sailor’s talk magazine ISSUE 7 | FEBRUARY 2016
TOOTHGRINGER MARIANAS TRENCH SIKES AND THE NEW VIOLENCE + MORE
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STAFF
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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF // FOUNDER // PHOTOGRAPHER // ART DIRECTOR JAKE LAHAH DESIGN ASSISTANT // TIFFANY CHACON PHOTOGRAPHY CONTRIBUTORS // ALEXA FRANKOVITCH, BROOKE LONG, CAITLYN WILLARD, JAKE LAHAH, KRIS KOELEWIJN, PENELOPE MARTINEZ, RYAN STACEY, TIFFANY CHACON WRITING CONTRIBUTORS // ALEXA FRANKOVITCH, KAMNA TALWAR
INFO
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WEBSITE: sailorstalkzine.com CONTACT: jake@sailorstalkzine.com GET CONNECTED FACEBOOK: /sailorstalkzine/ TWITTER: @sailorstalkzine INSTAGRAM: @sailorstalkzine TUMBLR: sailorstalkzine.tumblr.com
SPECIAL THANKS TO: AUSTIN GRISWOLD, SECRET SERVICE PR, AMY SCIARRETTO, ATOM SPLITTER PR, COLOR TONGUE, SIKES AND THE NEW VIOLENCE, MISS MAY I, TOOTH GRINDER, MARIANAS TRENCH, RACHEL MARTIN, TOTAL ASSAULT, + MOST IMPORTANTLY, YOU!
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TABLE OF CONTENTS ON THE COVER
MISS MAY I // 20
COLOR TONGUE // 6 SIKES AND THE NEW VIOLENCE //10 MARIANAS TRENCH // 12 TOOTHGRINDER // 16 ALBUM REVIEWS // 18 GALLERY END // 30
COLOR
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st LOCAL SPOTLIGHT
TONGUE
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What year did the band form? Technically this lineup was formed in January of 2015 but some songs were carried over from our previous band “Nonsense.” Ray (our keyboard player) was part of that lineup a year before the change, it was originally formed by me (George) and Eddie in 2008. We started writing music together in college and have kept at it since. Where did the name Color Tongue come from? A bad popsicle stick joke How did you all meet? Eddie and I met in college at Sacred Heart University. Ray was a friend of a friend who we knew had superior musicality and came on as our keyboardist (even though he can play all of our instruments better than we can). Joe, our drummer, was the result of a fateful Craigslist ad. You say your genre is psych-pop. For those who don’t know what that is, how would you describe it? You could also call it Garage Psych-pop. It’s always difficult to narrow your music to one genre. If you want to create something truly original, you never want to be defined with a singular label, you know?. I’ve always admired what bands like WEEN have done in terms of really spanning the gamut of genres, but we’ve seemed to find a good home blending energetic performances with eerie but catchy melodies.
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If you had the chance to choose a band/artist to tour with, who would it be? Ideally we’d love to tour with a band like POND from Perth, Australia. That whole collective of musicians are responsible for the likes of Tame Impala and Mink Mussel Creek. I think they’ve really helped in a big way towards the resurgence of psychedelic rock and pop. Correct me if I’m wrong but George you are from Rye, correct? How did you like growing up in the 914/Westchester? Yep, Rye Brook actually! It was a great place to grow up, but I wanted more in terms of music venue accessibility. I really love that places like the Capitol Theatre and Garcia’s have come back to Port Chester to give the residents of Westchester a place to see live original music without having to go into the city. I’m hoping for more venues to follow suit. I wish they were around when I was in high school! Where do you guys hope to be as a band in the next 5 years? Hoping to get on some festival circuits, We’ve been to Bonnaroo as patrons several times, it would be nice to be on the other side someday :) photos and interview by Tiffany Chacon
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st RECOMMENDS
SIKES AND THE
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st RECOMMENDS 2015 was the year of changing expectations within the music industry. Bands fell apart, made comebacks, and switched sound completely, all to the surprise of everyone paying attention. But most importantly, bands broke the genre standards. Take Twenty-One Pilots for example: are they hip-hop? Are they rock? Are they some sort of strange indie rap metal? There’s not a definitive answer; all that is known is that they, along with multiple other bands, are paving the way for a grander genre of music diversity in the coming years. One such band following in their footsteps is Sikes and the New Violence. Lead by Pittsburgh, PA native Brian Howe, aka Sikes, the group defines themselves as “alternative hip-hop,” though they are definitely a bit more complex than that. With lyrics both written and vocalized by Sikes himself, the songs are backed up by singer Mandy Montgomery whose gorgeous, velvety voice melds perfectly with his raspy banter. Besides great vocals, Sikes’s newest album I’ve Seen Better is mixed with edgy beats, punky guitar melodies, and even some rough screams that move the music away from simple hip-hop to a multifaceted piece of work. With Billboard chart toppers streamlined within specific genres of music, Sikes and the New Violence is truly someone to check out in 2016; they melt together genres, and when stirred together with some great lyrics, their sound makes for one you definitely don’t want to miss. photo and words by Alexa Frankovitch
