Stonehocker Debuts Introspective and Raw New Album, Hello Mr. Hyde feat. Moving Title Track
Alternative rock artist Stonehocker‘s striking new single, “Hello Mr. Hyde,” sets the tone for his brand new album of the same name. Rooted in honest introspection, the track delves into the metaphor of addiction, likening the infamous character of Mr. Hyde to the personal demons that lurk within us all.
Stonehocker’s new album, Hello Mr. Hyde, is an unfiltered journey through self-discovery and surrender. Written while working through a 12-step program, the album reflects the themes of struggle, revelation, and ultimate acceptance. At its core, Hello Mr. Hyde embodies the first three steps of any recovery process, culminating in a surrender to a higher power—a concept rarely explored so openly in modern music.
Inspired by Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Stonehocker saw a profound connection between Hyde and the struggle against addiction. The song acknowledges those inner battles, offering a thought-provoking and deeply personal narrative.
“Hello Mr. Hyde” is made even more special with the return of drummer Jeff Towers, a longtime collaborator. The two first worked together on Stonehocker’s 2008 album, Mail Me a Smile, which carried a distinct punk influence. After reconnecting at one of Jeff’s drum clinics on “single drum theory,” Stonehocker invited him to lend that unique technique to this track, creating a distinctive rhythmic feel that sets it apart from the rest of the album.
“Hello Mr. Hyde’ is an introspective look at the demons that hide within; it is also an acknowledgement of them. The album moves through stages beginning with the greeting and recognition, followed by the depression that comes from the acceptance of “Mr. Hyde,” but finishing with a peaceful release found through surrendering to God. I believe everyone has their own version of “Mr. Hyde” within them and that acknowledging and facing this inner demon is essential to coming to peace with oneself.“
First off, care to introduce Stonehocker to our readers?
Well, Stonehocker is me, Mark. Stonehocker is my last name, but everyone’s always called me Stonehocker, even my teachers. Most of the time it has just been me as a solo artist, but there was one stint where I had a band playing with me. That was when my album “Mail Me a Smile” came out, so it has a little different feel than all my other work. I grew up singing in church with my sisters, then I picked up the guitar on my way out of high school. I went to the local college and studied music recording but never really pursued working in any studios. It took a long time to gather the recording gear that I do have, due to a lack of money. Either way, it’s taken a while to get here. I had lots of time to write a lot of songs.
“Hello Mr. Hyde” deeply explores themes of addiction and self-discovery. How did your personal journey through a 12-step program shape the creation of this album?
It definitely gave me something to write about! Although, that’s obviously not why I started the program. I haven’t actually finished the 12 steps, I was fumbling around steps 2 and 3. Those steps focus on recognizing there is a God greater than ourselves and then turning our will and life over to God. It led me down some pretty deep holes as I questioned everything I knew or thought I knew. I wrote as I went, not thinking I’d ever be around to put out an album, right up to my point of “going over the edge”. I attribute being saved to God. Then I learned what it was to turn my life over to God, THEN the album happened. I’d rather hide in a hole, but I’m not listening to myself anymore. I “feel” like I’m supposed to share, so I swallow my fear and upload, send, respond, and on and on.
The album is described as a journey through the first three steps of recovery. How did you approach writing each part of the album to reflect these stages?
Honestly, I just wrote. Then I stopped and looked at all I’d written and I could see the order of the story. Good question though, I’ll see if I can summarize it!
Step 1 – “Who Am I” is the beginning, the confusion, the irrelevant question, the struggle to fit in along with self-hate. “Hello Mr. Hyde” is the acknowledgment of the addiction and “I Am Divided” is the recognition of my inner battle due to the addiction.
Then I move into Step 2 which challenges me with do I know God? Which led to … too many questions and crazy depression. The next 3 songs cover the depression that can very easily accompany the program. “Is This the End?” is me recognizing the self-destructive path I’m on, because it is unfortunately not the first time. “Watching the Rain” is probably the saddest song on the whole album for me, it is utter depression and it hurts to sing. “Going Over” is the giving up, this is actually the end, I’m done. Well, the end didn’t happen, so “I Lost My Mind” is me accepting that I’ve lost control, but more specifically calling for help.
Step 3 is a slow process for me of routine change and simplifying life. “When I Break Through” is the most encouraging song on the album for me, it’s about the relief I experienced after truly turning everything over to God. “That’s When it Began” is actually about when I first met God as a kid, I had an experience that led to me actually calling on God. I would describe it as I walked with God, and the experience was instantly over, never to occur again. That would be why I’ve never doubted there is a God, also me clearing Step 2. Yet, I guess I had to go through all this addict garbage to fully break and thus really understand my “Need” for God. “Take Everything” is the most beautiful song on the album, really capturing the complete surrender to God, perfect step 3 song. “Get You to Love Me” might seem a little out of place, but its purpose is to say sorry by making an effort to properly love. The argument being that I didn’t really learn to love until I’d stopped focusing on “Who Am I” (see what I did there?). So it emphasizes the change in character, I believe this is likely a move forward into more steps. I’d better get back to it.
You’ve worked with drummer Jeff Towers on several projects before. How did his unique “single drum theory” technique contribute to the sound of this album?
I was going for a much more minimalistic sound on this album, inspired by my solo live shows; so that definitely contributed to his “single drum theory” catching my attention. In the end, we only used that unique drum technique on one song; the title track “Hello Mr. Hyde”. However, it still influenced the rest of the album in that we kept the drum parts relatively simple. Jeff didn’t use a huge or complicated kit and all the songs was recorded in “one pass”, no splicing of parts. Without excessive drum tracking, we aimed to keep the recording simplistic.
In what ways do you feel this album is different from your past work, such as your 2008 album, Mail Me a Smile?
This new album is a lot more acoustic than any of my previous releases. There are electric guitar parts, but they are minimal. This is because of the development of my live show, which is a very acoustic affair due to me being a solo artist. I incorporate a small amount of accompaniment through loops but I didn’t want to overdo anything. Anyway, I enjoy the solo shows and I wanted to carry that sound over to the new album, and I’m pleased with the result.
What role do honesty and vulnerability play in your music, especially when dealing with such personal topics?
I think my instinct is to hide what I want to say. I generally get inspired with my lyrics through what is going on in my head; things that are bothering me that I need to think through, or philosophical ideas, or just opinions. Probably from a lack of self-confidence, I’ve always been afraid to share them, so I write in riddles or metaphors. I didn’t necessarily expect any of this new writing to be released (as I said earlier), also I think the work on the steps was helping me to write more honestly. I think I’m still very hesitant, actually resistant, to speak about everything; but for some reason, I can sing about it. It’s like I’m hiding behind the music. When I have to actually try to talk about it in interviews, I get choked up. The music lets me be honest.