After dealing with the pain and hardship of the loss of close friend and guitarist Tim Plouffe, Hidden Figures release their new raw and cathartic single "Damaged Art," featuring and produced by Ricky Armellino of Ice Nine Kills.
When it comes to the passing of those that we hold close to us, it's hard to put into words what we are going through, let alone process those emotions all at the same time. We want to honor them in the best ways possible, but how do you remember someone that was such an integral part of what you loved doing for so long? When it came down to Hidden Figures (known as Kerrigan at the time) passing of their close friend and guitarist Timothy Plouffe, picking up the pieces and moving forward seemed like a massive undertaking. However, something did not feel right just leaving things as they were.
"Damaged Art” is about our experiences as individuals and as a band in the aftermath of the death of our longtime friend and bandmate Timothy Plouffe. We wanted to include a song on the EP For the Both of Us that was both our farewell and promise to him. It signifies we would find the strength to continue chasing the dream that Tim was always a part of."
Many artists can relate to when you are not creating art, it is like living without air. You have to create it to survive. While Tim Plouffe's passing was a crushing blow to their hearts, friendships, and the band, it also was what made them come back together to share their pain. Kerrigan, like a phoenix, was birthed into Hidden Figures, and as a result, created their new raw and immensely captivating single, "Damaged Art." Part of a brand new upcoming EP For The Both of Us and produced by Ricky Armellino of Ice Nine Kills, "Damaged Art" not only represents the love they had for their close friend but also the strength to continue to create the art he loved through an otherwise dark time.
What started Hidden Figures? What made you guys want to become the band you are today?
In many ways, Tim’s passing is what made us all want to come together as a band again. We didn’t feel complete when we weren’t making music. Being reminded of how fleeting life really is pushed us into doing it again.
I understand there was a name change after the hiatus of your last band, and for a good reason. There must have been a lot of searching during that time to find something to replace what you once had that had meaning. What was that process like coming to the name you have now and rebuilding the band?
After our hiatus, we decided to retire the name, and effectively start over. Continuing the project under the same name and using the same material no longer felt right in Tim’s absence. At this point, we had 4/5ths of the lineup solidified. However, we still needed a lead vocalist. We reached out to Nick, who at the time was living in upstate New York, to see if he would be interested in filling the spot. He agreed and decided to move back to Massachusetts to complete the lineup. We came up with a few potential names for the band, and the name Hidden Figures was originally a track title for a song Eric was writing. We later decided it would fit better as the band name.
What are your musical influences? How did they make their way into your new single, "Damaged Art?"
We’ve always been fans of riff-heavy bands like Architects, Fit For A King, and In Hearts Wake. We wanted to incorporate more of that sound into our music going forward, and in “Damaged Art”, those efforts are reflected in the verse and breakdown sections.
I want to tap into the lyrical content of this song. There is this deep pain of dealing with the death of a friend and bandmate, Timothy Plouffe. What made you want to come out and finally write about this?
The EP itself is dedicated to Tim, and we knew we would want a track that addressed his passing specifically. After we had gotten about four tracks into the EP, we felt it was time to address the topic. By then, we had a much clearer idea of what we wanted to say and the feeling we wanted to convey alongside it.
What was the creative process like for this track?
The song started as an instrumental demo written by Eric in the early days of the band. After sending it out to Ricky Armellino, the song went through a series of revisions that led to the finalized version of “Damaged Art.” We came up with lyrical content by having the entire band share their personal experience in dealing with this loss, which resulted in the final lyrics. Ricky was pivotal in bringing this track together into its ultimate iteration, especially with the section he features on.
You guys got to work with Ice Nine Kills Ricky Armellino, who also featured on the track. What was that experience like for you guys?
It has been an amazing experience; with his input, Ricky was the anchor that pulled the song and our current sound together. We look forward to continuing our work with him.
What does this track mean to you on a personal level? I understand this song is part of an EP? Care to share more of that with us?
“Damaged Art” is about our experiences as individuals and as a band in the aftermath of the death of our longtime friend and bandmate Timothy Plouffe. We wanted to include a song on the EP For the Both of Us that was both our farewell and promise to him. It signifies we would find the strength to continue chasing the dream that Tim was always a part of.
What is next for you guys this year?
With the release of our most recent song "Damaged Art", and the music video that accompanies it, we will be one step closer to the release of our EP, For The Both of Us.
From there, we will continue to book and play regional shows, with hopes of eventually booking tours to showcase our newly released material.