Fuel The Scene Magazine Issue #4: April 2018 by Fuel The Scene Magazine

ISSUE #4 | APRIL 2018

IN THIS ISSUE 2

THE EDITORS’ LIST: KICK ASS BANDS THAT YOU SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW Smoke From All The Friction, Desired Redemption, Venus Invictus, Obsidian Darling, Embrace The Forever, Edenskiss

COVER STORY: KEVLAR INTERVIEW

KEVLAR “AFTERMATH” EP REVIEW

OBSIDIAN DARLING “IN THE DARK” EP REVIEW

EMBRACE THE FOREVER “REMEMBER // SURRENDER” ALBUM REVIEW

INTERVIEW WITH NEW YEARS DAY AT LOUDER THAN LIFE ‘17

SHOW REVIEW: NIGHTWISH DECADES TOUR

VOICES “RESURGENCE” ALBUM REVIEW

INTERVIEW WITH VOICES

SHOW REVIEW: THE BLISTERING TOUR Hallow Point, Raimee, Blackwater Drowning

CREDITS

FESTIVAL PREVIEW: CAROLINA REBELLION 2018

Thank you to all of our contributors who make this dream possible and are actively working together to breathe life into the live music scene that we all love. You are the fuel that keeps the music alive. Editors | Rei Haycraft, William Dibble, Kristy Streyle Photographers | William Dibble, Kevin McGee, Terie Shaver, Rei Haycraft, Gary Carota, Connor Schlosser, Lola Marie Writers | William Dibble, Rose Estrada, Rei Haycraft, Savanah Ruiz Designer | Rei Haycraft / Revenant Images Founded by | Rei Haycraft, Jaton Blaney, and Kristy Streyle

All band promotional photos submitted to us are copyright their respective owners, please contact each band for more information.

THE EDITORSâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; LIST OF KICK ASS BANDS THAT YOU SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW SMOKE FROM ALL THE FRICTION Rock/Pop from Raleigh, NC Smoke From All The Friction, based in Raleigh, NC, blends traditional and underground cultures to create a moody, electronic pop vibe with industrial undertones. Their sound grabs listeners with both a sense of familiarity and a striking curiosity. Inspired by the ideas of tension and friction, they seek to explore what happens when we venture outside ourselves, past the abstract social constructs that create barriers between us. They offer captivating vocals and a unique variety of musical styles that will leave you always wanting more.

@SmokeFromAllTheFriction @Smoke FromAllTheFriction Photo credit: DISQO VOLANTE

DESIRED REDEMPTION Metal from Kernersville, NC In October 2014, Mac and Dee Masters invited a few friends and musicians over to jam a couple nights a week, but as time went on and the creativity flowed, it became clear that the group had to use their collective talent to create their own original band. Since then, Desired Redemption has become a force to be reckoned with in the North Carolina scene.

@desiredredemptionband reverbnation.com/desiredredemption Photo credit: Loflin Audio & Video

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THE EDITORS’ LIST OF KICK ASS BANDS THAT YOU VENUS INVICTUS Melodic Metal from Charlotte, NC Venus Invictus, an experimental band on the rock-metal continuum. is comprised of Amanda Tattermask (vocals), Josh Wright (guitar), Jim Saj (drums), and Harlynn Spectra (bass.) Last year, Venus Invictus released a mixtape entitled, “Miscellus Consigno” which featured three songs including the band’s debut single, “Let’s Not Lose Our Heads...”

@venusinvictus @venusinvictus venusinvictus.bandcamp.com Photo credit: Kevin McGee Photography

EMBRACE THE FOREVER Alternative/Indie from Stanly County, NC Embrace the Forever is an independent, alternative band from Stanly County, NC. The ultimate goal of the music is to impact people and help them understand their value. A central theme of all the songs is to expose and be transparent about the flaws within each of these five young men, to ultimately give a message for people to push through the negativity that life carries to understand that pain can be used to drive purpose.

@embracetheforever @embracetheforever embracetheforever.com 2

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SHOULD ABSOLUTELY BE LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW OBSIDIAN DARLING Rock/Pop from Raleigh, NC Obsidian Darling, a four-piece based out of Raleigh NC, combines silky and sultry vibes with crunchy guitars and a thumping rhythm section to create a new brand of rock/pop. Powerful sounds and masterful transitions make their blended set of well known covers and unique originals a mustsee. Obsidian Darling’s debut EP, “In The Dark,” is now available on all major platforms.

@obsidiandarling @obsidiandarling obsidiandarling.bandcamp.com Photo credit: Kevin McGee Photography

EDENSKISS Hard Rock/Metal from Gastonia, NC In its genesis EdensKiss was a collaboration between vocalist Amanda and guitarist Jason. After the two had written a few songs they approached long time friend and guitarist Mikael about the project and the core was defined. Once songs were recorded they began immediately to get noticed both locally and regionally. After playing and recording with an array of bassists and drummers they finally found the missing links in drummer David and bassist Jeff. Now they have begun their all out assault on the venues of the east coast.

@edenskiss Photo credit: Kevin McGee Photography

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COVER STORY / INTERVIEW

KEVLAR Rei Haycraft spoke with Erie, PA natives KEVLAR as they prepared for the release of their newest EP, “Aftermath.” about the album, lyrical and musical inspiration, recording process, and how they translate those concepts to visual forms. Images provided by KEVLAR.

For the uninitiated, how would you describe Kevlar? NICK: Always a good question. Modern hard rock with progressive influences, if we had to label it. KELCI: I never put us in a box, though. When you think of bands that we relate to, we always say that we’re a mix of Paramore and Nothing More.

