INTERVIEW: HARDY MUMS

Collaborative recording project Hardy Mums from Southern Ohio deliver a masterclass in organic, nostalgia-tinted indie rock with their video-single for "Muldoon," off the album “Return to Doggerland”. Produced by project mastermind Eddie Ashworth, the track hits an immediate sweet spot with its lush, 70s-inspired instrumentation and warm studio air. 

The dynamic vocal pairing of Ashley LaRue and Benny Coleman anchors the tune, bringing genuine soul and grit to a vibe rooted in quiet resilience. Anchored by steady backbeat drumming and thumbing bass, the rhythm section creates a great background for the track's melodic hooks. Saul Koll’s standout lead guitar licks slice cleanly through the mix, offering sharp counterpoints to the vocal melodies throughout the arrangement. Meanwhile, texture abounds thanks to Eli Coletti’s keys and Jeremy Rodgers’ warm trombone, giving the song a distinct, soul flavor. 

Directed by Andrea Anderson, the accompanying video echoes the track’s relaxed, unpretentious energy with a clear vision. The imagery captures the natural camaraderie of the musicians, grounding the music in an authentic environment that mirrors its lyrical warmth. 

Ultimately, "Muldoon" stands out as a winning collaboration that feels timeless yet distinctly modern. For fans of soulful indie rock, horn-infused jams, and genuine musical craftsmanship.

--

What inspired the lyrics for “Muldoon”?

Ashley La Rue (singer, co-writer): “Muldoon” was inspired by real life. The first time Jeremy and I came out to The Oxide Shed Eddie showed me the demo from his project Hardy Mums and asked me to write something on the spot.

I’ve had a couple of songs hit me in the face instantly but a lot of songs through my older years have taken me time to finish. So I was scared to death.

I had been going through a lot of transformative years during the entirety of recording my album (Ashley LaRue Band) at the Shed. I did a lot of learning and a lot of growing. This song was almost speaking for my future and my present at the same time.

And my message and something I’m still learning/telling myself is that life won’t always be easy. Some days are gonna be bad and some days are gonna be good. Take a deep breath try your best and never give up. You won’t always be prepared for those hard days but sometimes you just gotta ride the wave. Sometimes there’s a lesson in there to be learned, too. 

I knew at that time that even though I was going through shit I wasn’t gonna give up on doing my music and that one day I was gonna live out this dream. Funny thing--I realize now that I’m already doing it!

What was the process like recording Ashley and Benny’s vocals?

Eddie: We mostly recorded Ashley’s vocals here at the Oxide Shed in a couple of sessions—one right after she came up with the lyrics, and another while we were working on her album. We left a verse open for Benny, and as he’s real busy with his band (Columbus OH based Quasi Kings) it took a few months to find an open spot in his schedule. We finally got his leads and backing vocals done in just a few takes at the Shed.

Did you use any analog or retro gear to give the track its soulful sound?

Eddie: We definitely leaned into the vintage and tube mic preamps and compressors that I have at the studio for this one, plus some spring modelled convolution reverbs and a couple of tape delay plugs I like for the dub elements. I have a boutique Dizengoff DA-2 tube mic pre that does a nice job of replicating the 1950’s RCA BA-2C sound that we used on the vocals and some other instruments. Our 1970’s dbx 160VU compressor was in the mix as well. Also, a vintage joemeek SC2.2 compressor that is nice and squishy sounding was used on the room mics. To be honest I think the real soul comes from the performances (vocals in particular). Also, the way the basic rhythm track transitions from reggae skank to garage rock and back has a loose vibe that makes it feel kind of 70’s. 

What inspired bringing in trombone, did the song call for it or was it built around Jeremy from the beginning?

Eddie: Jeremy’s the trombonist in Ashley’s band, and after we cut the basic riddim for “Muldoon” everyone was feeling horns of some kind on the track and it was just natural to get him on it. Eventually he recorded his bits at Ashley’s personal studio if memory serves, and he really nailed it. And even though they were recorded months (and a few thousand miles) apart, I really love the way Jeremy’s part intertwines with Saul Koll’s gloriously ragged yet melodic guitar work (recorded at his place in Portland, Oregon).  It’s a lovely balance I think.

What inspired the aesthetics for the video?

Andrea Anderson (director): In the process of creating the album cover art, Eddie had provided several graphic sources, illustrations and photos, both vintage and contemporary. Having been integral to the aesthetic of the album art, I wanted to create a sort of lore about those images in the video. We started talking about animating some of the illustrations, and I had the idea to use the hooch bottle as a sort of stand-in for the main character. A two-dimensional, extra-terrestrial, bit of litter on a psychedelic, summer joyride through a three-dimensional Earth.

Using video and photos provided by Eddie, as well as shots from my own collection, I began mixing and mashing them. I animated still photos and illustrations into moving ones, intentional homages to old Harryhausen movies with low rent special effects created frame by frame using a combination of Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, and editing with Premiere 

I collected a few more shots during editing that I felt were missing, even sitting under a tree on the river for over an hour to get one shot of a dragonfly.

Eddie gave me a great deal of free rein, but his one major bit of direction was to include each person who plays on the track. Not having a video of the trombone player, I animated one from a series of still images, which turned out to be one of my favorite sequences.

Making Benny’s head into a planet with dreads was another of Eddie's ideas that I really dug and wanted to make appear. I scrapped a few different methods before I settled on a tedious procedure that had the desired effect.

Each animated clip is no more than 200 frames, giving the video a delirious pace, with pains taken to avoid too much repetition. The process also imparts a vintage B-movie vibe that feels enmeshed with the kitsch imagery of the era, and hopefully, has a similar amusing charm. 

What makes “Muldoon” a stand-out song on the album?

Eddie: We chose it as the focus track from the album because it’s super catchy, and Ashley and Benny’s lyrics and vocals are both inspirational and upbeat which is a proper vibe for a summer jam. It was natural to make the video of the tune since they both have very active live schedules with their own bands (Ashley plays the tune regularly at her own shows), so we got to piggy-back a bit off their fanbases. 

Andrea did such a fab job on the video, so fun to watch. She’s already working on a new one for another track from the album, so stay tuned.

Watch the video here:

Stream 'Muldoon' here: