THE ENTERTAINER! MAGAZINE MARCH 2017
115
SUMMER VIBES
Knox Hamilton readies debut album and supporting tour
Connor Dziawura » The Entertainer!
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rowing up in Little Rock, Arkansas, the members of alternative rock group Knox Hamilton—brothers Boots and Cobo Copeland, and Drew Buffington—experienced a very music-heavy upbringing. “We grew up in this environment that was heavily reliant on music,” says vocalist/bassist Boots Copeland. “It’s like music was kind of the centerpiece of it all. It’s kind of just ingrained in us and kind of in our DNA.” This environment was cultivated through their relationship with a small, local church, where their father was a pastor and their mother was a musician, Copeland explains. But without a local scene, the members of Knox Hamilton had to find their own ways to discover new artists and channel their influences.
“As far as the music scene in Little Rock when it comes to alternative and kind of pop music, there isn’t a scene,” Copeland says. “It’s kind of like we don’t really get our inspiration from our peers. We kind of draw more on the kind of feel of the bands that we listen to on the radio and that we find on Spotify and iTunes playlists.” But even without a local scene, they had a sound in mind—upbeat, bright and dance-y pop rock. “We had all these ideas and we knew we wanted to be alternative,” Copeland says. “We didn’t want to be too pop. We didn’t want to be too rock. That wasn’t us either. We tried the heavier thing. It obviously wasn’t natural.” Over the years, the members were influenced by a diverse taste in artists, ranging from anyone like Radiohead to Oasis, the Cranberries and Coldplay. However, it was the Killers, Copeland
says, that changed everything. “We were like, ‘finally a band who kind of embodies the ’80s into grunge into new wave into pop,’” he explains. “They were hugely influential. It’s not because we sound a lot like them, but just because we finally heard a band put synth rock and very cool guitars and killer basslines all in one arena, and that was super cool to us.” Following the success of several EPs and the single “Washed Up Together,” Knox Hamilton is readying the release of its debut album, “The Heights,” which arrives on March 10. But while this may seem like perfect timing leading up to spring and summer, it was not intentional, Copeland says. The very warm and summer-friendly sound of Knox Hamilton is just what they do. “There’s no space for dark; there’s no space for negativity,” he says. “We get plenty of that elsewhere in life.” Knox Hamilton is also gearing up to
bring “The Heights” on tour opening for Colony House, which includes a March 23 stop at Valley Bar. “We’re in a really good spot to where we have enough fans who are excited about it, we have enough fans that we’re excited to show, and it’s also really awesome to potentially have a crowd singing along with every single song because they can hear it and not just on some bootleg videos on YouTube,” Copeland says. “This is the first time where we’ll be supporting a work that you can actually listen to in full on any given medium.”
Colony House w/ Knox Hamilton
Valley Bar, 130 N. Central Avenue, Phoenix, 602.368.3121, valleybarphx.com, 8 p.m. Thursday, March 23, $15-$16. WWW.ENTERTAINERMAG.COM