A BAND WITH MANY, MANY TOMORROWS...
by Marisa Connelly
Photos by Kim Stock

...is ironically called His Name Was Yesterday. As explained by lead singer John Green, “It actually comes from a story about [bassist] Josh [Dix] and [guitarist] Jake [Dix's] father. Josh and Jake's father passed away when they were very young, and they vowed to his brothers to make it in the music business, to make it in a band. It's about a poem that Josh wrote about his father. And the poem was about him sitting up on a cliff with his dad and he would think about memory of his father. And when he thought about those thoughts, what came to mind was 'His Name Was Yesterday'. And that's what it's about. Lyrically it ties in in a different way. Lyrically it's about, for me, who I was and who I don't want to be- parts of my life that I've addressed and wanted to step away from.”
Obviously, this Buffalo-area metalcore quintet has a strong sense of their own roots, and the early roots of music as well. Josh and Jake's father Gerald Dix was a blues musician, and the influence he had on the brothers is apparent in their songwriting. John is also a child of the blues, growing up in Alabama. “It comes through when I sing. Not so much when I scream, but definitely when I sing,” says the dynamic vocalist.
Apart from keeping it real with their past, HNWY is looking forward to the future. Having just opened for long time nu-metal giants Korn, HNWY is embarking on their first summer tour in the northeast and mid-west. This October, their first full length (yet to be titled) album will be released. After that, they plan on more extensive touring in support of it. John elaborates, “We really want to spend some time on the road and go as a band. That kind of growth, you can sit at home and talk about how much you can do it, how far you can go, this and that. But until you get on the road, what the f%ck?” Drummer Mikey Watts agrees, “It's definitely hard. Everybody gives up stuff. Everybody's given up what they have at home because this is what we want to do. We want to be able to do it. And I'm really excited to meet new people, go to places I've never seen before. Like Clarksville, Tennessee! I don't even know where that is, but I'm so excited to go!”
This band is as true-blue as it gets. They have the heart and ferocity to go that extra mile down the road- to seek the next crossroads and explore what's around the next bend. If there ever was a metalcore band to sell their souls for music- a la blues granddaddy Robert Johnson- His Name Was Yesterday would undoubtedly be it. ?