Ted Hallows
American Head Charge
RockRevolt Magazine’s Ace Sims had the opportunity to sit down with Ted Hallows, guitarist for American Head Charge. They discussed the new album Tango Umbrella set to release on March 25th, the upcoming tour and much more.
How you going bud?
Ted: I’m alright how you doing Ace?
I’m good man, you at home getting ready for the tour.(this interview was conducted the day before the news that AHC was not going to be doing the European tour)
Ted: Just working on tunes, getting the set list together trying to figure out what we’re going to be doing.
You guys are going to be heading over to Europe for a tour and an album release party.
Ted: Yeah for sure man looking forward to it
I got the album yesterday in my email, I have been listening to it ever since. It is a killer album so good.
Ted: Great man I am glad you enjoyed it.
The album will release on March 25th.
Ted: That’s right March 25th on Napalm Records.
You also have a video that should be dropping soon.
Ted: Yes sir it is in the works. We released our lyrical video for Perfectionist and we have a new video in the works for Let All The World Believe. Its looking awesome, it’s getting there
We have seen a few teaser pic’s out there. I don’t want to say it’s futuristic, but there has been some pretty crazy pic’s.
Ted: It is totally dark and apocalyptic for sure
Is it following the theme you have got with Tango Umbrella, the military theme.
Ted: There are some military elements to it, some of what I would call futuristic military elements and then it touches on like some A Clockwork Orange type of screwed up world
How do you like the whole video shooting process.
Ted: You know I honestly have not been involved in it. This is more of a telling a story, a cinematic production. We left a lot of the creative control up to the director. We reviewed the treatments and signed off on them and basically let him do his thing and he has been sending us edits of it.
Let’s talk about how this album came forth. You guys put together a very successful Indiegogo campaign.
Ted: Man it been a long time coming almost two years, we did not think it would take this long, they say good things come to those who wait
I do have a few of those perks you guys offered during the campaign.
Ted: Thank you, so you’re one of the guys that helped make this happen. Yeah we basically started the crowd funding campaign around this time two years ago actually and we budgeted out everything we needed for renting the house we all lived in, to renting the studio, we recorded at Third Sky Recording Studio down in Kentucky. Basically we worked on it seven days a week for two months straight before we hit the road for a European tour. We didn’t give ourselves enough time so the record had to be done across a few other studios between touring and that’s what really put a lot of delay in the project
I thought it was great that you guys offered the perks that you did, I may have a drum head or two, and some sticks and picks.
Ted: Thanks man, I really enjoyed the Indiegogo campaign. I think it really brought me closer to everybody that supported us. It was just really a great, great experience. It was so cool to see people from around the world pre ordering the record and that they have not forgot about the band. We met and exceeded our goal which really helped us out; it was just a great surprise.
So what was it like laid up in a house for a couple months in a house with those dudes.
Ted: It was a lot of fun man; it was a lot of fun. We had some really good times together; it was a great bonding experience for me. It was all work though, we really never went out and explored Kentucky at all, seven days a week man we were commuting back and forth from the house to the studio. We would get up; different guys would take turns cooking breakfast. Justin is a great cook, Cameron is a good cook, I think Chad and Karma cooked, even Chris. You know I think everyone cooked except for me honestly because I suck at cooking. I can make a mean PB&J but that’s about it. Most of the time we ate at this burger place across the street from the studio, every now and then someone would cook and that would be nice
Is Justin going to be out on this leg of the tour. I know we missed him last year.
Ted: For sure, that’s the plan. I think he had to drop like ¾ of the way through, but it’s the plan, and as far as I know, Justin is back.
That’s great man. I know on five of the shows last year you had Aaron Zilch set in for him.
Ted:Â I love Aaron, he is such a great guy and he is one of the original guys. Cameron calls them the dynamic duo, and I know if something were to ever come up he could jump in and be in there right away. Like Cameron said they kind of pass the baton back and forth to each other so we always have the keyboard/samples covered.
So you have now done the Shoot EP and now your first full length album Tango Umbrella, how are things going, you enjoying being in the band.
Ted: Yeah man, it’s like anything. I am three years in now, it’s like a family, it’s like a marriage. I love these guys like my own brothers, we have got to know each other really well. We have had our good times and our bad times like any other relationship but you know it’s been great. I would not change anything for the world. Like I said I love these guys like brothers, it’s a lot of hard work. People think that’s it’s a lot of partying and fun, but it is quite the opposite. All of the traveling, the being away from your family and your loved ones, it takes a toll on you when you are out for an extended amount of time. Music is my passion, I love playing the guitar, I love traveling. I wouldn’t want to be doing it with anyone other than these guys, their all like my brothers.
I was surprised there were not any of the tracks from Shoot on Tango Umbrella.
Ted: You know some people had mentioned that to us early on, and it’s not a bad idea. I just think we wanted to come at this fresh with all new songs and leave Shoot where it was, as our independently released EP. You can still grab it on iTunes and Spotify. We wanted to release 11 new tunes for Tango, go in there with a fresh clean slate and work on all new songs.
The styles are totally different; Shoot and Tango are defiantly two different albums. So were some of the songs for Tango already in the can from when the band was on hiatus a few years back or is this mostly new material.
Ted: Some of the material on Tango was songs that had been written a while ago and some of it is brand new material that was written on the spot in the studio. I know our first single Let All The World Believe was written around the time of the band getting back together around 2011. I know there is some archive footage of the band working on it their first time back in the studio and they built upon it. There are songs that Justin and Chad had worked on years ago that they brought to the forefront. Chad had a lot of like skeleton structures of songs put together. Cameron came in and had songs that he had fully written. He had the music and lyrics, melodies, head written everything. Some songs he came in and worked with Chad and Justin on laying over lyrics and melodies. Karma contributed to the songwriting process as well. Some of the material had already been written going into the studio and some of the material was written right there on the spot. I know Perfectionist, the lyric video and Cameron wrote fully. I wish we had, had more time. Like I said we were backed up in the studio and then had to leave for Europe. There were a lot of great sounds coming out of there, just wish we had more time.
Suffer Elegantly is such a great song. A King Amongst Men is such a heavy song, and I am sure about Bryan.
Ted: Cameron and Justin wrote that for Bryan. That song still makes me well up when I hear it, it’s a great song and a great tribute for him. I have played it for friends that don’t know about the history of the band, and just listening to it, really connect to it because it’s a song about losing someone you love. Everyone can relate to that. I have had people who have never heard our music listen to it and just tear up because it is just a beautiful and sad song.
I know there are going to be a lot of people with their jaws on the floor the first time they hear it. Ted I know your busy getting everything ready to go. What would you like to say to the fans out there?
Ted: I would just like to say thank you, a really big thank you to all the fans that contributed to the Indiegogo campaign that helped make this happen. I want to say thank you to Napalm Records for getting behind it and helping make this happen and supporting this also. Just really thank you to everyone. Tango Umbrella comes out March 25th, thank you, I just can’t thank everyone enough.
Interview by Ace Sims, RockRevolt Journalist
