Spotlight: Hayley and the Crushers

The punk band Hayley and the Crushers, hailing from Detroit, Michigan, will be coming to the Oriental Theater in Denver on May 23rd, opening for long-running punk groups Screeching Weasel and The Dwarves. We sat down virtually with Hayley Crusher herself (Hayley Cain, joined by her chihuahua Gidget, the band’s “tour manager”) to talk about the band and their return to Denver.

Jamie Lammers: How did you guys get started as a group?
Hayley Cain: I’ve been on and off in bands since I was a teenager, and all sorts of genres, from punk to rock, bluegrass, country. Haley and the Crushers was my attempt to start a band with my name on it, so I could not chicken out, and it worked out that way. We started in 2016 in San Luis Obispo, California, which is sort of a sleepy beach town. Even when we try to be edgy or hardcore, we’re a sunny California band. We say our genre is “poolside glitter trash,” and we combine the grit and glitter elements of rock, punk, pop, melody, and oldies, putting it all together.

Jamie: Is there a primary songwriter in the group?
Hayley: The band started with my songs. It’s always come from a place of desire from my heart to write these songs, so I would say I’m definitely at the forefront of songwriting. My husband [band member Reid Cain/Dr. Cain ESQ] and I, since we met about 13 years ago, we’ve pretty much put out at least an album every year, or some sort of release. Part of what I love about our creative partnership is that we do get to write songs together. I may come up with a lyric concept and a couple chords, and he may come up with the whole verse, and it allows me to play to what he’s bringing to the band, too. We’re both songwriters, but I feel like the trajectory of the band has always been from a woman’s perspective.

Jamie: What’s it been like for you being able to write songs and bring them to a group like this?
Hayley: I think it’s cool. It’s like collecting tattoos. You can look back and see where you were in certain places. I think for every songwriter, there’s this evolution; a lot of songwriters, and artists in general, when they start, that’s the only way they can metabolize the world. That’s great, and that’s an outlet, but to step up into creating music and art from a universal place takes time and maturity. I think I’m at a place now where when I think about what I’m trying to say with songs, it’s not a bodily function as much as it was when I was in my 20s. I try to construct from a place of something beyond myself that isn’t purely a diary entry, but something that people can connect to. I think, in general, we have a joyful vibe about us, and that’s what keeps people interested in the band. Not everyone’s going to a show to smile, but I think we attract people that are looking for joy, freedom, to not take themselves too seriously.

Jamie: Is that a favorite aspect of being able to perform live in general?
Hayley: Yeah. I think as a female performer, just the act of getting on stage is its own rebellion and message. We don’t think about how rare it is to see women on stage expressing their emotions and points of view while backed by a band and a loud, amplified instrument. That’s an incredibly liberating and important experience for women and girls to see. It’s not what I set out to do, but I know that’s change I’m affecting. We talk as a band about how it’s not about being cool, it’s not about being perfect. It’s about the Crusher-verse, a place where everybody can belong. It’s playful and fun, and we get to be that portal for people, just the way bands like The Clash or X or Ramones were portals for me as a young kid. Now, our audiences are punk dads and their creative daughters, and it’s the best demographic I could have asked for.

Jamie: Is that something you hope people take away, that inspiration, that drive?
Hayley: Sure, I mean, we all bring something to the stage. The way we look at it is, it’s our personalities cranked to 11. I’m an awkward person; I like to have fun, laugh at myself, and the world. I think we need that, I need that, to survive in this world, so I bring that fully and amp it up. We all just bring who we are authentically, and I think that resonates.

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