Unsigned Spotlight: Cruel Hope
Cruel Hope is the embodiment of a generation’s bitter struggle to accept that the world they were promised no longer exists, brought to life in the form of modern alternative rock songs by creator Liam Horrigan.
Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.
Liam Horrigan: Guitarist, Lead Vocalist, Songwriter (and the one answering all the questions)
For live performances:
Paul Purchmajer: Bass player, Backing vocals
Nathanial (Nate) Jai: Drums
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Cruel Hope? How long has the band been around?
All three of us have been pretty active in the scene before coming to Cruel Hope. Paul and I actually met when we were both playing in a Toronto-based progressive metal band called Derev, which I'm still a part of now. Nate always has a ton of things going on; he's the drummer for the band Joshanda and has his own solo project under the pseudonym Rett Coen.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
Sometimes, it is worse to be led on by a false hope for a better future than to just accept a stark reality; this is the idea behind “Cruel Hope” as a concept. I was struck by this idea one day on a walk in downtown Toronto, when I took a pedestrian bridge across the Rosedale ravine from Toronto’s St. James Town, a famously densely populated and poverty stricken neighbourhood, into Rosedale, one of Toronto's wealthiest communities. The proximity of such extravagant wealth to a neighbourhood rife with suffering and hardship really struck me. It was as if someone had played some kind of sick joke on the residents of St. James Town, taunting them with incredible displays of the kind of intergenerationally-accumulated wealth that these people could never hope to amass in this lifetime.
The contrast was made even more unsettling by the fact that the wealthy elite housed in Rosedale grow and maintain their fortunes on the backs of working class people like those of St. James Town, further widening the financial gap that already grossly overshadows the physical one spanned by the pedestrian bridge. To me, this felt like a true manifestation of “Cruel Hope” as a concept. The bridge in the band’s logo is modelled after that pedestrian bridge; the one the people of St. James Town can walk along, but never really cross.
The band was very briefly named "Callaghan Footbridge" after the bridge itself, but I changed it to "Cruel Hope" so that people without the context of that backstory would have a better idea of what to expect from our music.
Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?
Right now, I write and record demos of the songs that I send along to Nate and Paul so that we can put together the live show. I include what I have in mind for the bass and drums in those demos along with my own parts, but Nate or Paul will often come up with some modifications that I think add character to our live sound.
Most of our songs are very political; I think right now the world needs outspoken advocates for progress on issues like environmental sustainability and social justice more than ever before, and music is one of the most powerful ways to deliver a message to people. My songs usually fall somewhere between a commentary and a call to action, typically stemming from an environmentalist and socialist interpretation of current events mixed with my own life experience. I don't really think that's something that will change over time; these lyrical themes really define Cruel Hope more than anything else as a band, and I don't think we'll ever run out of issues to sing about.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
Everything I write has shades of my favourite bands growing up: lots of Rise Against, Billy Talent, and Green Day. However, right now I'm also taking a ton of influence from the modern rock scene in the UK. I think bands like Don Broco, Royal Blood, Strange Bones, and Kid Kapichi are all breathing new life into guitar-based music, which has - not entirely unfairly - been accused of stagnating in the decades since its heyday.
Cleopatrick has been doing a similar thing on this side of the Atlantic, which has also been a big source of inspiration. All of these acts do a great job of mixing the grit and realness of old-school rock and grunge with modernized production and more emotionally expressive vocals, which is a very potent blend.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
The first time I heard Holiday by Green Day, I knew that this was what I wanted to do. Being about 9 at the time, and having listened almost exclusively to whatever my parents put on up until that point, it was unlike anything I had heard before. Hearing that opening riff for the first time, I felt this overwhelming urge to create music like that. I didn't even play guitar or sing at the time; something about it just spoke to me, and here we are years later.
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
I get pretty nervous before playing, so anything I can do to warm up my body and voice really helps. If there's a green room, I'll usually run through some vocal exercises and jump around a bit. Playing through a song during soundcheck really helps me loosen up too; getting familiar with the sound system at the venue makes getting on stage a lot less stressful.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
Our debut single "Wage Slave" got over 1000 streams within its first month on Spotify, which was really exciting. I think it really reassured me that there's an audience out there for the things we have to say, and that all the hard work we've put in so far won't go to waste.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
I would love nothing more than to tour with my childhood idols Rise Against and Billy Talent; both bands form such a huge part of my identity, not only as a musician but as a person. I also think a tour with Cleopatrick or Don Broco would be an incredible experience; their sound is the future of guitar music, and I want "Cruel Hope" to be a part of that future. Finally, acts like Grandson and Fever 333 are doing a fantastic job of bringing leftist politics back into rock music, and I would love to contribute to the cause on tour with them.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Our debut EP comes out March 18th! Also be sure to follow our social media; we've got some awesome shows coming up in Toronto, and it would be great to see some of you there!