Hayley and the Crushers, fronted by Hayley Cain, are set to release their new EP Unsubscribe from the Underground released this week. The EP delves into the dynamics of evolving music scenes, reflecting on the band’s transition from California to Detroit and their exploration of raw, diverse sounds. Known for their blend of pop punk with a touch of retro and experimental influences, the band combines grit and glitz in their latest work, showcasing their journey and commitment to authentic self-expression in a shifting musical landscape.
How did the band form and what does the band name mean?
Hayley: It was 2016, Dr. Cain ESQ and I had been married for a few years, and we had already been in three other bands together before, various country and punk outfits. That said, I had never been a front person of a band. We were just coming off a punk project where I was tired of writing songs and having someone else sing them. I wanted to try my hand at being a "front person" of a rock band, which meant putting my actual name on the damn thing. My original dream was to have an all girl band, but the girls I found to work with quit and formed their own project. So I was looking around for a bass player and my sweet husband Dr. Cain, who had never played bass in his life, picked one up and said "How hard could this be?" He played the bass like a guitar, doing these fat lead licks that run counter to my vocal melody. I was writing these romantic, wry kind of beachy pop punk songs. There was a big spark there, we had something. I thought it would be stupid to say no to this bass player standing right in front of me, and he could always wear a wig and a dress! I'm glad I gave in, because the fat scuzzy bass sound really makes the Crushers unique. It's all about this demonic bass, fresh, bright guitar and whatever drummer we can convince to get into our van (currently Gabe Masek, who is great). These days, we even have a wicked shreddy lead guitarist, Ryan Deliso. It's all working out!
Reid: As for the name: Our band is sugar and spice, so the name reflects that. A crush can be a physical danger (being crushed by a wrestler) or it can be a kiss on the cheek from a love interest. I am big on wrestling, so that's how I came up with it. Around the house, I like to call Hayley "H-Bomb" or "Hurricane Hayley Cain." That's her wrestling name!
Previous musical projects? How'd you first get into music?
Hayley: I am a writer at heart, so my love of storytelling and need to express my feelings naturally flowed into the arrival of my first guitar, age 9. I've always written songs, and fell in love with punk when I first heard a burned CD of Op Ivy's "Energy." My first band was an all-girl group I formed with friends at Redondo Union High School in Southern California, and we really loved to cut class and play backyard shows and generally cause trouble. I also played banjo in a bluegrass band, which was super fun and showed me what it meant to book and play regular gigs. And then Dr. Cain and I had Magazine Dirty, our first punk band together, "San Luis Obispo, CA's finest shit show." That band showed me how to be part of a team, and I switched off playing lead and rhythm guitar with Dr. Cain. Red Eye Junction was Dr. Cain's country band of many years, that I joined that group just as it was ending, as a vocalist. That band taught me how to tour in a Ford E150 Cargo van (we now have a Dodge Promaster). We also had a short lived throwback country duet project called Tarweed Two and the Two Time Boys, which always reminds me of our first days together. We've put out more than ten releases together in ten years of being married!
Dr. Cain, Esq: Despite being generally obsessed with music, I didn't learn to play guitar until I was in my 20's. I was putting together melodies and little songs after moving from Oakland, CA to San Luis Obispo, CA. I was a regular at the local watering hole McCarthy's Irish Pub and I kept running into this dude who saw me singing along to every country song on the jukebox and he asked me to join his country outfit he had recently started. That project, Red Eye Junction, lasted ten years, five albums, tons of touring, and finally meeting Hayley, who joined and brought a new life into the band. I had grown a bit weary of the 2.5-hour gigs and wanted to get back to my punk rock roots, so I recruited some local knuckleheads and convinced Hayley to play guitar in Magazine Dirty. She kind of let you in on the rest of it above.
First concert that you ever went to? (Locally and National acts)
Hayley: There were small punk shows at the local masonic temple growing up, but my first real punk show was 2001 at The Grange Hall in the middle of a field in San Luis Obispo, CA: It was The Casualties and TSOL. I was 14. My crush's girlfriend broke her hand on my head (I kissed her boyfriend, so I deserved it). She came to school with a cast the next day. I remember cartwheeling into a mosh-pit at some point because I had never seen one before. It was madness. I remember Jack Grisham's ghoulish face and the face paint. Now TSOL is on our label, Kitten Robot Records! The world is crazy.
Dr. Cain: I grew up in a very small town. Carbondale, Colorado, population <3000 in the late 80's early 90's. My friends started a band called F.I.A. and would play with little punk bands from around the state at a little cafe run by old hippies in Glenwood Springs called the Garden Cafe. I remember a grip of shows there, it was a blast! Young dumb and full of crazy. Those were the best shows, loud music, good friends and cheap beer bought by someone's older brother.
What's your writing process like?
