Courtesy Tier has been perfecting their sound over the past few releases working under renowned producers, Chris “Frenchie” Smith (…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead, Purple), Peter Katis (Interpol, The National) and Joe Hardy (ZZ Top), and their upcoming release, Everyone’s OK promises to be their best work yet. After enduring a few lineup changes, Courtesy Tier are back and stronger than ever with Alex Picca on bass, supplying some incredible harmonies on the album as well. With Everyone’s OK dropping on August 12th, Courtesy Tier are gearing up for an exciting summer and fall. Listen to their latest single, “And We Don’t Know” and read more about the upcoming album below!
Interview by Dom Vigil
Can you tell us a little bit about Courtesy Tier for any readers who may not be familiar?
Courtesy Tier is the result of a 14 year friendship and collaboration between Layton (drums) and Omer (Guitar/Vocals) our projects had taken many forms, and bands, but when we finally got Alex on bass Courtesy Tier was our expression together.
You are getting ready to release your new album, Everyone’s OK in August. What does this album mean to you?
We are very excited for this album. It signifies for us a glimpse into where we might venture next, sonically and in songwriting. Also being our first official full length, it is exciting to see an open future of possibility for the band.
How do you feel your recent lineup changes have affected the sound and subject matter on Everyone’s OK?
The recent line up change has had a great influence on our vocal sound. We are all lovers of harmony, and we got lucky that Alex is a great singer as well as Bassist, and also has a passion for the two and three part harmony. Since he’s joined the band, he’s been a great champion in pushing this idea with us. It results in a lot more vocal work for this album, being a three piece band, we really wanted to maximize on the sound we can deliver on stage, push past the minimalism of our group.
You worked with Peter Katis and Chris “Frenchie” Smith again on this release – how do you feel they’ve shaped or affected the record?
It would take a lot of words to explain how much these great producers have shaped and affected our sound. Both brilliant at what they do, including Joe Hardy who mixed the album. We spent most of our time with Chris Frenchie though, who at this point feels more like a brother than a producer to us. Chris has a sensitivity and dedication which really connected with us. We believed him instantly and trusted him. the most recent result that we have noticed, post recording, is that Frenchie not only produced us on record, but rather produced us as a live band. We are now better and having more fun in a live setting as a result of the things he offered the music and it’s delivery.
Can fans expect to hear any other new music before the album drops?
We will be releasing two more songs leading up to the release.
With the album release coming up in next month, can we expect any new tour dates in the near future? Any other big plans for 2016?
We are expecting to be touring as much as possible coming next few months.
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