Alternate Root April Feature

With three consecutive albums charting on the Americana Music Airplay Chart, several national and regional tours and a solid footing in the burgeoning New York City roots music scene Brian Molnar and his band The Naked Hearts are poised to stake their claim as one of the best young bands on the Americana roots music circuit.

Their latest effort ‘Miss You’ is a gutsy pseudo live recording using studio equipment in a “live” setting. Think of it as recording the album live but sounding more like a studio album. Like I said, a gutsy move for a young up and coming band. Molnar and his mates pulled it off in fine fashion and the record quickly found a home on Americana radio. It has a very warm feel to it and Molnar’s vocals are more than up to pace with his transcendent writing style. His songs are deep, cerebral, thought provoking...in the style of the classic troubadours like Townes Van Zandt, Kris Kristofferson and Steve Earl.

Brian Molnar (BM): “My favorite records have always been live albums Willie and Family Live, Kristofferson Live, Waylon Live…  I figured people who like us would like a live album, or if they haven’t heard us yet and like it we may be more likely to see them in the crowd somewhere.  Plus, we wanted the world to know that we could do it live.  Lots of bands are “studio” bands that use all kinds of tricks to make it work.  We wanted to say hey, this is how we actually sound when you come out to a show.  If you like the album you WILL like the show.”

Most fans that do go and see Brian Molnar and The Naked Hearts end up liking the sound. The band has maintained a steady   growth in a very crowded field; not only in New York City but in a variety of regions around the country. They make really cool videos to boot! That has to factor into the band’s popularity.

Reb Landers (RL): Describe the technique you used to get that “less live” feel for ‘Miss You.’

BM: Well,it wasn’t “just” a live show recording. We recorded it at The Walnut House in Murfreesboro Tennessee, which is a recording studio with a concert hall.  They piped 16 separate tracks up to one of the recording sweets. It was recorded live but in separate tracks with recording mics rather then live mics, meaning they had really nice condenser mics that you normally wouldn’t have at a gig, but in a studio.  Of course when Trevor Reddell mixed it we had options on how to  approach it too.  There’s the unavoidable “bleed” that you have from a live  recording but better equipment and more options then usual with live stuff. Trevor did a fantastic job for us, as did the Walnut House.

Molnar’s upstart record label, Avenue A, released the recording in April and the response was very positive for a live album. James McMurtry had a tough time just weeks prior with his ‘Live in Europe’ release and Rounder Records has a live album from their 40th Anniversary Concert that is floundering on the chart right now. I asked Brian what preparation was made prior to the release.

BM: On these last albums that have charted we make sure to have a plan for promotion and touring.  As everyone knows you can make the best album in the world and if no one hears it no one’s gonna know.  We get a plan together for radio promotion and media, of course Melissa Masser and everyone at Avenue A Records does a lot of that.  But I’ve learned that it’s important to have all your ducks in a row so to speak.  You need the right bio/press release, new t-shirts, a video, fresh photos, an updated web page and all that to go along with the release.  It helps a lot to have a team.  It’s very hard to do it all yourself.  Lots of times the artist, if they aren’t on a label, has to organize everyone, but if you’re going to tour and everything else you need a team to take care of what you physically can’t do, or don’t know enough about.  The musician isn’t always the best business man. We’ve all heard of this.

RL: You’ve had three albums chart on the Americana Music Chart. Have you seen any noticeable effect on your career?

BM: Yes it has been very helpful.  Again, radio gets the music out there so people can hear it and it legitimizes you.   It helps “fans” and folks in all areas of the music business take you seriously. At the very least it separates you from weekend warriors. Ha!  Many of the bookings and opportunities we get are because lots of people get to hear us on radio and also business folks see that we are getting lots of spins all over the Americana world so, yeah, it helps.  Also, I’m told our web traffic goes up when we have a current in the top 40, so I guess it helps there too.

Molnar and his band have done some outstanding video on their previous releases last years ‘Temperence and the Devil’ and ‘Feeling Out of Time’ (2008). Using super 8 film, tight interesting story lines and good camera techniques add to the visual appeal of brian and his mates. I asked brian if video has been a useful tool in his promotion and marketing plan.

BM: Though we’ve had several videos they never seem to get out on time. They are always a little after the fact.  It has been one of the “planning” problems that have been out of our control and Avenue A’s for that matter.  It’s never hurt to put one out though. Of course people can get more about your image etc. from video then hearing a tune on the radio. Video has put many bands way over the top.  It’s a huge help if it’s good and well promoted.  Some successful bands are more known for their video than anything.

Brian Molnar and The Naked Hearts are all young musicians born and growing up during the information age of the Internet. Sites like MySpace, Facebook, Twitter are all integral parts of the new music business paradigm and blog sites and online ezines are fast overtaking the traditional points of entry for rising bands. I asked brian about their use of technology when planning a release.

BM: There’s a bunch of places to get reviewed online that can really help, your magazine [The Alternate Root] is one of them.  Its one of the things that I don’t know well, but a web presence I’m told can be more than or as effective as a “live” presence.  I’m not as good on the web as some, but it really can work.  It’s one thing to bring traffic to your web page if it is a nice page and you sound good, but if you can get bloggers or review sites to grab onto your album and send them to you web page, itunes page or a link to your video you’re doing well.  There are too many sites to name and lots that can work.  It’s getting somebody, like I was saying with radio, to like it and “validate” it for their readers and listeners.

Though the music business has transformed into a do-it-yourself business for young musicians one thing has not changed. Marketing and promotion are still the most important part of breaking a band. Hiring a publicist can be more effective today than hiring a promoter. Video can be a more   effective tool than airplay that isn’t based on saturation like Top 40 or AAA radio. The other thing that has not and never will change is the notion that successful music starts in “the grooves.” Music that gets heard will be judged by the buying public as to whether or not it will be successful. If the fans like it, more than likely it will be a success.

RL: How has the reaction been to the new album from the fans?

BM: It’s been great!  I’ve gotten lots of good messages and reviews from people who bought it and lots of requests on the radio stations, which is what pushes it up the charts. We are really proud of the great response overall. I’m glad the live album idea worked.

RL: Any plans for a new studio album in the near future?

BM: Yes.  We are working on getting tracks together now, and we hope to have one out to follow up “Miss You” early next year.  We are very excited to get into the studio again.  We have a few places in mind, and when we settle on one we’ll be ready to go.          

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