Minneapolis’ A Better Hand have everything you want from a pop-punk band – a high energy, upbeat and catchy sound, a positive message and best of all, a desire to bring their local scene closer together. Earlier this year, the band celebrated the release of their debut EP, The Longest Drive and recently, they shared the energetic and emotional live video for “So Long Goodbye.” Now, they’re working hard on the next step, with their next music video for “Rounding Third” out soon, a midwest tour planned in October and their full-length album already in the works. Get to know a little more about A Better Hand and watch the video for “So Long Goodbye” below!
Interview by Dom Vigil
Can you tell us a little bit about A Better Hand for any readers who might not be familiar?
A Better Hand is a pop punk band based out of Minneapolis Minnesota. We have been building up a dedicated fan base in the midwest since 2015. Our hook-heavy pop-punk will bring you back to the early 2000’s.
How did you guys first meet and begin writing music together?
Singer/ songwriter Zack and Drummer Taylor started playing music together in 2013. They released the bands first 5 song EP titled “The Not So Sober EP” in 2015. Later that year they posted an ad on Facebook saying they were looking for a guitarist. It just so happened that Brandon was about to do a guitar cover of the song “Better Luck Sober” and messaged the guys. It was love at first jam. Once Brandon was settled in he mentioned that he had a friend who was interested in the band as well. The guys invited Kyle P. to jam and the chemistry was undeniable. While playing a show with a local band we were friends with, we discovered Kyle K. the rock n’ roll king. We captured his attention and he captured our hearts. Thus A Better Hand.
What is the music scene like in Minneapolis? What would you like to be able to bring to your scene?
There are a lot of great bands in MN and we love the diversity here. There are so many great venues that support local music. One thing we really want to do is bring our scene together. We feel like a lot of bands act competitively instead of trying to work together, and we want to try to change it into more of a collective community.
Earlier this year, you released your EP, The Longest Drive. Did you have any major goals in mind when working on the EP?
Our main goals were for the EP to encompass A Better Hand as a whole. Since this is our first recorded music together we wanted it to define our sound, and we really feel like it represents us accurately.
How do you feel you’ve grown as musicians with the creation of The Longest Drive?
We learned a lot about songwriting and song structure with this EP. Working on this EP forced us to mature musically and really learn to listen to ourselves and critically critique our writing. We had to really force ourselves to dig deep and try to get the best material we could. We ended up re-writing some elements of almost all the songs just a week before the studio, and that was a challenge that pushed us all and definitely made us better musicians.
This summer, you released a music video for “So Long Goodbye” from the EP. What does this song mean to you?
‘So Long Goodbye’ recognizes the hardships of having to leave people and things behind in order to chase your dreams. Breaking away from normal routine and following our own path is the only way we can truly be happy. Our EP title, ‘The Longest Drive’ is actually a lyric from this song. The title encompasses the idea of the metaphorical drive to success and the literal driving that most bands do. So Long Goodbye reminds us that we’ve come so far but we still have a long and exciting journey ahead of us.”
You also recently just finished up filming another new video! When can fans expect to see it?
We did just film a video for “Rounding Third”. The video is so much fun! We had a blast shooting it, and it’s our first music video that was professionally done! Fans can expect the video late September, but stay tuned for an official release date and where you can watch it.
With 2017 starting to wind down, do you have any other big plans for the rest of the year?
We plan to do a 2 week tour in October that will go mostly through the midwest, but we will be playing out as far as Ohio for a show. September 9th we are competing in a battle of the bands at THE GARAGE in Burnsville.
As for the rest of the year, our goal is to do a few more tours and continue writing for our full length album.
Thanks for taking the time to talk with us! Is there anything else you’d like to add?
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