Bio: Well the band started back in early 2008, and was formed by Dave, Everett, and myself Kyle. We all grew up in the same town and had been friends since we were little kids. Dave and I had been playing together in bands since I was 13. We had decided to not go any further with our previous band and Everett had quit the band he was in. We all wanted to do something new, and death metal is a music we have loved for many years. One night we just got together and started to jam and basically wrote the song Beyond the Darkness.
Genre: Death metal has been a big part of my life since I was very young. It is more than just a hobby; it is a love of mine. It is the way we like to express ourselves musically. I love all sorts/genres of music but death metal is just that one i love, and really embodies who we are as musicians.
Evolution of initial musical and thematic elements: I’ve actually wanted to play drums since i was a little kid. I asked for a drum set every year from age 5 and finally when i was 13 i finally got one. Music is just something I’ve always been obsessed with in many ways. It’s what I found to be my calling so to say. I play every day with or without the guys in the band – it’s what I do. In many ways it is who I am.
Ideas about the album: With our first record I was/am unhappy with a lot of things. I have come to terms with it and realize it is what it is and shows a stage in our lives. I’m not fond of the production and the playing could have been a lot better. With our new record Relentless i really am happy with it all. The performances are tight and production is very heavy. We spent a lot of time rehearsing before the studio and it really paid off! We tracked all the drums, guitars, bass, and Dave’s vocals in 5 days. The producer we worked with, Doug White, is super professional and efficient. I think the record could stand to have one or two little things adjusted but really for the time we spent recording it is very solid and hard hitting!
Reception: So far the reception has been really good. A lot of fans who have bought the record off us have said such nice things about it! Reviews are starting to come in and are positive as well, which I’m always appreciative to hear! I am always interested in hearing people’s opinions on our music good or bad. Luckily it’s been good haha!
Preference; live or studio: We are and always have been the studio band. We love the studio! playing live is fun and completely different but there are so many headaches that follow. The studio is you finally getting to put all your creative ideas together and hear the final results. We are a band that is never short on ideas. We just love to write and explore our limits, and I think our third record will show people a lot more of what we are capable of!
Next step; live or studio: We really are a band that never has played out a lot. We don’t have a steady bassist so that kind of sucks. We didn’t even play a show until like 2010! We have played around upstate NY quite a bit, don’t want to over play an area though, it becomes stale eventually. We did set out on a full US tour this June but our car broke down in the middle, so we did miss a lot of the dates. We are setting up a few shows for these next couple of months in support for Relentless. We also have wrote and are 85 per cent done recording our third full length record. We just need to finish vocals/clips and then off to mix and master. That won’t be released for a while though, we want to give Relentless time to be heard and circulate.
Future plans: Well the future looks great I’d say. I play and push myself as a musician on a daily basis, so the music we will make in the future will just keep getting better and better. That’s more of an opinion but we all look to always expand on our music, we aren’t into making the same record twice.
Lyrics, themes and concepts: Well the lyrical approach for the first two records are very classic death metal. Cannibal Corpse was the first death metal band i heard back in the 3rd-4th grade, and they really had a huge impact on my life. I think with Relentless we made the lyrics more violent and graphic but the same subject matter. Our third record we did change things up. I wrote most of the lyrics as I usually do, but this time are more about personal experiences/feelings. They are the darkest lyrics for the band to date, and very metaphorical. Everyone will be able to find their own meaning in the words, which is something I tried to do.
Composers: Both Visions and Relentless were made with us all siting in the same room and composing. A lot of ideas being pushed around and tried out. Was fun and at times tedious but you get a different product that way. Dave and I are usually the ones that make the music though. With the third record it was just Dave and I who made everything. Usually I make riff ideas and those guys would put it on the guitar for me, but this time i focused more on my drumming. I wanted to expand on my craft so Dave wrote all the riffs and we both arranged the songs. As for lyrics no one in particular is supposed to write them I just usually write most of them and Dave writes one to two songs lyrics. On Relentless we have two songs I think where Dave wrote half the lyrics to a song and gave them to me to finish. God Forgives, I Don’t and Deranged Consecration are both done that way.
Inspirations: So many bands man, and each album they change in the way our direction changes. For our first record it was older Death (Scream Bloody Gore, Leprosy) Cannibal Corpse type of material. With Relentless we were more influenced by bands like Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel and Sinister. Our third record is less brutal but more extreme I’d say. We were more drawn to bands like Decapitated, Hate, Behemoth, Lost Soul and things like that. And I’m sure when we write yet another album again things will change. They are so many new ideas all the time, and we think it’s important to keep pushing forward to make things new and fresh.
Preference; cater to the audience or music for its own sake: I never have tried to cater to an audience; it’s always been for me. No matter if we did or did not release these albums we would have still made them for us. Music is my life regardless and everyone has their opinions, but at the end of the day it’s our record. Don’t get me wrong I love getting feedback and like to hear what people liked and disliked. In the end though I want to be happy with it and i wouldn’t change a thing, no matter what the media felt. Death metal is to me creative freedom, and we will always explore it.
Greatest Accomplishment: My greatest joy has been making music with the people i do. Dave and I have been making music together for half my life! Then there is my brother who is obviously a big part of my life as well. It’s these two guys that have made it what it is. We have released two albums so far and that’s been great. I think I’m most happy with the fact that we have always progressed as writers and players. It’s what we wanted from the beginning and its true today. That’s what I’m proud of the most.
Anything else? I just want to thank anyone who has cared about this band at any point. We all keep this music alive and that’s really important. I’m so appreciative for all the nice words, comments we have received about Relentless so far and please don’t be afraid to contact us via Facebook. Thanks for the interview it’s been my pleasure!
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