Gainesville punk rock legends Hot Water Music are premiering their new single, Complicated, exclusively on TeamRock. The track builds on the blend of gruff punk and post-hardcore which has made them favourites of Florida’s alternative music scene since their debut Fuel For The Hate Game was released in 1997, but polishes it up with a modern sheen, exploring their feelings of helplessness in the face of growing global issues along the way. It serves as the third single taken from their new album Light It Up – a project the band have dubbed “100% Hot Water Music, scars and all”.
You can check Complicated out below, along with a short Q&A with bassist Jason Black about the track and how it came to life.
What’s the story behind the song Complicated – what’s it about?
“Bear with me, there’s a point to all of this exposition. Complicated started as a very different musical than it ended up as. Very slow, brooding, and groove-oriented. While we were working on it in the studio, Chris came up with the guitar lead. On its own, the lead reminded us a bit of Midnight Oil (one of our collective favourite bands), which informed us to pick up the tempo and change the song up to what it is now.
With that in mind, Chuck wrote his take on the same topics Oil often cover. The basic gist of the lyrics is that, civilised/Western/first world cultures are destroying the planet; even those of us with the best intentions can’t make the difference we’d like, because life and the circumstances surrounding [us] are complicated (hence the track name). The contrast is how likely it is that the cultures that still live simply and put value in the land and wildlife that support them will outlast all of us who wake up and check our Twitter feeds first thing in the morning.”
What drew you to the themes you cover on the song?
“Chuck is very involved in his local community in a lot environmental efforts, so it’s very much a close to home topic and cause for him.”
How does it feel to be making music again after a five-year break?
“Pretty awesome. We’ve been working on this record in some form or another for well over a year, so we’re excited to get the songs out and be able to play them live.”
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How much, if at all, has the global political situation influenced these new songs?
“More so than in the past, I think. We’re in a particularly insane situation right now. We’ve never been an overtly political band, but we also don’t think that this situation is as political as it is an assault on common decency and respect of other people and the planet that we ALL live on.”
What do you hope people take away from Complicated, and the other new material you’ve released so far?
“Whatever they want, honestly. Everyone hears and interprets music individually, which is one of the best things about it. Once the music is out there, it’s not ours anymore, it belongs to the listeners.”
Light It Up will be released on 15th September via Rise Records
