Honest Mechanik offer to 'Translate'
New single from Boston indie-pop duo is all about how we communicate
Honest Mechanik find an indie-pop ability to communicate on ‘Translate’
New project from Boston music veterans Susan Cattaneo and The Grownup Noise’s Paul Hansen release third single on Friday, June 4
Pre-save ‘Translate’ to hear it first
Debut self-titled album set for release this July
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Photo Credit: Dino Cattaneo
MEDFORD, MASS. [June 4, 2021] -- Sometimes we get so caught up in things that are lost in translation, we don’t allow ourselves to stop for a moment and appreciate the things that simply can’t be translated. For Boston indie-pop duo Honest Mechanik, that’s at the heart of their magnetic new single, “Translate,” set for release on all streaming platforms on Friday June 4.
The opening track to this summer’s forthcoming debut album, “Translate” is a delicate and melodic love letter to the children of songwriters Susan Cattaneo and Paul Hansen. It’s all about the things that can be passed down, and the things that can’t.
“Both Paul and I are lucky that one of our main jobs in this life is to be the parents of our respective kids,” says Cattaneo. “His two are still little and my two are college age. ‘Translate’ came into being when we were discussing that as parents, there are some things we can’t solve for our kids, some experiences they need to have on their own. Generationally, parents and kids speak a different language and belong to different worlds from so many different angles: cultural, musical, social. ‘Translate’ is about that and also about the fact that as parents, you’re always asking yourself (and I’m quoting our song here): ‘Did we do too much? / Did we not do enough?’”
Hansen shares the sentiment, adding: “I feel like it started as Susan and I writing, in a sense, a future letter to our children or something. It was the idea that we will give them whatever wisdom we have, but that we understand that some advice doesn’t translate, as it is a new world, and we can’t pretend to know everything anymore. There are some experiences that we probably can’t relate to. I think it’s a song coming to terms with this. And then further, I think it can be interpreted as many things in general are difficult to translate, with language and the subjective limits of human understanding.”
What has translated, in such a short period of time, is the instant chemistry between Cattaneo and Hansen, two Boston music scene veterans who both come from opposite ends of the city’s diverse spectrum: Cattaneo via the city’s enriched Americana and folk circles as a solo artist and accomplished songwriter, and Hansen honing his craft of indie rock and electronic-pop with acclaimed local mainstays The Grownup Noise.
On “Translate,” the third single released by Honest Mechanik so far in 2021, the duo’s gentle electricity embraces the listener with a seasoned commend; layered dual vocal harmonies float over bass synth, acoustic guitar, and drums and percussion from collaborator Marco Giovino. The result is an instantly memorable track of blended vocals and lyrical wisdoms that suggests Cattaneo and Hansen are already speaking a shared musical language. “Translate” is a sneaky earworm of a song that defies genre limitations, a lesson in communication, dancing out of the speakers like an old friend who comes over with new stories to tell and new sonic territory to explore.
“The track has electronic synths, a pronounced drum sound over what’s essentially a folk duo structure and I think this beautifully reflects our classic/modern vision for the band,” says Cattaneo. “Paul and I come from different worlds musically, and it’s this combination of diverse influences that makes our sound unique. We like blending these two worlds into something cool.”
This idea of modern and vintage is at the crux of the Honest Mechanik identity. Taking a trusted course of songwriting that each artist has leaned on over the years and applying new techniques and practices as a newfound collaboration is no easy task, but together Cattaneo and Hansen are able to create a sound that has a warm folk familiarity at its core, and a magnetic gloss of modern pop casually racing across the surface. As Honest Mechanik, two songwriters are crafting a shared vision of storytelling. And it’s quite exciting for both the participants and the listener.
“I think ‘Translate’ is helping to illuminate our sound as a bit pinned between the old and the new,” Hansen notes. “We know now that synth bass and some ambient high synths can work with our earthy acoustic guitar and vox harmony sound. And I really love that little drumbeat kicking off -- for an instant, you really don’t know where the song is going.”
Kinda like the kid you watch from the window and they head off to meet the world.
Contact michael@publisist.co for more information.
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Honest Mechanik is:
Susan Cattaneo - Vox and Writing
Paul Hansen - Guitar, Synths, Vox, and Writing
With Marco Giovino on Drums and Percussion
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Honest Mechanik 2021 bio:
We are Honest Mechanik, an indie-pop duo born in the wilds of Medford, MA. Yeah, that’s right. We’re a Medford Super Group. We’re also Susan Cattaneo and Paul Hansen, two singer songwriters who have joined collective and creative forces to create a new sound that feels at once, both familiar and unique. Featuring quirky lyrics and ear-worm melodies that highlight our dual lead vocals and close harmonies, Honest Mechanik has the vibe of The Velvet Underground paired with the intimacy of Belle and Sebastian.
Three years ago, Paul came over to Susan’s house to see if we could write a song together. Never in our wildest dreams did we imagine that such a beautiful thing would come out of this first meeting. One song led to another and then another and suddenly, we realized we had a full-blown album of 10 songs. “Are we a band?” Paul asked Susan. “Hell, yeah,” Susan replied. And so, Honest Mechanik was born
We’re both seasoned musicians with solo careers on both the local and national music scene. Paul, the tall one, considers himself “song obsessed” and has been the lead singer and creative force behind the popular band The Grownup Noise, an indie-pop group that has garnered rave reviews and over the years , has performed in numerous sold-out shows including seven national tours. Susan, the other tall one, has won or been a finalist in all the prestigious songwriting festivals around the country and tours as a solo artist and also with The Big Loud Band. When she’s not performing, she’s had a 20-year career as a songwriting professor at Berklee College of Music. She’s also a “go-to” songwriter for others, having crafted songs for both national and local artists (Mark Erelli, Dennis Brennan, Dinty, Child, Jenee Halstead).
The songs of Honest Mechanik came together around our voices and over the distinctive sound of Paul’s Godin Archtop semi-acoustic. When we went into the studio, Susan brought in Marco Giovino (Band of Joy) to add some amazingly deep groove to the tunes. Recorded over the past year with Dan Cardinal at Dimension Sound Studios (Darlingside, Mark Erelli, Lula Wiles, Air Traffic Controller), Honest Mechanik’s self-titled debut album is a testament to what happens when two new friends hang out and make music together.
Our last recording session together was the week that the world shut down, so most of this project has had to happen remotely. It has been wonderful to work on these songs during the pandemic, because we feel so much joy when we perform them. We consider ourselves lucky to make music at all, and to be able to bring this album out in these times feels like a wonderful happenstance.
And why Honest Mechanik? We chose the name because “they’re very rare and you’d travel a great distance to find one.”
‘Translate’ single artwork:
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Media contact and press/radio inquiries: michael@publisist.co.
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