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Lauren Harris
Calm Before The Storm
(Demolition/DR2 Records) Interview with Lauren Harris - Vocals
When someone once again recently posed the less than insightful question ‘Why would any guy want a chick fronting his band?’, my thoughts immediately turned to artists and groups such as Dreams Of Damnation, Lullacry and Nightwish, to name only a few. Seriously, with examples as beautiful and talented as these, why wouldn’t someone want a woman fronting their band? Perhaps I’m a bit more than a little biased; for as long as I can remember (i.e. thirty years), I have been an unabashed supporter of all things female and Heavy Metal, a characteristic that, despite the most sincere of intentions, continues to inspire many a mean-spirited internet debate. Needless to say, it should come as absolutely no surprise that I’ve once again found myself obsessing over yet another female-led act. Ladies and gentlemen, without further ado, Lauren Harris.
On the stellar Calm Before The Storm (2008), an expertly assembled twelve song collection of Pop-infused Hard Rock, each track, beginning with a rollicking, adrenaline-fueled rendition of the inexplicably overlooked Gun gem “Steal Your Fire”, and the maddeningly infectious lament “Like It Or Not”, instantly commands the rapt and undivided attention of even the most jaded and unimaginative of listeners, myself most definitely included. Effortlessly swaggering through a curiously-chosen collection of material that is as stylistically varied (Hard Rock, Pop Rock and, believe it or not, a mercifully brief smidgen of Pop Punk) as it is initially satisfying, the group scores numerous ‘…major points…’ early and often without, for the most part, at least, succumbing to the mindlessly cliché-ridden tactics so often employed by their like-minded brethren.
Continuing with the smoldering, mid-tempo ‘…quasi-ballad…’ “From The Bottom To The Top”, and the delightfully heartfelt ode “Hit Or Miss”, Harris is joined by the impressively airtight combination of ex-Dirty Deeds/Voodoo Six guitarist Richie Faulkner, bassist Randy Gregg (Angel, Dee Snider, Garlic), and Grammy-nominated former Sammy Hagar drummer Tommy McWilliams. Steamrolling ahead at a frequently spirited pace, the group effectively combines Harris’s arguably high octane vocal prowess with an at times aggressive overall tonality (largely courtesy of Faulkner and McWilliams’s already well-documented abilities). The resulting sonic assault, while certainly not groundbreaking and most definitely not genre-defining, wisely panders to the vocalist’s still largely un-established target demographic without sounding either forced or dated.
Produced McWilliams (Gloria Estefan, Jon Secada and Ricky Williams, among others) and co-mixed by the legendary Kevin Shirley (Def Leppard and Iron Maiden, to name only a few), other standouts, including the emotionally-charged (if not outright haunting) “You Say”, and a deftly-executed take on the battle scarred UFO classic “Natural Thing”, only add to the Harris’s already burgeoning reputation as a bona fide commercial force not to be ignored. Seemingly guaranteed to appeal to wayward Pop Rock enthusiasts who have grown tired of the genre’s nausea-inducing focus on churning out blasé, ‘…paint by numbers…’ fodder (think, among other, Avril Lavigne), what ultimately separates Harris and her undeniably well-versed bandmates from their few legitimate contemporaries is their seemingly unique focus on creating music for the sake of creating music.
So what exactly are you afraid of? Worried your ‘…Headbangers License...’ will be revoked if you’re discovered actually enjoying yourself? Okay, okay…so maybe Calm Before The Storm isn’t exactly prototypical Metal (and, as a result, may not necessarily appeal to those without a truly sincere interest in broadening their musical horizons), but then again, at the end of the day, you’ve only got yourself to blame for missing out on what is, without a doubt, one of 2008’s most pleasantly surprising new releases. Consequently, if you’ve once again found yourself in dire need of a less than obvious musical detour that won’t leave you feeling coyote ugly the next morning just for freakin’ diggin’ it, do yourself (and thus those in your immediate vicinity) an incredibly enormous favor and pick this bad boy up. Trust me, my friends, you won’t be disappointed.
Recently, acclaimed vocalist Lauren Harris (daughter of legendary Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris) was kind enough to speak with us regarding, among many other things, touring in support of the mighty NWOBHM legends and the recording of her highly-anticipated full-length debut Calm Before The Storm…
Todd: Any truth to the rumors that you were accidentally become discovered by (legendary former Argent guitarist/songwriter) Russ Ballard?
