Dave Hause (FUN FACT: pronounced more like “hoss” than “house,” like I had previously assumed) is a Los Angeles-based Philadelphia-bred singer-songwriter, vocalist, and guitar player, who often makes folk/rock/Americana/heartland rock music akin to The Gaslight Anthem, Bruce Springsteen & The E-Street Band, and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers’ collective and wildly beloved output.
Hause is of the variety of former punk/hardcore musicians who have grown up and are now playing folk/alt.country-adjacent music, this including, but not limited to, Chuck Ragan (Hot Water Music,) Dan Andriano (Alkaline Trio, The Falcon, The Damned Things,) Brian Fallon (The Gaslight Anthem, Molly & The Zombies, The Horrible Crowes,) Tim Barry (AVAIl,) Jon Snodgrass (Scorpios, Drag The River,) Frank Turner (Möngöl Hörde, Million Dead,) Kevin Seconds (7Seconds,) and, of course, Country Mike “Mike D” Diamond (Beastie Boys, DFL/Dead Fucking Last.)
Prior to “going solo” and effectively “folking shit up,” Hause cut his teeth within the Philly punk & hardcore scenes as a member (at one point of another) of Step Ahead, The Curse, The Loved Ones, Paint It Black, The Falcon, and The All Brights in-between 1998-2018. Hause first released a 7-inch and an EP in 2010 followed by his debut solo full-length, Resolutions, in 2011 on Paper + Plastick owned and operated by founding/now ex-Less Than Jake member and long-time drummer Vinnie Fiorello.
Hause, then, continued to record and release Devour, Bury Me In Philly, and KICK—my first time hearing Dave Hause and I’ve bene hooked/here for every album release roll-out ever since—on esteemed Portland hardcore/emo label Rise Records from 2013-19.
Dave formed his own label imprint with his brother, fellow musician, and bandmate Tim “Bill” Hause by way of Blood Harmony Records. Blood Harmony (also, the album name,) Drive It Like It’s Stolen, Versus, Nurses, and Hearses were all collectively released on their label, as well as more recent reissues of both Bury Me In Philly and KICK.
Hause’s latest offering, …and The Mermaid, is his first stab at a proper, full-boar, real deal, Punk-indebted “rock 'n' oll band” (solo) album. Hause, then, recruited and congealed over time, his finite touring band—consisting of himself, Tim Hause, Kevin Conroy, Luke Preston, and Mark Masefield—fully cemented in 2022.
Dave Hause entered the studio with The Mermaid for their first proper full-band writing/recording collaboration. …and The Mermaid is Hause’s first tried and true rock/punk-indebted album drawing influence from The Hooters, Dire Straits, The Police, Van Halen, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, The Clash, Iron Maiden, Metallica, The Misfits, Soundgarden, Nirvana, The Bouncing Souls, and Sick of It All, as well as his own “real” past bands.
Across …and The Mermaid, Dave Hause & the Mermaid sound largely like something akin to Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers as heard through the lense of The Clash or otherwise, real deal musicians, bandmates, and friends with real deal Punk/Hardcore roots playing 10 songs of straight-up rock 'n' roll.
…and The Mermaid dropped last week on Blood Harmony (US)/SBÄM (UK) Records in multiple formats, packages, and vinyl color variants. It’s been quite a few years in-the-making and, honestly, it was the perfect record to wait until to do it. And what exactly is this mysterious “it,” you may ask? I’m proud to present to you my interview with David “Sousaphone” Hause AKA “Big Wave Dave” for the storied pages of No Echo.
The emailed interview you see below was conducted this past September between myself and Dave Hause has been lightly edited for general clarity. Major shout-outs are due to Dave’s press agent, Tito Belis, manager, Alex Fang, and The Mermaid bandmate and keyboard player, Mark Mansfield, for special and much-needed parts in helping set this one up for me and you!
When and how did you first get into listening to, becoming a fan of and, most importantly, wanting to play/make your own punk and hardcore music?
