Coffee With Creators: Craig’s Limit
Featured above from left to right are bassist Brooks Arthur (he/him), guitarist Tegan Recker (she/her), drummer Jesse Nolan (he/him), and vocalist Kayden Hauke (he/him).
This time around for our Coffee with Creators series, we sat with the Greater Cincinnati punk rock band Craig’s Limit for a deep dive into their journeys as creative beings. The band consists of an eclectic bunch who all met in high school and played Dungeons and Dragons together: drummer Jesse Nolan (he/him), bassist Brooks Arthur (he/him), guitarist Tegan Recker (she/her), and vocalist Kayden Hauke, (he/him). Our time with Craig’s Limit shed some light on what it means for them to utilize creativity through music as a way to express themselves and build community. Music has a unique way of touching people. It can bring people together through shared experiences or affinity for just plain, fun, loud noise.
The name Craig’s Limit was born from a long-forgotten joke between band mates in their high school days, which is a result of the interesting places just one conversation can go. Our conversation with Craig’s Limit followed a similar rhythm, taking creative turns and winding down introspective paths. The band members of Craig’s Limit share the belief that creativity and making music are something that they need to be a person in the world. The compulsion to create resonates within each of them and brought them to collaborate and play together. Creativity is deeply embedded in the lives of each band member, whether that be through a sheer human impulse to create, a release of self-expression, or a mutual humor. Drummer Jesse Nolan (he/him) said it frankly with a laugh: “If I don’t make music, I’ll just shrivel up and die.”
Through their music, Craig’s Limit has a calling to communicate freedom of self-expression and to encourage people to be the best that they can amidst living in an imperfect world. They see punk rock as an anti-authoritative genre that makes a fuss for the sake of “sticking it to the man.” Punk rock points fingers at injustices while also cultivating a sense of community between people facing those injustices. Craig’s Limit is not afraid to be direct and confrontational in their music about the injustices that they and others experience to show that they are not afraid to go against oppressive structures and social expectations. There’s a sense of intimacy that comes from listening to a song and thinking, “Wow, I’m not the only one who has felt this way!” What moments have you connected with others or your community through music? If you had all the creativity in the world to make a song, what would it be about or what would it feel like? What would YOU scream about?
The art of not trying so hard and leaning into raw DIY aesthetics is a tenant to the beliefs of the members of Craig’s Limit and also punk rock in general. Creativity and “not trying so hard” go hand-in-hand when it comes to saying what needs to be said before you change your mind. When facing difficult things in life, it’s possible to feel forced into a box or silenced. Craig’s List has reminded all of us that a good foundation for creativity (and a good ol’ scream about your feelings) can go a long way to build confidence in yourself as a creative being with raw self-expression that’s worth playing-with and sharing.
Check out Craig’s Limit on Instagram and Tik Tok @craigslimit for fun content and information about upcoming shows.