Rising Stars: Meet Josh Hobbs of Independence, MO

Today we’d like to introduce you to Josh Hobbs

Hi Josh, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Sour Apple Surgery is an instrumental music duo based in Independence, MO. Barron Mos on guitar/ effects, and myself on Drums.

As childhood friends, we grew up playing music together in middle and high school. We also played in a youth church band together. This lead to the bands official formation in 2009. Our first show, oddly enough, was at the Kansas City public library teen music showcase. At that point, we had already recorded our own demos and our first album ourselves. We continued to write, record, and produce more music “DIY” style ourselves, and with the help of our peers in the music scene.

It’s been really fun and interesting over all the years playing with so many different local bands, and a large majority of the venues in the Metro. Places like churches, coffee shops, and bars. To a disc golf tournament and other outdoor festival type events.

So much has changed and evolved over the course of 16 years, but the band still has that same DIY mindset today, as we mostly still play underground shows. Currently, the band plans to record more music in the near future, and possibly do a studio produced album.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Part of our biggest obstacle is being sort of a niche genre to the majority of music listeners or a potential audience. We’ve been described as “jazz metal” and compared to progressive metal, prog rock, math rock, and other more obscure styles of music. Generally speaking, it’s hard for these types of artists to “fit in”, or to gain wide attention/notoriety and be really successful. Sometimes it’s difficult to find the right bill to book for a live gig, so that’s part of why we space out our shows. Plus just being two people presents its own unique challenges.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
In the beginning we played 6 string guitar, incorporated some vocals, trumpet, and even switched roles on some songs. In recent years, we’ve recorded with 7 string guitars, and are currently using an 8 string live. We’ve always been somewhat experimental with our sound. Like using alternate guitar tunings and odd rhythms, or programmed samples and keyboards. Now it’s a bit more refined to strictly guitar and drums live, and on the last record, Visceral Permutations.

We tend to improvise a lot of parts in our music in live settings. We have songs, but there are parts “built in” where we know we can expound on certain ideas or phrasings. Often times, that comes from practicing together and revisiting older material or revising new material. We’ve always just tried to have fun jamming together and pushing each other musically. So, our live shows tend to be unique in that regard, and why we continue to try and play out still.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
The fact that we’ve always been just two people had a lot to do with our longevity. Trying to keep that relationship in tact through life’s up and downs has been challenging, at times. Our friendship has always been the basis of the band. Of course the support from friends, family, and small fan base helps keeps us afloat. This might come off as pretentious, but we tend to not invest too much into what others may define as typical success for a band. Music and matters of taste will always be subjective. Carve your own path in life, do it to be creative, and enjoy the process! Hopefully you meet more like minded people, and maybe even inspire someone else.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sourapplesurgery
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1AUFuAk1xU/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/sasbandkc
• Other: https://linktr.ee/sourapplesurgery

Image Credits
Sour Apple Surgery
Too Much Rock (watermark)