PALILA / WOULD
We prepared everything quite carefully for this album because we wanted
to record it properly this time. Sebi recommended that we go to
Die Tonmeisterei
in Oldenburg, so we got in touch with Role, who runs the studio and is
a very kind and relaxed person.
Recording there felt a bit like a school trip. We had the studio mostly for ourselves at night for several days and spent a lot of time there. The recording itself was actually very easy and lots of fun becuse we played the songs three or four times and that was basically it. So it felt quite like rehearsals.
Then came the mixing. I’m still not sure if the album might have sounded different if Role hadn’t had to deal with us questioning every little decision. In the end the album sounded a bit flatter and softer than we had hoped, which was a bit of a shame because we had put a lot of work into it.
Around that time we also recorded two special versions of songs: a loud full band version of War and a softer acoustic version together with Sebastian Windhorst on lapsteel. Looking back now, that was actually the first time lapsteel became part of my songs. Years later Sebastian would join the Would live band on lapsteel, so this was already the beginning of that story.
Alban from Rock Café also invited us to play at the Sankt Hell festival at Grünspan in Hamburg. I was very nervous, but it was a really nice show and a good end to that period of the band.
It’s also interesting to listen back to some of these recordings now, because songs like Hitchhiker, Sundays and Tomorrow Again already existed back then in early (and partly very different) versions and later became Palila songs and live set regulars.
— Mattze
Recording there felt a bit like a school trip. We had the studio mostly for ourselves at night for several days and spent a lot of time there. The recording itself was actually very easy and lots of fun becuse we played the songs three or four times and that was basically it. So it felt quite like rehearsals.
Then came the mixing. I’m still not sure if the album might have sounded different if Role hadn’t had to deal with us questioning every little decision. In the end the album sounded a bit flatter and softer than we had hoped, which was a bit of a shame because we had put a lot of work into it.
Around that time we also recorded two special versions of songs: a loud full band version of War and a softer acoustic version together with Sebastian Windhorst on lapsteel. Looking back now, that was actually the first time lapsteel became part of my songs. Years later Sebastian would join the Would live band on lapsteel, so this was already the beginning of that story.
Alban from Rock Café also invited us to play at the Sankt Hell festival at Grünspan in Hamburg. I was very nervous, but it was a really nice show and a good end to that period of the band.
It’s also interesting to listen back to some of these recordings now, because songs like Hitchhiker, Sundays and Tomorrow Again already existed back then in early (and partly very different) versions and later became Palila songs and live set regulars.
— Mattze
Released November 2, 2018
Written and performed by Hell and High Water
Matthias Schwettmann – Guitar, Vocals
Kai Namslau – Bass
Dennis Reher – Drums
Recorded March 2018 at Die Tonmeisterei, Oldenburg
Produced, Mixed & Mastered by Role Wiegner
Written and performed by Hell and High Water
Matthias Schwettmann – Guitar, Vocals
Kai Namslau – Bass
Dennis Reher – Drums
Recorded March 2018 at Die Tonmeisterei, Oldenburg
Produced, Mixed & Mastered by Role Wiegner
“In some of the quieter parts the singer actually reminds a bit of Neil Young.
The music moves between melodic alternative rock and lighter pop-rock moments.
This is not for those who need barbed wire and Satan for breakfast,
but for those who want a slightly lighter alternative.”
— Anders Oddsberg, Scream Magazine, 2018
— Anders Oddsberg, Scream Magazine, 2018
War (aka Love, Acoustic Version)
War
Neon Globe (Demo)
Orange Tree (Demo)
Quite Right (Demo)
Hitchhiker (Rehearsal Memo)
Sundays (Rehearsal Memo)
Tomorrow Again (Last Memo)