Hinder has been taking rock ‘n’ roll to the limit since 2005. Now, the band is taking a break from excess and volume, and going with a much simpler approach. The band currently on a special acoustic run, The Bare Bones Tour – Live & Unplugged. I caught up with drummer Cody Hanson and lead guitarist Joe Garvey backstage at the Musikfest Cafe in my hometown on Bethlehem, PA to find out what spurred the band to strip their show down to the bare bones.
“Just taking the songs back to their starting points,” said Hanson. “Whenever we right, 
we always just start with an acoustic guitar. It’s the most honest form of the song that way.” With such a radical departure from their traditional live show, it can be tough to gauge what the fan response will be. “The crowds’ been responding really well to it,” added Garvey. As far as transitioning the songs to accompany an acoustic vibe, the guys said it was fairly simple. “It’s actually a pretty natural transition for us,” Hanson stated. And, special news for the fans – Joe Garvey said, “I definitely want to do this [play acoustic] for every album cycle.” Perhaps this is the start of a new Hinder tradition!
It’s almost two years to the day since the release of Hinder’s last record, and today, the band released their fourth studio effort, Welcome To The Freakshow. As far as what to expect this time around from Hinder, Hanson said, “A very different record. Every song on this record is completely unique. We just wanted to do every song for itself.” As far as the overall production of the record, Hanson added, “We took our time and experimented with a lot of different sounds and production techniques.” The album’s first single, “Save Me”, was released back in August.
Hinder garnered worldwide success with the release of their major label debut, Extreme Behavior, via Universal Records in 2005. The albums first single, “Get Stoned”, broke the band onto the rock radio waves. The second single, “Lips of An Angel”, was a massive worldwide hit for the band, and has become one of their signature songs. The album went on to be certified triple-platinum, and in 2007 Hinder was inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame, their home state. In 2008, the band released their much anticipated sophomore effort, Take It To The Limit, which debuted at #4 on the Billboard Top 200 and sold 81,000 copies in it’s first week of sales. That same year, the band headlined the Jägermeister Music Tour with support from Trapt and Rev Theory. In 2009, Hinder provided direct support for Mötley Crüe on their Saints of Los Angeles Tour along with Theory of a Deadman and The Last Vegas. Later that same year, Hinder would support Nickelback on their Dark Horse Tour. In 2010, the band hit the studio to begin writing and recording new material for their next album, All American Nightmare, which was released later that year. Now, Hinder welcomes you to the freakshow. The new album is out today, and the band is currently working on their setlist for 2013 while they wind down their acoustic tour. So, go stuff your stockings early this Christmas with a copy of Hinder’s Welcome To The Freakshow, and get ready to crank the amps back up in the new year. – by Matt Bishop (Photography by Matt Bishop)