Too Close To Touch
Interviewer: Haley Buske
Too Close To Touch, an energetic, alternative rock band signed to Epitaph Records, has been causing a stir in the alternative rock world. As a band that’s as humble as they are talented, Keaton Pierce (lead vocals) and Mason Marble (guitar) phoned in to chat with us about their upcoming album release and their recent rise on music scene.
So you guys have been playing together since 2012, but how did you all first meet?
Mason: Kenny and I have been playing together for about seven years now. We just started jamming out in his basement—Improve kind of stuff. Eventually we started getting into constructing songs, which was when we decided to look for people to start a band. We had a bunch of different people who would come and go, and Kenny and I would just carry on. Eventually we met Travis. We began playing with him consistently. Then, through mutual friends we got in contact with Keaton, who lived four hours away at the time.
Keaton: It was purely coincidental, and really kind of crazy, how I ended up coming into contact with the guys. Music means everything to me, and it was at a point in my life where I was ready to take it to the next level. We got acquainted. Then, through a random Facebook message, they were kind of just like, “Hey, come up. Try it out.” Then, Thomas actually sought us out. He was looking for bands in the area after just moving from Tucson, Az. to Kentucky, so we brought him up to Lexington one weekend to the studio to see what he had going on. Everything just sort of fit.
Was the goal always to play professionally or was it just for fun at first?
Keaton: Yeah, from day one that was kind of the one thing that was the unspoken glue. I mean, obviously, we talked about it all the time. We would see all these bands whose music spoke to us—It just really kind of fueled our passion. Playing professionally was the dream. After awhile it just sort of became “it.” It became this thing that no matter where we found ourselves with writing music, the fire was still there. It was always just about getting back up when we fell.
You guys are really just starting out on your adventure as band. This is the time where you not only have to prove yourselves, but you get to invent yourself. It’s a pretty exciting time. In your bio and other descriptions of your band, it’s said you take cues from everyone from Moon Taxi to The Neighborhood, but remain 100% yourselves. What does it mean to be 100% Too Close To Touch?
Keaton: We don’t do anything that we don’t want to do. We’re so close as a band, and I think we all know who we personally are which helps us stay true to who we are as a band. Just being genuine is all we ever really want to do. We don’t try to put on a face for anybody. We want people to see us for who we really are from our music.
Mason: From day one we always have been a band where we knew what we wanted to do. We’ve always written music that we wanted to write—never conforming to a specific genre. Not to say we don’t have influences. We definitely do. It’s just more meaningful for us to write without boundaries. We didn’t have to conform to any sort of style. We write the music that makes us feel something.
So you guys have your debut album “Nerve Endings” dropping March 24th. That’s pretty exciting. What are you most amped about for the release of your upcoming album?
Keaton: It’s an album with a message. It’s an album that any instrument that you hear played, every vocal on the record if full of emotion and purpose. I guess it’s just exciting showing the world our message. Not to sound cliché, but I want it to help people. It’s a very brutally honest record. I opened up about a lot of stuff that I’ve never talked about before the album. I want to be able to change people like they changed me.
Mason: Honestly, I’m just excited for it to be heard. It’s one thing to be proud of your record when you’re sitting there listening to it, but there’s a different kind of pride when seeing how people respond to it. That’s my favorite thing: seeing the different kinds of things people say. It feels like we’ve been keeping a secret, and it’s not something we want to keep a secret. We want as many people to hear it as possible.
Are there any songs that are close to your heart or that you are particularly proud of on the record?
Keaton: I mean yeah. That’s a really, really hard question for me because, lyrically, the concepts are pretty near and dear to my heart. If I had to, if I had to pick three… I’m sorry I have to pick three. I’d go with “Nerve Endings,” “Hell To Pay” and “Collapse.” Especially with “Hell To Pay,” we’re getting an incredible response. We’re thrilled to death. It was a pretty emotional topic, and I’m already personally seeing having kids message me about it. I can see the budding seed of what I want to happen actually happening.
Mason: I think “Nerve Endings” and “Collapse” are the two songs that speak the loudest to me as a whole, especially instrumentally.
You’ve said before in regards to your songs that, “First impressions are everything. You’ve really got to kick the door down and really have that explosive start.” How does that play out when you’re writing your music?
Keaton: To be real for a second with you, when I started writing this album lyrically it was during one of the more difficult parts of my life. I was dealing with a lot of things in my head. It was kind of like how the expression goes, “When it rains, it pours.” When we were going in to write this album, it was pouring. It was monsooning. I wanted someone to listen to a song and stare at me wide-eyed like “You just said that. You just opened up about that.”
What would you say has been the most difficult part of your career for you all personally and collectively?
Keaton: The hardest part has just been keeping our eyes on the prize. I guess there’s this gut feeling—the fire inside we get from the music. That spark is always there to remind us why we do this. Yeah, it’s insanely hard at times. The term starving artist is not an exaggeration by any means. We’ve all made sacrifices just to make ends meet on the music end. The toughest part is holding to the feeling that I love this. No matter how hard things get, I have to do this.
Mason: I can’t honestly pinpoint a specific incident that has been the hardest part. It’s almost like the passion makes you forget about those things. The thing that drives you to sacrifice all your money and all your time is the main thing. It’s not so much about any of the difficult times. We just throw all those things aside and move on to the next thing.
What has been the highlight of your career so far?
Keaton: Oh man, that’s a hard one. You have to realize I’m in a band with four other ridiculous people just like me. We get into so many random shenanigans… Nah, nah, I’m just kidding. I think the highlight would be the first time I sat down to listen to our entire album from start to finish. Just knowing that’s what we had put all our hard work towards. I was just so proud. I couldn’t stop smiling from start to finish.
Mason: I would say the same thing. It just felt right. It just felt completed. It was the coolest experience.
