The Hollow Hand Interview
Born in Surrey, West of London, Hollow Hand is the DIY music project of Max Kinghorn-Mills, a Brighton based multi-instrumentalist who’s influences range from Black Flag to The Who. Mills has released albums on labels such as Olgakubaka Records, Talk Show, Cosmic Ocean and his most recent LP, “Your Own Adventure” that was released on Curation Records this year. In this interview we explore Mills’ youth growing up with inspiring parents, getting into music, Hollow Hand and his fantasy based label Cosmic Ocean.
Are you originally from Brighton? When did you first begin to fall in love with music? Was music and art elevant around your householdsgrowing up? Do you have any siblings? Who were some of your earliest influences? When and where did you see your first concert and when did it dawn on you that you wanted to be a musician?
I’m actually from Surrey - west of London. Brighton was such a cool place to visit growing up, so after spending some time ‘living’ in the vampyric heart of London I decided to move to the sea in 2018. I just love it here, it’s home. As a kid, most of my memories involve music, art, painting, sunshine. I’m grateful to Mum & Dad for that, they’d have all kinds of cool records blasting through the house. My first favourite group was The Who (and The Spice Girls) and I learned harmonies through those albums. Mum & Dad would take my little brother, sister & me to all kinds of festivals, a lot of rave music, WOMAD, all kinds. When I was a toddler I went to Glastonbury, somewhere there’s footage of me on the news buying a tiny, shiny-gold purse. I always wanted to be a musician, I think before seeing anything live.
Did you participate in any groups, or projects prior to Hollow Hand? What led to the decision to form this project and what inspired the name? I first became aware of your work back in 2016 with the release of your debut “Ancestral Lands''. Can you tell me about this release and how working with Ongakubaka Records came about?
I was playing in bands when I was about 14, fairly often we had issues where we’d be kicked out of our own shows for being too young. We once played out of a window to all of our friends dancing in a carpark because they wouldn’t let anyone in. Just before Hollow Hand I was releasing singles & EPs as ‘Wildeflower’, I was proud of the live band we put together. I recorded ‘Ancestral Lands’ originally as a Wildeflower album but went through some life changes. I always imagined ‘Hollow Hand’ was a kind of… A flag to raise, like a war banner. I was maybe 21 years old & after some music industry nonsense I felt kinda alone, fiercely independent and that’s what led to my passion for home recording. I wanted to do the Black Flag thing, punk DIY. When Ongakubaka got in touch (Virginia, US), it all made perfect sense. I was so happy to do a tape with those guys and have a lot to thank them for.Between 2017 and 2018 the group released a number of singles on Talk Show as well as a few full length cassettes such as “Willow Garden” and “Star Chamber”.
Tell me about these two releases and what the overall approach was. What were the group’s activities between 2018 and the anticipated 2023 release?
‘Star Chamber’ was the start of something new for me, I worked withtwo close friends of mine as the producers: Tom Andrews & Chris Banner (Laundromat, Meanwhile, Broadcast 2000). This was the firsttime I’d really collaborated. I’d moved back to my Dad’s & the three of us took over a brick shed (which he’d built in the 90s at the bottom of the garden). We recorded for over a year, battled through all of the seasons, huddled into a tiny room with a small electric heater. We had to take turns holding the door shut with rope in the winter, the ceiling leaked and I had to pour water out of the Yamaha DX7. I’ll never forget this time & I’m thankful to them for everything they brought to the music. Dad’s voice is at the start of ‘A World Outside’. ‘Willow Garden’ is a collection of demos. I borrowed a friends tape multitrack recorder and got a bunch of songs down. I played them live only once, opening for Robyn Hitchcock, and I’ve made sure that this tape hasn’t been digitized. I like to think of it as an adventure in analogue. You can get a copy at my bandcamp.
Tell me about writing and recording the band’s follow up on CurationRecords, “Your Own Adventure”. How did the deal with those guys come about? Would you mind giving a brief background on tracks such as “Doomed To Roll”, “Blue Eyed Babies” and “Heaven Just Watched”?
At the end of touring ‘Star Chamber’ I realised that I had the songs for the next record. I took some time out as co-producer on Holly Macve’s ‘Not The Girl’ album then I started to record what would become ‘Your Own Adventure’. All kinds of issues got in the way, notleast the pandemic. ‘Doomed To Roll’ is a phrase I had written down for a year or two, I think it was inspired by some Bergman films. The lyric is about futility and death but it isn’t negative, it’s about appreciating your time here. I had a girlfriend who spoke sweet, broken English, “Blue Eyed Babies” comes from a conversation we had when we first met, sat in a cafe in Notting Hill. She doesn’t know. Again, it’s a love song, I look back on that summer very fondly. Lyrically, “Heaven Just Watched” is a little more abstract but Iwanted something obtuse, I was drunk & stubborn when I wrote the riff. I think of it as a diary, channelling dark historic London… Strange characters from the past. I was reading lots of Peter Ackroyd. Psychogeographical stuff.
What was the overall approach to this album and what did you guys ultimately want to achieve and express with this work? What have you guys been up to more recently? Do you have anything going on for the Spring/Summer?
I recorded this album at home in Brighton completely alone. Oliver Newton helped me start things off by recording the drums and then it was essentially a long & mostly difficult year for me. Every sound you hear was recorded in my living room (aside from the guest appearances: Spencer Cullum, Tim Smith, Holly Macve, Ryan Pollie). My philosophy was to find an approach which brought back the moreplayful spirit of naivety on the first LP and combine it with everything I’d learned making ‘Star Chamber’. This was the first time I’d really invited a number of guests on board, so inviting Chris Cohen to mix in LA at the end fitted the project so perfectly. We’ll be playing live over the summer, we’ve just got back from a really successful UK tour. I have a new live band and I couldn’t be happier. They’re just a joy to be around and their musicianship is the best. I’ve got the next songs written, I just need to work out how I’m going to record them. I want to do something different. We also have some surprises coming up, keep an eye on our pages for new vinyl.
Is there anything else you would like to further share with readers?
Keep on rockin’, love each other and check out my fantasy music tape label:
