Catapult Stevens is the solo project of San Francisco based musician Hayden Kellam.
His latest release “take a seat, it’ll last longer” is a brilliant collection of songs that were written and recorded between April of 2024 and July of 2025.
I caught up with Hayden to talk about his early musical experiences, how he started writing songs and the making of the new record.
CMM-What was the first music that really made an impact on you as a kid and what artists or bands did you enjoy the most?
Hayden-I remember hearing “Good Times, Bad Times” by Led Zeppelin for the first time and being absolutely blown away. I was in Barnes and Noble and put some headphones on. I had never heard them before and I was forever changed. Another big impact was “Bizzare Love Triangle” by New Order. My mom had this story she told me about always requesting that song from a DJ on the radio. It got to the point where the DJ knew who she was when she requested the song. 80s dance music has always stuck with me because of that I think. In high school, a dear friend showed me “Shady Lane” by Pavement and “I Hate It Too” by Hum in the matter of one car ride home from wherever we were. Both songs are still in the top 10 for me.
CMM-When did you first start playing music and writing your own songs?
Hayden-I started playing guitar when I was 10 years old. My dad signed my brother and I up for lessons from this metal-head. He wanted to teach us all of the Metallica songs. At one point, I wanted to learn “Ain’t this the Life” by Oingo Boingo and he thought it was lame. I started writing songs when I was around 16. My little Fender amp had a usb input on it. I could turn the volume down on the amp and record direct into garageband. With the volume down, I felt more free to experiment without anyone else really hearing what I was doing.
CMM-Your new album “Take A Seat, It’ll Last Longer” is fantastic. What was the writing and recording process for those songs like? Any particular gear or instruments you used during the recording sessions that helped inspire you?
Hayden-Thank you! The writing basically took place while recoding. Much, if not all, of the Catapult Stevens songs begin this way. Using Logic as a template allows me to easily find a tempo and drum beat and work from there. It’s like writing on lined paper or something. A bunch of parameters to keep you in check and end up with a “proper” song. It has its limitations, but it works when it’s just you writing everything yourself.
I had been listening to a bunch of Bill Callahan and Neil Young. It felt time to record an acoustic, folk-ish album. My good friend that plays drums in my live band, the incredibly talented Raymond Vivas, gifted me an old Takamine. There’s really something about a new guitar inspiring you to write songs. Around the time I started writing the album, Ray and I had been playing as the rhythm section in our friend’s band, 11,111 Angels (the solo project of Desi Valdez). He took us up the coast in March of last year to record an album at The Unknown in Anacortes, Washington. We spent four days at the studio. I slept on the couch in the control booth. Being in that space really gave me the recording bug. Once I got back, I recorded myself playing drums for 8 of the songs. I’m not a drummer, but I was optimistic and I actually pulled it off. It was April fools day last year and I was fully ready to feel like one.
CMM-If you could score any film director’s movie who would it be and what would the film be about?
Hayden-This is a great question. I would say Sofia Coppola. I once had a friend describe my music as “walking home alone, late night, after a party.” Let’s say the movie is a mix of Scorsese’s “After Hours” and Beckett’s “Waiting for Godot” but written and directed by Sofia Coppola. It’s a good summation of life: comical, absurd, beautiful, and somber.
CMM-What do you have coming up next?
Hayden-We’re gonna do a little run of shows up in the Pacific Northwest next month! May 7th in Seattle and May 9th in Portland. I’ve got the aforementioned Ray on drums and some new, good friends on bass and lead guitar, Caitlyn Davis and Chris Reza respectively. Those two lovely folks have an excellent band called Starbelliedbug. I’ve been lucky enough to join their band this year and it’s been so fun. I should probably book a local show, like an album release. We’ll see what happens.
I also have another band with Ray, Desi, and the legendary Bridge Gamble. We are called Sacramento and we’re releasing our first album “Ram” on April 25th. We recorded 8 songs in 8 hours with Jack Shirley at the Atomic Garden in Oakland, California. It felt like lightning in a bottle recording that quick.
Lastly, my other other band Mint is in the process of recording an album. We hope to release it in the late fall/early winter. Once again, we’ll see what happens. We’re playing May 1st at Eli’s Mile High Club in Oakland to celebrate our good friends’ Plummet and their album release.
