The Felix Culpa

credit: ap-imaging.com


This may be the first time that readers have heard of the band The Felix Culpa, or they could have heard their name tons and tons of times. However, this Chicago, IL based band is gaining ground in recording their new album which has no release date yet, and depending on who you talk to, no name.


How did you all meet?
Dustin Henry: The other guys in the band knew each other for a long time before I
met any of them, but I suppose we met through my parents' venue. I'd been a fan of theirs for a while, and I always insisted that my parents book them. Then we ended up becoming close through some mutual friends (and girlfriends), and I think we became family when I went on tour with them a couple summers ago doing merch.
Marky Hladish: Joel and I have known each other since we were kids, and we started playing music together when we were about 13 or 14 years old. The first time we ever played in front of other people was at a youth
retreat... i didn't even know how to play guitar yet, so i just sang and joel played guitar and we had a couple of friends back us up on bass and drums. We were booed off the stage. I don't think we've stopped playing together since.
Tristan came into the picture about 4 years ago when we parted ways with our previous bass player and we needed someone to fill in for a couple shows. We knew him from the local music scene... he was in a ska band called Magnum Opus and had a huge blue mohawk, but he was a really good musician so we let it slide. He played out with us a few times and it stuck.
Dustin was our biggest fan and won a contest that we were holding to join the band. It was nice to make his dream come true.
Tristan Hammond: From what I can recall, Joel and Mark met each other when Joel was about 8 and Mark was 10.
I met the both of them at a show that our old bands played together. At first Mark was intimidated by me, but a year later we met again and became incredible friends, shortly followed by Joel and I taking the same path.
Dustin and I sort of met for a couple of different reasons, actually. On top of the fact that he was playing in a band from the area, we also ended up having a lot of mutual friends and (as a result) became very close.



Where did the band name come from?
DH: I obviously had nothing to do with the origin of the name, but I believe Marky will tell you that it was an old Catholic term that translates into the 'fortunate fault' or 'happy fault.'
MH: John Milton by way of James Guest.
TH: "the Felix Culpa" roughly translates to "the happy mistake" or "the fortunate fault"
if you'd like more detailed information, we would suggest reading Paradise Lost by John Milton



What was it like to be in the top 100 bands to know for AP last year? Did it get you more listeners?
DH: As a fan of theirs, it was great to see them in that magazine. I felt proud.
MH: It's nice to be recognized by any national publication... AP has been extremely nice to us over the last couple of years and have done a bunch of features on us. It's hard to say if we got more listeners or
not because of it. I know some people at AP must listen to us now, so i guess we got a few new listeners.
TH: I think it was really weird to be featured in something like that. I know that, in the long run, being on some silly list doesn't mean a whole lot, but it's nice to feel appreciated; it's nice to know that people are receiving something that you pour your heart and soul in creating; it's nice to know that they enjoy it enough to talk you up, you know?
As far as garnering new fans from the publishing of that Issue, I guess we can only hope so. Haha.



You recently added Dustin Henry, how did that change the music?
DH: Nice to meet you. Whether it was me or someone else, the music was going to be going through quite a growth spurt regardless. But I like to think that a strength of mine is an open mind. What I lack in musical talent and experience I make up for in willingness to try anything and everything, and the willingness to work as hard as I have to in order to achieve the sound we want.
MH: He's really talented and adaptable and willing to pick up any instrument to serve the song, so writing broader sounding music with more depth has become easier. We really wanted to expand on the basic
guitar rock thing that we do and add to it with piano and mandolin and trumpet and percussion, all of which he can do well. He came out on one of our tours as a road manager and we got along so well that it seemed natural to ask him to play with us. Working him into our older stuff has actually been the hardest part. It's been really tough to find the most appropriate way for him to serve those songs that are already in existence without changing them too much.
TH: It made it TERRIBLE.
No, I'm kidding of course. The addition of Dustin really enables us to do a lot of things we've wanted to do for a long, long time. As much as we loved being a "power trio," it really inhibited us from accomplishing more live. Now that he's joined our family, it gives us an entirely new scope in which to view our medium; a new palette and brush.



What's the best thing about being in a band?
DH: The second best thing is that organic rush you get from creating something you feel so close to, and getting to experience it every time you get to show it to people. But I think the best part is when people really, really get it, because it really confirms that what you're doing is worthwhile and maybe as meaningful to someone else as it is to you.
MH: Meal buyouts and open bar.
TH: Everything. I love being able to create something with a group of people that you respect, look up to and love like family. I love the feeling of being connected with other people; playing music gives me
the opportunity to do that – through the process of creating, and the experience of playing it for others.



