APPROXIMATELY 2,044 kilometres north of Hollywood, CA, one pop-rock band is making quite a bit of noise.
Vancouver-based band Halfway to Hollywood, or HTH as often referred to by their fans, are fresh off their latest performance at the Tom Lee Music Hall on March 31.
"This is what we love and what we have always wanted to do," lead singer Grant Walker says. "We bust our asses doing it."
The now four-man unit was born in early 2011 when Walker and bassist Brenden White decided to get serious about music. Since then HTH has experienced some turbulence, including the departure of two original members.
"Finding the right people was a real struggle," Walker says. "It took a really long time. We tried a lot of people."
Despite the changes the band forged ahead and in late February they added their newest member, Mexican drummer Roman Zugarazo.
"He (Zugarazo) came out and jammed with us and we just clicked," Walker says. "Now we've got the perfect group together."
Lead guitarist Jacob Owen is originally from Squamish but lived in North Vancouver for three years before moving to Burnaby
The name Halfway to Hollywood was created during some of the band's earliest recording sessions. They would jokingly say they were halfway to Hollywood.
According to fans and reviewers the band has a sound that is a pleasant mix between Simple Plan and another Vancouver-based group, Fighting for Ithaca.
"We are not quite pop punk," White says, "People call us that but were not really."
"We try to write stuff that people can relate too," Walker adds. "It's just a lot of personal stuff that we have gone through and people respond well to that."
Their first EP, Speechless, is a collection of three singles, "Speechless", "Breakdown" and "Still Waiting" and was released on May 11, 2011. It was mixed by Steven Klassen at the Sound Suite in Abbotsford.
"(Klassen) is a great guy, he's got a great sense of humour and is a lot of fun." Walker says. "We went back to him when we finished "Last September" and that worked out pretty well too."
Danny Craig, the drummer from Default, will be producing the band's next EP.
"(Craig's) worked with Fighting for Ithaca who just got signed by 604 Records and they were really happy with him and the work that he did with them," Walker says. "It sounded better than anything we heard that was coming out locally."
The band understands the importance of being able to put on a memorable live performance.
"For a band in our stage and in any stage realistically it's the most important thing," White says.
"We are always trying to improve our live show and make it better."
Halfway to Hollywood is expecting to go out on their first Western Canadian tour in late April. According to the band the tour will include stops in Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon and Kelowna.
"We hope to survive it and not go too far in debt or anything like that," Walker jokes. "Really though we just want to get out there and connect with our fans directly."
Before hitting the road they will perform in Nanaimo and Victoria on April 21 and April 22.
When the guys aren't in school or working they are spending almost every ounce of their free time crafting their music. Halfway to Hollywood also spends a significant amount of time communicating with their fans through various social networking sites.
"People expect that now days, especially for an unsigned band," Walker says. "We have to bring the whole package."
"It's hugely important," White adds. "We are on there every single day talking to every single person who expresses an interest in us."
As of March 28, Halfway to Hollywood had 4,813 followers on Twitter and 1,548 likes on Facebook.
The extent of Halfway to Hollywood's fan base can easily be seen on Facebook. Users from the Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec, Germany, Portugal and Russia have created geographical-based fan pages for the band.
Although the band is relatively new to the music scene they offer merchandise for fans to purchase. On March 29, they released their latest T-shirt design following the successful sales of their first design.
"There is a lot of stuff you have got to do. If you don't have a label doing it for you, then someone's got to do it," Walker says.
"It is a second full-time job," Owen adds. "Everybody sort of grows up wanting to be a rock star but no one grows up wanting to be a working musician."
Halfway to Hollywood knows how crucial it is that everyone in the band is able to contribute in more ways than one.
"It is important everyone in the band is doing something . . .we are a team," Zugarazo says.
"We have all been in bands where only one guy does all the work," White adds.
"We have all been that guy in our own respective bands and now with the four of us it is a real solid team," Walker says. "We have different skill sets that each of us are good at and bring to the table and I think that is huge."
For more information visit www.facebook. com/halfwaytohollywood and on twitter @ halfwaytoholly.