Lauren Harris: “…I used to like singin’ in pubs and stuff like that. …I was already out of school. I used to do it with a friend of mine on the weekends. He happened to be in one of the pubs that we were in… Afterwards, a friend of his came over and asked if I’d be interested in doin’ some demos, which I obviously said yes to straight away. So I went to his house and did this demo of this recording of this song that he’d written for somebody. That was how it kinda happened. I went home…I didn’t realize who he was at the time. My Dad was like ‘Well, what was his name?’ and I said ‘Russ Ballard’ and he was like ‘What?! Don’t you know who he is?’. I didn’t have a clue. …I couldn’t believe it. I’m so pleased that I didn’t know it at the time because I would have been even more nervous than I already was (laughs).”
Todd: What ultimately served as the catalyst that ‘…jump started…’ your career?
Lauren: “That kinda pushed me to do my own demo and get things started…stuff like that. My Dad had a copy of my demo and he had gone to Florida to buy some furniture and he met up with a friend of his that used to tech for him like twenty five years ago. …They hadn’t seen each other in years. My Dad was like ‘Lauren is singing now’ and he gave him a copy of my demo. He played it and was like ‘You should really put her in touch with Tommy McWilliams. He’s a really great guy and he’s looking to do a new project…’. So I listened to some of his ideas and I really loved it. He came over to England and talked about material, what kind of stuff I like and what I listen to. Then, we decided to put together a band, so I went to Miami with him for like a whole summer. That’s how it all started, really. …I hadn’t performed with a band up until then, so I didn’t have a clue what I was doing (laughs). I played all of these small placed and then we started writin’ some stuff and recording some stuff as well. That’s how it all got started.”
Todd: Overall, how would you describe the music contained on Calm Before The Storm? There seems to have been a great deal of debate regarding whether your music is ‘legitimately’ Metal…
Lauren: “…I would describe it as Classic Rock with a kind of Popier edge to it. I don’t know…different people say different things. Its different things to different people, ya know? To some people, it’s Metal, which I personally wouldn’t classify it as. It’s all up to different people.”
Todd: So you’ve been opening for Iron Maiden…
Lauren: “It’s been great. At first, I was like ‘Oh my God. This is not going to be a good thing’. I was really worried about it. It was actually my Dad’s idea. Maiden’s manager was like ‘Well, I don’t know about this’ and my Dad was like ‘Maiden’s audience loves melody and that’s what these songs have. They have some great melodies in them’. Everywhere we’ve been, it’s been great. We’ve had great responses really everywhere. I’ve heard horror stories about some of the support bands Maiden has had. Maiden’s fan base it kinda one to their own, ya know? But it’s been incredible. …The songs are heavier live, anyway…but we’ve got a few of the Rockier ones it there. Like my Dad said, Maiden’s audience like melody and these songs have that. At the same time, there’s also the Classic Rock element. I don’t think a lot of other people are doin’ it. Maiden’s audience is getting younger and younger, but a lot of them are still older. My Dad was like ‘It kinda takes them back to their youth to the Classic Rock they grew up on’. Maybe that’s what (laughs). I don’t know, but it’s been great.”
Todd: In retrospect, how would you describe your experiences touring with Within Temptation? How did it differ from your experiences with Maiden?
Lauren: “That went really well, actually. It was kinda nice because I got to put some of the ballads into the set, which is something I obviously don’t get to do with Maiden (laughs). It was nice because playin’ with Maiden…their audience is something like ninety percent men and with Within Temptation, their audience is actually something like or close to ninety percent women. It was nice to see how I would go over with women and that type of music as well. Again, it was really, really good. I’m kinda pleasin’ myself by playin’ to different audiences and still going over well. …The ballads went over really well with the fans of Within Temptation because they like that…it was really nice.”
Todd: Aside from your stint in support of Maiden, what are your current touring plans?
Lauren: “At the end of the year, I’ll be going out with another band. Nothing’s set in stone right at the minute in time, but the plans are there. Hopefully towards the end of the year, I’ll be heading back to Europe and England and playing some smaller gigs at some smaller places…maybe through the beginning of next year. Maybe next year I’ll be able to come back to the US as well and do some small gigs. …I’m looking forward to it (laughs).”
