How AEROSMITH Bassist TOM HAMILTON's New Band CLOSE ENEMIES Was Formed

CLOSE ENEMIES guitarists Trace Foster and Peter Stroud spoke to the "Is Breakfast Included?" podcast about how the band — which also includes AEROSMITH bassist Tom Hamilton, drummer Tony Brock and vocalist Chasen Hampton — came together almost exactly two years ago. Peter said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I'm sure each of us have our own perspective. It was sort of in layers. Trace and I had already been working on another band project, trying to get something off the ground, and then just out of the blue — I think it was at the when an AEROSMITH tour had to go on a hiatus — apparently Tom and Trace had been speaking where Tom said, 'Man, I got all these songs I would love to try to do something with,' and the light bulb goes off in Trace's head, and he goes, 'I know just the guy to come up, and maybe we can get together and help you with that.' So he asked if I'd be interested in going up there and just jamming around, and I said, 'Yeah, well, I think I know just the drummer who would be into it.' And that was Tony Brock, who's a longtime buddy of mine. And we had always been trying to figure out some way to play together. And I figured that Tony and Tom might find some common ground and a good comfort zone playing-wise. So that was sort of the initial get-together."

Trace added: "I had this other band, and I thought we're riding around in a van, doing shows and not making any money. And I'm, like, if I'm gonna do this, I need to up my game, because at our age to be driving around in a van, not to make any money… So I called Peter. Why not? Why not start there? I just thought we could add him to the band I was already in. And then we did it. And it started to work really well. And then, of course, like every other band that you've been in in your life, somebody does something wrong and they're out of the band. Me and Peter were, like, 'This isn't worth it. Let's just wait.' And then, like he said, we started putting this other project together, 'cause we did all kinds of writing and we got the guy from Atlanta, Gary Stier, that was in my original band in Atlanta. I started writing with him, and then I brought Peter in. Peter knows Gary, of course. So the band that I was in in Atlanta all knew Peter, but I didn't so that's the weird thing. And then it just kind of went from there. Everybody's schedule didn't always jibe, and we just tried to make it work, and then we were in Las Vegas with AEROSMITH and I literally went, 'Man, we really gotta do something.' And then I just looked at Tom, and it was one of those moments where you go, 'This is the guy. He's asking for some help,' and this and that. I just walked up and I said, 'Hey…' I didn't ask him. I basically told Tom, I said, 'Hey, we're gonna come to Boston and work on your songs.' And he was, like, 'Well, let me think about that.' And then like an hour later, he was, like, 'I think that's a really good idea.' So that's how it started. And once Tom and Tony played together, it was pretty much a given."

Peter continued: "That was a great five days. I loved it, too, where Trace suggested to Tom, 'Hey, why don't we come up for a couple days, two or three days?', and he goes, 'How about five?' First he was, like, 'Well, let me think about it.' He was like, 'How about five? You guys wanna move up here?' I was, like, 'Man, there you go. I said, 'That's a reflection of somebody who knows hard work right there.'"

CLOSE ENEMIES recently signed with TLG|ROCK for management and label services.

The band's debut single, "Sound Of A Train", will be released on January 17 and will be distributed through Virgin Music Group.

Foster has been Hamilton's bass tech, while Stroud has been playing with Sheryl Crow for 25 years. Brock had a band called THE BABYS and then played with Rod Stewart for 12 years. Hampton is a performer from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma with a strong background in the country music scene. CLOSE ENEMIES is also working with "a great lyricist" named Gary Stier.

When the TLG|ROCK deal was first announced in December, Hamilton said in a statement: "We're really excited to be working with TLG/Virgin on the release of the CLOSE ENEMIES record! They're genuinely as excited about putting it out as we are! Can't wait to see what happens!"

Brock added: "TLG/Virgin are the perfect match for CLOSE ENEMIES as we are both SUPERGROUPS! Can't wait to see the results!!"

Foster said: "After spending a year on the writing and recording of this record, we were not going to sign with just anyone to put it out. Once we spoke with Dennis Sanders and his team at TLG/Virgin, we knew we had an ally with the same vision."

Hampton stated: "Honored to join forces with history! TLG/Virgin/Universal Music Group are all proven visionaries and a perfect fit for this band of brothers. We are excited to get this music heard and be a part of this new family."

Stroud said: "We could not ask for a better partner with Denny and The Label Group. His experience across all fronts of the industry is a perfect fit for CLOSE ENEMIES. And I always prefer flying Virgin! It's an honor to be playing with these musical brothers and now working with the ultimate team."

Denny Sanders, CEO of TLG|ROCK, stated: "My good friend Andy Gallagher of the band OVERHAUL sent me the music. I absolutely loved it, then to find out who's in the band, well that was just icing on the cake. We are all thrilled here at TLG to be working with CLOSE ENEMIES."

CLOSE ENEMIES tour dates:

Jan. 08 - Philadelphia, PA @ City Winery
Jan. 09 - New York, NY @ City Winery
Jan. 10 - Boston, MA @ City Winery
Jan. 14 - Manchester, NH @ The Rex Theatre
Jan. 23 - Pawling, NY @ Daryl's House
Jan. 25 - Nashville, TN @ City Winery
Jan. 28 - Chicago, IL @ City Winery
Jan. 29 - St. Louis, MO @ City Winery

CLOSE ENEMIES made its live debut on October 11 at Eastside Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee. Video of the concert can be seen below.

In a recent interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, Tom said about CLOSE ENEMIES' debut gig: "I was a little bit nervous, you know. But that feeling, it energizes you. It doesn't hold you back. It makes you want to dive in deeper and deeper."

Regarding the upcoming shows, he said: "This is like going back to the beginning. You know, we don't have any previous albums. We're going to be riding around in vans, probably and flying commercial, just like when AEROSMITH started — and I'm looking forward to that. There's a certain camaraderie with that."

In an interview with AARP, Tom described Hampton as "a gifted singer who really made the songs come to life."

"When I joined, these guys had worked up a bunch of great songs, and I was able to contribute something I had," the bassist continued. "Hopefully, when the time comes, we'll work up some others I've had in my pocket for a while. All of these guys are great musicians, and it's an honor and a challenge to be part of it all. I'm looking forward to seeing how people like it. I think they'll be pleasantly amazed."

The members of AEROSMITH made the announcement that they were retiring from touring on August 2 — nearly one year after singer Steven Tyler fractured his larynx during a September 2023 show.

The "Peace Out" tour came to a halt after what turned out to be a final gig in Elmont, New York on September 9, 2023. That show came just three dates into the trek, which was supposed to last through February 2024. Tyler said in a statement at the time that the injury caused bleeding but that he hoped he and his AEROSMITH bandmates would be back on the road after postponing a few shows.

The rescheduled "Peace Out" tour was due to begin September 20 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with special guests THE BLACK CROWES.

Photo credit: Eduardo Andrade