Translation:

Hanson. The Graduates. Interview with Isaac Hanson, by Marcel Anders,
Gitarre&Bass, Issue # 4, April 2005, Germany, pages 80-82.


Their 1996 song "MMMBop" was one of those songs you would either love or hate. A catchy tune in the best manner of Jackson 5, a song that became a world hit thanks to the Dust Brothers' fine production skills - and a
song that made its interpreters become teen stars. At least for a short period. It didn't take long until the brothers Zac, Taylor and Isaac Hanson became too go-ahead and ambitious than to simply provide for a pop
music audience only. They wanted more. And this almost proved their undoing. Their younger fans didn't want to go with their fast development towards high-quality songs between Folk, Rock and Soul, and their label didn't either. Shortly after the "This Time Around" flop in 2000, the
youngsters found themselves out of the game - facing the most difficult years in their lives so far. Without a deal, the image of a one-hit wonder and a fan base that would rather listen to N'Sync or the Backstreet Boys now, they didn't seem to have a real perspective. But far from it: they founded a label of their own, 3CG, recorded a self-financed and self-produced comeback album called "Underneath" and went on an extended club tour. The result: not only have the concerts been sold out within a few hours, also the album reached number one in the US independent charts and has sold over 300.000 copies so far. A triumph of will-power and of musical know-how. Which seems to continue along with the European
release of this great album. Today, the Hanson brothers are between 20 and 24 years old, and they have developed into three very skilled multi-instrumentalists who know exactly what they want. Which is longevity and continuity. Gitarre & Bass (G&B) gave band oldie Isaac (24) a grilling.


G&B: Is it true that your guitars are named after your ex-girlfriends?
Isaac: (laughing) Yes, that's true.

G&B: How many do you have?
Isaac: I have 21 guitars but not 21 ex-girlfriends. That would be a little too much of a good thing. And I would probably lose track of the names. So not every single guitar has a nickname, only about seven or eight. To
give you an example, there was this really sweet and passionate girl, so I would name my red Les Paul after her. Actually I was on the point of making small name tags and attaching them to the heads and maybe using them as
Trussrod cover. But then again I thought it over and concluded that it might be more fun to keep it a personal, intimate matter and let me be the only one who can laugh about it. And the ironic thing about it is that I have hardly played many of those old nicknamed guitars. It's just that,
by now, I like others a bit more. Among those guitar models that I don't play anymore, is my very first one which in a funny way I had named after my high school love. This one is hardly used anymore.

G&B: So you still keep your first guitar?
Isaac: Yes, of course! I still keep every single guitar that I have ever had. Like this old pawnbroker's guitar that has the form of a Les Paul. Just with a little thinner body. And it's also missing a proper varnish. The design is pretty bizarre, but it sounds very cool - and it is suitable
for the real hard things. Man, if you want to play a power accord, then it's the perfect guitar for it! It is not particularly accurate but it has a great bottom end, it simply has power. It is like you can plug it into whatever amp and it will really put it on fire.

G&B: Sounds like you are the collector type. What's your biggest treasure?
Isaac: I am not a freak, if you thought of that, but I definitely collect guitars. For example, I have a '59 Gibson -EB2-Bass, a semi-acoustic model with only a single pick up. I had to renew its cables since somebody obviously had pretty much ruined them. This bass has more low end than any other one I have ever played. And the running gag among bassists is "Can you play the 3-hertz-frequency?" As this is the resonance frequency of
your body. So when we were working on "Underneath" we were using this bass. We had adjusted its volume a little too loud so it made us all kind of sick. It is a really cool bass guitar that just gets everything into its vibration. My two favourite guitars are a Les Paul and a Gibson ES-335. The Les Paul one is a '59 Reissue - with a special nitro
varnishing, a toxic varnish that they don't use anymore since 1972. And this means that in 20 or 30 years it will start to tear. The varnish will be getting those fine hairline cracks and make the guitar sound even better.

G&B: So you prefer used, older guitars?
Isaac: Yes, but this '59 Reissue hasn't been played by anyone except me. It is a gift that a fan once gave me, and that's really very cool. And as for the ES-335, it is from 1966. It is cherry red and I have named it Chuck
because it is the guitar model that Chuck Berry would use. It is the same one as in the movie "Back to the Future" when they play the song "Johnny B. Goode". Aside from that I also like a 12 string Gibson ES-335 from 1967. It is from the original year they actually started to produce
those 12 string models.

G&B: Do you have a Gibson endorsement?
Isaac: Once I had one. But I don't like the quality of their current products.

G&B: Because of the wood that is used and which, at least in some cases, is not allowed to season as long as in the past?
Isaac: The reason is actually the same reason why the big major labels have lost their focus on the art that they want to sell. A lot of guitars that are produced by big companies like Gibson, just don't have the same quality
anymore. It is hard to explain if you don't hold it and play it. It is not special anymore which is really sad, because instruments that aren't manufactured well, are worthless. I find that nowadays it is really hard to find really good guitars. You have to be very picky. I have just received a couple of ones made by Gibson and I was so disappointed by the quality that I gave them back immediately. Taylor on the other hand is producing really great guitars and the same goes for most of the smaller companies that manufacture acoustic guitars. Those are still very good
instruments.

G&B: What about a signature model? Do you have one?
Isaac: That would be the best thing I could ever wish for (laughing). It would be a lot of fun for sure. But at the moment I concentrate on just playing the right guitars and not so much on the fact if I have my own model or not. But thinking about a potential design, I do like this black
Les Paul Standard Black with white or crème pick guard and binding.

G&B: Do you modify your guitars?
Isaac: Most of the time I try to find guitars that sound good just the way they are on the whole. So I don't sit down often and change pickups. I think if a guitar doesn't sound right in its original condition, then I should better keep away from it. Other than that I am a big fan of
Humbucker. I also don't play a lot Strats or Teles - just here and there when I am in the studio.

G&B: For clean sounds?
Isaac. Yes, exactly! Just because of this powerful single coil stuff. And in fact I really need a Strat for some of the songs when I play them live. That's the case with about three songs now.

G&B: Whereas Underneath has also come out very rooted, Blues style and rough, hasn't it?
Isaac: It definitely has. But you know what, I just like this complete sound of Humbucker. That's why I play Les Paul at 99 percent, they are definitely the instruments that I prefer - and Humbucker are my favourite pickups. I do like P90 ones as well, but sometimes they can be a bit noisy. It depends on what you are doing. On some occasions I feel they are a little too nasal. But I play everything through the amps by Bad Cat. Do you know them?

G&B: I thought you would use Matchless?
Isaac: I do. But Matchless has stopped producing amps at