While Mississippi Studios has become a reoccurring waterhole in my life, last night was extra special because I was getting a little taste of sweet home Chicago. The boys from NE-HI are currently on a pretty massive tour in support of Offers, their second studio album which was produced by Dave Vettraino and distributed by Grand Jury (who also reps Twin Peaks and Day Wave to name just a few). Half of the band is clad in Bulls gear due to the playoffs and it’s almost like I’m back at The Empty Bottle. Oh how I’ve missed the web of the garage rock scene in Chicago.

NE-HI takes the stage and there’s no messing around. They launch into “Sisters,” which was one of their first singles on Offers. “Sisters” morphs into “Prove” (while Jason Balla and Mikey Wells shake their guitars towards the amps to create a distortion) and then they hit the crowd with the song that started it all, “Since I’ve Been Thinking.” As the set progress the boys become possessed. They’re thrashing and writhing all over the stage and the energy they exude is palpable. Next up, they make a dedication to Sean Page, a long time friend and local musician here in Portland who performs under the moniker Mantra Blues.

The set list continues with “Buried on the Moon,” “Drag,” “Offers,” “Reach,” and they close out with “Stay Young,” quite possibly the most popular track on their sophomore project. The gentlemen of NE-HI have been at it for a few years and they are finally getting the recognition they deserve. It was also revealed that they would be playing Pitchfork Music Festival this year. This is a surreal experience for a Chicago musician. The boys’ passion and talent have begun their propulsion towards notoriety and it’s really exciting to watch. NE-HI will be touring until mid July so I highly suggest if they’re playing in a city near you, you make the trek out. It’ll be an experience on par with watching televangelist speak in tongues.

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NE-HI recently released their second album, Offers, via Grand Jury records (which also happens to be the home of a couple more of my favorite windy city boys, Twin Peaks). This is the first release for NE-HI under a prominent indie label.

For the new album, the group worked with well-known Chicago producer Dave Vettraino, who also helped produce their first project. Vettraino previously worked with fellow garage rockers Cafe Racer. The garage scene in Chicago is a wonderful little community that supports one another. That’s where Twin Peaks started, and I’m sure we’ll only see more come out of it (cough, cough, Post Animal).

NE-Hi took more than two years after the release of their first effort to craft Offers. Most fans know that the first album materialized almost as a fluke. The young men initially came together to write the score for a friend’s film, but the film never ended up coming out. Instead, they formed a band.

The biggest difference with Offers is they had time to reflect and decide who they wanted to be as a band and what they wanted to say. I was able to sit down with guitarist Jason Balla and learned that most of the writing came about organically, amongst some stumbles and a little overanalyzing.

They were frustrated at first over the recordings and decided to just relax and have some friends over. Through the magic of what I can only image was “Olde Style” and jamming, the album’s title track was born. During the jam session, Colin Croom (of Twin Peaks) chimed in with a broken Farfisa. No word on whether he played on the record—but I love how this music scene is so intertwined with one another, like a brotherhood.

Offers itself is definitely a coming-of-age album for NE-HI. Balla said he wanted the record to be “something of an act of solidarity with people who are trying to figure it all out. There was a lot of pressure and exhaustion and self-discovery in the process of writing and recording. We were trying to find our voice and we’re proud of the one we found.”

I think listeners will definitely hear this in the lyrics of tracks like “Stay Young”, “Offers”, and “Out of Reach”. I personally think “Everybody Warned You” is about an ex—at least, it makes me think of mine. While NE-Hi is trying something new lyrically, they stay true to their rattling, jangling guitars. Their psycho surf influence is still prevalent on tracks “Buried on the Moon” and “Every Dent”. Songs like “Prove” pep things up a bit, but we still have Mikey’s and Jason’s long, lingering vocals to draw us in.

Offers is a somewhat rare piece in the garage rock scene where the sophomore record not only delivers, but may surpass the debut effort. If you have the chance, catch these boys on their odyssey-level tour.

