From his 2013 graduation from suburbia Thatcher held stint at New York’s New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, quickly realizing it’s environment of tunnel-visioned jazz musicians to hold unsuitable trajectory. Thatcher’s fervor for collaboration vanished just months into his first semester as he quickly realized the indie music he grew up adoring was considered far too lowbrow by his peers. Though a minor setback at first, it prompted Thatcher’s return to the method of madness he’d spent innumerable sleepless nights in high school pursuing. From dusk until dawn the artist toiled away at a soundboard in his continuation as Holm, creating much of the expressive work found in his archive today. He’s recently attempted a more normal sleep schedule. 

From Holm’s ambient roots to Thatcher’s work under another quickly emerging handle, it’s clear an immense talent is (quite literally) at play. Take works like “hymns & dedications: part 1,” a deep and shimmering environmental dedication to the artist’s adventures, misgivings and instrumentalist maturity—and serious appreciation for the woods. Holm’s ambient music is breathtaking, tender, and even mildly therapeutic.

With “I Feel A Great Peace,” Holm moves from the atmospheric genre to a much different sound. Gone is the subtle emotion of Thatcher’s instrumental work to be swapped with something far different. This album calls on a King Krule-style spoken word, a sort of lyricism finding swagger against smokey guitars, placid backing vocals and one urgent of a clap drum. Despite being released under Holm, it seems Sports Coach enters the court here—and maybe stays for good. Thatcher’s new act is slowly finding it’s captivating niche in a scene he’s come to cherish.  On 2015’s chilliest day to date, I sat down with Thatcher in an Allston ice creamery to talk time onstage, a newfound love of Boston music, and his incredible ability to make quality music at a lightning pace. Ladies and gentlemen: Holm, Sports Coach, Thatcher May.

Allston Pudding: You make music at an alarming rate. Looking at your Bandcamp and Soundcloud, it’s seems like once a month you’re putting something pretty bulky out. Are you constantly making music?

Thatcher May: Yeah. Literally all my free time, like, every second of every day I’m constantly writing and recording and mixing. If I’m not at work or not at a show, or if I’m not playing a show, I’m probably just in my room writing music. It’s really hard to get me out of that element. Like, I should be doing stuff more. I used to have straight, almost like OCD when it came to playing drums. Like obsessive, playing six to eight hours a day. Just constant. So I’ve always been really dedicated to it, and I don’t really do much else. I’ve been back from the tour for about two weeks now and I already have an albums worth of music ready to go.

AP: It’s one thing to sit down and practice for that long, but how do you find song inspiration?

TM: It’s a process I learned in high school. When I was a senior I did a 365 day project as Holm. From the beginning of October 2013 to October 2014—I was making beats pretty much, but experimenting in indie— I wrote, record, mixed, and put out a song every day for an entire year. 

AP: So you didn’t do your homework? For school?

TM: Oh man, I gotta tell you I really bad in school. I think my GPA was maybe a 2.3. The only reason I went to college was to play music. In high school I would stay up all night working on stuff, go to school and literally fall asleep on the floor in the band room. But from that process I learned how to sit down and write a song and how to avoid writers block. Which for me just is to keep going. Just don’t stop, ‘cause something will come to you eventually. It’s because of that I’m able to constantly make stuff. It’s just from that process.

AP: But it’s funny too. It’s one thing to be able to push through a creative block and have work to put out, but your work has a real depth to it. It’s not forced at all, which is pretty unbelievable considering there’s so much of it.

TM: Thank you! I don’t know. It all kind of just comes to me and I don’t think about it. If I’m writing a song and I think about what I want it to sound like, it’ll be terrible. I could hear a song by somebody and think that it’s super good, and I want to make a song like that, but if I try to it’s gonna be terrible. So when I write now I just sit down and it comes. I don’t think about anything. So whatever I write this song about, it just kind of happened.

AP: Despite your process, Holm sounds very poignant. It seems like there are stories behind those songs.

TM: Yeah, I could see that. Well, Holm’s tricky because I really don’t know what I’m doing with it anymore. I made so many different kinds of music with it. When I was first started making indie music under Holm it didn’t really go over well because I had established a following that wasn’t into that, which is why I started Sports Coach. But with Holm the songs were really about certain things that I had set out to write about, and I wanted to find a way to do that. I think the songs with Holm are a lot more in depth than they are with Sports Coach. They’re definitely about certain things. 

AP: So does Holm predate Sports Coach? It seems live you’ve switched around a lot.

TM: I put out the Sports Coch EP, like, a month or two ago. I started doing Holm in 2012. So Sports Coach is brand new, and that was just because I was getting tired of people not liking the Holm music. I was aware that I had switched it up on them. So yeah.

AP: (Holm’s 2014 release) “I Feel A Great Peace” was pretty Sports Coach-y.

