EP Release: "Hunter" by The Fledge
Turn down the lights and get ready for something dark with this grunge-y four-piece's debut EP.
Grunge-y, sludge-y, and dark- this Hamiltonian four-piece are The Fledge, a loud and angular group influenced by moodier styles, which they heavily embrace on their debut EP, Hunter. The members are; Adrian Murchison on vocals and guitar, Marco Bressette on guitar and vocals, and Kevin O'Connor on bass and vocals. Ryan Delaplante contributed drums to the record, while Rob Singh drums live.
"I grew up in Hamilton, and I think a lot of the way that I write has been heavily influenced by bands like Chore and Shallow North Dakota," said Murchison. "I was exposed to these bands as a teen, and I think that the way that they approached music and songwriting has had a big impact on the music that I've put out over the years."
A specific massive influence for the main vocalist is the band Pile.
"I draw a lot of inspiration from their approach to songs," said Murchison. "The structures that they use and their approach to lyrics are absolutely reflected in the songs on Hunter. Other than that, I listen to a lot of Kowloon Walled City, Phoebe Bridgers and Genesis, Peter Gabriel, and Phil Collins." Murchison started gathering ideas for the guitar parts on Hunter in late 2020, but only saw the songs beginning to come to life in early 2021.
"It took me a couple of months to get the songs to a place where I was ready to bring them to the band," said Murchison. "After that, we all worked on them together and got them ready to record. This is basically how I've written songs for all the bands I've been in. I get a structure and some lyrics worked out and then bring them to the group and we work on them together." The songs on the band's debut are thematically linked- The Fledge's frontman refers to the project as a "snapshot of his life" as he struggled through a breakup, a pandemic, and the loss of a loved one.
"The lyrics on all the songs are very much about looking at those relationships, and working through accepting that these two people were no longer in my life," said Murchison. "Hunter is about grief and loss, isolation, reflection and acceptance. There are lines here and there that are a little tongue in cheek or sarcastic, but for the most part they're pretty honest and raw- I really wanted to look inward for the lyrics on this project. I think a lot of the lyrics I've written for my other bands and projects have been more outward facing, and for this project I wanted to focus on the feelings I had during this time period. It was a short period of time, but it was sort of a definitive period for me."
For fans of The Fledge- don't be too concerned, it won't be all bleak for long. Hunter is the sister project to the band's upcoming Gatherer, her lighter, more optimistic sibling. Bresette recorded and produced the record at his studio, Deadquarters, where Murchison has primarily worked for a number of other releases.
"When I was putting together these songs, I knew that I wanted Marco to not only be in the band, but also to produce the project," said Murchison. "There's a level of trust that I've built up with Marco over a long time, this is the fourth time I've worked with him on a project in his studio, and we played together in Kitchens & Bathrooms when we were much younger. We've developed our own shorthand, I have so much respect for him and trust him completely in a studio/band setting. I knew when I started writing the material for Hunter that we'd be recording it at Deadquarters- there's no place else I'd want to do a record. We had the record mastered by Joao Carvalho, who is someone that Marco uses regularly. They've done the mastering for past projects I've been in and I've always been happy with the results of their work."
Murchison isn't picky about what you take away from his band's music, he's just happy to hear that it resonated with you.
"I'm not real big on saying, "This is what this song is about, and this is how you should feel about it,"" said Murchison. "Some of the lyrics are a little opaque and can probably be interpreted in more than one way, and I think that's a good thing. People can pull their own meanings from things and apply that to their own experience, I think that's a beautiful thing."
You can help support The Fledge by streaming their music, following their socials, and by purchasing their music via the Bandcamp link below.
Upcoming gigs:
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