Peach Guitars Interview | Nick Hamm from Citizen!

If you’re looking for a fresh kick of slick riffs, polished choruses and a healthy dose of teenage nostalgia, have we got a record for you!

Released today, and available to stream and buy from all the major outlets, is the 5th studio album from alt-rock superstars, Citizen, titled “Calling The Dogs”. We’ve heard it, and we love it. It's a riot of infectious grooves and angular riffs, the perfect way to celebrate and commemorate 10 years since their debut offering, “Youth”.

Recently, we had the opportunity to pick the brains of founding member and chief string slinger, Nick Hamm. Nick gave us the lowdown on his rig, inspiration and the evolution of one of rock’s most inspiring bands! 

Let’s dive in!

Can you tell our readers of your current live rig setup, is there anything essential to the Citizen sound? 

Absolutely the most essential is my Marshall JCM 800. It’s an ’85 and I’ve had it since high school when a guy I know was getting rid of it. It’s perfect and I’ll never forget using it with Will (Yip) and him telling me instantly “you can never get rid of this.” And I won’t! It’s just perfect. I run it through a Janice cab that has vintage 30s in it. It sounds like Citizen.

How has your set up evolved over the years? 

Honestly, aside from an ever changing pedal board, it’s mostly been the same. Some guitars come and go but I feel like I just fine tune the general set up.

It’s been 10 years now since the release of “Youth”, how has your approach to songwriting changed in that time? 

It hasn’t changed too much aside from technological advancements I suppose. Back then, Mat and I were together a lot and would write songs for fun and now I suppose it is a little more tethered to feeling like business. But that typically isn’t a huge factor. Our songwriting is still just a snapshot of a time and place and whatever we’re listening to at the time and excited about. I think we still write like kids in a way.

How often is it a creative experience for you as a touring musician, do you get a chance to write while you’re on the road? 

I don’t ever really attempt to. I’m in love with travelling with my friends and I tend to try to make the most of it by getting out and exploring cities or food or whatever. Writing feels boring to me in those moments. 

We’re about to see the release of the new record, is there anything you guys did differently with this album? 

We worked with Rob Schnapf who added a huge dose of comedy to our day-to-day while working on the record. He’s a legend.

Your studio is burning down. What’s the one guitar item you would save? 

I just got a custom shop 1977 Telecaster. It’s beautiful. It plays so well. I’d have to save it. Of course, I’m not counting the JCM, in the spirit of giving you a more interesting answer.

You’re often seen rocking a selection of Fender guitars, what is it about these guitars that speaks to you? Have you made any mods? 

I don’t often make mods or attempt to. Mostly because of incompetence! But I’ve just always played Fenders with a few exceptions over the years. I love them and I think they’re correct for Citizen in particular. This latest one I got, that 77 Tele is my favorite yet. 

What music gets you excited and why? 

I’ve been listening to Lauren Auder, Brenda Lee, Caroline Polachek, Strange Ranger, Bobby Charles. Hard to explain why each one is so special but they are! A couple icons thrown in there but also a few that are making some of my favourite current music.

Which guitarist(s) were you influenced by the most and why? 

The recently passed Robbie Robertson is by far the most influential to me. I will never forget seeing The Last Waltz for the first time and thinking that he had this way of making the guitar sing but it still felt so..analog? Raw? It was never too perfect. It was just right. The charisma while he played. Was so sad to hear of his passing.

Have you had any nightmare experiences whilst gigging? 

Of course! As much as the next guy. Any technical issue is horrifying. But the trade off is that I get to play music with my friends for a living and that’s a blessing so I owe the universe a few nightmares.

Have you had to diversify, try new things or find new ways to push your music? Did lockdown open up any new opportunities? 

Lockdown was interesting but we had just written and recorded a new album, so I didn’t have a lot of writing experience while being trapped inside. We’re always pushing by keeping our ears to the ground and just trying to stay young mentally.

"Calling The Dogs" is out TODAY! And you can catch Nick and the guys on tour over here in the UK early next year, check the dates and grab your tickets here!