Since forming in 2015, Weathers – Cameron Boyer, Cameron Olsen, Brennan Bates and dummer Cole Carson – have established themselves as a band that specialise in creating finely crafted introspective pop songs that connect with listeners on a personal level thanks to the quartet not being afraid to address issues such as mental health through their lyrics. They released their sophomore album ‘Pillows & Therapy’ earlier this month and ahead of them hitting the road for a run of dates across the States, PopWrapped caught up with the band to discover their favourite lyrics from the album and what they love most about being on tour.

Congrats on the release of your new album ‘Pillows & Therapy’! We’d love to hear how the album came together and more about how this body of work evolves your theme of mental health.

Thank you! This album, being that most of it was put together during the pandemic, is a mixed bag of some “classic” Weathers sounds as well as some new sounding stuff. “American Dream”, for example, is a song from around 5 years ago. A couple other songs are also a few years old. But we felt like they really fit the theme of this album so we wanted to revisit those demos. In terms of the “mission” for this album, we wanted to further the conversation in a direction that we feel hasn’t really been covered yet.

We wanted to bring something new to the table which is taking those steps to get better, or to get to a place where your demons are at least more manageable. Spreading awareness will always be something we believe in, but we also believe that it’s just as important to want to get better and to know how to take those steps. This is why we named the album “Pillows & Therapy”. While it’s a lyric from one of our songs, it’s fitting to the theme of the album as a whole because it promotes therapy, which is one way someone can take steps to getting “better”.

What do you hope fans take away from this release?

I think we hope fans walk away from ‘Pillows & Therapy’ having new found hope for improving their mental health. We also hope they just have a fun and emotional experience listening to the music being that it’s still music and we love to have fun.

If you had to pick, what would you say are some of your favorite lyrics from the project?

As cheesy as it is, “pillows & therapy” would be one from “Talking Is Hard.” Also. in “Strange Dayz” during the bridge, it’s kind of tucked, but there’s my vocal saying: “Tell me how it’s gonna end. Don’t wanna die today, but he’s getting in my way. Looking back at me, cocky looking wanna be.” I think that line is very powerful as it shows the struggle for wanting to get better but having to battle yourself in a way to get there. And sometimes, it’s hard not to self-reflect and see the worst. Part of that being that sometimes I see myself as a cocky looking wannabe. There’s plenty of lyrics I love from this album, another being from “Hello” that says “after party at the hospital.” Just thought that was a fun way to say that you’re going to the hospital after whatever you’re doing in the moment and you’re gonna “party” which sometimes feels similar to wanting to be as real as possible – or escape and forget the real world.

You’re hitting the road soon for a full US tour, which has been rescheduled a few times due to the pandemic. How have you been preparing and are there any particular cities you’re most excited to perform in?

We’ve been practicing the new music which has been awesome. We haven’t had to prepare more than 1 new song for the road since we released the “Kids In The Night” record, since everything after has been single releases till now. So, learning a whole new batch of songs and having to say goodbye to some others to make room has been a bitter sweet experience. And as for cities, I’d say, Phoenix, Chicago, Denver, and Boston are the ones I’m most excited for. And maybe LA and San Diego, but argh, sometimes CA shows can be a roll of the dice.

What do you love most about being on the road? How do you maintain your mental health while away from home, potentially for months at a time, and then afterwards when you’re assimilating back to “normal” life?

My favorite parts about being on the road are the shows and the drives. I am a performer at heart. I love being on a stage and popping off with the fans. And I love most of the drives. I think I’m the only one in the band that does. I love getting lost in my thoughts while looking out the window or driving through the pretty views, even if it’s just corn fields for miles, I still like it. Maintaining decent mental health is hard though. Especially if you’re already struggling with your head as it is. Sometimes getting lost in my thoughts can be dangerous. But it helps if the tour is going well and the shows are good. That makes us feel like we are moving forward in life and not just stuck on the road for a long time wishing it would end.

I try to take advantage of my alone time. I try to remember how lucky we are to get to do what we love and to have such awesome fans. I also try to take advantage of opportunities to have fun and explore and do something different that we wouldn’t do at home. It also helps to ask for help when need be. Maybe I’ll go to my tour manager or my band guys and ask for help – it never hurts to reach out.

We hear you have some film/TV buffs and devout video gamers in the group. What have you watched recently or are currently playing that you’ve been most excited about?

Well in terms of video games, my drummer and I and sometimes my bass player play Warzone together. I know my guitar player is really good at FIFA. I’m also super excited for the new Battlefield and COD games coming out this fall. Also, I did just watch the trailer for the new Spider-Man movie like 1208455 times, so I’m excited for that. But since theaters have reopened, I’ve been seeing lots of movies; it feels good to be back in the saddle that way.

Which new artists have you recently discovered/are you currently listening to?

I’ve been all over the place lately with music. I’ve been listening to a whole mixed bag of things. Been revisiting some older stuff as well has dipping my toe into some of the newer stuff, but to be honest, haven’t really been super inspired by some of the newer stuff yet. But I’m always keeping an ear out.

Any final thoughts or comments you’d like to share?

Thank you so much, and we can’t wait for fans to see us on our upcoming tour!

Give ‘Pillows & Therapy’ a listen below and for more information on Weathers, give their page a like on Facebook or follow them on Twitter and Instagram.