What do you hope that people take away from hearing your music? KELCI: I think that people hear realness in our music. A lot of music that’s out there right now is very safe, or written just to be written, and feels fake. It’s really easy to write a rhyme, in my opinion. I think that people take away that this is very real for us. And the words I’m singing and the music we’re playing is very emotional and very real and people can connect to it.

What would you say makes Aftermath stand out from your previous releases? What parts are you the most excited about? 4

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NICK: We’ve grown as musicians, as

songwriters, and even from a production standpoint we’ve stepped it up. This is just the next step in a great direction. Not to say our former records weren’t as good, but there’s a lot of energy to this one. It’s a really brooding record, when you get into it. We put everything on the table with this record, moreso than we have in the past, we just really dove in musically and lyrically and everything and put out the best music we could with this. We really put our heart and souls into it. KELCI: For me, the last two record don’t even compare to this one. This is the most real record that we’ve ever put out. On the last two, a lot of the songs lyrically were just stories that I had written, which doesn’t make them any less meaningful, but with this record every single song is about something that I’ve gone through personally. The whole record is very angry, very broody, and everyone can hear that from the minute the record starts, in the music, the lyrics, everything. I think that’s what makes it the most real, both to us and the outside world.

That shows a very vulnerable side to us and it’s been very freeing. I love being able to tell my story and I love being able to connect with other people through stories that I tell about personal experiences that I’ve gone through and hearing others have gone through them as well. And being able to hear that I’ve helped people through the music—through the lyrics that I’ve written—that really means a lot to me and that’s the only reason why I do Kevlar in general. It’s been amazing. Not to say that the stories haven’t done anything for people, ‘cause they have, but it’s been nice to write a clean, very personal record. That’s a different level of intimacy with the fans, too. They get to really see what makes you tick. And that’s a scary place to be as a performer, but such an amazing place to get to with your fans. KELCI: I think everyone responds to an emotional, raw record. Any record that comes out, regardless of who the artist is, people are gonna respond to it. And that’s what we hope they respond to with Aftermath.

INTERVIEW BY REI HAYCRAFT PHOTOGRAPHY BY KARL PFEIFFER

Tell us a little bit about the writing and studio recording process for Aftermath— where did you record, who produced it, and what was your writing process? NICK: We went up to Metro 37 Studios in

Detroit, Michigan, and we recorded with Nick Sampson. And awesome, talented, incredible individual.He has worked with bands like Asking Alexandria, Born of Osiris, Polyphia—you know, a lot of the modern, progressive metal bands. We heard about him. In December of 2016 when we were getting “alibis” together. That’s when we first ventured up there, testing the waters with that single which obviously made it on to the record. A lot of the songs we had written before then, a lot of the parts anyway, and a lot we did come up in the studio. Nick was really instrumental in helping us achieve the sound we were looking for with this record. He’s probably the best producer we’ve ever worked with and we had a really fun experience with him. What made you choose “Dark Horse” as a cover to include on this record? NICK: When we were first starting this incarnation of the band, since Kelci was our first female we had. We were trying to figure out a cool cover to mix in with our originals, and it came down to “I Kissed a Girl” and “Dark Horse” both by Katy Perry. For me personally, i always liked the brooding, heaviness that Dark Horse has, plus I’m a huge Katy Perry fan. So, everyone agreed to try Dark Horse and then we played that at every single show for the past three years—more than that, since Kelci first joined the band.

I want it now.” So then finally when we went into the studio, we were like, you know what for the hell of it, let’s record it and let’s put it out as a single. We put it out as a single last year and then we thought, why don’t we just throw it on this record so people can have it?—so it’s there as a bonus track because, why not, right? NICK: Except in today’s age, you can’t really do a “hidden track” anymore. Like you can’t hide a track on a record. I like how it is but it would have been so much cooler if we could have hidden it and then the people listening to it would be like, “Oh, cool, Dark Horse is on this, too!” But that’s just my personal preference.

Tell us a little bit about the music video for “Alibis.” That is such an emotive song and so is the visual representation—can you tell us a little bit about the song’s inspiration and what you hope fans take away from the video? NICK: We have a friend here in Erie, Zach Kubiak, who is a super talented director and we started pitching ideas to. There’s actually a little fun fact, he ended up being the main, antagonist in the video! He was the male actor because we were scrambling trying to find people. Actually there was the one girl, Cameron, who was the leading actress. She drove like two hours all the way from the west side of Cleveland just to be in the video. She was awesome, she did a great job. It was just one of those things that we just, everything just kind of aligned, and it just worked out. This was one of those videos

where everything really just came together and it probably came out as perfect as we could have hoped for it. The whole visual was just very strong. Obviously, the band part was on point. We went out to an old field where they were about to put up houses and we did that part, it was fun. It was actually still nice out, we did that in the middle of December. If you know anything about Erie weather, is that we have maybe three months of good weather, then everything else is really, really like snow. So, we lucked out. KELCI: Kubiak’s company is called Prophesied

Design. He did a great job. We had a lot of fun. Basically the video and song concept is just that you’re in a relationship that is just pushing, and pulling, and pushing and pulling, and you just can’t get out of it. I don’t want to say it’s an abusive relationship, because it’s not abusive but my favorite line from that song is, “We’re fighting like we’re loving the abuse.” Again, it’s a song that comes from my personal life and it, you know, just about the personal struggles that I went through at the time and have still been going through and just, you know, personal life things. Do you all find that finding the ways to represent your ideas visually is easier or harder than performing the songs live? KELCI: Much harder for me. NICK: I mean, for me I guess those are two

