Little Hurricane is a husband-and-wife duo from San Diego, California, who are preparing to release their new album, Same Sun Same Moon, on April 14. The group is Anthony ”Tone” Catalano on guitar and vocals and Celeste ”C.C.” Spina, doing drums and vocals. Popdose spoke with Tone and C.C. about the forthcoming release, about the rigors of being independent musicians in the modern music landscape, the benefits of being a contained musical unit and a family, and the impetus behind the end-of-the-world visions in the music video for “OTL (One True Love).”
How long did it take to bring Same Sun Same Moon together?
Tone – We’ve been writing these songs for nearly three years- since our last release, Gold Fever. We usually start a new record the moment a current record is finished, by jamming throughout soundcheck and rehearsal. The songs were mostly written in Alpine, California, and then finalized and tracked in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
The band dynamic is interesting in that Little Hurricane is a duo and a couple. It has been done before, but in very rare circumstances has the duo been fully responsible for everything. Usually, there’s a healthy contingent of session players involved. What is the working relationship like as opposed to the family relationship?
C.C. – It is all about balance, or at least attempting to find balance. When we are on tour it is 100 percent about Little Hurricane, and since it is so consuming there is usually little time for else. It certainly is not easy to live with, work with, and tour with your significant other, but there have been moments where the band was the glue that held our relationship together, and other times when our love has held our band together. We are lucky to have both to fall back on when things become challenging.
Because of this partnership, have there been times when a song had to change — or at least have serious scrutiny applied — because the content was a little too close for comfort?
Tone – Not really. We tend to put it all out there, for better or worse. For the most part, our songs are our lives, and that covers anything from past relationships, drug addiction, loss of a family member, to personal hardships and triumphs we have experienced. It is a form of therapy to purge our emotions into a song, and then be able to let go of those feelings. How people interpret the song is out of our hands by the time we have finished it, so the most we can do is be honest while writing it.
The video for “OTL” (One True Love) is a bit apocalyptic. How did it come about?
Tone – It’s hard to envision these were images present during the initial writing stages for the song… The concept was based on going through a difficult time, ultimately the most difficult time, but having your soul-mate be there with you. It wasn’t what we have visualized while writing the song, but when we created the concept it felt like a good fit for us. Life is full of tragedy and unexpected change, the key is to find someone that can help you see the moments of beauty in the midst of it all.
What challenges has the group experienced is the midst of getting out there and heard by the public?
C.C. – It costs a lot of money to tour, and takes a leap of faith to invest in the beginning. For our first U.S. tour, I sold my car, all my furniture and most of my belongings to make it happen. I quit my job and threw myself into in full force. The first time we toured in Europe in 2015, Tone sold his car in order to make it happen. We are constantly giving up the comforts of having a home to focus our resources on being able to tour. The most incredible part is that when we think we can’t do it anymore, an opportunity always presents itself to keep going. The universe seems to always provide and make sure we are able to keep creating music and touring.
Where did the group name come from?
C.C. – A lot of brainstorming and Googling. We wanted something that represented our size and sound- we are small yet powerful- and “little hurricane” seems to embody that. Plus, it’s really easy to Google because there is no such thing as a little hurricane. Technically, (that would be) a tropical storm.
You can find out more about Little Hurricane and the forthcoming record at:
www.littlehurricanemusic.com
www.facebook.com/little.hurricane.music
www.twitter.com/littlehurricane
www.instagram.com/littlehurricane
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