WESTERN FOLK-POP ARTIST ‘MAN MADE HILLS’ TELLS US HOW HE GOT HIS STAGE NAME, GROWING UP IN THE HUDSON VALLEY AND BRAND NEW SINGLE ‘IM DEAD’. GIVE OUR CHAT A READ HERE!

MAN MADE HILLS 
NEW SINGLE 
IM DEAD

What is your names?
My name is Jim Carrancio


What is the band’s name?
Man Made Hills

How did you come up with the band’s name?
I was at a folk festival on Governors Island when a friend of mine pointed to hills in the distance and
said they are “man made hills”. I was performing under a different band name at the time but
immediately thought that was a great band name. When the time felt right, I changed names.


What is your genre of music?
It’s been described as Western folk pop.

Give us a little bio about you.
I grew up in The Hudson Valley in a raised ranch. I started writing and recording my own songs
around the age of 22. I moved to Brooklyn at the age of 28 after getting into Stand up comedy. I
simultaneously stopped performing comedy and started writing songs again after a few years of
being inactive and barely picking up my guitar. When I started writing again my voice had changed
and I felt like I finally found my sound.


What made you go into music?
I have always been a big performer in one way or the other,and I used to pretend to be Ritchie Valens
when I was three years old. I’m not sure what made me go into music but I remember my mom
always playing oldies radio in the car and really falling in love with those songs.

Who are your influences?
I always have a thought time with this question because I’m sure subconsciously everything I listen to
bleeds into my sound one way or the other. I’d say it is a healthy mix of modern and classic acts. Elvis,
Johnny Cash, Good Old War, Nathaniel Rateliff.


Are you a signed?
I am unsigned and DIY

Your new single ‘I’m Dead’ is out now, tell us more about the single.
I wrote “I’m Dead” almost by accident. I was trying to write a very different song and after struggling
for a while I just started strumming what became the strumming pattern for “I’m Dead”. Since I was a
kid I’ve been a huge fan of the Friday the 13th series, and had been watching them a lot at the time,
so when I sang the first lyric “I was looking for a good time” I thought of characters from that
franchise and decided to write it from their perspective.


What is the meaning behind the single?
I think it’s an exercise in escapism. Most of my songs are very personal, but this one is just a bit of
fun.


Who did you work with on the single?
I recorded it in a basement studio in Canarsie Brooklyn called Salant Sounds Studio. The song is me
and Josh, the owner of the studio. He is amazing!

Describe the track in two words.
fun. Energetic.


Will we see a Music Video for the new single and if so what can we expect?
Yes! We shot in Beacon, NY in the middle of July. You can expect to see me dancing in a graveyard.


What else can we expect in 2021?
My album “Lostboy” will be out September 17th. We will be playing two album release shows.
September 17th at Big Alice taproom in Industry City and the 18th at Dogwood in Beacon NY.


Where do you see yourself now in 5 Years?
Living in Rhode Island with a kid or two, playing in the yard and writing songs about them.

What quote or saying do you always stick by?
“F**k it dude, let’s go bowling” – Walter Sobchak


When you are at a gig, what are 5 things you cannot forget?
To try to connect with the crowd, a pic, tuner, capo, dancing shoes,


Do you have social media accounts so your fans can follow you?
Instagram

Comments (1):

  1. Josh

    August 21, 2021 at 1:39 am

    Really nice jim!

    Reply

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