Artist Profile: Color Theory

brianhazard-of-color-thoery

Color Theory is the one-man ear-tickling synthpop project from Huntington Beach, California native Brian Hazard. Self-described as “literary dance pop flushed out with rich piano voicings,” Hazard has released 9 full-length albums since the genesis of the project in 1994, with the most recent in May 2016.

Hazard’s career highlights include winning the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, two songs in the hit video game Rock Band, and several song placements on MTV’s The Real World.

We had the opportunity to ask the mind behind Color Theory about his inspiration, and what drives him to make the infectious, whimsical music that he does:

Brian Hazard
: “80s synthpop is in my blood, but I mostly listen to Electronic Dance Music these days. My songs draw from both, fleshed out with piano accompaniment. Anyone who took music lessons as a kid calls themselves ‘classically trained,’ but I stuck with it, earning a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance. Immediately after graduation, I left Beethoven and Brahms behind to pursue my first musical inspiration, Depeche Mode.

“The line between inspiration and imitation blurred when my song “Ponytail Girl” spread like wildfire on Napster, mislabeled as a Depeche Mode b-side. Despite both parties’ efforts to set the record straight (depechemode.com went so far as to address the mix-up in their FAQ), bootleg versions of Depeche Mode’s Exciter album were sold around the world with “Ponytail Girl” included as a so-called bonus track. I used the incident as the basis for a tribute album to the band, Color Theory presents Depeche Mode.”

Color Theory is currently working on its 10th full-length album.

Learn more at the Color Theory Official Site

Listen now to “Slot Machine” by Color Theory and other artists we have featured at the MusicZeitgeist.com’s free Indie Music Jukebox

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