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A Quick Hello to: Hello Mary
questions : Gracelyn Moore and Leah Wedman
photo: given by mgmt
photo: given by mgmt
Stella: Drums/ vocals
Mikaela: Bass/ Synth
Helena: Guitar/ Vocals
How did Hello Mary come to be? How did everyone meet?
Helena: Mikaela and I met when we were 12 at our middle school. We started playing music together when we were around 13, and released two demos on Soundcloud the summer between eighth grade and our first year of high school. Soon after that, somebody invited us to play a house show. We didn’t have a drummer so we asked the show organizer if she knew anyone that might be able to play with us, and she put us in touch with Stella. We have been a trio ever since.
What musicians/media are Hello Mary's biggest influences?
Stella: Hard to say, there are so so many.
Is Hello Mary your first project together? What was the moment that you had where you felt like Hello Mary could really become something?
Stella: I’ve been in bands in highschool before HM. After the first couple practices with Helena and Mikaela I felt like there was potential for the band to become something even more awesome, so after the first show I told them I thought we should formally become a band and start booking more shows if they were down for it. Luckily they were!
Helena: Hello Mary is really my first and only project. I can’t remember a specific moment where I felt like Hello Mary could really become something…
How has it been growing together as a band?
Mikaela: Really special I feel like I have seen them through a lot of phases and them with me too!
Are you all still in school? Is there a balance between being a student and a musician?
Stella: I graduated a few years ago. For the first four years of the band, it definitely took a level of coordination for me to make time for both things, even though we weren’t heavily touring yet. Especially during my last year because I was also working two jobs in addition to school and the band.
Mikaela: I’m still working to get my degree. And I work two jobs too, it is very hard- I feel like I haven’t had a minute of downtime in years lol. With our touring schedule now I don’t think I would be able to pull it off if I didn’t go to a school that was flexible with me. Where I go (bard college) provides a lot of special tactics for me to get out of things which I really appreciate. Right now I’m completing my senior thesis project, I zoom with my teachers every week and am only required to be there once a month.
Where is your favorite venue in New York?
Stella: Maybe TV Eye. I like the outdoor part of the venue, and the stage curtains.
What is your favorite part about living in New York?
Stella: Being able to walk/ take the train everywhere is nice.
Helena: Agreed, there’s lots of independence. And some pretty nice parks.
What is life like on tour for Hello Mary? Any road essentials? Any funny stories?
Stella: Life on tour is mostly very fun. Being in the car for multiple hours can get boring, but other than that it’s a good time. We have a few stories that, at the time, were very stressful but in retrospect are funny. Like one our first days out on tour, someone drilled a hole into our gas tank.
Helena: We get very excited about meals since there’s not that much else to look forward to when you’re driving for 3-8 hours a day. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I think it’s important for us city folk to appreciate simple pleasures. We find humor in most situations which is essential and has created lots of funny stories.
Your new album “emita ox” comes out September 13th, what are some of the concepts you wanted to explore with this album, and how have things changed since your self-titled? What can fans of Hello Mary expect?
Helena: We wanted to explore production more than we have in the past which was very inspiring. So people can expect to hear some of those ideas.
What is the story behind the cover art for this album?
Mikaela: We just liked it
Stella: it’s an art piece by Clementine Williams, who also did the art for our self titled.
What are everyone's favorite tracks from the new album?
Stella: I’ve had phases with all of the songs, but I think ‘Three’ and ‘0%’ are my faves.
Helena: Right now “Down My Life” and “0%” are my favorites.
Mikaela: Down my life is my fav personally
Hello Mary is going on tour with American Football in September! What was it like getting that call that you would be opening for them?
Helena: It was so exciting. I received the text early in the morning after an extremely restless night in a hotel room and woke Stella up to tell her the news and went back to sleep with a grin on my face.
What is an album you never get tired of?
Stella: I get into intense phases with albums and tend to tire them out for myself. So this question feels kind of hard to answer, but maybe OK Computer by Radiohead
Helena: OK Computer for sure
What is everyone listening to right now? Any bands you would like to shout out?
Stella: I’ve been listening to the new Robber Robber album “Wild Guess”
Helena: Been getting really into Blur and Country Teasers
Mikaela: I’ve been listening to some Inga Copeland and Digital Leather
Thanks for chatting with us! Any last words here :)
All: Thank you