Steal the Spotlight Online Magazine - Whom am I speaking with and what do you do in the band?

Hell or Highwater – Brandon Saller – Lead Vocals

STS - Let’s get to know you a bit more. Where are you from?

Brandon – As far as town….we’re spread all over southern California.

STS - What other odd jobs have you had besides your music career?

Brandon – None of my jobs have been too odd. Just some random stuff, Taco Bell, Skate board shop, surf shop, just your average stuff.

STS - What other bands have you played in?

Brandon – Me, myself have played in Atreyu. A band called Thieves and Liars, The Confession, MWK, and David Cook.  

STS - Let’s get to the band.  How did the band come about?

Brandon – The band really started with myself. I wanted to do a side project and I had written some songs that really didn’t fit my other band and it came time for us to take a bit of a break. It was perfect timing. I wrote about nine songs and recorded them myself. When it came the direct future that this was going to happen I found the guys and we wrote the rest of the record together.

STS - Why was the name of the band changed from The Black Cloud Collective to the current name Hell or Highwater?

Brandon – It kind of steams from the last answer I gave you. When it first started the project was myself and lot of different friends from different bands. Once I got a concrete line-up the band was an actual band. It wasn’t just a project. We need a new name a fresh start that was more suited for us as a band.

STS - You all have come from different bands. How has that helped in respect to playing, writing and touring?

Brandon – I feel like we have all been through the ringer. Its not our first rodeo so to speak. Begin in a band is a 100% learning experience. We all have been in that learning experience before and have made our mistakes and have success of our own. We have kind of leapfrogged that beginning part of being in a band. Its really beneficial everyone knows the importance of chemistry and family as well as vibes of the band.

STS - How long did it take to write and record your debut album that just came out?

Brandon – The first bit of it I wrote in and out of Atreyu tours so I would say about 6 months or so to the first 9 tracks. We wrote the final 3 in about a month in a half. It was very natural, very easy process.

STS - How excited are you about the album?

Brandon – I think I’m more excited than anything other project I have ever done. It started as my baby and it is because I did write a lot of the songs on it. It came to be something more than I ever thought it could be. With finding the rest of the band I’m very fortunate to have found some of the best musicians in the world, some of the best guys in the world. We very quickly become family and very excited for the world to hear. I feel like it’s my life’s work up to this point.

STS - What should people expect from the album?

Brandon – It’s a rock and roll album through and through. We are a rock and roll band. I think that people who like rock and roll, metal, punk, whatever. I think everyone will get something out of this album that they like. It’s a rock and roll album, maybe in a way that you’re not used to. We aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel, but we are trying not to sound like everything else out there. We want to be very much our own.

STS - What should I and others expect from you on stage tonight and all of the other shows?

Brandon – This is the part that we are here for, our half hour or so on stage.  The signings, the movies, the hanging out, the drinking or whatever else happens is the other part; we are here for that half hour. That’s our time to shine and let everything hang out. Music to us is the most fun thing on earth and it stands out and shows on stage.

STS – Anything else that you want to talk about or shout out?

Brandon – For everyone that is checking out the band, thank you very much. Pick up the record, its only five bucks and we did that on purpose. We want everyone to be able to get it and enjoy our music. See you on tour!