My American Heart returns to McAllen
February 03, 2006
Kate Lohnes
The Monitor
http://www.themonitor.com/

From his mellow voice and thoughtful responses, My American Heart bassist Dustin Hook sounds like a seasoned veteran of the rock 'n' roll scene. And he is, sort of.

Hook and fellow Heart members Larry Soliman, Jeremy Mendez, Jesse Barrera and Steven Oira certainly have plenty of notches in their belts, from two studio-recorded CDs (an EP and their newest release, The Meaning in Makeup), gigs with Warped Tour 2005 and a spot with recording label Warcon Entertainment.

What the band doesn't have a lot of is years between them. The average age in the group could barely buy lottery tickets.

"I just turned 18 a month ago," said bassist Dustin Hook, the newest addition to the rock/alternative/emo band. "(Soliman) just turned 19. We're all within six months of each other."

Youth hasn't stopped the rock/alternative/emo band from achieving what others have yet to do, which Hook said motivates them.

"It's really exciting, especially to tell all our friends at home, ÔYou can go to Wal-Mart and get our CD,'" he said. "It gives us a push to keep going and make another (album). It shows we have a chance and really a very rare opportunity. We're blessed and lucky to have it."

As far as luck goes, touring with My American Heart has been the chance of a lifetime for Hook, an 18-year-old Pittsburg native. He signed on with the group after acting as the fill-in bass player during Warped Tour 2005. After the tour ended, members Jeremy Soliman, Jeremy Mendez, Jesse Barrera and Steven Oira asked Hook to stay on permanently, to which he promptly agreed. Instead of moving into his senior year of high school, Hook packed his things and flew to the band's San Diego headquarters.

"When I was in school my junior year, I really felt stuck," he said. "This is a dream come true for me to tour full time. I do not regret doing what I did."

While Hook said he and the band couldn't be happier as musicians, My American Heart hasn't been without its share of drama. The band had to look for a new manager, and was going through "legal stuff" which Hook didn't clarify. To cap it all off, the quintet crashed their van and trailer in northern Louisiana at the end of August.

"It was around the time of Hurricane Katrina," Hook said. "We had to re-route. Around 2 a.m., the driver just fell asleep going about 70 miles per hour, and we flipped."

Hook and the other band members escaped the crash unscathed, but not without a deep sense of gratitude that they lived to see the morning.

"It was the most life-changing experience ever," he said. "There was no reason all six of us should have lived through it. Everything was destroyed. It makes you so cautious. It showed us how fragile everything is. In an instant, everything could have changed. It makes you appreciate things and realize that you're blessed."

Now that the band has re-grouped, it is returning to McAllen, site of its first show after the accident.

"That show was awesome," Hook said, recalling Heart's previous McAllen appearance. "It was an all-day show combining two tours, and that was pretty cool. We love Texas."

For the fans that saw My American Heart then and plan attending the return show, expect only a few older songs, Hook said, but the same atmosphere.

"It's pretty much all energy and in your face," Hook said.

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Kate Lohnes covers features and entertainment for The Monitor. You can reach her at (956) 683-4427.