Jonathan Horstmann of Urban Heat sits down with Soundsphere’s Dom Smith to discuss the band’s viral hit, ‘Have You Ever?’, the possibility of touring the UK, and the band’s forthcoming new album.
Jonathan comments on wanting to tour Europe before touring the United States: “We are working on doing something in the Spring of 2024! Doing some festivals and then touring around those.
“When I first started touring, I learned to temper my expectations around anything. I just want to be an open vessel. I’m excited to meet people and eat food. I’m excited about the whole thing!”
On how he has changed and developed as an artist: “I cheated by having kids! [laughs] They will force you to grow up very quickly! I had a moment of thinking maybe I should quit music because I need to provide a better life for my family, so now my kids are the priority and my dreams need to take a backseat…
“I realised that through leading by example I don’t want to have to teach my kids that you have to give up on your dreams and accept some normal existence. I want to show them by example that you can crush this if you work hard and treat people right.
“Musically, I am just having the time of my life! We are still doing little tweaks on the mixes, then we are going to get it mastered. I impressed myself with this thing. I am excited to see what the future has for this band. At the end of the day, it’s about making work that we are proud of, and I think we have done that.”
On the new record: “I think I’ve taken more of the influences that I have grown up with, that I haven’t seen blended with the goth genre very much, and mixing it together in a way that I hope makes sense! We did at a live drummer, and there’s a lot more guitar on this record than previously. I think a lot of bands with dark elements, get put in the goth subculture, which is awesome.
“At the same time, I think creatively there is so much more we can do while staying in dark music. I love darkwave and post-punk, but I also love post-rock, metal, and hip-hop, and trying to blend it in a way that is sincerely us. Every song goes in another sonic direction. I love the drama of it. I want to be big, dramatic, and emotive! This is the first record I think, that sounds like we feel live.”
On the visual elements of Urban Heat: “Everything about this is intentional. I don’t think I understood just how much of an impact it would make though.
“We’ve experimented a lot. We are from Texas, so sometimes we will do this Southern Gothic thing, so we all have our Stetson Hats and Cowboy Boots – trying to do that in a dramatic way that still represents us, and being from that area, as we go on the road. The aesthetic is changing a little bit for the next record. I think it’s cool when the band has the era around a new album. You can remember a point where Depeche Mode had the bondage stuff, and so I really jumped on to that. On a personal note, I want to have more fun with my options. I want to remind folks that they only know as much as we have allowed them to, and there’s still so much we can bring to the table.”
On the viral nature of ‘Have You Ever?’, and putting out different versions of it: “Because of our consuming habits, and the speed of which people want more, and to stay relevant – I wanted to release some more stuff without giving away any of this new record. So, there’s an element of strategy there, but I love that song just stripped back on a piano.
“My biggest worry is that people will get tired of it – you have the existing fanbase who have heard it a lot, but then you have new people coming into the fold every day, and they deserve an opportunity to hear the stuff. So, it’s about how we can provide those moments. The way that people interacted with [‘Have You Ever?’] kinda changed our lives. That song, and the way that social media interacted with it, has made a lot of things possible for us.”
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