KELCI: We included it on the record, though,

because it was one of the songs that resonated with everyone at every single live show. After every single show people would come up and say, “that Dark Horse cover was so badass, when can I buy it and where can I buy it?” And we would always tell people, “Oh, it’s just a cover that we play live you can’t find it anywhere—we’ve never recorded it, we never done anything with it, it’s just something we threw together and that we play live.” And for the first two years, people are like, “I wanna buy it, I wanna buy it, and FUEL THE SCENE MAGAZINE

COVER STORY / INTERVIEW different ballparks. Not to say that one is harder or easier than the other, but just for me it’s an entirely different mental process. All four of us have been playing live whether in other bands for probably close to the past ten years, if not more. And so, you know, it’s almost just kind of like a nature. Whereas when you’re sitting there trying to come up with an idea for a music video or a lyric video or whatever we decide to do, you just kind of sit there you kind of pull things together, and it’s a very collaborative process. Everyone is just kind of, “You all, we’re going to do this video for this song and let’s come back together in a month to see what everyone has.” And you sit down and have the big group session where everyone’s just like, “That ideas cool, but I don’t know about this idea.” And be okay, well that’s cool, and just a constant ... a very creative conducive pushing and pulling. KELCI: I think live, anything goes. You can do anything when you’re playing live, especially because of individual effort. So, if I want to go on stage and I want to hang off a balcony while I’m singing, I can do that. There’s no rules while we’re playing live, you know?

But, if we want to make a music video, there’s a lot of different elements that have to be followed. What is our fan base gonna like? What’s the meaning we’re trying to get across

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in this video? What are everyone else’s ideas? You know? It’s two different ballparks entirely. You’ve talked a little bit about your connection to some of the songs, but for each of you, is there a single song that stands out as your favorite on this record? KELCI: That’s so hard. Everyone keeps asking us that question, and I don’t know. NICK: Every song for me has their own

different meaning. Obviously, for me, as the drummer, there are some songs that are just kind of like, “Oh, well this song is cool” but this song has that one part where I really get to go at it, or I really get to lay down into the groove. KELCI: That’s okay. I think that my favorite song to play live right now, because we haven’t played any of these new songs live yet, has to be Dark Horse. I think that everyone gets into it. I think that anything goes, and it gets rowdy. So right now, my favorite song to play live is Dark Horse.

However, my favorite song off this record, Aftermath, as of right now, would have to be For What It’s Worth. It resonates with me a lot. It resonates with what I’m going through at this point in time. I love screaming a lot, so that bridge where there’s a scream... I love riffing off that and just yelling. So that’s definitely my favorite song on the record right now.

That brings me to another question: as a vocalist who’s adept at both clean, melodic vocals and harsh vocals, how do you balance the two? How do you decide which is gonna come out more in a song? And do you have any advice for vocalists who want to do the same thing? KELCI: Honestly, if I had a choice, I would be screaming all day long. I didn’t originally ... that wasn’t my original intention to be screaming. I think that I’ve always had a passion for the harder sort of music. That’s what I grew up listening to. But I could never do it. I had always practiced in my bedroom and I could never do it. I was always embarrassed. One day we went to the studio for Alibis, actually, and Nick, our producer, just forced me to do it. He was like, “Just do it, just yell. Just do it.”

And I did it, and I found out I could screech. And from then on, I don’t want to stop doing it. I love doing it, and I think it’s so much fun. And it adds so much more emotion into a song. I think that, if I had a choice, I would stick with what I’m doing now, adding a little bit of a harsher tone, but keeping that melodic essence, but still adding the screams every now and then. As far as advice, the best advice that I could give it not to be embarrassed, because I was embarrassed for so long. And that’s what stopped me from doing what I wanted to

do. I felt like I couldn’t do it, and I was ... I hate that but I was embarrassed to do it in front of people because I didn’t think that I was good enough, or I didn’t think that I was doing it right, or anything like that. So my advice would be to get other people’s advice and keep working on it. And take vocal lessons, I don’t know! Yeah, don’t be embarrassed and just do you, man, because you never know what you’re capable of. I sure as hell didn’t. Now did your producer give you any tips on like the techniques for screaming and to protect your voice? Or have you just figured it out? KELCI: No, no, no no. I taught myself how to sing, and then I taught myself how to scream. So all that, how to protect and do all that, that was all on my own. The internet is a wonderful thing.

Are there any songs that didn’t make the cut for this record? NICK: Surprisingly, we had a ton of ideas and we had probably a folder of 10 or 15 parts of songs or whole songs. But we didn’t really have any, like we recorded this song but it’s gonna be a demo or something in the future. Everything that was written and finalized made it onto the record. KELCI: Yeah, everything made it.

So the big question, what’s next on the horizon for you all? What can fans look forward to? NICK: The biggest thing on the horizon right now is we’re playing Rocklahoma Memorial Day weekend ... that’s gonna be fun, it’s gonna be one heck of a drive. It’s gonna be a really fun tour we’re trying to get together for that. I know we’re still in the process of trying to get dates for that, and I’m not sure where that’s all at. coming out May 18th. That’s when Aftermath is coming out. We have a show coinciding with that here in our home town, Erie, at Sherlock for anyone in the area or anyone who might try to come, we’re running this thing where at the door you get a free CD when you come to the show. And I know there’s tons of planning, things up in the air. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes from what I can tell. But I’m just the drummer. I don’t know half of anything that goes on.

