Meet Paul Hageman | Lead Vocalist and Rhythm

We had the good fortune of connecting with Paul Hageman and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Paul, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
Story we like to tell: A man, I think his name was Captain Planet, came from the sky and gave us each a ring with powers. Naturally, we had to hide our identities so we went undercover as a band. Turns out, we are way better at making music than we were at saving the world so we quit our days of crime fighting and decided to devote our lives to what really matters, music

Actual Story: The band, Noble Grizwald, was started because we all worked together at Guitar Center and someone called in looking for a band thinking that that is something GC provided as a store. I (Paul) without skipping a beat obliged and quickly gathered the troops to let them know we had a gig the next week. Shocked and thinking this was a joke, they all agreed.

After our first practice and the realization that this was not a joke, I think we half expected it to be a one-time gig, but people actually liked us so we kept playing. Gradually through connections we were offered more and more gigs and the rest is history.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I think, much like other bands, we like to let others tell us what we sounds like. It is hard to put a specific genre on it but the best term I have heard thus far is “festival rock”. Depending on the length of the set, we start off pretty folk-rock and gradually work our way to psychedelic-rock making it quite a unique experience. Our one hope is that they never loose the want/need to dance.

I am proud of how far we have come. I think we have been lucky enough to meet amazing people along the way who support us and given us opportunities to play in front of even more people. We stared at small restaurants, then small bars, breweries, and now festivals and venues. We are thankful for these opportunities and believe that holding on to the memories of our humble beginnings make us excited to play and provide a good time for anyone, anywhere that we play.

We are also excited to make more music. Music is life for us. It might be cheesy to say but it transcends language. With the new album, “Better Late Than Never” on the way we, are already thinking of what to put on the next album. It can be a little tuff coordinating plans and schedules for practice, because we obviously have our own lives and outside responsibilities other than the band. But honestly, at the end of the day there is nothing else we would rather be doing so we all naturally decide to make music a priority.

I think one thing we have learned is how to be efficient. With the pandemic, we weren’t allowed to play or practice together but we learned how to make music on our own time, record it, and then send it to the rest of the band. We continue to adapt and change much like our music.

I think change and adaptability is a good way to describe our mindset. We have never been okay with being comfortable or complacent and it shows in our music. We are constantly making music and asking each other what genre of the new song being played would be considered. So much so that almost all our new songs made are named after various bands until we are forced to give it an actual name. Still to this day, one of my favorites is named “Foo Fighters.”

At the end of the day, all we want is to create something that makes people excited and want to move around. We know we love what we do and are so blessed that others like it as well.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I guess it depends on the city?

Venture:

Places – Beach, Pier, Downtown Main St, Cemetery Park

Food/Restaurant/Bar – El Tacos de Jerez, The Saloon, Fluid State, Transmission Brewery

Santa Barbara:

Places – Beach, Pier, Downtown State St, Mission Park, Funk Zone

Food/Restaurant/Bar – M.Special, Institution, Shalhoob, East Beach Tacos, Secret Bao

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
First and foremost, this band would be nothing without its members. We each agree that no one person makes this band what it is and recognize that each of us brings that special sauce necessary for cooking up music.

I would like to thank all our fans, friends and family for helping us along this journey. We would be nothing without your support. You all know who you are and wish I could mention each and every one of you but unfortunately, there are too many people to thank.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noblegrizwald/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/noblegrizwald

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/noblegrizwald/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3-Mfwkii-NSnqlvOJqENJw

Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0ChjvHHkwI4xTZKmrzcede?si=ITTS7M6zRLSRCw1Gto03Sg Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/noble-grizwald/1404785873

Image Credits
Stacey Ayer Walt Hanson Derek Street