What has been the greatest change in the band from when you first started off?
DH: Well, I first started off in a couple bands in high school, one of which played almost exclusively cover songs and completely lacked any form of organisation or identity. Then my next band's biggest
influence was this band. So it's kind of like that movie Rockstar, and I'm Mark Wahlberg. Except I haven't replaced anyone, and the guy from Third Eye Blind isn't in this one. And I can't sing that eighties metal wail. And Jennifer Aniston isn't my girlfriend. And I don't have my nipples pierced.
MH: Wow. That's a tough question. Joel and I have each gotten married and started our own families, so for me i feel i have to justify playing music in a rock band as part of my life now, where as before i didn't
feel as though anyone would care what i did with my life... but that's just my own personal bullshit that i have to deal with. There's no one standing over me saying "grow up and stop playing in a band". It was a decision that my wife and i made when we got married to keep the band going full time as an intregal part of our life, and not just give it up or do it halfheartedly. We are both musicians and if anything, my wife and our families are unbelievably supportive of our lifestyle. I don't know... i feel like i should say that lots of things about the band itself have changed, but they haven't really. We drive a bigger van, have better equipment, and write better songs. And we have more members now. That's about it.
TH: Wow, that's a good question. I think that, speaking strictly in a musical sense, we've all continued to veer off into our own realms of what we truly enjoy listening to. That's not saying that we don't all still listen to a lot of the same music, but I think we all bring a whole lot more to the table in terms of separate influences these days.



How have you grown since the last album came out?
DH: I've probably grown a couple inches, and I've learned some new instruments. I've probably got a little bit better of an understanding on how the world works, too.
MH: Sure.
TH: Musically, I think we've all grown in fairly separate directions. We all still love the same centralized core of music, but each of us also has our own thing that we're into. I think that, in many ways, those separate influences will always help shape this band; the fact that they are ever-changing and evolving will continue to make the band do the same.
Personally, I think we've all gone through a lot of things (wonderful and terrible) in the last 4 years since Commitment was released. I've seen sides of myself disappear and others completely resurface, having gone through a pretty rough personal crisis on the inside for a long time; Marky and Heather have 3 kids and a family life; Joel married his love/our friend Andrea; Dustin moved to Chicago and went through puberty.
4 years can be such a long time when there are a lot of major things going on your life – it's all relative, you know?



When are we seeing this album come out?
DH: Let's hope for October 2010. Maybe that's too optimistic...
MH: We don't know.
TH: 2046. I'm serious. I think that's the projected date for now. This new album has been an incredible task, both financially and emotionally. I'd like to say "this year" …something that I hope I can keep my word on.



Any title for it yet?
DH: Nope.
MH: Yes.
TH: We've got a few ideas, but I suppose you'll just have to wait and see.



What is your goal as a band, and how are you achieving it?
DH: I can't speak for everyone, but I think a big goal of ours is simply making music and sharing it with people who understand. Or maybe using it as a way to better understand ourselves. It's hard to say, but I think we've got a lot of work ahead of us, and any goal we could have is the kind of goal that is almost never reached - just always strived for.
MH: I just want to play songs, so by the band being in existence and being able to get out in front of crowds, small or large, it's fulfilling it's purpose in my opinion.
TH: I think that our goal as a band has always been to test and push our limits; to grow and evolve as people, musicians and friends; to create something that we love and to share it with as many people as are willing to listen. As for achieving it, I guess all I can really say is that we're doing it the only way we know how. We'll have talks
about whether or not we've achieved our goal in like 15 years. Haha.

Batman, it's spray painted on to an amp, what's so great about him, for the people who don't realize how awesome he is?
DH: He's Tristan.
MH: Batman is really billionaire Bruce Wayne.
TH: I speak only for myself when I say that I look up to Batman as if he were a non-fictional character. He embodies the drive, passion, ambition, honour and commitment that too many people are lacking these days. He's human – he can't fly or break a train in half with his bare hands. He has to cope with a major tragedy from his childhood that scarred him for life, and he's using it to try and protect/help other people; what's more noble than that? There are also a lot of dark sides to him; he has many internal conflicts and struggles with himself while riding a fine line between vigilante and psychotic-on-the-brink-of-murderer. I think it's this humanity to the character that has always made him so appealing to me.



Who's played the best Batman? Joker?
DH: I think one or both of Marky's twin boys have dressed up as Batman before, and they were pretty good at it. And I think it's safe to say that the late Ledger should prove to be a pretty amazing Joker.
MH: Christian Bale is iconic as Batman and i believe that Heath Ledger will surpass all other incarnations of the Joker come this July.
TH: Christian Bale has played/is playing the best Batman – no doubt about it. The guy really understands the intricacies of the character and seems to take a lot of care with how he handles the role.
As for the Joker, it's too early to say this definitively, but I'm pretty sure we can count on Heath Ledger going down in Batman history as the best on-screen portrayal of the Joker.



