nightmare Balloon was released in November of 2009, written and arranged by Treehouse Talk and produced by Nick Spezia of Ocean Way Studios (Nasheville, TN). As far as I am concerned Nightmare Balloon could have been realeased as a debut album. Tracks like “Bloom” and “O Child” offer an unforeseen depth while “White Flag Out The Window (smile)” rounds out the album with an upbeat joy about letting go of the drama and perhaps even the past.
Happenstance or divine design? I am not sure why I came across Treehouse Talk, all I know is one day I logged in to the glorious book of faces and saw on my homepage that my new friend Grant Wallace posted something to a fan page that goes by the name of Treehouse Talk. Needless to say I clicked. Four clicks and a bottle of Parrot Bay later I was stretched out on the floor of my apartment listening to Treehouse Talk’s myspace page and pondering the meaning of the universe. (Sidenote: The drunken stupor never actually happened… to me…)
“[Treehouse Talk is] Mind blowing, skin bumping goodness.”
-Grant Wallace, Treehouse Talk
Below the jump is your (re)introduction (interview, pics, media, EP download) to the melodies of Treehouse Talk, an unknown gem.
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Nightmare Balloon EP
DOWNLOAD EP HERE
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Look out for the next entry into the RED SNEAKER DIARIES…
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Treehouse ↔ Talks {L‘Interview}
Introduce yourself.
Alex: My name is Alex Smith. I am the lead singer and a guitar player for Treehouse Talk. I write music.
Grant: Grant Wallace. I play drums and try to make people happy while playing them.
Kyle: Kyle Dobbs, 21, I play bass and backup vocals.
Bryan: Bryan Carey, Physics Major at UWG (University of West Georgia), Guitar.
How would you categorize Treehouse Talk’s style of music?
Alex: I place it under the genre “psychedelic/indie/folk”
Bryan: I’ve never been able to put a label on it because I feel our songs differ from each other a good deal, but I think Alex sums it up as well as one can: psychedelic/indie/folk.
Grant: Mind blowing, skin bumping goodness.
How did Treehouse Talk come together?
Grant: I believe I started first playing with Alex and then Kyle showed up one day and added in the bass.
Kyle: For me it all started when I first met A.P. Smith at a BFT that was hosted at 101b. We went to a party at the Yellow House one night to see a friends’ band play. When they started to play the bassist started to kinda wig out, so the lead singer started to play the bass for him and somehow the bass was way out of tuned. I ended up tuning it and playing 3 songs with them.
Bryan: I was added as the fourth and final member one September evening at The Alleycat after an improv shin-dig with BG, Kyle and friends as Alex and Grant approached me with the offer to join the band. I had played with Kyle at a few random places during improv jam sessions; had met Grant before at a few parties; and had heard (and enjoyed) Alex play a few times at The Alleycat. But other than that I hadn’t heard of Treehouse Talk until they approached me. I think Alex’s still attached Bonnaroo bracelet from the summer is what sealed my decision to join the band.
What is your preshow ritual?
Grant: Well last night I gave Kyle a high five and smiled at Bryan and Alex.
Kyle: I would have to say a drink and laughter!
Alex: I usually start off making a tea the day before and drinking it the day of, followed by water, and a few shots of whiskey when entering the venue. As far as the band goes, we hang out… pump each other up, and clear up any questions we have for each others about highlighted parts of our performance.
Bryan: I like to get a little yoga in beforehand. It wakes me up, calms me down, loosens me up and prepares me to be my best each passing moment… We also just hang out as a band, joke around and make each other laugh. It’s about having fun!
Who are your musical inspirations?
Kyle: 311, Incubus, Modest Mouse, and the list goes on and on.
Bryan: The Beatles, Tool, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Mars Volta, Primus, Mike Patton, Radiohead.
Grant: Explosions in the Sky, Lydia, Phoenix, Kings of Leon, and My Morning Jacket.
Alex: Jeff Buckley. I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like without my introduction and discovery of his music. I recommend him to everyone. Others… Ryan Adams, My Morning Jacket, Kings of Leon (who doesn’t listen to Kings of Leon especially these days?), The Doors, my good buddy Tedo Stone, Radiohead, Motown – Al Green, Otis, etc.
What new music are you into right now?
Bryan: New to me at the moment is actually old music because I’ve been in a huge Beatles fling, listening to all their songs and albums, soaking it all up, analyzing what they did from a songwriter’s perspective. I’m also really digging the Easy Go All-Stars’ reggae cover of the Beatles album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Kyle: Ke$ha, Motion City Soundtrack, The Cab, Death Cab for Cutie, Andy McKee, John Mayer, Drake, Flo Rida, Black Eyed Peas, Baby Baby, Treehouse Talk.
Alex: Monsters of Folk, Company of Thieves, Vampire Weekend.
Grant: There’s this band called Blind Pilot that this really neat girl Shelby got me into so I highly recommend them.
Dead or alive what musicians/artists would you like to work with?
Grant: Explosions in the Sky! And I think Sia would put on a stellar show.
Kyle: Cyndi Lauper, Lionel Richie, O’ Brother and Roses for Emily
Bryan: All of the Beatles, Omar Roderiguez-Lopez, Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix.
Alex: I love working with my band. It’s incredible what an idea can turn into the more we push it together. So to answer that question… Grant Wallace, Kyle Dobbs, and Bryan Carey. It’d be cool to have a lot more time to work on guitar ideas with Bryan but the world is so busy it’s hard not to buy into the chaos surrounding you.
What is your label situation? Do want to be picked up by a major or go indie all the way to the album?
Alex: No label. Not yet anyways. It’d be nice to get picked up by a major label because it would make it a lot easier to do this full time and survive doing it.
