Bio: Well, Fanticide is a one man band essentially, not unlike a band such as Ayreon…although even more of a one man band. Fanticide has only one core member, being Adami (me). I write all of the music and play all of the instruments (with a few exceptions for solo spots, etc). I co-write vocal melodies with hired singers and generally prefer to compose most of the lyrics myself as well. This album beyond myself and several guest instrumentalists contains seven incredible vocalists from all over The USA. Each singer plays a different role or character as Fanticide albums (first one so far at least) are concept albums or rock operas. I mostly recruited singers with whom I had worked before either in a similar situation or a band situation. In many cases the role of the character was written specifically for the singer. Each singer is very busy doing their own bands such as 4 Without from Chicago, Aura from Los Angeles, Illusion’s Fate from Chicago and P.I.A. from New York.
Genre: I chose the music that best told the story I needed to tell. I generally write epic music, be it metal or progressive music or anything in between, so doing something more theatrical came very naturally. This album, The Fall of Grace, contains a variety of styles from Epic Symphonic Metal, or upbeat pop rock, to prog rock/metal to trippy atmospheric music and a lot in between. I find that if the music tells the story along with the lyrics, then it becomes a completely immersive experience for the listener.
Initial musical and thematic elements: I knew I wanted to write a concept album, and went through several ideas in my head before finally settling on the story of Grace’s decent into drug addiction. I wanted an album that was more about emotion and character than plot. The story was written first, and the music/lyrics written around it.
Lyrics, themes and concepts: This Fanticide record, The Fall of Grace, as well as the future albums I am planning all focus on an emotional journey for a character and the other characters that help guide that journey, for better or worse.
Ideas about the album: I think from a writing and performance perspective, this is top notch. I really am proud of the music, and each vocalist gave such an amazing performance that I would hate to imagine the album with lesser vocals. However the production was a bit rushed due to external circumstances, and while still good, could have been better.
Reception: The people who have heard it have reacted very favorably to it. Sadly I’m not the best at getting it out there.
Next step; live or studio: Much like Ayreon and similar bands, playing live is difficult. Singers cannot get together, and I’d have to hire out musicians to play all of the other instruments that I cannot play. Without a proper budget, etc. this is just not a possibility. I have two more stories developing for future albums, and plan on getting to work once I have the means of recording myself again.
Future looking: Hopefully bright, but this is such a niche style, that I’ll be happy with anything.
Composers: I write all of the music and co-write the vocal melodies. I wrote about 90% of the lyrics, with two of the other singers making some contributions for their specific parts. The story line, characters and so forth are all mine.
Inspirations: Oh man, this could be a long list. I’ll try to keep it short though. Be it stylistic, or conceptual or what have you, I draw a very large influence from bands like Pain of Salvation, Ayreon, Devin Townsend, Within Temptation, Nightwish, Metallica and even artists such as Sarah Brightman and Enya.
Preference; cater to the audience or music for its own sake: All of my music is written for me. I would love for others to enjoy it, but if they don’t…I’ll still write it and listen to it myself.
Want to know more about Fanticide? Visit their Official Facebook Page, their Reverbnation or their SoundCloud!
And here is Lady’s pick from their songs…
Cheers!
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