Upcoming alternative pop band Haunter (Lucy LeNoir – Vocals, Enoma Asowata – Guitars, Mark Schroeder – Bass, & Mike Ray – Guitars/Keys/Vocals) have swiftly apprehended the attention of music lovers with their vibrantly charismatic musical style & ear-catching vocals.
Now, this incredible group are set to capture the hearts of listeners once again with the brand new single “Illuminate” & have kindly taken the time to speak with Fierce & Fabulous Revolution about their brand new musical piece.
Hey Haunter, thank you so much for this interview. Can you start by telling the readers a little bit about yourselves?
Lucy: Hi guys! Lucy here as the vocalist for Haunter!!! I am a metalhead turned pop vocalist and now I’m ready for world domination!!!
Mike: Hey there I’m Mike, I play guitar and keys for Haunter. I’m also the backing vocals for the band.
How did the idea to form Haunter come together?
Lucy: Enoma asked me about 7 years after meeting him to be the vocalist for a new pop project he had in mind. We had barely ever had contact to be honest, but we both definitely respected each other as musicians and saw this as a great opportunity to create something new and fresh, so we took a chance; and it paid off!!
Mike: I think the original idea for Haunter was just to do something new. None of us involved had every really written or played pop music before, but it was something all of us loved, despite most of our time in the past being in rock / metal / punk bands.
It definitely started with Enoma because he has always had such a great passion for pop music, and there’s literally nothing that can stop him from pursuing something he’s interested in — so we all just kind of hopped on the project one by one until we finally headed to the studio for the first time to see where the journey would take us.
When would you say that each of you first discovered your passion for music?
Lucy: From a very young age, I would hear Destiny’s child and Eve 6 on the radio… at about six years old I can remember singing almost all of the lyrics to the song “Inside Out”. I remember always wanting to know what message this song was saying and what the vocalist was trying to get across with the words they were singing. I always wondered what the message was, and if I could relate to it in anyway. So now I want to keep doing the same thing and passing on my messages through song to people as well.
Mike: I grew up around music. My mom was playing piano with me in the womb. But I never really realized how much I loved it until my friend Catherine convinced me to join choir in sixth grade. My love for music only increased from there, but it wasn’t until I started going to shows in high school that I realized “Wait… I can DO this!”
How would you describe your musical style to someone unfamiliar with your music?
Lucy: We are basically pop the tries to go as far to the edges of being a pop band as possible. We have some songs that are very bright and young, and sound like they should be on a Disney movie. Some of our other songs are more sexy and mature, with industrial influence. Some of our music is closer to k-pop with the writing style. We’re going as far as we can into the edges of being “pop”. We’re not just pop, we’re doing whatever we want.
Mike: I feel like this is always the hardest question for a band to answer, haha. I always just want to say “We sound like Haunter.” But if I had to categorize us, I would say that we’re mostly pop / synth pop with some rock and EDM bits thrown in there. Think Chvrches, Dua Lipa, Halsey with bits of Coldplay and Seven Lions. We have some many influences from so many different genres, but I’m sure not all of those come across in every song. But the sheer range and variety of references and inspiration that we discuss in the studio is maybe my favorite thing about Haunter, and I think it allows every song to kind of exist in its own space.
You have just released the brand new single ”Illuminate”. How did the idea for this song first come together?
Lucy: We wanted to write a song that felt almost invincible. A song that inspired people to take chances, and take the opportunities that are handed to them full force. Who wanted people to feel on top of the world, and I definitely feel like we got that energy across in this song!
Mike: Like all of our songs, Illuminate started in the studio. I think one of the most unique things about Haunter is that while we all bring ideas and inspiration to the studio, we don’t actually start writing until we can all be together and decide on a collaborative direction for each song. It’s unlike any other project I’ve ever been a part of, but it’s made the creative process much more enjoyable, and I feel like it allows the songs to really go any direction they need to instead of trying to force them into a concrete idea that we came in with and were married to.
What would you consider to be the main inspiration behind the song?
Lucy: The main inspiration is keeping people positive during such pressing times, and every day before and after that, too.
Mike: I feel like “Illuminate” is mostly about love and hope, like many of our songs, honestly. It’s about chasing your dreams / your love and not letting anyone or anything stop you. I feel like it’s something that’s super relatable, but especially so after the brutal year we’ve all been through.
Did you always know that you would release ”Illuminate” as a single?
Lucy: Oh yes it’s something special. This song definitely needs the attention of its own release!
Mike: Honestly, every song that we write is written with the goal of being a single. From the beginning, we always wanted to be a band that was constantly putting out new content, so we spent more than two years writing and recording before we even launched the project because we wanted to make sure that we would always have a steady stream of content to release. But as for “Illuminate” specifically, it definitely hit home as soon as we finished it, and it’s been one of my favorite songs since we wrapped it.
What does the song personally mean to you?
