THE WEIGHT: BIOGRAPHY THE WEIGHT is an American indie-rock/modern Americana band that formed in Lewisburg, West Virginia in 2013. The group consists of lead singer and keyboardist Morgan Cornwell, rock violinist Adam DeGraff, and drummer Billy Ayres. The band originated when violinist Adam DeGraff heard lead singer and keyboardist Morgan Cornwell singing at a local festival in Lewisburg, West Virginia. Cornwell and DeGraff began writing songs and later approached drummer Billy Ayres to join the band. The group has spent the better part 2013 touring, playing to packed crowds at festivals and historic venues such as TNT Music Festival, The Princeton Terrace Club at Princeton University, and The Poor Farm Fest in Williamsburg, WV. In the summer of 2013 THE WEIGHT launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the recording of the first EP. Asking for $3,500 to cover the cost of the record, the campaign was hugely successful, bringing in international support and reaching 263% of their initial goal. The band went to S&L Recording Studios in West Virginia and recorded a 2-disc EP Collection. The first disc, entitled “At First”, is a 6-track album featuring the full band and as well as bass guitar. It was released August 31st, 2013. The second half of the EP Collection is set to be released in the fall of 2013. THE WEIGHT / AT FIRST PRESS KIT AT FIRST: FACTS TRACKLISTING: 1. BREAK 2. BURLESQUE 3. THIS TIME 4. KISS ME QUICK 5. TYPICAL CRIME 6. SAY *AT FIRST IS THE 1ST DISC IN AT 2-DISC EP COLLECTION. TRACKS 1-6 ARE PRODUCED BY THE WEIGHT & 84 AGENCY ALL SONGS MIXED BY SHANE ALLEN RECORDED IN VARIOUS LOCATIONS IN WEST BY GOD VIRGINIA FROM JULY 2ND TO JULY 23RD, 2013  Q&A WITH THE WEIGHT WHAT KIND OF HEADSPACE WERE YOU IN EMOTIONALLY WHEN YOU BEGAN WORK ON “AT FIRST”? MORGAN: The two weeks of recording “At First” were probably the most trying two weeks personally for me. I was exhausted, discouraged and fighting an enormous shift. What a blessing it was to have such a release. There's nothing like being in a studio and recording our music. It was exciting. We were taking the next step and our songs were going to be heard. ADAM: I was just really excited that, after seven months of writing and performing that we were finally doing it. In hindsight, it was the perfect amount of time to live with our 20 or so new songs. It gave us a perspective on who we are and what we are doing and was really helpful when choosing the six songs to put on the EP. BILLY: I was excited, but I had to focus on the two things that I think matter most in our music: passion and control. I wanted to deliver a spirited, smooth drum track, with lots of groove. THIS IS YOUR FIRST EP AS A BAND. IS IT A DEPARTURE FROM YOUR PREVIOUS WORK? MORGAN: I would say it is a departure from other projects I've been a part of. Less poppy, more substance, mature. I have been stretched. And I'm grateful. You cannot play with Adam without being challenged and taught something new. ADAM: Very much so. This band has so much depth and color. It's exciting to write for and record with a group that can at times be lean and mean and at times be big and fat - still mean though. BILLY: It is different from my most recent projects, but I have spent a lot of time on other projects through the years learning how to be a musical player first, and a technical player last. WHAT INFLUENCED THE SOUND OF THE ALBUM AND HOW DO YOU DESCRIBE THAT SOUND? MORGAN: That's an incredibly difficult question to answer. The sound is hard to articulate, at least it is for me. We sound like THE WEIGHT, influenced by the diversity of its members. ADAM: What I love about the sound we are making is that it has a huge range, from intimate to enormous, but it is always clean and clear. A lot of that is due to the fact that Morgan's voice is so phenomenal. She uses it like a virtuosic instrumentalist and therefore doesn't need lots of sauce to cover up or fix what is lacking... because there nothing lacking. BILLY: The biggest influence on the sound of the album was the savvy recording abilities of one Mr. Shane Allen! Shane and I have many musical and sonic reference points that are similar. Big Drums, vocals sitting prominently on top, etc. LYRICALLY, WHAT DID YOU FIND YOURSELF DRAWN TO WRITING? MORGAN: It was a different process. I found myself pulling old songs and lyrics. Usually the music came first and we would just let it start the story. ADAM: Morgan really takes care of the lyrics specifically. But when we write, we spend a lot of time talking about mood, musical direction, and the overall emotion of the song, whatever it may be. All of our songs are very personal so, if parts come across vague, listen again and there will be a glimpse of who we really are. BILLY: Mostly the interactions of we humans with one another. ANY SPECIFIC TRACKS OR FOCUS YOU’D LIKE TO GIVE SOME INSIGHT INTO? MORGAN: "Say" because I wrote it - an earlier version of it - six years ago and only now is it complete. What Adam and Billy brought to this song... The music finally depicts the emotion. ADAM: Well, we picked six really diverse songs from a much larger pool. I think all six have something to say. For instance, look for the mood of Burlesque, the journey of “Say”, the fire of “Kiss Me Quick”, the openness of “This Time”, the drive of “Break”, or the swagger of “Typical Crime”. BILLY: “Say” is dark and powerful as was intended. It actually jumped to the forefront for me as being a strong song. I like the groove and energy of “Break” and “This Time”, “Burlesque” has a cinematic quality to it.