Happy Birthday to Halestorm guitarist Joe Hottinger!
Halestorm formed in Red Lion, PA in 1997 when siblings Lzzy & Arejay Hale began writing and performing original music together along with their dad, on bass, Roger Hale. Lzzy started learning the piano at the age of 5, later progressing to the keytar, while Arejay began playing the drums. It wasn’t until the age of 16 that Lzzy started taking guitar lessons. The, then, teens released two EP’s ‘Forecast for the Future’ in 1997 and ‘(Don’t Mess With The) Time Man’ in 1999.
Joe joined Lzzy, Arejay and dad Roger Hale in 2003 with Josh Smith replacing Roger on Bass in 2004. The group signed a recording contract with Atlantic Records in 2005 and released a live EP in April of 2006. It wasn’t until 2009 that we able to wrap our ears around their self-titled debut album. Since then, Halestorm has released 5 studio albums, including their most recent, 2022’s ‘Back from the Dead’. They also released 9 EP’s and 1 live album that was recorded right here in Philadelphia at the Theatre of Living Arts (TLA) on South Street on April 30th, 2010.
Halestorm has achieved much success in a rather short period of time including 11 top-10 hits, 6 of them reaching #1 on the charts and of course, a GRAMMY WIN for their song “Love Bites (So Do I)” off of their sophomore album ‘The Strange Case Of…’.
I have been fortunate to see Halestorm many times over the years all over the country. And if You haven’t yet, and ever get the chance, I highly suggest you check them out!
Here are some of the pictures (and a short video) from my encounters with Lzzy & the Boys – Happy Birthday Joe! -bp
