Former University of South Carolina student, Nate Walker, left his solo career behind to take part in his new band, The Harsh Truth.
After graduating from the Governor's School for Arts and Humanities, Walker majored in vocal performance at USC's School of Music for two years. He then decided to leave school so he could focus solely on writing music. Walker started writing songs and came out with his Cold Water EP that featured three soulful tracks. After deciding his three tunes needed a redirected artistic vision, he started assembling pieces with some of his friends from Columbia.
“Working with a band is better because it is more gratifying and less intimidating when performing with a group,” Walker said.
Lead vocalist and rhythmic guitarist, Walker, looked for instruments to help improve his sound, until he discovered four men to form a new band. The new members included, Colin O’Keefe on bass and Andrew Lasseter on drums, who are currently third year students at USC. Other members included Joe Lansburg on guitar and Talon Vick on keys and percussion.
“With the old stuff I was pretty limited to that singer/songwriter sound,” Walker said.
Now, if you go to a performance by The Harsh Truth, you can expect to hear mixtures of everything from pop and rock to soul and blues. The band gets their sound from a mix of inspirations including John Mayer, Bon Iver, Buddy Miles, Eddie Hazel and Jimi Hendrix.
“As a band we are huge on older musicians from the late '60s and early '70s,” Walker said.
Walker has always drawn a lot of comparisons to John Mayer and loves the haunting sounds from Bon Iver, so he tries to add their quality to the band’s new sound. Another factor that helped the band develop was USC's curriculum and faculty.
“The practice regimen for anyone at the School of Music, especially performance degrees, is ridiculous,” Walker said. “If you weren’t eating, sleeping, or working, you would be practicing.”
Walker stressed that training really helps a performer grow into their instrument. USC has helped O’Keefe, Lasseter, and himself become better musicians. USC gave The Harsh Truth a network on campus to create their band and will hopefully help propel them in the future. Jacob Will, his professor at the School of Music, helped Walker in many ways and cares for his students.
“Not only was he a great teacher but he provided me with real life advice and served as a mentor for me,” Walker said.
For other USC music students looking to make it big:
“Just don’t give up if it’s what you really want. Persevere and be confident,” Walker said.