Hayley: Melody first. It has to light a fire in me. Some mumbo jumbo lyrics and melody then goes into my voice notes app on my phone. From there, it gets fleshed out on GarageBand with guitar and maybe robot drums. I give the loose demo to Dr Cain whenever I feel I have come to a place that is too safe or stale. It's good to get his take so I don't write the same songs over and over. That is why collaborating is so great. We don't write songs simultaneously, or even in the same room, but we pass them back and forth. We try to go outside our own comfort zones.
Dr. Cain: It's changed over the years. I used to sit down and crank on the guitar until I had it pretty much ready to go. That's certainly how I wrote for the first two bands. Having Hayley as a songwriter relieved me of the song writing duties. It's more fun to write with her, but often challenging. We write in such different ways. I find a hook, or even a single line then generally make a narrative and slam the whole thing in a box piece by piece. Hayley Is a bit more narrative and works line by line while I bounce around a bunch. I certainly agree that we get the best results working on a song separately but together, she works it, then I'll work it. Makes for great surprises!
What other artists or songs inspire your music?
Hayley: I'm firstly inspired by early LA punk, so I am always gaining insight from listening and re-listening to late 70s and 80s bands like X, The Go-Go's, Agent Orange, Adolescents. I am also inspired by more modern pop punk, like Mean Jeans, Riverdales. Modern-day female-fronted bands that play with big, sticky melodies like Bleached really get me pumped up to write something anthemic. I am also inspired by 1960s exotica and instrumental music, which is what I'm usually playing in the background of any activity...
Dr. Cain: In the punk rock sphere, the old LA/East Bay sound is king! Aggression + melody + message = Jackpot! Blatz is a good example of this, and how the vocalists trade off. We throw a bit of chaos into our music, especially our live show. In the van we listen to everything from The Cars to classic country. We covered an obscure late 70s country song on the new EP ("Queen of Hearts"), at my urging. More than any one genre, we care about songwriting, melody, and production. We listen for those little tricks of the trade and then try to emulate them.
What's the live experience like and your philosophy on playing live? Do you think the music live should be identical to the recorded version or should it be its own thing?
Hayley: Sparkle hard. Have lots of fun on stage, which gives EVERYONE permission to have fun! Connect with the audience, talk with the audience. We talk too much - that's just what we do, so get used to a lot of dumb jokes, especially from Dr. Cain. We like to show the dynamic between everyone in the band, because that makes our audience feel like part of the dysfunctional family. Don't strive to be cool. Live music should never be identical to the recording - it is a fleeting gift, and each show is unique and imperfectly perfect in its own liminal way. It isn't our job to be perfect. It is our job to show up and explore the energy together with the crowd.
Dr. Cain: *Hot take* I don't care how accurately we play. Sorry, not sorry. I want to entertain and be explosive on stage. Take the record home and listen, it's a different experience. The stage is for show, connecting to your audience, entertaining. I shoot for energy and connection. If someone fucke up a guitar solo because they're kicking spinning in circles like a crazy person, great! If the band is having fun, the crowd usually is too! It's contagious. Punk rock needs to be dangerous and unpredictable
Has the band toured? What has the touring experience been, best shows? Worst shows?
Hayley: We do tour a lot, less lately. We get a nice firm handshake out here in the Midwest, which is partly why we moved from California to Detroit. It pays off to be exotic! Best shows are the ones where there is a warm vibe and the club is small but packed out. Everyone is feeling it! Worst shows are when the sound is way off, and you can't hear what's going on. For me, bad sound is hard to get over. I pretend to be having fun but inside I am wondering what the sound guy is thinking, and if I can find out where he lives so I can TP his yard. Our last "best" gig was in New York for "Oh Bondage Up Yours, Vol. 2" a female-fronted fest featuring Nikki Corvette and a bunch of diverse and talented acts. Female sound person BTW, best sound we ever had. : ) That one had us riding high for months!
Dr. Cain: Worst show? Madison, Wisconsin has to be in the running, it certainly sticks out in my mind. A long ass drive up there to play to three people in a venue that fits 650. I'm not blaming anyone for the turnout, that happens sometimes on the road. Even if I consider it our worst show, there were a few nice memorable moments from that gig. My buddy was there drunk as all kinds of hell rolling around on the floor and generally causing trouble, he crawled up on stage and crawled between our legs and behind the drums. It was pretty funny, he's a wife and two kids guy so it was hilarious to see him cut loose. The most redeeming part of that experience was the door person knew all our songs and was singing along and smiling way in the back by the door.
What's up next for the band?
Hayley: Releasing our new EP, "Unsubscribe from the Underground" September 10th! Then we have a few southern shows, which is new for us. Nashville and New Orleans this October. After that, we have another release that is probably going to come way out of left field!
Dr. Cain: Do you surf? That's all I will say.