Hotel Fiction’s first headline tour is a love letter to their roots
Dorothy Philip / V Mag at UVA
The bustling audience packed into The Southern Cafe & Music Hall crowded closer as indie rock band Hotel Fiction took the stage with their punchy yet melancholic pop song, “Ghost of Me.” With a set of dreamlike indie rock songs drenched in reverb and synth from latest album, “Staring at the Sun,” the group’s September Charlottesville show marked the fifth stop on their first headline tour.
Before garnering acclaim opening for bands like Flipturn and The Brook and The Bluff, Hotel Fiction started off as a two-girl duo at the University of Georgia in Athens, Ga in 2019. Lead singer and pianist Jade Long and guitarist and singer Jess Thompson both grew up playing instruments and played in different bands throughout high school, then met in college through a mutual friend who wanted to form a band. After realizing they lived next door to each other, the pair began writing music and playing together every day. In 2022, the band expanded to include bassist Aiden Hill, guitarist, Aaron Daughtry and drummer, Gideon Johnston.
In some ways, the Charlottesville performance offered a full circle moment for the band. Thompson’s parents got engaged at The Southern — her mother attended U.Va. And Atlanta-based singer Elijah Johnston, who opened the show, happened to be at the meeting that launched the beginnings of Hotel Fiction five years ago in Athens.
The eclectic approach Long and Thompson took to music in college still rings true today. For their sophomoric album, “Staring at the Sun,” the group said they pulled melodies from many different times of their lives. Some of the songs on the album emerged as combinations of two different songs, while others emerged from drafts they started writing years ago.
Dorothy Philip / V Mag at UVA
In a similar vein to this lyrical blending, the band said their inspiration comes from a variety of influences. Some songs, they said, were inspired by big picture issues like capitalism and climate change — the sense of impending doom that comes with living in a post-pandemic world. Others drew upon interpersonal issues such as a break up or coping with growing up.
“I think a lot of the album was inspired by the state of our world … and [everything] feels ending and overwhelming” Thompson said.
Nothing emphasizes this notion of impending finality more than the finale song on their setlist, “Why Do Good Things Have To End,” an upbeat indie rock song about learning to accept when something is over. The band starts the song slowly but explodes into the breakdown at the end with the band rushing and jumping around the stage.
However, the band knows when to slow things down as well. Hotel Fiction reiterated how special it is to get to play their headline tour with more freedom than previous opening slots. Towards the middle of the show, the rest of the band goes off stage as Thompson and Long to play two stripped-back, acoustic versions of their normal setlist.
The duality of soft, flowing and synth-heavy songs like “Margot” and rhythmic, in-your-face rock songs like “Still Frozen” are what makes “Staring at the Sun” an incredibly full and interesting listen.
“Yeah, a lot of the album is about heartbreak and change and also loving life,” Long said.
Dorothy Philip / V Mag at UVA
These themes have resonated deeply with fans. Third year College student Jordan Alibrandi, who attended the show, said she has been a fan of the band for over a year and feels connected to them.
“I feel like their whole vibe and all their lyrics are something I totally relate to,” Alibrandi said. “I just listened to [their new album], and I feel like they’re talking about me.”
To connect with more fans, the band also designs their own merchandise. Long said she came up with all the designs and even painted the album cover for “Staring at the Sun,” an abstract landscape of pastel pink, copper, and green featuring two mysterious figures like ghosts and the faint outlines of a forest.
Hotel Fiction gave a few words of advice for bands just getting their start in a bustling college town.
“Say yes to everything, because you never know what opportunity is going to lead to the next,” Thompson said.
“Enjoy it,” Long added. “Every step of the way.”
Hotel Fiction’s sophomore album “Staring at the Sun” is out now on all streaming platforms, with the vinyl available for preorder. Their tour has dates set through Nov. 14 capped off with a show in Athens’ Georgia Theatre — a return to their homegrown roots.