Evan and Matthew are Michigan brothers. They played in bands. Evan moved to Bloomington, IN. Matthew went to college. Los Angeles Ken flew to Bloomington after moving to Europe and met Evan. They wrote and recorded a quick EP (in a day quick) and Ken flew back over the pond and didn't return for 9 years. New York Dave and Evan met in Indianapolis, IN. at an open mic night. Hero Jr. seed is planted and sprouts when Matthew moves to Indy with a college degree from MSU. Rehearsals.
Evan and Matthew are Michigan brothers. They played in bands. Evan moved to Bloomington, IN. Matthew went to college. Los Angeles Ken flew to Bloomington after moving to Europe and met Evan. They wrote and recorded a quick EP (in a day quick) and Ken flew back over the pond and didn't return for 9 years. New York Dave and Evan met in Indianapolis, IN. at an open mic night. Hero Jr. seed is planted and sprouts when Matthew moves to Indy with a college degree from MSU. Rehearsals. Tours. Records... One of them, Backup Plan, was written and recorded with Ken via SKYPE from London. After ceaseless arm twistings Ken comes to Indy for a hug, a jam and a CD release party. He never left.
It's not every band that has the ability to set up a few microphones in the living room, hit record, and finish up a half day later with a new record. Hero Jr.'s fourth studio recording Mixed Race Indiana Marriage is the result.Indianapolis, IN four-piece rock band Hero Jr. picked up where they left off with their Tower 18 record. The new MRIM tunes are louder and a lot closer to how the band is on stage. Rehearsed and road tested over the last few months MRIM documents a classic rock band doing their thing. Hero Jr. has spent the last two years touring the country with over 200 shows a year at clubs, festivals and as support for Tom Petty, Offspring, Saliva… Hero Jr. is in their element when they are on stage performing where no two adventures are the same. The legendary audio company Klipsch has embraced the Hero Jr. vibe by including them as one of a few artists to be included in their Emerging Artists program for 2015. MRIM's five tracks were written in five days and recorded in one as the band found their vibe by hanging out in their rehearsal space / living room where they recorded the new songs that germinated on 2013's Wishful Thinking Tour. Early favorites, Anger Room was inspired by Jimi Hendrix’s last interview and Graveyard Of Mirrors was conceived in a snowbound adventure in Chicago. “We all travel in close quarters and we all live a stones throw from each other so we are always together and stuff we see finds its way into our tunes.” There’s also a lot of laughing and banter on tour which makes its way into the tunes as well. The MRIM title came from some hilarious people watching episodes at the local gas station where Hero Jr. fills up each time they leave Indy on tour. "That place is the melting pot of everything and it's right in our back yard." A good chunk of Hero Jr.’s hours in the tour van are spent listening to comedy and podcasts. Bill Burr, Marc Maron, Louis CK, Jim Florentine, George Carlin and Comedy Central are a few favorites. The band members are fascinated and inspired by the similarities between comedy and rock music. The comics’ stories of hardcore rejection, growing ‘thick skin’, and sticking to and fighting for their beliefs while moving up the food chain resonate deeply within the band. Hero Jr. continues to combine the tradition of Midwestern hard hitting rock music with a twist of 70s Brit and have been described as comfortably familiar yet completely unique. Hero Jr. is in it for the long haul.
