Hanson bucks music industry ties
Trio visits college campuses along the east coast with new documentary, CD
By Dana Delapi
Published: Thursday, October 27, 2005


Creating music is all about sharing your message to the world and finding people who share your vision. That is the message that indie rock band Hanson sent out to a packed classroom at UCF on Oct. 20 in a CAB Cinema event.

The Hanson brothers, Isaac, 24, Taylor, 21, and Zac, 20, presented their documentary, Strong Enough to Break, and then stuck around for a question-and-answer session with students.

"You have to be willing to find people to share that positive vision," keyboardist Taylor Hanson said of making music in today's industry.

The documentary chronicles the 22-month span it took Hanson to finish its album with former label Island Def Jam Records and, eventually, end its contract with the label to find one that shared its passion.

The band said in the documentary that the friction it experienced while dealing with Island Def Jam and its head of audio and recording, Jeff Fenster, caused the trio to break out on its own, creating 3CG Records.

Though, according to Isaac Hanson, the documentary began as a music documentary to reveal the behind-the-scenes process of writing songs and creating music. As the story unfolded, the film became a commentary on the status of the music industry and the inner workings of a corporate label.

"That first conversation when Zac says 'Guys, we're on a rap label with an A&R guy who's worked with Britney Spears. What the hell did you expect?' That was the first moment when we realized this film may not just be a music film," Isaac Hanson said in response to an audience question about the original focus of the film. "We realized it was going to be about the whole process, not just writing songs, not just recording. We needed to capture as much of the outside process as the inside process."

Taylor Hanson added that the film, directed by Ashley Greyson, had a similar experience to the record - there was never a clear ending. "We didn't think we'd film for four years, and, ultimately, it was not until the middle of the last year when we released Underneath that we stopped," he said. "It was like, OK, we're done. No we're not. We're done. No we're not. It was tiring, and the filmmaker said we had to keep going because the story wasn't finished yet."

Since creating the independent label 3CG, Hanson has begun a grassroots approach to getting the message out by visiting college campuses along the east coast. The band stresses that students can make a difference and can support their favorite artists by more than just buying records.

"The whole goal of us being here, of coming to schools is ... we think this is an important time in music, we think our story is representative of what a lot of artists have gone through, especially over the last five years," Taylor Hanson said. "We want you guys to leave with individual opinions about what's going on. The biggest thing we want is for people to maybe be a little bit inspired about what role you can play about getting involved with music."

Rachel Eichen, a member of CAB Cinema, said she has been a fan since Hanson's first album, Middle of Nowhere, but has not had the opportunity to hear some of the band's newer releases.

"What really struck me about them is this is not just about their new album," she said. "It's more about the music industry and involvement [of fans in the way the industry works]. They aren't trying to reclaim their hip status. They really know their message. They have a purpose and are bringing it to campuses."

This hands-on approach to promoting independent music is directly related to students and fans who will eventually be the executives at major labels, which is why Hanson is targeting this age group.

"We are here to talk about music and try to make students and young people aware of their importance of being involved," Zac Hanson said. "They are going to be defined by what's played on the radio, what's played on MTV, and they have the power to redefine it."

The trio hopes to open students' eyes to the struggle that artists experience in today's music industry. Being able to pursue their own artistic and creative vision is sometimes not an option, Zac Hanson said. The labels often push songs that they consider to be hit singles, rather than those that are artistic advances, he explained in the documentary.

He also spoke about Fiona Apple and her six-year plight to release her album.

"The only reason that record ever got released was because fans activated and got involved in saying 'We want this music. You can't stop it. We're going to find it whether you release it or not.'" Zac said.

"We would like to see [students] become activists for your favorite bands," Taylor Hanson said. "As fans of music, you have a significant role that can actually change what happens."

The best example of this is the University of Southern California, which has integrated Hanson's documentary into its business curriculum.

"Our hope is that it doesn't just end when we leave," Taylor Hanson said. "We want it to spark something."

Hanson also played at Downtown Disney's House of Blues last Saturday and handed out free copies of its demo CD.