KELCI: Yeah, pretty much like her said: May

18th, we have our CD release party at Sherlock. May 26th we play Rocklahoma, and that’s it. What advice would you have for other bands starting out in their own local scenes. What advice do you have, and what do you think will help keep live music thriving? NICK: One of the things, that’s unfortunate

in the music scene here in Erie. There’s a lot of people who sometimes get big heads and start thinking they’re better. Just stay humble. I think that’s a huge thing. Definitely respect amongst in the band, definitely having a very mutual respect in the band. From the words of Dave Grohl, “You gotta be good at what you do. You gotta be badass. You gotta play live. Nothing else matters..” That’s one of my favorite musical quotes of all time from him. And as long as you’re good at it, people will recognize that. It doesn’t matter how many headlining shows you have or how many bands you’re opening up for. In a sense, it helps, but really, if you want to make it on

your own, just do your thing and do it well. And people will be attracted to that creativity and that confidence. I think that’s a huge thing. Just the idea that a lot of these people are like, “Oh, I want to be on the cover of Modern Drummer Magazine,” or “I want to be headlining stadiums.” And a lot of people are like, “As long as I can play my music, I’m happy.” But if you can go up on stage and do that, and you can play well, and you can get people to recognize that you’ve done what you want to do, then you’re set. If that makes any sense. KELCI: I would just say that it takes a lot of work and it takes a lot of dedication. Respect yourself and respect others. At the end of the day, just remember to keep your integrity. NICK: That’s a good one. KELCI: ‘Cause that’s all that really matters. That’s pretty much it.

Awesome. Thank you guys so much for taking time with us today! KELCI: Thank you so much for having us!

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EP REVIEW

WRITTEN BY William Dibble

KEVLAR

Aftermath

hen somebody mentions the state Pennsylvania, a few things usually come to mind. The Amish, the Steelers, Philadelphia are a few such things. Metal isn’t one of the first things you think of. But up-and-coming band KEVLAR aims to change that. Hailing from Erie, PA, they’ve toured with some of the biggest names in contemporary metal. Their new EP, Aftermath, releases in May, and we’ve got the scoop on that vicious album right here! The album opens with the song “Seems to Happen a Lot.” The main riff is augmented with an electronic backing sound. Hard, heavy, and dissonant, it pairs well with the singer’s voice. Singer Kelci Margaret switches seamlessly between screamed and melodic vocals. The song really lends itself to slam dancing and hardcore dancing. It ends by trailing off into some quiet vocals before launching into “For What It’s Worth,” a fast, catchy tune. Kelci’s voice draws you in and keeps you listening throughout. The guitar riffs between the verses are fast, precise, and fit perfectly, before dropping into an absolutely crushing breakdown two and a half minutes in. KEVLAR cut their teeth on tours with metalcore bands, and it absolutely shows.

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keyboards and synths throughout the song, adding another layer of sound on top of the track.

“Alibis” marks the album’s first single. The video for Alibis debuted in 2016, and the song fits perfectly into Aftermath. A poignant piece about abuse and toxic relationships, it also features diverse musical sounds ranging from cleaner guitar sounds to intense breakdowns. The song is also singular in that it features almost no screaming at all. It also feels like one of the most personal songs on the album. “Overdose” makes up for the lack of screaming, if you missed it in “Alibis.” While it might not feel as fast-paced as “For What It’s Worth,” “Overdose” is every bit as heavy as the first two tracks on the album. Also of note is the presence of persistent

“Cold” is a much softer song than anything else on the EP. Focusing on clean vocals and guitars for most of the song, it lends an almost post-hardcore feel to this part of the album. While it does feature a breakdown, the breakdown somehow feels softer than the others on the album, and doesn’t disrupt the softer tone of the song. Aftermath closes out with a cover of Katy Perry’s “Dark Horse”. A heavy metal twist on a pop song, it would not be out of place to imagine this appearing on a volume of Punk Goes Pop. It is an excellent cover that lends KEVLAR’s sound and attitude to their imagining of the song. Aftermath is an excellently composed and recorded album and really showcases a combination of consistency and growth. KEVLAR is consistent in their drive for quality metal, but has grown in terms of composition and sound. It will definitely be a highlight release for this band, and showcases some of their best traits and skills.

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ALBUM REVIEW

REVIEW BY WILLIAM DIBBLE PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF OBSIDIAN DARLING

OBSIDIAN DARLING In The Dark R

ock is a relatively young genre, but that doesn’t stop it from featuring an extremely diverse range of sounds. These can range from the extremely heavy, like death metal and deathcore, to soft and even acoustic groups. Obsidian Darling’s new EP, In The Dark, falls on the latter end of the spectrum. Releasing on 19th April, 2018, it delivers seven tracks of beautiful, entrancing sound. In The Dark opens with “Used To Be,” a song that starts off with the soft beat of drums and a clean guitar. The haunting question “You haven’t seen my face in a while, have you?” is the first lyric of the album. “Used To Be” is a song about who we are at our core, and how that changes through time. It explores

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“Logan Christopher’s vocals are at once hooking, delivering the full emotion of each line with massive effect.”

where we come from and who we become, and how this changes how others view us. Logan Christopher’s vocals are at once

hooking, delivering the full emotion of each line with massive effect. “Music Box” is the EP’s second track. It starts off considerably slower with a musical melody reminiscent of the song’s namesake. Obsidian Darling demonstrates a superb understanding of the direction that this new sound tends to take the song. Logan’s vocals continue to bestow emotional meaning onto the song, delivering

lines like “I don’t care about anyone else” in a way that will leave you feeling like you and her are having a deep discussion about the nature of love. In “Diamond Mind,” a slow and atmospheric rock track, Obsidian Darling draws upon metaphors for the body that compare various bodily functions to gems. Obsidian makes an appearance in metaphor again (it also appears in “Used To Be”). “Diamond Mind” takes full advantage of its ambience to help deliver its colorful visual imagery, with a subtly reverberating chorus declaring that “there is nothing left to hide.” “Max” is a bit of a faster rock song, coming closer to what we traditionally think of as rock. “Max” implores someone to not leave the singer here, as they are not so strong without whoever they are speaking to. A bouncy, energetic piece, this song makes a good midpoint to the album. That isn’t to say it is somehow better than the rest of the songs, so much as being distinctly different.