Todd: What musicians are you currently touring with? As far as personnel are concerned, how different is the group that you are touring with from the one you recorded Calm Before The Storm with?
Lauren: “I’m touring with Richie Faulkner, who’s been with me right since the start and Tommy McWilliams, who’s also been with me right since the start. Randy Gregg is the bass player that came in kind of a year afterwards. We kinda met him through management. He used to play in Angel. He’s been with us for two years, now I’d say. It’s us three that have been together since the beginning. Only Randy came in a year afterwards.”
Todd: At this point, when touring, do you feel you are better received in Europe or the US?
Lauren: “I’m not sure because I’d never been to the States until this last tour that we just did. And that was just with Maiden. …I’ve been in England a lot more, so I think I’m probably slightly better known in England. I don’t know. I did a lot of press when I was over there, so hopefully people are startin’ to hear my name and more about me. Some people have told me ‘Your songs would be really, really great for American radio’, so… I don’t know, really. You’d probably be better able to tell that because you’re American (laughs).”
Todd: Musically, aside from the obvious, what are your influences?
Lauren: “The kind of stuff that I listened to when I was growing up…when I was really young…I liked (former Go Go’s frontwoman) Belinda Carlisle, Alanis Morissette… And then my Dad kinda got me into some other stuff like Golden Earring, (former Yes guitarist) Trevor Rabin, Free…stuff like that. That’s when I really started to get into more of the Classic Rock type of stuff. I started to get into Bad Company, Zeppelin, Heart, and Def Leppard. …The stuff that I like nowadays is the stuff with melody. I really like Stone Sour. I saw them on one of their festival dates last year and they really knocked me back. I was like ‘Wow’. I like a lot of really diverse stuff, ya know? It really kinda opens the door to everything, but I really love that Classic Rock style. …AC/DC, that type of vibe.”
Todd: At what point did you realize you wanted to pursue music as a career choice? Was there a clear defining moment or did the realization occur slowly over a prolonged period of time?
Lauren: “…Not until I really started doing it, to be honest. As a kid, I was always really, really shy. I was always into musicals and stuff when I was a kid. …I actually wanted to go to drama school. I wanted to go to a school in London called Sylvia Young where they do singing, dancing and acting, but my Dad was like ‘Lauren, you just won’t be able to cope with that. You’re just so shy.’ I always knew I had it in me to do it, I just needed someone to give me the chance to prove myself. So until I started doing it, I never realized that I actually could…that I could actually do this. So really, it was just getting the opportunity and goin’ out at actually doin’ it. One of my best memories so far has been the first big stage that I played supporting Alice Cooper. …Going out there and doing that…it was like ‘Oh my God. This is huge’, ya know? …It’s just amazing. It’s not something you can actually describe to someone. It’s just incredible, especially when people respond to you in a positive way.”
Todd: What was the main inspiration behind the title Calm Before The Storm? I’m assuming there’s a metaphorical significance at the center of it all…
Lauren: “Basically, it was just the kind of point I was in my career and in my life. The calm was me just learning how perform onstage, how to record, how to sit down and write… All of this stuff was really, really new to me up until about three years ago. So for me, the calm was really just that whole period where I was learnin’ everything and the storm is me kinda doin’ what I’m doin’ now. I’ve done so much already. It’s really kinda incredible, ya know? Having my debut album come out is just the massive storm for me. It’s a really, really big deal, obviously (laughs).”
Todd: In hindsight, how involved were you in the songwriting process for Calm Before The Storm? Did your overall lack of experience initially hinder your efforts?
Lauren: “I was involved in a lot of the songs, but in terms of like the vocal melodies and the lyrics. Not necessarily the whole lyrics of the song…but putting my ideas down. A lot of the songs have to do with relationships and stuff. Things I was going through at the time or I have gone through. So a lot of it is my ideas. It was really Tommy that did a lot of the composing, if you’d like, with the songs and the arranging and stuff like that. I didn’t know how to do that stuff. I’m still learning. With the second album, I’m hoping to have progressed a lot more into being involved in the actual arranging of the songs and stuff like that. …He really helped me and guided me through that. I don’t actually play an instrument, either. I’m learning to play the guitar at the moment just to help me with that…just getting the basics down…the basics of songwriting down to help me out so I can understand it a lot more. Richie helped me with that stuff, too. …Comin’ up with riffs and throwin’ around melody ideas…that kind of stuff.”