People fear change and the unknown, particularly when it comes to music.
They expect their favourite bands and musicians to recycle a sound or formula that they connect with and, more often than not, shy away when that artist attempts something different musically.
For Alex Lifeson (Rush) and Andy Curran (Coney Hatch), their new project Envy Of None is one of those musical ventures that it is fair to say no-one saw coming.
It is an exploration of music and styles undertaken only by those comfortable within themselves and one which may not resonate with many fans familiar with either musicians previous body of work. But, more important than any of that, it is a musical project designed to appease the people involved first and foremost, with others welcome to climb aboard for the journey but equally as welcome to shun altogether.
Envy Of None is an amalgamation of two mens visions, manifested in a project that reeks of self-indulgence, but is all the better for it.
With the band’s debut, self-titled album coming out earlier this month, Curran sat down with HEAVY to discuss the new project and the freedom that comes with musical expression.
“We weren’t too sure what to expect,” he laughed, “because Alex, the guitarist from Rush rock and roll Hall Of Fame, is one of the members and he and I joked we should put a sticker disclaimer on the front saying “this isn’t Rush, this isn’t Coney Hatch” because it’s quite a departure for both of us. We weren’t really sure what the diehard Rush fans were gonna think of it and some of the Coney Hatch fans, but the reception has been really positive. We got some early crazy numbers, and I think we were number 1 on Amazon new music, so to be honest with you, it’s been pretty overwhelmingly positive and it’s taken us aback because we’re proud of the record but I don’t think we were anticipating such a strong, positive embracing of music fans that are thanking us for creating this piece of art. People keep saying this is a piece of art, and we spent a lot of time crafting the sounds and really having fun with it, but long answer short, we’re quite happy with the positive feedback so far.”
In the full interview, Andy talks more about the songs on the album, creating mood through music, the different instruments played on the album, working with Alex, the limited edition split 7” record being put out to raise funds for the Ukraine Emergency Response, future plans and more.