In The Dark closes with “You Poison Me,” a mostly acoustic song that closes the album on a note that sounds very much like it opened. The song feels like it is about toxic and potentially abusive relationships, with her insisting that she is her own person and that her partner, whoever they are, are poisoning her. “If you take what’s yours, you will be taking all of me” is one of the repeated chorus lines. Again, Logan’s voice delivers these lines with a stunning emotional strength that draws you in and helps you feel just what the song wants you to feel. Obsidian Darling has achieved something amazing with In The Dark. While the songs would not have been out of place in the late 90’s on the radio, they also sound immediate and relevant today. The clarity of the audio along with the uniqueness of their sound is something that many bands take years to achieve. It is definitely an album you do not want to miss.

“Pale Rider” starts off with greeting a friend, wondering when the singer would see them again, before launching into riffs and chords reminiscent of some of the 90’s grunge movement. The galloping guitar will have you drumming and tapping along. “Pale Rider” is distinctly heavier than the first four tracks, including “Max,” but doesn’t change the essence of Logan’s vocals or the mood of the album. Instead, it demonstrates that Obsidian Darling is fully capable of writing and performing a variety of songs and styles. The sixth track, “Heavy,” is not actually the heaviest track on the album. It does, however, continue the trend started in the fourth song of faster, more guitar-centric songs. Like the rest of the album, the instruments remain distinctly separate and audible, never muddling up the vocals or each other. The song features the line “intoxicated by the sound,” which is accurate for how you will feel after listening to this EP.

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ALBUM REVIEW

REVIEW BY SAVANAH RUIZ PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EMBRACE THE FOREVER

EMBRACE THE FOREVER

Remember // Surrender

the negativity that life carries to understand that pain can be used to drive purpose.”

mbrace the Forever speak their truth with debut album Remember // Surrender. This album is raw, expressive, and sends a message. Embrace the Forever is a fivepiece independent alternative band from Stanly County, North Carolina.

“Glass House” is a track that shows the most potential with its lyrics and instrumental skill. The mix of harsh and clean vocals also add dimension to this track. Musician KD7 was featured on the track, making it stand out from others on the album.

With their music, Embrace the Forever’s goal has always been to impact people, and this album shows their path to that goal. One track in particular, “Interlude,” is a compilation of news broadcasts, making listeners reflect on the current state of our country. According to the band, “a central theme of all the songs is to expose and be transparent about the flaws within each [of us].” This album reigns true to that statement, showing their flaws without letting these flaws define them. Remember // Surrender covers an array of topics, such as depression, breakups, social injustice and acceptance, and truly allows listeners to look into the lives of each of the band members.

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Remember // Surrender lets people see the true colors of Embrace the Forever, while also giving listeners a chance to reflect on themselves and find their own value despite their flaws. While Remember // Surrender isn’t perfect, it shows a fire within the band to connect with people through their music. It is clear that this band still has a lot of growing to do, but this album shows their potential as well as their passion for music. Formed in 2013, Embrace the Forever has been an outlet for these five men to try and give others hope, and in their own words, “give a message for people to push through

Overall, this five piece shows promise with Remember // Surrender, and shows that they want to make music for the benefit of others through their own experiences and life lessons. Embrace the Forever just released their first music video for new track “Distracted,” and you can find more Embrace the Forever on their website www.embracetheforever. com, and listen to Remember // Surrender on iTunes, Spotify, and more.

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INTERVIEW

NEW YEARS DAY

Rei Haycraft got a chance to chat with Ash Costello and Nikki Misery of New Years Day after their set at Louder Than Life 2017 about their new album, bucket list items, music video inspiration, and how they approach creating unique cover songs.

Rei Haycraft here with New Years Day here at Louder than Life! They just got off stage a little while ago after a killer set. How has your festival been thus far? ASH: It was so good, yeah. Kentucky fucking killed it. That was the most people with the most energy we’ve played to in a while, and it couldn’t have gone any better really.

So you all have been touring nonstop, you’ve been on Warped, headlining Warped, and what has that been like? This is not your first Warped, you’re festival veterans at this point, so what has it been like this go round? ASH: Well, when you start a band and you’re a kid—you know I started New Years Day when I was teenager—you dream of making it to main stage Warped tour, that’s one of your ultimate goals, so we got to do that this summer. ...It was hotter than I thought it would be. It was really hot.

It was awesome, you know we conquered it. That was one of our bucket list things and now we want to start playing these types 14

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of festivals more, this is, we call it playing with the big kids. Because you know you’ve got Rob Zombie, Ozzie Osbourne, so many amazing bands here today and not only is it an honor just to be included but to have it go so well is just like I feel like I could fly right now or like catch a baby, either or. . Now that you’ve crossed a lot of things off your bucket list this year it feels like... Your recent performance at the AMPAs was fantastic. ASH: Thanks! We’ve always wanted to perform at the AMPAs, we finally got to do it. We’ve always wanted to tour with Lzzy Hale, we’re on tour with Halestorm right now. Next, well, we are in the studio writing the record right now, so we’ll see.

