By Dani Wong, news correspondent
A Rocket to the Moon is more than an opening act. The four man pop-rock group has toured with major names including Cute Is What We Aim For, Secondhand Serenade and Hanson. Growing in both fame and popularity, the band has come a long way in four years. The band started in 2006 in Braintree, Mass. and released their new EP on iTunes Oct. 5. Eric Halvorsen, the bass guitarist, spoke with The News about A Rocket to the Moon’s ascent to the top.
Huntington News: You guys are currently on tour with Hanson. What’s that been like?
Eric Halvorsen: It’s been awesome … it’s pretty much a new experience for all of us. We’re seeing almost entirely fresh faces. [Hanson has] a very strong fan base of their own, so pretty much everybody that’s here is here for them. It’s cool though … because we’ve gotten a lot of reception from new fans. It’s great … it’s exactly why we chose to do this tour, to reach a new audience.
HN: How did the band get together? Where did it all start?
EH: Nick [Santino], our singer, started an acoustic/electronic project a couple of years ago. Then, he wanted to make the band a full project. I was asked to join and then our friend Justin [Richards, guitarist] decided to join as well. We did a tour with another drummer, [Loren Brinton], at the time, but he decided that he wanted to leave after the tour. Everything just kind of fell into place. It’s a crazy story, but I feel like we all work together really well. We get along great.
HN: When you guys sit down to write music, does someone come up with an idea beforehand? What’s the process like?
EH: Usually Justin has a core idea. Then we’ll get together to look over it and kind of give our opinions. It all depends on the song.
HN: Do you draw from your personal lives to write lyrics?
EH: I don’t really write any lyrics … that’s usually Justin and Nick. But they sometimes take stuff from their personal lives. And they’re really good at coming up with ideas … whether it’s a song about us or someone close to us. Sometimes the lyrics are fictional. They’re really good at coming up with stuff off the top of their heads.
HN: Which song have you felt the most connected to?
EH: Wow. I guess I haven’t really thought about it like that in awhile. One of my favorite songs right now is one we just did called “No One Will Ever Get Hurt.” And we just started playing it live. I guess I really connect to that music.
HN: Thinking years into the future, where do you see yourself? Where do you want to be?
EH: My ultimate goal is to be happy and do what I love. Always, you know, whether that’s with the band, or doing something else. In the band, we all just want to keep writing music that we enjoy and like to play. Hopefully it’ll last. I mean, we’re all pretty confident with ourselves and proud so far. Hopefully we’ll have fans that’ll really care down the road.
HN: What has been the highlight of your career so far? What’s really stood out for you?
EH: There are definitely a couple of things. Hearing our song on the radio for the first time was a very surreal moment. I’d say recording albums was also pretty awesome. Getting to move to L.A. and work in the studio everyday with an amazing producer and all that jazz … that was amazing. Touring has been great too. On this tour, I’ve been making a point of going out and seeing different places. So I’m very fortunate that I’ve gotten to do that.
HN: What’s the coolest thing you’ve gotten to see when exploring?
EH: We were in Canada and that’s the first time that I’d been to Vancouver. I really enjoyed that beautiful place. Then we were in Portland last week and normally it’s rainy there, so I’d never gone out to explore. But it was perfect weather, so I went out to Washington Park. I went for a jog out there and found this massive rose garden. That sounds kind of silly, but it was a crazy place to stumble upon. Just being able to experience little things like that is very cool.
HN: What advice can you offer others who hope to pursue similar dreams?
EH: Work hard and write good songs. Just use your resources and put yourself out there. Especially with the Internet and everything – use it to your advantage. There are so many bands out there to fish through and figure out who you like, to separate the good from the bad. Really, you have to adapt to what the music industry is today, and a lot of that is on the Internet. So just really push and do the best you can.
A Rocket to the Moon performs Tuesday, Oct. 19 with All Time Low at The Middle East Downstairs in Cambridge. Tickets are sold out.