When I was around eight or nine, my uncle played The Clash for me. He loved “London Calling” and while I was a little scared of that song, I was transfixed. That same uncle really loved Joe Jackson & The Police, so I had some context for punk rock when I started to get into the Misfits (through Metallica[’s The $5.98 E.P. - Garage Days Re-Revisited and/or Garage Inc.] a few years later.
Around that same time, grunge hit and I could tell that Nirvana was doing a similar thing to what I understood as punk and as I kept digging, I got into The Ramones and, then, later, hardcore via Sick of It All.
I made that kind of music with my friends because we loved it and it was easier to execute than metal. Making up a band was just a great way to pass the time when we were teenagers. Skateboarding, graffiti, drugs, and punk rock were all possible, there was no internet.
What were some of your earliest favorite punk/hardcore albums (that you still listen to an often re-visit to this day) and why for each?
The Clash, the Ramones, and the Misfits made some of my favorite music. As far as hardcore goes, Sick of It All, Minor Threat, and Bad Brains made truly great recordings; Snapcase was great and still holds up and, then, the melodic [punk/hardcore] side of thing still does it for me.
Gorilla Biscuits’ Start Today, Kid Dynamite and Lifetime records, [and] 7Seconds, all of that stuff gives me joy to listen to. For newer stuff, the latest Deadguy record [Near-Death Travel Services] rips.
How did your time spent playing as part of punk/hardcore bands help influence and inspire your rock 'n' roll album with your longtime touring/new studio band?
We play with a certain energy that goes to the beating heart of what punk was doing. It’s really what early rock 'n' roll was doing, as well. There’s so much energy in the early [material by The] Beatles, Little Richard, The Clash, [and] Minor Threat.
I think that ferocity and energy is what we can lean on to bring urgency to the songs.
What ultimately made you decide to shift from singing vocals/back-up vocals and playing guitar in punk/hardcore bands to making your own indie rock, folk rock, and Americana music solo and with The Mermaid?
In my first two bands, Step Ahead and The Curse, I was pouring so much creativity into the song-writing, the arrangement, the aesthetic, and everything else. So, when those bands dissipated and it was time to start over, I wanted to make sure I fronted the band.
A lot of the courage to follow through with that idea came from working for the Bouncing Souls and Hot Water Music. Both bands were adamant about me [starting] a band where I was the singer and that encouragement from established guys in bands felt like having “big brothers” to guide me into the next phase.
Prior to ...And The Mermaid, what drove you to record an array of The Loved Ones acoustic covers across your three recent solo albums, Versus, Nurses, and Hearses?
We had a tour of Europe get postponed by the Omicron Variant of COVID-19. Tim [Hause] and I really wanted to get more and more songs recorded wherein we own the masters (Fat Wreck [Chords], now Hopeless [Records] owns The Loved Ones’ masters) and we had hit a stride recording Blood Harmony and Drive It Like It’s Stolen, so we just went in to the studio with Will Hoge and David Axelrod and recorded all 30 Loved Ones songs as if they were songs we had just [written]. It was a great way to spend time we otherwise would’ve just been sitting around.
Who is in the current Mermaid band, what is each member's role, and how long have all of you been playing together?
Tim Hause plays guitar and sings most of the harmonies and back-up vocals. We’ve been playing together since 2014. Kevin Conroy plays drums and sings. We’ve been playing together since 2017. Mark Masefield plays keyboards and sings. We’ve been playing together since 2022. Luke Preston plays bass and we’ve been playing together since 2022.
What inspired you to do this now, to take the Dave Hause & The Mermaid live band into the studio for the first time to write and record ...And The Mermaid?
I’ve been missing playing with them and playing loud. I started to have some songs that would be really well-served playing loud ([ie:] “Mockingbird Blues,” “Cellmates”) and, then, just asked the band if they’d be down to write together and go record. Everyone was an enthusiastic “yes!” It was just an organic process of following the muse.
How did your 2012 "Time Will Tell," "Pray for Tucson," "Heavy Heart," "C'mon Kid," and "Resolutions" 7-inch EP's on Chunksaah Records, Bridge Nine Records, Jade Tree Records, Sabot Productions, and SideOneDummy Records, respectively, come to fruition?
