Zach Callison – A Picture Perfect Hollywood Heartbreak

By starrymag | June 27, 2018

By: Jamie Steinberg

 

 

Q) How would you describe your sound?

 

A) The term I’ve settled on recently, at least for this album, is “theatrical alt.” It’s difficult to sum up my sound into a single term because it primarily borrows from three wildly different genres; it’s been fun to try and nail down something that defines it well. It’s rock, with pop elements, hip hop influence and musical theater themes.

 

 

Q) Who are some of your musical influences?

 

A) Two influences that you’ll hear a lot of on my new album are my two favorite groups ever: Muse and Twenty One Pilots. Muse (in their later records, at least) has created this incredibly unique “space rock opera” type vibe that appeals to my rock roots and my liking for epic, cinematic storytelling. Twenty One Pilots showed me how important music is to uplifting people from the darkest points of life…their music found me at the right time.

 

Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar also deserve their own mentions, for how their philosophy on modern artistry has shaped my view of the work and the business…or rather, how they often overlap.

 

 

Q) Talk about the story behind your new song “Curtain Call.”

 

A) “Curtain Call” is meant to paint a picture of my highest highs and lowest lows, which is why it whiplashes back and forth between volume levels and narrative voices in such a jarring way. It plays a very important role in the story that makes up the track list of the album: the “switch” between two different versions of me to represent the end and beginning of back-to-back eras in my life. In the end, even though the approach changes from one of brokenness to one of rage, the result is still the same…Ultimately, I don’t find the answers I’m looking for on this track.

 

 

Q) What do you think it is about the song that fans connect to?

 

A) Our generation is sick. It’s apparent in our humor, our circumstances and our music. “Curtain Call” and the whole of A Picture Perfect Hollywood Heartbreak is a story about spiraling downwards that’s very much my own, but unfortunately it’s more abundant than ever among the youth. We write what we know.

 

 

Q) What is your song writing process? Do you need music before you can create lyrics?

 

A) I go both ways…generally I prefer to have something to write on top of, but a couple of songs on the record started as “car melodies” that I laid down in a voice memo on my way somewhere. “Curtain Call” in particular was the former; I was in a foul mood while trying to write pop-ier hooks and sat down at the piano to play the most rancid, diminished chords I could possibly string together within reason. Those ended up being the song’s more aggressive sections.

 

For the melodies, I started with the very first words of verse one, harmonies and all. I wanted to start off the track with something you’d hear on a bad acid trip down the rabbit hole; smooth and gentle but suspiciously “off” sounding. That’s where all the dissonance comes from.

 

 

Q) How much of hand do you have in the production of your music?

 

A) About three hands, most of the time. I’m a co-producer on all of my tracks and have been in the studio or making final approval on absolutely everything that you’re hearing. My two other producers, Chase Ryan and Anthony Mazza, have provided a lot of genius to the project and showed me things I never could have learned on my own. It’s always been a very big collaborative effort…as it should be, really.

 

 

Q) What can fans expect from a live Zach Callison performance?

 

A) Raw energy, period. We’ve only done a couple of test shows so far, but they’ve knocked people over. It’s somewhere in between the power of a rock show and the swagger of a hip-hop concert. I’ve been super involved with getting every detail primed for the next round of shows to be announced soon…nationwide.

 

 

Q) What songs off your A Picture Perfect Hollywood Heartbreak EP are you looking forward to performing live?

 

A) “War!” has been super fun because of how word-heavy it is, and I get my band to shout out certain rap lyrics for added hilarity. I’ve had a couple fans yell out choice expletives about “Juanita” as well, which is always nice.

 

The next song I plan on releasing is the one we generally open the set with and it has a special vibe that makes it a banger live. There’s also a couple really unexpected cover songs in our set…We’re putting together one right now that was originally an EDM track.

 

 

Q) What do you hope listeners take away from listening to your upcoming EP as a whole?

 

A) There’s tons of things I hope people dig into narrative and story-wise, but the most important thing is this I hope they start to understand me as a person more. For years I’ve had to censor myself in public and on social media to maintain a kid-friendly image due to the nature of my acting work. I’m throwing a lot of that out to the wayside with the themes of this album.

 

There’s also a lot of association of me with my character I play on TV…There’s nothing wrong with that and it only happens because that’s what people know me from. My hope is for this project, and the ones I follow it up with, to establish my identity as my own no matter what I’m working on.

 

 

Q) Where are some of your favorite places to perform and what makes those locations so significant to you?

 

A) I’ve performed at a lot of random, cool places over the years…When I was eight I performed for 12,000 people at the St. Louis Muny, which was really important for me as a young performer. I’ve played rooms like the Roxy and the Mint in LA as a kid in cover bands, which gave me a small taste of something I’d crave more of in the future…It’s about time I headed back to Sunset. (have an announcement about this any day now…)

 

 

Q) Who would you most like to collaborate with on a song in the future?

 

A) Kanye, and it’s not even close. In 2018, with GOOD Music doing what they’re doing, you’d be a fool to choose anyone else. They’re the world class standard that everyone’s looking to right now.

 

 

Q) What album/band are you currently listening to and why do you dig them?

 

A) I’ve been on a steady diet of nothing but hip hop and EDM in the past month: the new records from Ye and Pusha T as well as some classic Wu-Tang and Nas for the former and a huge mix for the latter. I’ve gotten into industrial house and techno for the first time; live sets from people like Carl Cox, John Digweed and DJ Nobu lately…They’re a big contrast to the future bass and mainstage dubstep I’ve been bumping for the past year.

 

 

Q) You are a part of social media. Why is that such an important way for you to connect with your fans?

 

A) My Instagram and Twitter are incredibly valuable to me because it’s my direct line to the people that blast the music and give my career wings. It’s a powerful cultural wave maker that previous generations of artists didn’t have. I also strive to keep it as real as possible, so people know I give a damn about the work…You’d never catch me dead posting selfies with weight-loss teas on Insta.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who is a fan and supporter of you and your work?

 

A) You’re my heroes. I hope the projects I’m putting out in the near future resonate with all of you the way they have for me, so that all of you know just how important your support is to everything I aspire to achieve in this life. If I can make you feel something or if something I made helps you understand something new then I have succeeded because of you.