Lucy: That I can absolutely rule the world if I wanted to!
Mike: As I touched on above, I feel like it just such a positive message about not letting anything keep you down. Whether it’s in love or in life, it’s important to never keep pushing through and never stop chasing the things that truly matter to you in life.
If listeners could take anything away from this song, what would you like it to be?
Lucy: To take this song in the scariest moments of your life, and blast it at full volume. Listen to it with your crush and look at them right in their eyes and tell them you want to feel this way forever!
Mike: Especially after the disastrous last 12 months that we’ve all been through, I just hope everyone is able to stay positive through everything. I know we’re all just counting down the days until the world returns to some semblance of “normal,” but I know that as soon as it does, we’ll all pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and build ourselves back up to be stronger than ever before.
Do you have any further releases planned that you are currently able to tell us about?
Mike: Honestly, we’ve got a backlog of content ready for the next two years of releases, and we’re always adding more to the discussion. We’ll probably have a remix of “Illuminate” somewhere around a month after the single drops, and then we’ll start the cycle on the next single.
We also just shot a music video for a song called “Untouchable” that I’m really stoked about that should be out later this year as well. If there’s one thing that I really love about this band, it’s that our listeners will never have to wait more than a month or two to hear something new from us!
What are some of the things you enjoy doing in your spare time?
Lucy: I tattoo for a living, so I do a lot of drawing and designing of awesome artwork to put on people! I also was a chef for a while, so I tend to cook almost every meal I eat! Lots of art, food, and good cocktails!
Mike: Learning new songs, watching pretty much any sport, playing with my cats and consuming literally every sci-fi movie, TV show or book that I can find. Always open to any and all recommendations on those, by the way!
What song do you always keep on your playlist & why?
Lucy: ‘The Girl From Ipanema’ by Frank Sinatra. It’s such a dreamy song. I want to live inside of that song!!
Mike: Oh man… too many to even count. Can I just go with the few I’ve had on repeat lately? My 2020 playlists were dominated by a few things: First was the entire album “MAYBE” by Valley. No matter how hard things got or how down I was, that album instantly picked me back up and put me in the best mood. It literally got me through 2020.
But outside of Valley, there are so many other songs that have helped me through the last year. Among them were: “Backseat” by Charli Adams, “Deep Sea Diver” by The Foxies, “Somebody” by Dagny, “Stolen Days” by Dear Rouge & “Midnight” by Acceptance. The second I hear any of those, my day instantly gets better. I highly recommend anyone who might be unfamiliar with them to give them a listen.
If you could possess one superpower, what would you choose & why?
Lucy: I would probably want to fly so I can travel anywhere in the world at any time! I absolutely love to travel and try new foods and be inspired by different cultures!
Mike: As cheesy as this sounds, I wish I had the ability to pause time. I feel like there’s never enough time in a day or week or month to get everything done that I would like to do, and I especially feel like my creativity suffers a bit because of it. The ability to just pause the outside world and spend as long as I needed writing / recording / learning a new instrument / working on something new and exciting would be a DREAM.
What three words best describe you?
Lucy: Cunning, spontaneous, wild.
Mike: I might be the worst person in the world at these questions. I feel like no matter what I can come up with, it’s going to sound boring and generic, especially if I’m just picking three adjectives, so I’m going to go with the three nouns that sum up my life instead: CATS, MUSIC, SPORTS.
What advice would you offer someone looking to pursue a career within the music industry?
Lucy: Don’t suck, and take every opportunity possible. And never stop.
Mike: Know what your goals & dreams are and never stop chasing them. Don’t be afraid to let others help you along the journey, but also don’t ever let anyone else tell you what you’re supposed to do or how you’re supposed to do something, especially if you feel like that’s not the right thing for you.
Some of the best projects I’ve ever been a part of fell apart the second we started listening to outside opinions and changed all of our plans, etc. to what outsiders said was “best” for us. I know for a fact that things would have worked out better for us had we just stuck to our ideas and goals and asked outsiders to help us pursue those or let us do it ourselves.
It’s hard to succeed in music without some help along the way, but it should be just that: HELP — not someone taking control of your dream and your passion and steering it in whatever direction they deem fit. Don’t ever be afraid to stand up for yourself and defend your artistic integrity.
Finally, is there a message that you would like to share with the readers of Fierce & Fabulous Revolution?
Lucy: Try your best and feel good! Make art and live! Spread love and receive love.
Mike: Just stay strong and stay true to yourselves! I know that many of you are suffering right now to various degrees (as are we), but we’re going to come out of this on the other side and appreciate all of the small things that we took for granted so much more. I can guarantee you that I will be openly sobbing with joy at the first concert that I can get back to, and I hope that many of you will be able to do the same.
You can check out “Illuminate” on Spotify below.
Haunter: Website / Facebook / Twitter / Instagram.
Fierce & Fabulous Revolution 