Growing up in the high desert of New Mexico I always listened to emo, indie, etc. Bands from around here that fit that ilk included kidcrash, The Coma Recovery, and sputniq. Six Gallery was right up that alley. When I first heard ‘A Live Nativity Scene’ – I knew the band would be a force to be reckoned with. I can’t wait to see what they create. I recently sat down with Six Gallery to talk about their return from hiatus, which has taken the math rock community by storm. The boys gave me their personal takes on it all…
Firstly, I have been listening to you guys for over five years! You all helped me get through some mental issues as well as a break up; regarding your album, Breakthroughs in Modern Art (2010). An incredible journey; combines elements of Post-Hardcore, Emo, Indie, et cetera…. What can we expect from you this time round? Has your hiatus changed the band?
SG: It is always incredibly humbling when we hear anybody tell us how our music has affected them personally, so thank you. We’re just five guys from the midwest who were trying to have fun and make interesting music.
This is a tough question to answer as we have not yet ventured into any songwriting yet. I think that is something we are all on board to explore. We just don’t really know yet what it will yield. I can say that personality wise, it’s like we never stopped being a band. Over the years some of us have fallen out of touch more than others, and getting back into it and starting to rehearse…it feels like no time has passed. Hopefully the same can be said about the music we produce…only time will tell!
What was the reason behind getting back together?
SG: Getting back together was inevitable for Six Gallery. We never had a proper last show, we never really talked about the band ending internally…it all just sort of came to a screeching halt in the midst of a 4 month tour in 2010. Our singer at the time decided to part ways with SG after a show we played in Athens, Ohio and we were forced to cancel all future tour dates (the next show we had was a sold out show in NYC with Biffy Clyro….that was a tough one to walk away from).
Not long after our singer’s departure, Will had to move back to Cleveland and we all had to find jobs, as we had been touring for the entirety of the year. It was a rough transition back into the real world, and getting Six Gallery back up and running was a tough pill to swallow. By this point we had been through two vocalists and two extensive US tours….I think we were all a bit burnt out and needed a break. Who knew that that break would last for seven years….haha.
Since our decision to go on a hiatus, we have been approached numerous times by friends/fans/venues/etc to play a reunion show. As time passed it seemed harder and harder to try and make this happen. Some of us became married (or are soon to be), there have been houses purchased, children birthed….we’ve all grown into different places in our lives. Six Gallery feels like a fucking lifetime ago.
This past winter a friend of ours asked if we would possibly be interested in playing a show this coming fall (more details on that to come). He’s asked us to play a show every year since our breakup, and the answer has always been no…not because we didn’t want to…but because the timing just never seemed to be right. This time around he asked and I texted Ben to see what his thoughts were. His reply was, “see if Will is in…we can’t do this without him”. So immediately I texted Will, who I had not really communicated with in a few years and his response to my text was “Who is this”?
It wasn’t long before everyone was on board. There of course was the minor issue of who would sing. There is this guy who has been in the Columbus music scene since I can remember finding out what the Columbus music scene was. He’s from the same hometown as myself and Ben and he’s become a very close friend over the years (me and Ben have played in a Weezer tribute band with him for about 10 years). We all agreed that he would be a great fit. I texted him to gauge his interest in joining the band, his response was, “duh”. (His name is Phil….not Dan BTW)
It’s been an incredibly surreal experience putting all of these pieces back together. We’re all in the midst of re-learning our songs and have had a few rehearsals….and I think I speak for everyone when I say that it just feels right. The time is right, we’re all in great places in our lives and we can’t wait to re-experience Six Gallery with all the new (and old) fans we’ve gained since our breakup!
Where have your musical inspirations shifted, and how so?
SG: All of our musical inspirations are (and always have been) all over the place. I think that has helped shape our music into something somewhat unique. There are few bands that I can safely say that we are ALL into. For the most part we are all on slightly separate pages inspirationally.
Has it been fairly easy to get back into the swing of things?
SG: I don’t think it has been as difficult as we thought it would be going in. At this point all we are focused on is re-learning our old material, which so far has been very successful. We’ve had 2 rehearsals and are about ⅔ through ‘Breakthroughs in Modern Art’. Going back and re-learning songs that have not been touched in 7 years is a daunting task. Things have been smooth so far…
Six Gallery took the time to answer a wad of other questions recently on the r/mathrock reddit page. You can check out the thread here. You can also stay up to date with Six Gallery via their Facebook page