What do you guys do to make the time go by faster during the long grueling tour drives?
DH: We wear mustaches, short shorts, and get robbed by drunken hooligans in dirty towns in Ohio. Also, we watch movies, read books and do things that boring, regular guys do.
MH: I read a lot. Joel texts his wife. Other than that, we're always watching movies and listening to music, or playing mean spirited practical jokes on whoever is helping us without pay. We eat when we have money. And one of us is usually sleeping.
TH: Listen to music, watch movies, sleep, read books, make up ridiculous road games, argue, make fun of each other and play mean, drawn out jokes on our unpaid road help.



What's one of the better things about touring? Worse?
DH: Better things: meeting people, playing music, seeing new places, driving in the rain, culture shock. Worse things: getting robbed by drunken hooligans in Ohio, getting stuck in a ton of sand outside a dirty little motel in Florida, trailers breaking, almost not having money to make it to the next show, phone bills.
MH: Being away is good and bad in both regards.
TH: Best: Living the dream I have of getting to share our heart and soul with receptive strangers on a daily and nightly basis.
Worst: terrible promoters, bad shows, equipment failure and fighting drunks to get your stuff back.



Do you feel it's important to have equal say and input on what the band is doing as a whole?
DH: Absolutely. If everyone doesn't have their say, chances are someone is unhappy and not doing what they're doing for the right reasons.
MH: No i don't. In fact i think that it would be a hinderance for us to operate that way. We all have input and everyone's input is weighed evenly, but that doesn't mean that we all agree all of the time. And if we had to unanimously agree on every issue, we'd never get anything done. We all have the same general mindset about what it is we're doing, and almost all of the decisions are talked about with the band as a whole, but ultimately someone has to make a decision and usually it's me cause it's my nature to take control of things, for better or worse. There are different areas of the band that we're responsible for in our own rights, and we all keep each other accountable. But creatively is where it gets the most tricky. I'm very attached to and protective of the songs i write, so i end up feeling like i get to have the last say about where they go and i defend my ideas pretty fiercely most of the time. Thankfully, the other guys always end up interpreting the songs in a way that i probably wouldn't think to do, so it ends up evening out in the end. I honestly don't think the band's dynamic would be the same if any one of us were replaced. It wouldn't work. I would probably just end up telling everyone what to play in every scenario, cause that's my nature. But everyone in this band is so solid at what they do that it makes it easy to let go of what i want to do with the songs sometimes and have ideas float around and be creative. And it means that even after 5+ years we can not only still tolerate each other, but actually still be friends. It's been eye-opening learning how i interact with others around me through the relationships i have in this band.
TH: Oh, absolutely. If you cannot work together as a unit and be on the same page, then you should re-think what it is that you are doing.
I mean, there will ALWAYS be compromise; there will always be give a take… but isn't that what it means to be a team and a family?



Did you always see yourselves doing this and being in the positions you are?
DH: In some ways, yes; and in others, absolutely not. Let me elaborate: I've always envisioned myself playing in a band. What I never would've imagined is that I'd be playing with some of my absolute favourite
musicians or that I'd find a place that felt this much like home. It's a good position to be in.
MH: I've come to the pleasant realization that i'll always be a musician regardless of what band i'm in or where i'm at in life. That takes a lot of the pressure off of thinking that i have to make something
happen right here and now with this band. I have the rest of my life to play songs and if along the way people happen to like them, then great. I shouldn't try to posture myself for a better current position, and i think that now i carry some of that ideology into what i do with the band. It's more about enjoying what it is that i get the opportunity to do on a daily basis than thinking about where i'd like to be doing it, or who i'd like to be doing it for. That makes things much more fun.
TH: Without a doubt, yes. When I was 2 years old, I was hopping around the house to David Lee Roth and the Police; I've known since those days (as have my parents) that music inhabited my soul.



What direction do you all see the band going in?
DH: Hopefully east, both literally and figuratively.
MH: We'll see what happens with this album. Hopefully we'll all still keep
playing music.
TH: I think that, honestly, it would be premature to answer that with anything other than a remarkably vague answer: We will go wherever we decide to take ourselves. With music, there's really nothing ever limiting the creation other than your own imagination or will. I think that whatever changes inside of us will always be a means to an end with what we write. Is that vague enough?



Is there anything else you think we should know?
DH: Listen to Up Up Down Down?
MH: July 18th.
TH: The reason that human hair smells so bad when it burns is because it is composed (at least partially) of sulfur.
Also, if you value your life at all, you will go to the cinema on July 18th. And 19th. And 20th.


To listen to The Felix Culpa, check out their myspace at: http://www.myspace.com/thefelixculpa
And to keep up on their recording, check out their blog at: http://journal.thefelixculpa.com

-Sara "if I were a toucan.." Garcia