Grant: Unsigned. We’ll take whatever we can get as long as we don’t compromise any of our integrity.
Bryan: Wherever the wave goes… I’ll be there.
Alex: The goal is to be able to afford sharing our music with the people that love it, and being able to get that music to them.
How do your songs come together? Is there a resident writer or composer in the group? What producers have you worked with?
Alex: I usually have a song, or part of a song, and bring that into practice with the band. The amazing part is the transformation of that complete song or an idea into something much greater. We recently recorded our first EP, “Nightmare Balloon,” in Nashville, Tennessee under producer Nick Spezia. Nick had an understanding of what sort of band we were, our sound, and was super easy to work with. We ended up live tracking the entire thing to capture the energy of a live show. We count our blessings with you, Nick.
Bryan: As a band though we’re getting good at feeding off of each other and adding just the right thing to the song. As most of the songs were already written and well-rehearsed by the band before my arrival, I came in and improvised along with the songs until I had found what works for the song and what we all agree sounded good. Many of my guitar parts were officially established after working on my parts with Alex.
How did you come to create “O Child”? {The Fave}
Alex: O Child was written in the early fall of 2007 about a friend of mine who was raped by her brother as a child. I couldn’t stop thinking about her pain and couldn’t imagine how it had affected her life. This song takes a literal story and metaphorically describes the event but also offers redemption through the compassion that I, as well as the listener, can embody through sharing the knowledge of such a hurtful event. It’s a playful song which makes it ironic to such seriousness. But isn’t life ironic? I think the playfulness in some of this song also speaks to redemption by the feeling one gets by sharing such serious news with the people they love; sort of a relief by sharing something that has been held in for some time.
Bryan: As for what I added to the song: after working with Alex, I came up with the guitar parts that I play along with it. My instrumental ending parts were inspired by what the band had already laid down. I had somewhat of an idea of what I do for that part from practice, but for the most part, what you hear on the CD was all spontaneous creation. In fact, I had to go back and learn a lot of the things I did on the album to prepare for the live show.
Alex, your voice is remarkable, how long have you been singing? Where did your passion for music come from?
Alex: I’ve been trying to sing my whole life. I’ve always loved music, so I’ve always sang. I didn’t really start concentrating on my voice until I was a senior in high school which was 5 years ago… I can’t really pinpoint where my passion started from… maybe Disney sing-a-long tapes… maybe blaring Queen and Journey in the truck with my dad. I had a band when I was in the fifth grade… not a good band, but a band.
I took piano lessons as a kid, then I started making beats and rapping over my beats, around age 16 I started valuing the piano again. Piano became my concentration in the start of my major in Music which taught me music theory and ear training. I started playing guitar and singing more as I came to college. I joined choir, UWG’s Opera Workshop and Musical Theatre, and vocal techniques class. I’m still very new to singing but I’m completely fascinated with it.
Kyle and Grant, you guys are also in BABY BABY, how do you balance your time?
Kyle: What time? All my time is for music lol. But really we practice on different days so there are no worries and we never have both bands play on the same week.
Grant: Well the hardest thing right now is just finding a practice space so it’s actually not that difficult right now…
Kyle and Grant, The two bands are also very different musically; do you find yourself leaning to one style more than the other?
Grant: Woah woah, tough question Amber. I’m gonna plead the 5th on this one. : )
Kyle: Nope I just love playing my bass 
As far as what you are doing now, are you working on an EP follow-up to “Nightmare Balloon” or are you creating on your first LP?
Alex: We’re pushing this new EP as well as continuing writing while we push what we have to more people.
Bryan: We’re working on getting our name and our music out there at the moment, but an LP shouldn’t be too far on the horizon.
Up next: What’s on the horizon of your music career?
Alex: Hopefully, a new full length album, which means, “back to the drawing board.” That’s the fun part. Creating.
Grant: More shows, more shows, more shows!
Kyle: And maybe a small tour.
I am a firm believer that you should thank people and tell them you love them while they can still appreciate it. Is there anyone you’d like to acknowledge for believing in you?
Grant: Awesome question! I’ve felt this urge now when we’re playing live where I have to leave the drums and come up to the mic just to tell everyone how much fun I’m having and it’s all because of them.
Kyle: AP Smih’s baby’s mama, Devon Black, and the World.
Alex: My baby mama, Devon Black… Adam Smith, Matt Sherling, Jessica Sheffield, Garrett Howell, Sam Koon, anyone who has ever listened to me play on the tree stumps at the lofts, Fontez Brooks, Brian Crotty and Alley Cat, wow, there’s so many, Billy Lyons, Tedo Stone, my parents, the list could go on and on…
Bryan: I’d like to thank the band for asking me to join in with them. I’d also like to thank you for interviewing us. Its people like you and our friends and family that continue to give us support for doing what we love. So I’d like to say thank you to everyone in our lives and to those that were in our lives and to those that will be. Thank you.
What mark do you want to leave on the world?
Grant: Making people smile because of what I do.
Kyle: “S.BJ”
Bryan: I would like to just live, love and be happy. Whatever mark comes of this life, and of our band’s life, is exactly the mark it should be.
Alex: A box set full of songs that people have made love to, laughed to, smiled to, cried to, danced to, nodded their head to, screamed to, acted like fools to, related to, and gathered some sort of inspiration from.
How can fans and future fans gain access to your music?
Alex: Myspace is so big right now…. www.myspace.com/treehousetalkmusic
Grant: Or check the Facebook page!
Any last words?
Alex: Thank you for taking time out to complete this interview. Also… love, and accept love. And question everything.
Grant: Thanks to everyone if you read this far! Hopefully I’ll see you at a show soon?
Kyle: For the 2nd time around Thank you!
Bryan: Thanks!
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{The MYSPACE}
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{The Facebook}
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