Hires sees his fans multiply as his music matures

“I’ve been on tour since the beginning of the month and it’s been fun,” he says during a phone interview from his Florida home. “It’ll be nice to get a little rest.”

Hires has been working nonstop for the past six months because he’s gearing up to release his sophomore album, “This World Won’t Last Forever, But Tonight We Can Pretend” in May.

But first, the Florida native is supporting his EP, “Forever,” which was released in February. The EP is a lead-in to the album, he says.

“The four songs will be included in the album,” he says. “It’s been a while since my debut album and I wanted to release some songs to get a feel of how people will react. I also wanted to remind people about my music.”

Since his debut album in 2010, Hires’ music has appeared on various TV shows including “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Cougar Town.”

His current single, “Restless Heart,” appeared on “Grey’s Anatomy” this season and has become an adult radio hit.

“I feel like the songs have matured a lot since my first album,” he explains. “The songs still have the singer/songwriter heart of the first record, but I wanted to give the songs a little more of an edge.”

In the nearly three years since his last album, “Take Us To The Start,” Hires says he’s been writing and collaborating with other writers.

He got the opportunity to work with producer Eric Ross on his debut album.

“When we made the first record we had just met but with this album we’ve been friends for about four years,” he says. “We’ve become close friends so it made the recording process much smoother. It’s like we’re an old married couple in the studio and know what we want to get out of music.”

On his latest tour, Hires snagged the opening slot for labelmates and radio mainstays Matchbox Twenty. Hires says the band was a favorite of his growing up.

“What’s been great is that the guys are all great to me,” he explains. “It’s kind of surreal to know that I’ve been listening to them for almost my entire life and here I am getting an opportunity to share the stage with them. It’s a really cool experience and I am looking forward to the rest of the tour.”

After the tour with Matchbox Twenty, Hires says he will continue to tour and even go out more when his sophomore album comes out.

“There’s nothing really set in stone right now,” he says. “The festival circuit is coming up pretty quickly and I’ll be on some of those. I just want to get out to as many places and give them my new music. It’s been a while since my last album and it’s great to see that my fans are still supporting me.”