TM: Mhmm. The whole reason that started was because something kind of clicked in me. I think it was the fact that when I made Holm I was a drummer and I didn’t know how to play any other instruments. And so I was sampling a lot, and you know, I would take an old jazz song and rework it into my own. And then I slowly learned how to play guitar. I’d always listened to indie music as a kid and that was my real passion always, but I couldn’t do it because I didn’t know how. But as I learned to play guitar I realized I could do what I wanted, so that’s why Holm started transitioning. “I Feel A Great Peace” is like the first dive into it. Then I put out an album called “WHAT’S A BLACK EYE TO A KING LIKE ME?” and that was all indie. And after that I was just kind of like, “Well alright, I’m just gonna change myself. I’m just gonna change the whole project.”

AP: Did Sports Coach really emerge there?

TM: Yeah, exactly, it did. When I used to do electronic music as Holm, I would always get a good response and a lot of Soundcloud followers or whatever. But when I started doing the indie stuff it wasn’t cool anymore. The people who liked Holm weren’t into it. So I was just like, “Well, I should just start over.” And I wanted to start over.

Last year I put out one kind of sad EP has Holm. And personally I try and stay away from sad music because, for me, at least the way I look at making music, I think everybody already has sad things in their lives. And I would like to make music that has a more positive message. I put out one sad EP as Holm and from then on every blog that I had established connections with would call my releases sad. And I hated it! They didn’t even listen to it! So I want to start a new project that’s completely not serious. It’s half-joking, half-serious. And it’s kinda happier, you know?

AP: Sports Coach still seems pretty jaded.

TM: Does it?

AP: Yeah! Sports Coach seems like any gym teacher you had in high school. They’ve been through a lot! They’re not angry, just bitter.

TM: Maybe it is. Some songs I’ll really try and bring out the positivity. I guess a lot of songs on that record were made super quick, and I wasn’t really thinking about it, but yeah. They could definitely be a little bit sad like that. But all together I always try to stay from negativity. But most of the time I’m not thinking about what I actually write. I just don’t want people to call my music sad.

AP: Do you listen to sad music?

TM: Yeah. There’s a lot of great music that’s sad that I listen to. I just feel like there’s a lot it in general. I feel like it’s really easy to write about your problems, and it’s a lot harder to write about positivity. It’s something I try to do but sometimes I just write about whatever’s in my head.

AP: So are you writing from personal experience?

TM: Yeah, most of the time. And at least on the older stuff, definitely. And on the newer stuff, the stuff I’m working on writing now, a lot of the lyrics are more about the melody as opposed to the lyricism. So they probably would be a bit more smokey, you really wouldn’t be able to figure those out as much.

I appreciate lyricism though. When I played the show the other night with ACLU Benefit and Puppy Problems I was so blown away by both those artists’ lyrics. I really respect that.

AP: Are you only continuing as Sports Coach?

TM: I’m just making ambient music under Holm now, which I don’t ever expect anyone to be hyped on. Ambient music is a weird branch of music, and it doesn’t have a super heavy following. I just make it because I grew up listening to a ton of ambient and post-rock music, and I love ambient. So with Holm I’m just kind of doing that.

AP: Seems like you’ve spent a lot of time in the woods.

TM: I love the woods, I love being outside. I don’t know, I was never really a kid’s kid. I don’t know, my upbringing was kind of weird and I never thought I really clicked with the high school vibe. I never really got into the things high school kids do. To this day I’ve never drank alcohol, I’ve never done any drugs, which a lot of people are confused by. I guess the woods were my way of separating myself. Going out and doing my own thing and staying away from the crowd in all aspects. I guess. In a way.

AP: So, as the artist Sports Coach, you didn’t play any sports in high school?

TM: No, man! It’s kind of a joke. I came up with it a month or two ago. Well, in high school me and my friends would have inside jokes where we would call everybody dad. I don’t know why. It’s kinda weird.  And we would always make fun of sports, we really just thought it was funny.

So I think with Sports Coach I was just like “I don’t play sports, I don’t know anything about sports, but I’m going to to call myself this because it’s stupid.” I like stupid jokes. I think that’s where it came from. I don’t know how to coach sports.

AP: The internet told me you work as a solo artist because of the inability to find the right bandmates.

TM: Holm is all electronic, so even if you had a band you wouldn’t be able to pull it off live. It’d be relatively impossible. I don’t have a good enough grasp on technology to be able to do that. So with Holm it was a solo thing for obvious reasons. Now with Sports Coach, half the time people are surprised I’m only one person. It’s all live bass, live drums, live guitar.

AP: And you’re doing that yourself?

TM: Yeah, I play everything. I would love to have a band but I haven’t found the right people. I know a lot of talented musicians in Boston but everybody’s busy. And I don’t know what the hell I’m doing! I don’t actually know how to play guitar or bass. I don’t know any chords or scales or anything. I make up my own fingering and chords and I do everything by ear. For me it’s always been “this sounds right.”

AP: But with drumming you’re classically trained.

TM: Yeah, definitely classically and jazz. When it comes to drums I can read and I know all the rudiments and all that shit. But with guitar and all that, I don’t know anything. I wouldn’t be able to teach my songs to people. So I started doing drums to give myself something to do while I’m singing, and it turns out that whenever I play a show there’s always people that tell me they’ve never seen anybody play like me before. I think I’ll keep it because it works out for me in that sense where no one’s does it before. When you play a show, you need people to leave remembering who you were. I got lucky in that respect.

