Nexus Meets… To The Helpless
Hailing from Spain, To The Helpless is a forceful and bold alternative rock/punk six-piece. With a dynamic sound and smiling faces, these lads are not only easy on the eye but can play a decent tune. We speak with To The Helpless about their new EP The Fringes of Normality, effects of Covid-19 on the music industry and much more!
What is the backstory to your EP The Fringes of Normality?
Just being locked at home and writing songs to cope with the frustration and inability to deal with a situation that escapes your control. The whole EP deals with different concepts like death, distance, normality and marriage through the prism of the pandemic.
What was the recording and writing process like?
We’re an atypical band in that sense. We rarely rehearse or play live. Lucas writes the songs, he sends them to the band’s WhatsApp group, then we maybe go over them in the studio a couple times and go straight into recording. The rest of the guys in the band are great musicians, they are the ones who make the songs tolerable. You should listen to the original demos Lucas sends, they’re barely decipherable.
In the case of this EP, that was taken to an extreme because of the pandemic. It was the first time the six of us haven’t been in the same space (rehearsing or recording) at the same time. It was all done by parts.
The recording process is all lead by Álvaro Escribano, our lead guitarist and a massive geek when it comes to music and recording. He has a recording studio called La Chulona and that’s where we do everything. The difference with this EP is that Mass Giorgini mastered it. He’s one of the 90’s punk godfathers and someone we really wanted to work with.
What do you hope people take from The Fringes of Normality?
We just hope people get a chance to listen to it. It’s hard to get your music out there. If they like it and it helps them deal with the current situation a little bit better, that’s a bonus.
Which is your favourite track?
Lucas likes ‘Locked To You’, mainly because it’s the most intimate one. The rest of the band prefers ‘Watch Me Bleed’. Interestingly, both are the ones that depart most from previous songs; they’re on the softer side.
If you were to release one of the tracks as a single, which would it be and why that one?
Tania, our friend from Moscu Babies, told us ‘Locked To You’ should be the single. The only song we’ve made a video for is ‘Mediocracy (Normal Sucks)’. We don’t seem to do anything right.
Describe your music in one word.
Simple. We’re a non-rehearsing band so our music is super-straightforward. We can’t afford or want to be more elaborate.
Do you think Covid-19 will affect the music industry on a long-term basis?
It will affect everything on a long-term basis, but music has always been there and always will in one form or another.
Do you have plans for the future?
Same shit. As the songs come in, we’ll record them and put them out for the world not to listen. 🙂