High Five First Kiss is made up of, the crooner, Daniel Hoover (that rhymed, kind of) and the leading lady Nicole Matthews. Talented and driven each on their own, together they are unstoppable! The balance of their voices -- strong and soothing -- paired with piano and strings helps make for great musical melodies!
I sent Nicole [NM] and Daniel [DH] some questions, to help you get to know them better and learn more about their Kickstarter project.
How did you come up with the name High Five First Kiss?:
[NM]: This was quite a process! Hoover and I would literally sit in the studio during breaks and put words together to try and find something that fit. I personally had many ideas for names (such as sparklin' oats, sizzlin bacon, N and D, etc etc etc) ...let's just say they didn't seem to be what we were looking for. In the midst of throwing out ideas Hoover paused and said, "What do you think about the name High Five First Kiss?" Both of us had seen the YouTube video, thought it was adorable, and thus our band name was formed.
[DH]: There is a video on Youtube called High Five For First Kiss that was accidentally taken. It captures two neighborhood sweetheart’s first kiss and I think it is one of the best things ever caught on video. Their body language, facial expressions, and words reveal so much about the human condition.
How do you manage to balance your work lives (9 to 5) with your passion for creating music?:
[NM]: Stay up late, wake up early, and write whenever I have a spare moment. :) For me music is and always has been such a huge part of my life. It doesn't feel like balancing, it is a necessity. As a vocalist, instrumentalist, music teacher, and composer, creating music is my 9 to 5 and beyond.
[DH]: It’s very difficult to find time to work on music. Any of the songs that I wrote for this album were written without the direct intention of recording them. I would simply be messing around on my guitar, on my couch in Delaware, then sing a whole song, then my roommate would start talking to me and I would have to ask him to wait while I wrote it down. So the songs are very raw and were mostly for personal therapy.
What was the driving force behind the creation of this album?:
[NM]: I was excited at the opportunity to combine a jazz/blues experience with a folk background! The driving force was to create music that heals, inspires, and provides joy.
[DH]: God! Everything just happened. None of it makes sense. Nicole and I had only met one time before we ever rehearsed and two days later we recorded half of the CD. We both just love music and can’t stop playing, writing, and singing. The studio engineer said we had better musical chemistry then some people he recorded that have been playing together for 12 years.
Explain the name of the album and how it came to be:
[NM]: I feel so blessed to be surrounded by love. Love from God, love from an incredible family, love from friends, love from mentors, and love from those that listen. This album could never be what it is without those that support us. We created this album to share the music in our hearts and to honor the community that supported us. The album is from us to you.
[DH]: We financially need help from others to make this album possible, so we named the album "Us" because everyone that contributes becomes apart of the project. People that I have never met have given money toward the project and I think that is so cool how connected we can be. Also, there is a 7:44 long song, 8:43 song, and a Latin Marian chant, so we were really just being ourselves and breaking a lot of rules for the sake of authenticity. I hope that works out.
Favorite song on the album and why?:
[NM]: This is a difficult question because each song has such individual quality that makes it special in its own way. With each song so much went in and my favorite song often changes. In this moment Phenomenal Woman is my favorite song because I have been working with many young women who are phenomenal. They are incredibly strong, energetic, and absolutely perfect in their own unique way. Sometimes they have trouble seeing the beauty within but they are angels on Earth. That song is for them and for all.
[DH]: That is an intense question!!! Probably Contagious. There are certain things that I cannot write lyrics about because they are too real at the time and making a song about the situation would cheapen it. So Contagious helped me process something that had happened over a year before the song was written. Nicole identified a lot with the song because of things she had gone through, so we both really feel that song when we sing it and it is fun to play.
How did you decide to use Kickstarter to help with funding?:
[NM]: Hoover introduced the idea to me and I said let's do it!
[DH]: Since we never planned on recording a full album our cost got a lot higher than we expected. We are both recent college grads and we won’t even be able to press the CD without help from others. We have been floored by people’s generosity and we are getting so close. If we do not raise the full amount we do not get any of the money and that is a little terrifying.
What musical aspect or talent do you admire in the other?:
[NM]: Hoover is a natural musician and there is much that I admire musically in him. I feel blessed to work with him because he plays, writes, and sings in a completely honest way that is straight from his heart. He is the man!
[DH]: Nicole learned so many of these songs amazingly fast. I am a terrible person to collaborate with because I change things every time I play them. She adjusted so well to my quirks it left me in awe. I love it! And she can sing absolutely anything.
What musical artist is most inspirational to you and why?:
[NM]: I am inspired by so many artists for different reasons. Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Nat King Cole, Stevie Wonder, Bill Evans, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Ben Harper, Lauryn Hill, John Coltrane, and Jack Johnson to name a few of many. Artists especially inspire me when the music they play pours out of their soul.
[DH]: Josh Ritter. He doesn't have an amazing voice (like me) but his lyrics are the best ever written, I believe. He really is a poet first and I identify myself so much more as a writer than a musician because writing consumes, torments, feeds, satisfies, calms, inspires, and heals me.
Anything else you would like to add?:
[NM]: Thank you so much to everyone that supports us!
[DH]: I have been madly in love with Leslie for almost 10 years (wow, can you believe we have known each other that long?!) and I want to take this opportunity to share that with the world. Any song I have ever written about rejection is about Leslie and I am being completely not serious (about the rejection songs part but dead serious about the mad love part).
If you made it this far, you now know Nicole and Daniel too well not to support! Head over to the High Five First Kiss Kickstarter page and pledge whatever you can, from $1 to $100. I know that these two good people will be extremely appreciative of your support!
To hear some of their tunes visit their website: www.highfivefirstkiss.
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