Hearts & Hand Grenades – Between The Beautiful Rock Lines!

Interview with Stephanie Wlosinski, Lead Vocals & Bass.

1. Which is the concept behind the name of the band “Hearts & Hand Grenades”?

We wanted something contrasting to fit with our style. We lean on dynamics between soft and heavy parts a lot in our songs so we thought hearts & hand grenades are about as contrasting as it gets.

2. You have a new music video and single called “Beautiful Pain”. Would you like to describe it?

Beautiful Pain is our second single from our upcoming album, Between The Lines, that will be out in November. It is all about taking ownership of past mistakes and living with the consequences of your actions but also learning from the experience. This is the first time we are wearing white as a band which was different for us.

3. Where and how did you film the promotional video for the single?

We had painted our garage black to shoot this video and it came out better than we expected. That mixed with the fog and lights really have a nice ambiance for the song and gave the appeal of being on an Isolated stage.

4. Nowadays, many artists decide to release a single instead of a full album. Do you agree or are you against this policy?

We understand the schematics of doing both but I personally like releasing a few singles to build up to a full album release. I enjoy the anticipation that goes with a couple songs leading up to the album. It’s like a sneak peek at a complete thought process that band puts in to their music.

5. The new album “Between the Lines” is out on November 19, 2021 and it is produced by Justin Rose (Goo Goo Dolls, James Taylor). What was your experience from this collaboration?

We worked with Justin on our first album as well so it was very comfortable working with him again. He understands our sound and does a great job mixing the tracks. He’s also a lot of fun and knows how to make the recording process an easy one.

6. Do you think that a producer could change the sound of a band in a positive or a negative way?

I think that can go either way. It’s important to trust and understand the vision behind the producer and to be sure your ideas align. It could be very upsetting to have a vision for an album and find that it was produced completely different than what you were thinking. It’s important to communicate during the recording and mixing process.

7. What was your experience from the North American tour dates supporting Smile Empty Soul?

We had a lot of fun on tour with those guys and met some really cool people while on tour. Sean and Ty are very laid back and easy to hang with. We learned a lot from the first two runs and Smile were a great band to work with.

8. How did you decide to cover the Moonlight Sonata by Ludwig Van Beethoven, for your new album?

We all really like the Moonlight Sonata and since it’s such an iconic classical piece we couldn’t help ourselves. We decided it needed a rock revamp and just went for it. So instead of just toying with an idea to spin it into a rock mix we went the step further and used multiple movements from the original work and added lyrics to give it a fresh facelift.

9. What is your opinion about the current status of the music industry?

I always find myself bummed that there isn’t more hard rock music in the forefront in the US. I know other countries aren’t as pop and rap heavy as we are here but I know it will happen eventually. We are long overdue for a hard rock revolution! I also miss the days of needing to buy and album to hear and artist’s music versus the streaming world we live in. I’m a big fan of tangible things, I still love collecting the album artwork that comes with CDs!

10. What are your next plans?

We are currently working on putting together more US tours as well as a UK run in 2022. Along the way we will continue to write and record new music as we are only just getting started. There’s a lot more to come from H&HG, that’s a promise!

For more information on Hearts & Hand Grenades, please visit them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Eclipse Records, and follow them on Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, Amazon Music, or Deezer.

Band Photo Credit: Merideth Snow