That was going to be my next question. It’s been two years since Malevolence came out, so next record, new music? Ash: Well, we just left the studio with Mitch Marlow who has done In this Moment, He is

Legend, so many other amazing bands, and we just did an EP, and that’s how we played fucking Hostile today, because it’s a cover song EP and that’s one of the songs. We’re going to be releasing the EP next month. It’s going to hold everyone over until the album, because we’re really taking our time perfecting the album. This album is really important to us, so instead of being on someone else’s schedule, we’re on the album’s schedule. The album will tell us when it’s done, and that is when it will be done. We don’t know right now, but look for the EP. When is that going to drop-ish? Ash: Next month, we don’t like to reveal all the songs on it, but I can reveal that we did do a recording of the Garbage song we did with Lzzy Hale who sings on it. She’s fucking amazing. Wait til you hear the vocals she laid down on the song, holy, she’s an alien, I don’t know. Then fucking Hostile and some other surprise songs, so we’re really excited about

INTERVIEW BY REI HAYCRAFT AND KRISTY STREYLE PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEVIN MCGEE

that, because Pantera is one of collectively our most favorite and most listened to band. You all do a lot of “Pop Goes Punk”-type covers, which is awesome. What is that process like for you? What’s your inspiration when you’re looking at a piece has either inspired you or you enjoyed and want to cover? NIKKI: It’s weird because I think it changes every time, like I’ll sit there and go through songs and start playing them. I’m like, “I really like the lyrics on this one, this one has a spooky sound.” I don’t know. ASH: I think when we pick a cover song, you know as we all talk about it, and we pick the cover song, our first question is New Years Day had written this song, what would it sound like? That’s where we start like you were talking about, how we put our own spin on it. You know we’ve covered Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance, we’ve covered My Chemical Romance Sleep, Marilyn Manson Mobscene, Depeche Mode Enjoy the Silence, and now what we’re actually doing for the first time

a legitimate cover song EP, and I think everyone’s going to be really stoked on the songs we chose. I’ve always been extremely impressed with the way you all handle covers, because I want to hear how you would’ve written it. ASH: We don’t want to do karaoke, that’s not what we do. I’d be so fucking pissed if it sounds just like the song, I don’t want to do that. When you all did that My Chemical Romance song, my heart exploded. ASH: You know what, I recently met Gerard Way. We are writing a song for New Years Day together for the next record. I got to go to his house and sit with him, and he goes, “Well what’s the highest note you can sing?” I was like, “To be honest, and I’m not just saying this to kind of plug it, the highest note I’ve ever sang was when I covered your song sleep.” He goes, “You did?” I’m like, “Did you not listen? Did you not listen to your own tribute album man? Listen to it.” He’s like, “I’ll go listen in the

other room.” I said, “Yeah, go.” He never told me if he listened to it or not. I wouldn’t be able to like listen to myself covering his song with him there. I’d be like, “I’m going to leave the room, you listen to it, and I’ll come back later.” ASH: Dude, he was just so cool. He was so cool. It kind of like, when we got into the room with him, it felt like we had known him. Like we clicked, so it was cool, it was awesome.

Oh, that’s fantastic. Other than the album coming out, are you going to do any other music videos for Malevolence? ASH: No, we’re all wrapped up with Malevolence now. We’re going to be releasing a music video for the Kehlani song, Gangsta. It’s so fucking badass. It gives me chills to think of it. We really went above and beyond making sure the music video looked identical down to the lighting and angles of the Suicide Squad Harley Quinn and Joker scenes. He’s Joker, I’m Harley Quinn, we’ve got Two-Faced over here. I’ll let the other characters be surprises. It comes out next

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INTERVIEW

month, super stoked on that one too. I love hearing your vocals taking on different styles and showcasing your ability—what is that like for you, taking on styles you wouldn’t normally sing in? Ash: I was just telling the guys, my voice right now is in the best shape its ever been in. I’ve never been so confident, and so strong. I think it’s because I just did the EBF cover songs, and I had to try out so many new techniques, and new ways of singing, I would’ve never tried. It really expanded my vocal range. I was like, “Dude, why haven’t I been doing this sooner?” It was a stretch, and it was kind of exhausting and trying times, and sometimes I was a little shy about it, and I would always tell the producer if I fuck this up, I’m sorry, I’m just

APRIL 2018

INTERVIEW BY REI HAYCRAFT AND KRISTY STREYLE PHOTOGRAPHY BY GARY CAROTA

going to go for it, we’ll see what happens. It turns out really cool, so especially on fucking Hostile, I mean having a girl cover a Pantera song, especially one as gnarly as fucking Hostile, we were really taking our time with how we were going to approach it. I think we nailed it. I agree and I can’t wait to hear the EP that’s coming out, and everything else that follows. I know you can’t tell us many secrets, but is there anything for the fans watching at home to look forward to? Things to get excited about? ASH: Kehlani Gangsta music video, there’s going to be some music videos for the EP songs, all the EP covers are fucking sick. I mean there’s so much coming out to look

forward to, even before the end of this year. In the next year, our album. Awesome. Any words of wisdom from each of you for the fans back home? ASH: Here we go. NIKKI: Let it be, let it be. Speaking words of

wisdom, let it be. I really had nothing, that was a stretch, I feel really bad. ASH: We’re New Years Day and just let it be. [laughs] All right, thank you much for taking some time with us and have a great rest of your festival! NIKKI: Thank you so much for having us. ASH: We’re so happy to be here.