AP: And when you’re preforming, are you playing every instrument live?

TM: It’s really not that organic. I take my songs, and I take out live drums. I use a kick drum and a clap that are clearly electronic, just to keep some time going. And then I’ll play the backing track and I run it out of my computer. When I play live I always run my own sound. I’m kind of weary. I’ve had so many experiences playing venues where I didn’t sound good, so when playing live I bring my own mixer and run my own mic through my effects into the mixer and have the tracks running though that. So it’s organic in that sense where I’m doing it all myself, but I’m just playing live drums over the music and doing vocals at the same time. I’ll have a floor tom and a snare and a cymbal, and that’s the setup. And my microphone.

AP: How close to do you stick to your songs?

TM: Whenever I play it’s always really intense. I love when people are moshing. A lot of the music I make isn’t specifically for that but it’s the kind of music that’s all really fast and driving. You could mosh to Sports Coach. “Grab Your Balls”—(laughs) that’s so funny to say—has a few songs like that on there, but slower ones too. The new stuff I’m working on is really fast. When I play live I’m always putting 110% into it, and it’s really draining. And I’m pretty much screaming. I can’t sing and I don’t pretend I can, so I just kinda yell. It’s an intense live performance but I’m definitely sticking to my song structure. I don’t really switch it up.

AP: With such a bulky catalog, are there any songs you’re constantly playing live?

TM: When I play live I only play my most intense songs. And my fastest songs. That’s the kind of show I want to have. When I was on tour I played the same songs almost every night. If I have new songs I really like I’ll add them in and take out old ones, but I’ll definitely stick to the same songs because there’s just a certain vibe I want to play live. There’s music I make that you could listen to alone in your room, and then there’s music that I make for live settings. I’m all about playing shows.

AP: What are you listening to right now?

TM: I recently just discovered how good everybody in Boston is at making music. And I by no means am involved in the scene yet. I haven’t seen a lot of bands yet but I’ve been listen to Wakes a ton. My friend Kidaudra from New York-

AP: I was just going to ask you about her!

TM: Yo! Let me tell you. The EP she has coming out in January or February is so amazing. She’s gonna get attention for it. A lot of her, a lot of Wakes, and a lot of my friend’s music. And for big bands? I don’t know. I’ve been listening to the same stuff for years to be honest. A lot of Beach Fossils, Toykyo Police Club’s first album. I still listen to that, like, every day.

But yeah, I’ve been checking out a lot of Boston bands. Skinny Bones? Love their music. And with those guys, too! It’s one thing when you listen to music and somebody’s good at making songs, but they’re not that great at recording. You can kind of hear artist’s faults in their music. But with Skinny Bones, not only are the songs great, but coming from an electronic background and being a producer for a while, I can tell that those guys are really good at producing. They know what they’re doing. Those dudes have skills. When people are pushing boundaries, that has my respect.

When I was in New York I went to a lot of shows in Brooklyn at all the DIY venues. And bands were good, yes, but Boston bands are better. To be 100% real. There’s more talent here.

AP: I guess with places like Brooklyn you just have so many shows. They must be hard to pick through.

TM: Everybody’s in bands, everybody’s into music. It’s just one of those places. But here in Boston I haven’t heard a band and been like, “ehhh, okay.” As of yet! I’m still new on the scene.

AP: Do you see yourself sticking around Boston for a while? You’re finding your niche quickly.

TM: I’ve been in Boston since the summer. I think Boston’s getting hype. I saw an article in The Guardian the other day about how the city’s the new DIY scene, it’s the new underground, comparing it to DC back in the day or New York. And I think Boston is really becoming that right now. I’m really excited to start becoming a part of that scene in a way. I think Boston will become a place to be if you’re a musician. I think I will stay around for a while, maybe. I get to come to Fomu more?!

AP: What’s on the map for you these next few months?

TM: I’m definitely playing as much as I can in Boston, and I’m trying to write a bunch of new music. But I’m not the kind of person to plan. I’m just gonna put out a ton of stuff. I figure why wait? I’m going back on tour in April with Kidaudra for the month. And until then just playing shows around here. I’m on a label hunt right now, and I’d like to get on one as soon as possible. But you don’t just hop on that. I’m just trying to hustle. I would say music, in my eyes, is 60% hard work and 40% luck. You just to need the right people, and have the right person hear you. I’m just trying, that’s all I’m doing.

AP: I have one final question for you. If you have to pick one high school superlative for Holm, what would it be?

TM: For Holm? Damn. Let’s see. If you asked this question to somebody else, they’d say most likely to be crying. I always get those reviews! But I don’t know. Probably… most likely to be in the woods hangin’ out with pandas (laughs). That’s something I’d like to do.

AP: And what about Sports Coach?

TM: Sports Coach? Most likely to be hitting the weights. Just weight room and protein shakes. That’s the Sports Coach life.

AP: And Thatcher May?

TM: Most likely to be on the floor in the music room. Sleeping. 

Sports Coach plays a *free* show Friday, January 23rd at Cafe 939. Catch him alongside Strange Mangers, The Owens, and Ruller. Show starts at 8.p.m.