Exclusive Album Stream: Shiver. – Evergreen
Interview by Jessica Klinner
Hailing from Salem, Massachusetts, indie-emo band Shiver. are gearing up for the release of their debut album, Evergreen, due out December 6 via Honest Face Records and Counter Intuitive Records. Through swelling melodies and introspective lyrics, Shiver.–consisting of vocalist/guitarist Chris Babbitt, guitarist Nick Finestone, drummer Ross Pszenny, bassist Evan Healey and keyboardist Andrew Farley– cast a spell on listeners from start to finish. If you’re a fan of Balance and Composure, From Indian Lakes or Tigers Jaw, you’re bound to find something worth loving in Shiver’s music.
Today, we are excited to bring you the exclusive stream of Evergreen below. We also caught up with Finestone and Pszenny to find out about the new release and more! And while there’s only a few days left before the release, you can pre-order the record here.
To get things started, tell us about how the band first got together.
Nick and Ross have been in bands together since they were 15 back in 2011, with Chris joining their pop punk band in 2012. After another year and a half of writing, line up changes, and progression as musicians, we formed as Shiver in late 2013. We’ve had a few more lineup changes since then, with Evan joining on bass in 2014, and Andrew on keys as our latest addition to the band this year.
You’ve got a very solid set of songs for a first release. Which one are you the most proud of?
We are proud of all of our songs, but if we had to narrow it down to one, it would probably have to be “Stay.” It was the most recently written song on the album, and we feel like it exemplifies who we are, and who we want to be.
How did the album come together? Was it an accumulation of years of writing or did you guys sit down together and knock it out all at once?
It was definitely an on-and-off process that took well over a year of writing and recording. We recorded “Lost and Found” in the Spring of 2015 and began tracking the rest of the album the following Fall. This album was recorded song by song with 1-3 song sessions.
The songs seem very moody in an introspective and raw way. Is there an overarching theme or message of the album?
Chris stated in a previous interview that Evergreen is an album about “growing up, loving, losing, and holding on to the things that are permanent.” We as musicians feel that we can connect with these songs and relate them to each of our lives personally.
Anyone not from the Salem area automatically associates the town with the famous witch trials and not necessarily much else, including music. How has being based in this area affected the band positively or negatively? Is the music scene in Salem anything special?
While growing up, we thought the Salem scene was very restricted and tourist-oriented, so we played most of our shows in the Boston/Cambridge area. Besides all the ghouls and ghosts, Salem has grown to be better. More restaurants are featuring live music of all genres with the opening of Opus Underground and Koto across the street. These are two of our favorite venues in general; we try to play there regularly and foster our local fanbase by making connections and new friends. The city of Salem has definitely helped us in our recent growth as a band.
As a younger band, who are you looking to in the industry right now as an example of where you want to be/what you want to achieve as a band?
We look up to a lot of bands of varying genres. If we had to name one band we aspire to, it would be Coldplay.
What can we expect from Shiver in 2017? More touring?
We are currently in the works of planning a summer tour. We’re also working on new songs that we plan to demo in the next few months. Hopefully, they’ll reach your ears sometime soon.