I approached five different record labels that I had relationships with and asked them if they wanted to do a 7-inch with two re-imagined tracks from the Resolutions album, as well as two covers from bands on their label.
It worked out great, except for Brushfire Records, who weren’t interested. So, somewhere in the vault, there’s a recording of a Jack Johnson song and a Matt Costa song.
For the above-mentioned 7-inch serious, how did you go about deciding which songs (from bands such as The Bouncing Souls, Detourement, The Trouble, Strike Anywhere, The Promise Ring, Jawbreaker, None More Black, Lucero, Audra Mae, and Flogging Molly) to cover on the B-sides?
I can’t quite remember, it was so long ago, but I just picked bands I liked on the label and, then, picked songs I liked by the bands and, then, tried them with Pete Steinkopf [The Bouncing Souls, Beach Rats] at his studio in Asbury Park.
What inspired you to record and release your 2020 Paddy EP covering songs by Dillinger Four (and paying homage to their Situationist Comedy album on the 2xEP Paddy and Patty EPs CD/vinyl combo)?
Paddy Costello from Dillinger Four and Patty Griffin are two of my all-time favorite song-writers and it occurred to me that two of my favorite song-writers have a similar name. I have always wanted to combine my punk rock and roots music passions and when COVID-19 hit, I bought some studio equipment and set out to do a record of covers.
Initially, it was going to be a full-length of Paddy Costello songs and a full-length of Patty Griffin songs, but when we decided we were going to put it out ourselves and start the label, we wanted to test the waters with two EPs that were pressed onto one piece of vinyl.
I still can’t quite believe it worked! I may be one of 10 people on the planet who love Patty Griffin just as much as I love Dillinger Four, but people seemed to really respond to both EPs. If fact, that record is almost out-of-print.
Your recent DAVE HAUSE LP 7 ANNOUNCEMENT email newsletter in part explained, "my uncle took me to see The Hooters play the Tower Theater in 1985, I was 7 years old, and I was hooked; damned from the start, so to speak..." So, what was it like working with The Hooters' Eric Bazilian as a producer and contributing multi-instrumentalist on your third solo album in 2017, Bury Me In Philly?
It was a full-circle experience. Eric is such a consummate musician, has a great passion and energy for music, and was really into the songs I had written. There were lots of points in making that record where I felt really lucky to get to make music with someone who had that outsized of an impact on me as a kid; it was a great experience. He really helped Tim and I level-up in every facet of what we do.
A few years ago, I had heard rumors and rumblings about Step Ahead's lone 1997-98 album, There's Always Hope, getting a proper digital/vinyl/CD(?) re-release on one-time bassist Dave's Adoff's Dead Satellite Records. What are the odds of that actually happening now?
Dave and I talked about it; I’m not sure if he’s still into doing that or not, but I thought it was a great idea. That is hands-down, my favorite band, other than the current Mermaid [lineup]. It was so fun and innocent and free.
It would be cool to see that come out with a proper release.
What are the real-deal possibilities of any of your old punk/hardcore bands--including Paint It Black, The Curse, The Loved Ones, The Falcon, The All Brights, and Step Ahead--getting back together to record and release new music and/or tour again?
The only bands on that list I would be really excited about making new music with are Paint It Black and The All Brights, but everyone involved in both of those bands is really busy.
I love all of the people in those bands and when I get to spend time with them, it’s a good time, but none of us really talk much about playing new music. Who knows, though… the future is unwritten.
Can you tell us about the circumstances relating to the photo shoot behind the black-and-white image seen across the ...And The Mermaid album cover? Why are all of you wearing sunglasses besides one member?
We were just about to go onstage at our Sing Us Home Festival and our friend, Jesse DeFlorio, grabbed that picture. Luke forgot his sunglasses. It drives everyone who looks at the photo crazy.
What's planned next for Dave Hause and/or The Mermaid?
We are going to do a good amount of touring in 2026 as a full band, which we’ll announce in the coming months. So far, we are planning on [Canadian, European,] and American shows and we’ll take it from there!
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...And The Mermaid is available now (order vinyl and CD).
Dave Hause on social media: Facebook | X | Instagram
Tagged: dave hause, the loved ones
