Nick: First off can you please say your name and what you do in the band.
Mike: My name is Mike Murphy and I play bass and I sing in Haste the Day.
Karli: Where does the name Haste the Day come from?
Mike: It comes from an old hymn called “It is well with my soul” and it just refers to the return of Christ and our longing for that day to come quickly.
Nick: Faith is important to the band, are you playing Cornerstone Florida this year?
Mike: Yeah, we actually are. It’ll be our first year we’ve played. We’ve played Cornerstone Illinois like 3 years, and were stoke to be doing Florida. Have you been there?
Nick: I haven’t, I will be this year, I have a press application at home
Mike: Sweet. Who else is playing?
Nick: I know Underoath is playing
Karli: We’re from the same town as Underoath
Mike: A couple of those guys are coming tonight. Chris and Timmy are coming. We just stayed at Timmy’s apartment last night.
Karli: What did you do before you were in a band?
Mike: I went to high school. I’ve always wanted to be in a band. I did one year of college, and then Haste the Day got signed, and we started becoming more of a full time band. So I’ve got one year of college under my belt, and we’ve been touring ever since. I went to shows, and I watched movies
Karli: What’s your favorite movie?
Mike: The Notebook. Noah is my hero.
Karli: If you weren’t in a band, what would you be doing?
Mike: I would be an elementary school teacher. That’s what I was going to college for. I love kids, and I just love that whole age group. I like this interview, everyone is involved.
Nick: Why did Jimmy leave the band, and are you guys still friends?
Mike: Yeah we’re great friends. We talk to him on the phone a couple times a week. He’s like 27 years old. He was just getting older and the relationship with he and his girlfriend got serious and they just got married. We all went to their wedding. So that was probably the main reason. So he could focus on his relationship. Were all still best friends.
Karli: What do you think Steven can do to improve Haste the Day?
Mike: Well his vocal range is a lot more diverse. He can do highs and lows, as Jimmy was just the highs. He has a great singing voice. We’ve been told it’s the best we’ve sounded, and I agree. I think it is the best we’ve sounded. He journals every single day, so when he goes to write lyrics for the new record, he already has amazing ideas.
Nick: Have you started working on the next CD?
Mike: A little bit. He’s (Steven) has started his journaling and lyrics. Jason our guitar player has written a couple riffs. Right after this tour in April and may, were going to write for two months, work on the new CD. Hopefully it will be out early 2007
Karli: How is this tour going?
Mike: This tour is awesome. Pretty much every show has been sold out. We’ve been playing for a lot of new kids. We’re just the baby band on the tour, so its great exposure. Great first US tour for Steven to be on.
Nick: Are you guys opening the show?
Mike: Yeah, were the first to play
Karli: How do you think the band has grown between the releases of Burning Bridges and When Everything Falls?
Mike: I think our songwriting has matured since Burning Bridges. We had 5 times as long to write When Everything Falls. We wrote Burning Bridges in like two and a half weeks. So we got to put a piece of ourselves into that CD (When Everything Falls). Lots of singing.
Karli: What’s your favorite song to play live?
Mike: Fallen. The first track on the record. Its darker, it kind of sounds sad. Its kind of the direction the sound is going.
Nick: Favorite city to play?
Mike: Besides Tampa, maybe California. San Diego is really awesome. Great music city. Sacramento has always been cool to us.
Karli: When you aren’t touring, which isn’t often, what do you do for fun?
Mike: I’m usually visiting my girlfriend or planning trips with her. Spending time with my family. I watch a movie a day. I have a huge DVD collection. I buy like 5 DVDs a day. I’m pretty obsessive. Movies are amazing. And I take a bath every single day. I cant help it. I love baths.
Karli: How did you guys get discovered by solid state?
Mike: We were touring without being signed and we bought our own van and trailer with our own money. We recorded our own EP. We sent a tape of our live show to them. They could see we were a hard working band, took initiative on our own. When a label sees that you’re willing to do things without a label, and your dedicated, that’s the biggest thing.
Karli: Musically or not, who or what are your biggest influences?
Mike: Well I write a lot of the melodies for Haste the Day, so melodically id say the Beatles. They’re one of my biggest influences. I used to listen to Living Sacrifice a lot when I was a kid. That’s probably my favorite band, just them and P.O.D.. Like when I was growing up, those were the cool bands that I loved.
Nick: How long have you guys been playing together?
Mike: Brennan and Devin are brothers, and we all grew up together. Devin played drums and Brennan played guitar, so they needed a bass player. I didn’t even want to play bass, but I started playing bass because they needed it. I actually used to be the lead singer of haste the day. I would do all of the screaming when we were a three piece. I’ve been playing bass for about five years.
Karli: Do you have any pre show rituals?
Mike: No. I usually call my girlfriend and tell her I love her, tell her to wish me luck. A lot of times we get together and pray. Ask God to keep the kids safe at the shows and let us have fun.
Nick: What can someone who’s never seen haste the day live expect at one of your shows?
Mike: They can expect us to have fun. We smile on stage, we never take ourselves too seriously, not trying to be tough or anything. They can expect a lot of singing and catchy type songs along with breakdowns and two stepping
Karli If you could play a show with any three artists, past or present, who would they be?
Mike: The Beatles. Just for sentimental reasons P.O.D. because I grew up listening to them, and I’d say Shania Twain because I love Shania Twain.
Karli: What do you think of the music scene now as opposed to when Burning Bridges came out?
Mike: I think its grown. I think it probably doubles in size every single year. It’s so huge right now. It’s really diversified. Everyone is together. Like hardcore and emo and indie rock. It all kind of goes together. More so than years ago.
Nick: Any summer touring plans?
Mike: We’re going to write a little bit and then were playing the It Dies Today tour with Chiodos and the Showdown I believe, and then in August we are doing a headlining tour.
Karli: Do you have any tattoos or piercing?
Mike: I’m a natural guy. I want tattoos and piercing, but my girlfriend likes a natural man.
Thanks to Brian Rocha at Adrenaline PR for making this interview happen, Mike from Haste the Day, James Connolly for filming the interview