Overview

Hello world! We are hand + noise, a band nestled in Ohio’s Cuyahoga Valley National Park!

We are three people who met through music, bonded, and formed officially in 2020. But hand + noise ain’t your granddaddy’s folk band. Unless of course your granddaddy liked Woody Guthrie. Then hand + noise is your granddaddy’s folk band. We describe our Folk as Free Range, our Rock as Cage Free, and our Blues as Pasture Raised. Our music is defined by loss and a very real attempt at scrounging together something to hold on to. We make our songs because we must. We don’t live for our music; we live through our music. 

Living through our music has consequences. We have two kids who love to be a part of everything we do (IYKYK). So, just about every recording we’ve tried to make at home has some kid or another yelling at us for our attention. We’ve never recorded in a professional studio. For the past two years we honed our sound. We’ve become hungrier and tighter— a starving, vegetarian tiger roaming the streets of man. With this recording we’re finally going to be able to free these ideas from our minds. We’re excited and curious to meet them, and we need your help!

This may be a small step for mankind, but it’s a giant leap for us. Everything helps, and we thank you for all your continued support!

We've got a collection of great songs ready to record -- this Plaid Dog campaign is the final step toward creating our first ever, professionally produced studio album.

This campaign is raising funds for our professionally recorded album with Bryan Brundige in Boston, MA. Bryan is a Boston-based producer and engineer with experience working with both established and up-and-coming musicians. Together, we’re digging into our original material, writing arrangements, and reaching out to local musicians to bring the songs to life.

We’ve been able to cover the costs of recording and producing one song, which is ready for you to check out right here on this page. This first song is called “Damascus Light,” and you can check it out below!

While we were able to fund the recording process for "Damascus Light" on our own, to create an album of songs of this quality, studio costs add up quickly. With that said, this campaign can give us a unique opportunity to collaborate and make great art together. Your donation will cover the following costs of our project:

1. Pre-Production: This is where everything starts. We’ll start crafting the arrangements for each song slated for the album, hold rehearsals to fine-tune the songs and arrangements, and talk through new and exciting ideas for how to approach the recording process.

2. Recording: This is when we enter the studio and start capturing the music and where the songs become what you'll hear on this album. This campaign will play a huge role in making sure we have enough time to capture great performances for every member of the band.

3. Mixing & Mastering: Each track will get mixed to create the right balance between instruments, texture and color that make up a track. As a final step, the album will be mastered from beginning to end so that the listening experience is cohesive and carefully choreographed from start to finish.

We ain’t got mountains here

Our light will blind you here

We choke back all of our tears

Choke back our tears, choke back our tears

Choke back our…

We ain’t got mountains we got miles of sky

And the muted blues in their polluted whites

Of the post storm skyscape just before the night

Swoop in and swallow your pride

We ain’t got eyes that see so good at night

Yeah, we’ve been blinded by Damascus light

And just before midnight you won’t know if you’re alive

Or you’re dead or were either to begin with

We don’t mourn lightly for we’ve borne loss of life

Yeah, we survived by lighting up the night

And in the fire cast shadows we choke back our tears

We choke back our tears, we choke back our tears

Candles in two rows lined up neat, blown out one by one

We look at each other’s face in disappointment

Chewed up by the darkness of the dark night

Accept the shooting star, refuse the invitation of a heart turning cold

Just to hear the crying of a new life

Passing by the last deer on land at the end of the highway

Before dawn the hazy light rose above the frozen lake

Fill up the potholes and bumpy life with the stammering talking 

Just so a drop of tear can turn into crystal in the middle of the air

Open the palm, grasp the cruel destiny on a Sunday

Grass comes out of the snow pretending to be the smoke from the Christmas chimney

Accept everything only refuse the invitation to a heart turning cold

Just to hear the crying of a new life

We ain’t got eyes that see so good at night

Yeah, we’ve been blinded by Damascus light

And just before midnight if you think you can’t survive

Well, you’re alive and that’s a life we can begin with

So far I‘ve met many people close to death

Wealthy ones, poor ones

Those that seem happy, those that seem sad

But before they died they all told me

Ah! I’ve had such an interesting life

For I’ve seen Damascus light

And what will you get for your generosity and support? So many awesome things!

We are so appreciative and grateful for any support you can lend to this campaign. In exchange for your generosity, we've put together a really exciting group of gifts that are available exclusively through your participation in this campaign.

Check out some examples below and a full list to the right!

Reading the Fine Print For the Perks

You might have some questions on what certain perks are and you found the paths to the asterisks! Well here’s the great news!

* We have 6 original prints to go with our 6 original songs! One side beautiful art, the other side beautiful words! Donate at this level and get 1! You want to collect the set? I think you know what to do. But, to be clear: donate 6 times!

**We will reach out to these donors and find out which song they would like us to record, either original or cover. We will dedicate the song to these donors and share a story about our relationship with them (if such a story exists). ALSO: the donor will be able to request this perk OR request ANY 2 previous perks.

What is a BASEMENT SESSION? These are recordings that might or might not contain our children's voices. They are recorded in our home studio which is in the basement. They will be VERY lofi, but also beautifully raw.

It's hard to express how much this project would change our lives.

A quality recorded album will open a lot of doors for us in terms of opportunities. But the most important opportunity for us is that we will be able to share our music, make connections with people, and, of course, make more albums! We process our whole life through these songs, and at our most earnest we hope these songs can encourage people to process through their lives. A professionally recorded, high-quality album that sounds the way we’ve always known it can sound is our first step. 

Our family, our friends have been instrumental in nurturing our inspiration. Without that foundational trust we could not even begin to feel comfortable asking for this kind of support. Thank you for trusting us. Thank you for allowing us to pursue our own healing. Thank you for helping us share it. Now, let’s get to it and make some kick ass music!

If you're ready to contribute, just click the "Back This Project" button on the top right of this page! Every little bit counts, and we’re so grateful for all your support.

If you have folks in your network that would be interested in supporting us, please feel free to share this page with them.

Thank you so much for checking out our campaign page. We can't wait to share this music with you.