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SHOW REVIEW

REVIEW AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY REI HAYCRAFT

NIGHTWISH THE DECADES TOUR at The Fillmore in Charlotte, NC

ightwish, the legendary symphonic metal band from Finland performed at The Fillmore in Charlotte, NC as part of the bands “Decades: World Tour 2018.” Upon entering the venue, each eager fan was greeted with a free copy of the newly released 2-Disc ‘Decades” album. The energy in the room was palpable as the nearly sold out venue buzzed with excitement. As the band’s extended multimedia intro began and a narrator’s voice reminded the show’s patrons to put away their cell phones and enjoy the reallife experience in front of them, and many fans immediately obeyed. The first person to enter the stage was Troy Donockley, who serenaded the room with a collection of parts of “Swanheart” on his traditional pipes. As the beautiful intro drew to a close, the remaining members entered the stage two by two; first Tuomas and Kai,

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then Marco and Emppu, each greeted with roaring cheers from the crowd. When Floor finally took her place on stage, the crowd erupted in applause and the band jumped seamlessly into the beginning of “End Of All Hope.“ The bands’ musicianship was flawless, despite not having played many of the songs live in over 10 years. The nearly twohour concert was filled with old favorites and new songs, juxtaposed with beautiful multimedia animations, narrative elements, and video that perfectly complemented each song. The band was all smiles and laughs as they took a signature bow before interacting with fans and exiting the stage. The crowd, still mesmerized by the incredible performance, cheered long after the band had left the stage, unwilling to accept the end of what had truly been The Greatest Show On Earth.

SETLIST Intro (Swanheart instrumental) End of All Hope Wish I Had an Angel 10th Man Down Come Cover Me Gethsemane Élan Sacrament of Wilderness Dead Boy’s Poem Elvenjig Elvenpath I Want My Tears Back The Carpenter The Kinslayer Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean Nemo Slaying the Dreamer The Greatest Show on Earth (Chapter I-III) Ghost Love Score The Greatest Show on Earth (Chapter IV-V)

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APRIL 2018

SHOW REVIEW

NIGHTWISH AT THE FILLMORE CHARLOTTE PHOTOGRAPHY BY REI HAYCRAFT

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APRIL 2018

SHOW REVIEW

NIGHTWISH AT THE FILLMORE CHARLOTTE PHOTOGRAPHY BY REI HAYCRAFT

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EP REVIEW + INTERVIEW

VOICES

Resurgence

t cannot be overstated that music is, at its core, art. Much like painters carefully selecting their palette or sculptors digging through a junkyard for the right looking scrap metal, musicians have to make choices in how they craft their sound. Sure, there are the choices in instruments, amp settings, and production; however, there is also the choice of which elements from the wide world of music are to be used to craft the song itself. Each musician pulls from their influences, building upon, imitating, and/or reconstructing what has been done to bring forth their vision into the world. Music is, in this way, a collection of elements brought together to create a greater whole. So what happens when incongruent elements are forced together? One would think the song would fall apart. Voices, a metalcore band from Indianapolis, seems to have some thoughts on the subject in their new album, Resurgence.

The band consists of six band members. Drake Dell and Tim Snoddy are on guitars, with Greg Hill and Dale Rich providing bass and drums respectively. Rounding out the roster, the band has two vocalists, Clint 24

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plays. This fades into another ethereal chord more reminiscent of an ambient album that a metal intro, after which there is a return to the hectic distorted guitar chord progressions accompanied by guttural screams. The chorus then introduces the second vocalist who provides melodies that are not just clean, but almost pop influenced in their delivery. Finally, right as the chorus ends the song goes back to the ambient styling of the intro for the beginning of the second verse before repeating the pattern sporadically throughout.

Simpson and Blaine Gaiser, who provide earth shattering screams and clear melodic vocals. This is interesting because while the dual vocalist set up is fairly common in the modern post-harcore genre, the effect here feels inherently different in how they fit within the context of the band. The song “Demons” starts with a faded ambient guitar lead, contrasted with an ethereal note which rings throughout the intro. This is interrupted by a EDM-like tremolo effect which leads into the song proper, which consists of a djent style rhythm riff over which a melodic guitar lead

At first listen, it can come off as overwhelming or erratic, but upon a second listen one can identify a method to the madness. The ambient guitar lines become the distorted melodies over different parts of the song. The frantic rhythms and energetic screams contrast with the softer parts and more conventional singing. The elements themselves seem incompatible, but the finished product works. The whole EP plays like this for the most part, switching between genres and conventions throughout each song for dramatic effect and joining together elements from djent, metal, pop, ambient, and EDM. The only exception is “Worth (Keep Me Blind),” the

REVIEW AND INTERVIEW BY ROSE ESTRADA PHOTOS PROVIDED BY VOICES

aggressive and thrashy second song in the EP, which is written more traditionally and therefore stands out in its conventionality. Adding to the effect is the production. Rather than the tight, clear, and often times raw production of most modern metal, there is a feeling of space to this album. The soundscape feels larger and even a bit distant at times, which helps the songs sound larger than life and something one could easily get lost in. Voices has blended together parts where they usually wouldn’t fit and created something to not only listen to, but admire. For those who may not know who you are, how would you describe your band, your music, and your live performances? VOICES: Voices is a six piece Medicore band from Indianapolis,Indiana. Our music is is a blend of metal, pop, and post hardcore that make for a pretty interesting combo and our live show is pretty straightforward with some solid energy behind it. You recently released Resurgence, your latest EP. Listening to both that and your previous release The Device // The Fallout from 2014, there are some pretty big differences in the songwriting and production. Were there changes that you went in knowing you wanted to make to your sound? Or did it all happen naturally as you went along writing the new album? VOICES: Going into the new album Resurgence we knew we needed to make some changes. We really wanted to step up our musicianship on this album and we wanted to create some

