The newest addition to the Hoot Recordings family is The Morrison Leeds Band. We first got a taste of their passionate talent back in December at the Battle of the Bands, but now they’re back and signed to the label. Hoot News was invited to an acoustic rehearsal with Mike Morrison and Danny Leeds, where they played their latest compositions, some of their favorite originals and talked about where The Morrison Leeds Band came from.

HN: Does the band ever play outside of FAU?Mike: We were, but it’s just that we wanted to focus our energy on writing good music as opposed to draining ourselves and constantly playing and not having time. We both work and we have school and everything else so with whatever little time we do have, we wanted to put it toward writing. Full-time school, full-time work and full-time band, and we sleep sometimes!

HN: What do you think of Hoot Recordings?Mike: It’s a great opportunity, and I’m happy that something like this is finally here. I wish there was something like this a long time ago.

HN: What is your strategy for getting the word out about The Morrison Leeds Band?Mike: Speak to everyone about it, just promote as much as you can and when you can’t speak, play and let the music speak for itself.

HN: Where do you find inspiration to write your songs?Danny: Everywhere . . . I mean everything from a crappy experience to a wonderful experience. It’s what we’re most passionate about. I could walk into any place and get an idea or inspiration for a song.

HN: What type of musical background do you have?Mike: I took four years of advanced singing in high school and then I taught myself guitar with the help of Danny. I’ve been playing guitar since 1996. Danny: I’ve been playing guitar for nine years. I took lessons with one teacher who passed me on to another teacher who I took lessons with for a few months until he couldn’t teach me anything else. So then I just played on my own until I got to FAU and began taking classical lessons.

HN: What are your goals and expectations from signing with Hoot?Danny: To push this band to a level where it needs to be, become a professional act and really get our music out there.

HN: What do you hope your fans will get from your music?Mike: That they find happiness and inspiration. I would love to hear someone say, “I went to your show and I was having a miserable week or day and when I left, everything was different and I felt different about my life and myself.”Danny: I want to see kids everywhere playing our songs.