HOLLOW RIVER
Hollow River (HR) is the stage name of Mark MacDonald, an up-and-coming singer-songwriter. We discussed his experience working for a music studio, his writing inspirations and the influence of his formal education on his music. Keep an eye out for upcoming Ottawa gigs and give his latest tune, Falsetto, a spin!
VITALS
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HollowRiverMusic/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollowriver/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/hollowriver
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/mark-macdonald-music
Web: https://www.hollowriver.org/
Upcoming shows: Stay tuned!
SA: How did you get your start in music? HR: My parents got me my first guitar when I was 8, and it quickly became my greatest escape. From there I tried to get involved in anything I could related to music- I picked up the saxophone when I was 10, I would go to school early to be a part of the choir, start bands with friends. I can't imagine life without it.
SA: What bands would you cite as biggest influences on your sound? HR: I would put John Mayer as my biggest influence. He was the one to show me that you could write songs with intricate guitar parts and words that actually mean something and still have people sing along. However, I also take a lot of influences from Pop Punk bands like Blink 182 or Marianas Trench.
SA: Thus far in your career, what has been your biggest success? HR: My biggest success to me was playing my first show in Ottawa. I wasn't even considering a serious release for my music, but decided to book a show and see what happened. It was a great surprise when tons of people showed and the venue hit capacity - it was the moment I realized I could actually make this happen.
SA: On the other hand, what is the biggest challenge you have faced, and how have you dealt with it? HR: Staying on a timeline- between wanting my own release to be a good as it can be to working with other talented artists as a recording engineer it easy to get back logged and push back my release to help someone get theirs out in time.
SA: How do you approach the song-writing process? HR: Songwriting is therapy- it always has been. I deal with a number of mental health issues including depression and insomnia, and as one gets worse it feeds into the other. So most of my bests songs come out when I'm at my lowest- I take all the overwhelming feelings and try to make something awesome instead.
SA: What are your thoughts on the Ottawa music scene? HR: Ottawa is my favourite place to play, the fans are engaged, enthusiastic, and always bring the energy. The city is big enough to breed some great talent, but small enough to support at the grassroots level. I think Ottawa will become a key music city in the next few years as the Canadian music scene as a whole gets more international attention.
SA: You went to the University of Ottawa for Creative Writing. Do you find your formal training in writing impacts your song-writing, or are they pretty distinct processes? HR: I think it had a huge impact with my approach like thinking of the speaker of a song or piece as a character. While I try to draw on feelings and emotions that are sincere, thinking about it like this allows me more creative freedom within the narrative of the song.
But I was also lucky from getting the chance to become friends with the other students from the class. We formed a writing group and we all still talk to this day. Having great creative minds that you trust to bounce off ideas helps you think about you work more critically and bring it to the next level. It was actually one of my friends from that group that helped land on the name Hollow River.
SA: If you could have any artist, dead or alive, collaborate with you on a Hollow River track, who would it be and why? HR: 100% John Mayer. The things I could learn about songwriting and guitar playing seems unfathomable.
SA: You've had experience in the music industry working at Grant Avenue Studio in Hamilton. What was that experience like and has it changed your approach to making music? HR: Yeah, I still work at Grant Avenue. I owe them everything, especially my mentor Amy King. There is a reason she's one of the most respected engineers in the Hamilton music scene. She's really helped me see music in much broader terms, progressing my technical skills as an engineer, producer, and songwriter while not forgetting the art and the magic of it. It's a fine line that she walks effortlessly.
SA: What do you have in store throughout 2017? Best wishes for your continued successes, Mark! HR: I will be releasing my first EP this coming September, recorded at Grant Avenue Studio. Make sure to like my Facebook page to stay in the loop about the EP release party in Ottawa, as well as the release of the music video for Falsetto in the coming months. For now you can find Falsetto on iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, and many more streaming platforms.