very interesting yet catchy songs. Before we entered the studio we scrapped an entire EP’s worth of material because we all agreed it didn’t show any growth from the previous record. What is your favorite song in the new album and (if it’s not the same) which is your favorite song to play live. Why? VOICES: Personally, my favorite song on the on the record is “Back to Life”, I feel that it’s hauntingly beautiful at times but still delivers a punch. The lyrical content was something I had never really touched on in-depth before hand. To be as open as I was with this song was rather cathartic. As for our live shows, I think my favorite song to play would be “Worth”. It has an energy to it that just gets me pumped. In between all the dynamics, the frantic rhythms, the contrast of high and low energy sections, and the overall production, it is almost a workout to keep up with everything going on. Were the songs as challenging to write? Also, what was the hardest song to complete? VOICES: I think the songs were all kind of challenging to write because the process required us to step out of our collective comfort zones. We only had small ideas going into the recording process so we had a lot of fleshing out to do while in the studio. It made for a really fun and interesting process. It really helped having our producer Brian Thorburn giving us additional ideas and direction as well.

You guys took a bit of a hiatus to do some restructuring coming back September of last year. What was the hardest part of that process of setting everything back up? What was the best part or the part you’re most proud of having accomplished as a band? VOICES: I think the hardest part was just the time it took to get everything back in place. We worked really hard in finding members that we matched with and members that were on board with the direction that we wanted to take the band. For me, I’m the most proud of the fact that we were actually able to accomplish the restructuring. Sometimes those things can lead to the death of a band so it was really awesome that Voices didn’t become a causality of that. One of the first things you did after coming back with the new lineup was a video for your cover of “Mercy” by Shawn Mendes. It was a great choice but I’m wondering why you chose that song out of all the plethora of songs new and old that could be covered. VOICES: What it really boils down to is we were already working on the album and we knew that the fans wanted to hear what Voices was going to sound like with the new members. There was a lot of skepticism going around social media and we were aware of that. So we decided that instead of rushing the new material we would do cover. “Mercy” was making its rounds on pop radio and we thought we could definitely do something to make the song not only a good product for Voices but at the same time something the new fans could grab onto.

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INTERVIEW

REVIEW AND INTERVIEW BY ROSE ESTRADA PHOTOS PROVIDED BY VOICES

What is the best show you guys have played? What made it special?

Other than that we filmed a video a few weeks ago that we are putting a lot of work into at the moment. And we have started talks about the next album as well. So at the moment our hands are full, which is a great thing! Having overcome challenges that have broken up bands in the past, what advice do you have for bands who are either starting out or going through a rough time (hiatus, losing members, etc)?

VOICES: I think, to date, with the new line up, our best how was our Album Release show on Jan 22nd. We had a lot of people come out to support the release, great bands on the bill, and the atmosphere of the evening was great. Now that you have released your album and it is being so well-received, what is next for the band? VOICES: Music videos, working on the next album, touring, etc. The next steps for the band are securing shows outside of Indianapolis, which has been kind of difficult without the help of a Booking Agent. A lot of emails sent with no responses puts a damper on the excitement but I think that’s part of it.

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VOICES: I would say if you are serious about the band and your heart is with it than keep pushing for it. The biggest thing to know is things like that take time and you should NEVER settle! But, again, make sure your heart is in it. What “thing” do you want to talk about that you never get asked about during

interviews? This is your chance to tell us everything you want to say on whatever subject you choose, so be sure to give it some thought! VOICES: Most of the questions we get cover our talking points rather well. I will say that being an independent band takes a lot of hard work, time, and money. I feel like sometimes the scene is taken at face value and a lot of people don’t realize the amount of sacrifices struggling independent bands make. Just know that every time you share a bands post on social media, show a friend their music, come to a show, buy a T-shirt or even put a song on a playlist it means the world to the bands. Without the support of the fans we wouldn’t be able to do what we love.

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REVIEW AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAMES GEISER

HALLOW POINT, RAIMEE, & BLACKWATER DROWNING At The Somewhere Else Tavern in Greensboro, NC

BLACKWATER DROWNING Charlotte-born metal outfit Blackwater Drowning self describes their sound as, “Not yo’ Momma’s metal,” a mantra that they have proven to be resoundingly true. Blackwater Drowning is currently preparing to release their second EP entitled, “Ruthless,” close after their music video for “Violent Ends.” facebook.com/blackwaterdrowning instagram.com/blackwaterdrowning

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RAIMEE Greensboro, NC melodic hard rock band Raimee tows the line between hard rock and melodic metal with intricate musicanship and soaring vocals. Raimee is currently in the studio recording their second full-length album, due to be released early next year. www.raimee.com facebook.com/raimeemusic instagram.com/raimeemusic patreon.com/raimee

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HALLOW POINT Based out of St. Louis, Missouri, Hallow Point is heavy metal band determined to make their mark on the industry. Hallow Point infuses modern day melodic hooks with the songwriting progressions reminiscent of their forefathers in metal, Metallica and Lamb of God in their newest release, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Beyond Our Name.â&#x20AC;? facebook.com/hallowpointmetal www.hallowpointmetal.com

APRIL 2018

SHOW REVIEW

HALLOW POINT, RAIMEE & BLACKWATER DROWNING AT THE SOMEWHERE ELSE TAVERN

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SHOW REVIEW

APRIL 2018

HALLOW POINT, RAIMEE & BLACKWATER DROWNING AT THE SOMEWHERE ELSE TAVERN

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