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Prior to the release of their second full-length album, Offers I was able to exchange some pleasantries with NE-HI’s guitarist Jason Balla. The boys behind NE-HI started their lengthy support tour back in Chicago on the release day of their record. They are most likely coming to a town near you but for now, you can pick their record up via Grand Jury.

Rosie Blanton: This is your first album with Grand Jury. What was it like being signed to such a great label and how did it come about?

Jason Balla: It was really exciting to sign with them. We had been in touch over the years, but once we were able to finally meet them we really hit it off. These two very righteous dudes, Craig and Robbie, run the whole thing. Our good buds Twin Peaks are also on the label so it’s fun to be running alongside some familiar faces.

RB: Production for this second album must have been different as well, did you work with anyone?

JB: The two main differences between recording Offers and our S/T were the studio and time. On both records we worked with our friend and really talented engineer Dave Vettraino of Public House. When we made the first record we were very new as a band and we really just threw it all against the wall. This time around we were able to rent out a really nice studio in town and the 5 of us just took the place over. The time in between cutting those albums we really learned a lot about how we wanted to sound and also we played as a band way better. I’d wager Dave picked up a few new tricks in that time too. Aside from being very technically good at his job, Dave has this way of making you comfortable and getting the best takes out of us. He brought all these old lamps from his house and set them up in the studio to get the lighting just right. True tone zone master, vibe coordinator.

RB: If production is something the band does DIY, who handles it? Or is it a collaboration?

JB: The production aspect of the record is pretty minimal really. Typically, we’d be listening in the control room and someone might start to hear a place for a tambourine or a vocal harmony or a really blown out drum machine. We tried to have a rule where we didn’t turn down any idea until we tried it. We threw a lot of those ideas out, but some stuck!

RB: What about lyrics? Another collaboration or do most lyrics come from one or two people?

JB: Basically Mikey and I (Jason) write all the lyrics. Whoever is singing lead pens the words and then for certain harmony parts we kind of sit down and make sure we’re cool with what we’re saying or that we’re emphasizing the right words.

RB: Do you have any good stories to share with us about the writing process… maybe an event or an evening that led you to write a certain song?

JB: The title track from the record came along incredibly organically. Early in the writing process we were having a little trouble overthinking everything and that was hurting the songs we were making. We did two rounds of recording and the first session we had finished most of what we had to work on and decided to have some friends over, have some beers, hang out. We pulled out a broken Farfisa and basically jammed on some chords until the song Offers appeared. For such a downer song, it really was born out of a moment of freedom and fun.

RB: What gear are you guys using? 

JB: James just bought a new bass amp, which is pretty awesome! Mikey is pretty stoked on this brand of pedals called Catalin Bread lately. They make a wild chorus pedal. My main baby is my Fender Bassman. I’ve been dreaming of tremolo pedals lately. In the studio our favorite piece of gear was an ampex preamp. Any time we weren’t happy with a tone we’d just “throw it through the ampex.”

RB: You guys have quite the tour schedule ahead of you! Is this the longest tour you’ve done? 

JB: Yes! We’re all stoked. We’ve all toured a good deal, but this is the longest time all at once that we’ll have been out. We’re headlining the whole damn thing, which is crazy! A few bands are joining us for short legs, which will be really cool. There’s this band Flasher we’re playing a couple of shows with. Also this new band FACS from Chicago. And real soon our buddies Wulfpac are doing some days.

RB: What are you trying to say with this album? 

JB: We want the album to be something of an act of solidarity with people who are trying to figure it all out. There was a lot of pressure and exhaustion and self-discovery in the process of writing and recording. We were trying to find our voice and we’re proud of the one we found.

RB: This last question is kind of goofy but I like to ask everyone I interview this, if you had one superhero power, what would it be?

JB: I was actually just watching Seinfeld with my roommate last night and Jerry and George were arguing over whether Superman also had super humor. I think if I had to choose a power I would go with super humor. You can always use more laughter.

RB: Thank you so much for your time guys! Can’t wait to see you in Portland! 

JB: See you THERE! Thank you

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