Poison The Well’s story is one of persistence. And weather.
The Florida-based quintet have been mainstays in the post-hardcore scene since their landmark, The Opposite Of December, came out on Trustkill records in 1999, part of the collective ignition the slow burn of post-hardcore had through the underground and finally up through the mainstream by the mid-to-early 2000s, when they released their sole major label outing on Atlantic, You Come Before You.
As arguably no band of their ilk has been able to cope with a major, Poison The Well split ways with the label and have started a steady stream of releases on New Jersey’s Ferret Records. With the creative freedom they’ve demanded over the years and relentless dedication to touring and fans, Poison The Well have cemented themselves as lifers in the underground scene, now almost a dozen years after their formation.
They’re also getting older, and a slightly sore Chris Hornbrook got on the phone with me after filming the video for their first single off the upcoming The Tropic Rot, “Exist Underground.” Relaying some insight as to the drummer’s great privilege (hint: sitting down) when filming a music video, the founding drummer also talked about some of the general meaning behind the band’s forthcoming release, the urge to evolve as a band, and of course, the weather.
Where are you guys right now?
We’re actually in Milwaukee. We just came here yesterday to shoot a video for the single that’s going to be off the new record.
How’d it go?
It was really awesome. Our buddy Sam did it, he does videos and commercials and stuff like that. Super cool dude. Knows what he’s doing. It was really, really awesome. We played the same song for about 12 hours. (laughs)
Oh yeah, that sounds awesome. (laughs)
We’re all kind of beat up today. I think I’m the least beat up one, ‘cause I play drums so I sit down.
Well, you’re putting out a lot of physical energy back there. I don’t know what their problem is. You should be the one who is most beat up.
You know, maybe I am, I can just take it a little bit better. My neck hurts a little bit, and the joints on my arms hurt, but they’re talking about their whole back’s hurt and they can’t move. And I’m like, ‘I’m a little sore, but nothing a day’s worth of rest and eating protein wouldn’t fix.’
