In this interview spotlight, we catch up with Hazel Gaze to chat about the latest single/video (Who’s Sorry Now), the songwriting process, how the 70s inspired this song, and more.
Full Q&A along with links and music below.
What inspired the lyrical theme behind “Who’s Sorry Now”? Can you share any personal experiences or influences that shaped the songwriting process?
[RS]: The lyrical theme in this song explores a situation with someone who “knows it all” and whom distorts reality so they’re always in the right. At some point, we’ve all been in a situation like that, or know someone who has. It could be with a friend, relative, current or former partner, or even band members! In the song, the person decides to leave the situation and move onto bigger and better things, leaving the other party to reflect upon their actions. I won’t go into personal details, however I will absolutely go on record to state this song does NOT represent my relationship with my wife. I’m a very lucky man with my wife and our relationship! (just in case she reads the lyrics or this interview!.. 😉 )
You mentioned wanting the song to evoke the sound and vibe of the 70s. Can you delve deeper into the specific musical elements and artists that inspired this track?
[RS] I’ve always felt the 70s were such a creative time for music. Record Labels were investing in artists, allowing them time to develop, and so many genres were blossoming: from the singer-songwriter scene in Southern California to the Motown scene in Detroit, to New Wave, Punk, Disco and Hip Hop in NYC, to a huge rock industry everywhere! Electric pianos were so commonplace during this time – Wurlis, Rhodes and Clavs, particularly. Everybody from Stevie Wonder to every pop artist and rock band was using them. I wanted to represent that era in this song – so a distorted wurli was key. If I had to narrow down a couple bands or artists that specifically served as influences for this song in particular, I’d say I wanted shades of Three Dog Night – with their Wurli and great vocal harmonies, as well as the iconic Stevie Wonder, who is the first person I think of when I hear a Clav. Other little touches include the phaser on the guitar solo. To me, a guitar through a phaser evokes lots of 70s rock bands – most notably Rush, with Alex Lifeson using a phaser all over their “Exit Stage Left’ album. And of course there’s the overdriven B3 during the breakdown guitar solo. The overdriven B3 was a rock staple in the 70s – Deep Purple is probably the most notable for that sound, along with many others.
The music video for “Who’s Sorry Now” is highly anticipated. Can you provide any insights into the creative vision behind the video?
[RS] I’ve been working with this wonderful videographer Patty Sway of @swaydesign. We wanted a storyboard to portray the lyrical content of someone feeling taken for granted in a relationship, so they move on. Patty did a wonderful job and also integrated a musical theme with the couple being musicians. One person moves on to success in their musical career, leaving the other behind to reflect on their mistake. The main challenge we had was that we haven’t yet done any gigs with the new band members, so didn’t have band footage to integrate. We’d just completed a promotional photo shoot for the album release and had some B roll background video from that, so integrating that footage helped to keep the video interesting while also showing the band.
How do you hope listeners will connect with the emotional journey portrayed in the song?
[RS] I wanted to keep the music, tempo and lyrics somewhat upbeat in the song – I wanted it to be fun. To me, one sign of a good song is that people can relate to it. Maybe it brings back a memory, an experience or an event in their life, or possibly it reminds them of someone from their past. The key for me is that people relate to it and can have their own interpretation, to make it their own. It would be fantastic if this song has that effect on people.
What challenges, if any, did you encounter during the production of “Who’s Sorry Now,” and how did you overcome them?
[RS] Some songs wind up taking you in a different direction during the recording process, so the end result winds up being quite different from what you had in your mind at the outset. That didn’t happen in this case – I’m very satisfied the final recorded version is quite close to what I envisioned in my head when first writing it and recording the demo. Generally, recording went very smoothly – as usual, Hanz absolutely crushed the lead vocals. He does that raspy, bluesy, rock ‘n roll thing so well – this was right in his wheelhouse and he nailed it! Konrad is one of the most efficient bass players I’ve ever met. He walks in, plugs his bass in, does 1 take for practice, then lays it down. I’m both impressed and very jealous, as it takes me loads of takes to get something I’m satisfied with! We used a couple session musicians on this track – David Cornejo recorded the drums (he also did drums on the first album). David’s the consummate professional: super solid, tasteful and all around pleasure to work with. I can’t recommend him highly enough. And the wonderful Abby Ahmad did an amazing job singing backing vocals along with a dear friend Rebecca Rubin, who is one of the most talented vocalists I’ve met – I’m her biggest fan. The only challenge was me, since I played keys on this track and I’m no keys player! I noodle a bit on keys, mainly to write, and I played the B3 parts on the album, but I certainly would not consider myself a pianist or keyboard player. It took lots of takes for me to get the wurli and clav parts down!
What are your expectations for how it will be received by both existing fans and new listeners?
[RS] – I wouldn’t say I necessarily have ‘expectations’, however hopefully people find it to be a catchy, fun song to enjoy. Whether tapping their foot, bopping their head or singing along – it would be wonderful if it lifts their spirits a bit while listening!For people who haven’t heard us before, hopefully it will grab their attention. And for those who may have heard something of ours previously, hopefully this will give them another side of us.
Looking ahead, what can fans expect from Hazel Gaze in terms of future releases or projects? Are there any themes or directions you’re particularly excited to explore musically?
[RS] I think we’re all most excited about playing live shows again, particularly with this new material. It’s been quite a while since some of us have played live, so we’re itching to get back to it! During COVID, a few band members moved away to the burbs, so we’re tremendously excited to have some incredibly talented people recently join the band. We’re beyond fortunate to have Spiros Arnakis joining on drums, Mary Jo Verruto joining on keys / backing vocals and Molly Klein and Nicole Riolo on backing vocals / percussion. We now have 5 vocalists in the band, so we’re very excited to do lots of vocal harmonies live! We all have different musical backgrounds and influences, which keeps things interesting and truly makes the band a melting pot of ideas. They’re all so incredibly talented, but more importantly, they’re wonderful people – we all get along fantastically well, there’s no drama and we’re all good friends, which makes this band very special and incredibly rare. I’m very excited to write more material with such a wide range of influences now in the band. Beyond live performances, it would be wonderful to consider recording a show or an ‘unplugged’ gig for a live album – we’ve always wanted to do that.
Where can we stay up to date with the latest news from you guys?
[RS] Thanks very much for asking. Our website (www.hazelgaze.com) and social media links on IG, Youtube and Facebook are the best way to keep abreast of updates!
