REVIEW BY MICHELLE CASTILLO
INTERVIEW BY CAMI LIBERTY
This seemingly upbeat song by the New Jersey based band Sleep House deals with the whirlwind of emotions of someone who had just been broken up with. The feeling of hopelessness and anger in their latest single “I Hate That I Miss You” as their love interest moves on to someone seemingly better than them is felt through each word.
The song itself is beautifully crafted with a nostalgic feel. Taking you back to the summer in ‘83 as you dance the pain away in your empty bedroom on a warm afternoon. “I Hate That I Miss You” plays on the Walkman you stole from your Dad’s toolbox. A memory never experienced, but a familiar sentiment nonetheless. Even if you had never experienced a breakup yourself it’ll feel like you did after listening to this song.
A lyric that really stood out was, “what more could I do?” Up until that point the background instrumentals were increasing their complex. The beginning contained a simple drum beat accompanied with a smooth guitar riff. An addition of a lead guitar kicks off for the bridge adding a new twist to the song. Then that line appears. The suspense created by the guitarists and drummer stops bringing emphasis to the line. Immediately after the song picks up, this time with a more energetic composition.
This artistic choice sets up the mood for the entire song. The uselessness that Nicholas Gardyasz, the lead singer, feels as he misses his lost love is made more apparent. It’s this element that makes the song have such a strong impact.
“I Hate That I Miss You” is a beautifully crafted song that should not be overlooked. I can’t wait to hear what else this band has to offer.
You just released your new single “I Hate That I Miss You.” Can you tell us a little about the song and the inspiration behind it?
SLEEP HOUSE: “The song came very quickly and kind of saved us all from a little bit of a funk we were in. We had about a month where we couldn’t get anything clicking and we were all just doing our own things. It felt almost like our spark was dimming, but then this one came around and it just kind of put this energy into us that I don’t think we’ve had before. The song is really just about hating the dread you feel after a relationship with someone ends and wanting to move on as quickly as possible. I think this is one of our most progressed songs we’ve ever had and hopefully the fans love it as much as we do. “
How would you describe the song in three words?
SH: “Fresh, vibey, bright.“
What is your usual writing/recording process like?
SH: “Usually when songs or ideas come into the studio, we end up crafting them pretty quickly. ‘I Hate That I Miss You’ was written by the time it was brought in and everything else came together rather quickly. It’s usually pretty fast for us, it’s the recording that takes a while. We have our own studio, so luckily we have the ability to experiment as much as we want. While this could be both a good and bad thing, we really just try to do as much as possible to the songs while trying not to alter the basis of the song too much.”
How do you feel your music has evolved since becoming a band?
SH: “Every year, I notice our sound becoming more and more crafted and it really gives all of us so much hope. Although we love and appreciate our old stuff, the writing and recording quality keeps getting better and better, which is all you can hope for. Because we’re still on the younger side, this incline in song quality is hopefully something that continues to happen with us and will help us not give up if we’re ever feeling hopeless.”
Is there anything else we can expect from you guys in the near future?
SH: “We definitely are not gonna stop giving new music and content for the fans, we all are in a mode right now where we just don’t want to stop. This new music we have right now is truly just the best stuff we’ve ever done and I cannot wait for people to hear all of these new songs. Definitely strap in, we aren’t going anywhere. “