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SHOW REVIEW
Marianas Trench HEY YOU GUYS!! TOUR REVIEW AND PHOTOS BY ALEXA FRANKOVITCH
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From the moment I walked through the front doors of the venue, it was clear that Marianas Trench was going to put on a fantastic show. Completely sold out, the room overflowing with people; the barricade removed so that there was no separation between the audience and band; Michael Jackson playing loudly over the speakers. The fan base ranged from young to old; fifteen year olds dancing on the floor with their parents jamming out in the balcony. The band took to the stage, clad in leather pants and shimmery jackets with vibrant LED lights illuminating everything. The venue erupted and they began their show, playing a few songs before stopping to introduce themselves. Now I’m a big fan of the pop-punk genre, but I had never really listened to Marianas Trench before this. I knew the name and made sure to watch a few music videos before heading out to the show, but I truly wasn’t sure what to expect. With that being said, you need to see these guys perform live. Beyond the show being visually spectacular, the performance was spot on. Josh Ramsay’s pitch perfect vocals work both alone and in perfect harmony with Matt Webb, Mike Ayley, and Ian Casselman, in a way that puts every other boy band to shame. Each song was performed with
the same high energy, proving to the audience that everyone on stage was giving it his all. In addition to the performance, Marianas Trench consistently interacted with the audience at every chance possible, from cracking jokes to calling out an audience member who looked like their friend Dean from Theory of a Deadman. They poked fun at one another, as well as people in the crowd, and offered the mic to the audience on more than one occasion to allow them to sing along. Everyone jumped and danced around to songs like “Stutter” and “Pop 101” and listened reverently to “One Love” and “While We’re Young.” They encored with some fan favorites, as well as the gorgeous, harmony driven “End of an Era” as the appropriate finale. Even without knowing any of their music, Marianas Trench put on a show that I would not only recommend but absolutely attend again myself. Everything about the performance was top notch and the energy made the entire show an absolute blast. These Canadian rockers definitely know what they’re doing. Be sure to check out Marianas Trench’s newest album, Astoria, available now.
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Toothgrinder’s sound is varied and draws on many spectrums of music. What genre do you consider Toothgrinder? Toothgrinder is just metal. We don’t label it with any sub-genre name because that would just be limiting us. We don’t approach song composition with some pre-determined sub genre of metal in mind, and that’s why I feel like our product comes out with a varied spectrum of sound and influence. Who are your top three-five musical influences? Tool, Between the Buried and Me, Pink Floyd, Mastodon, Meshuggah 2015 was a monumental year for Toothgrinder. What moments from last year stick out for the band? Some of the shows we did on tour stick out the most. We played one of our sickest shows ever down in Orlando in February 2015 at this place called BackBooth. Justin crowd surfed all the way to the back of the venue, climbed the balcony and jumped off during a solo vocal part in one of our songs. Also driving straight across the country from NJ to San Diego to start our tour with The Faceless and After The Burial.
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The first time I saw Toothgrinder was at the Lanes, opening for I Killed The Prom Queen and Whitechapel. A lot has changed between then and the latest time I saw the band, supporting After The Burial and The Faceless. How do you think Toothgrinder has matured, both musically and stage presence-wise, over the past few years? We have learned a lot about what we can do from a song composition stand point. We honed in on a sound. We found the ability to make our songs come full circle, with powerful chorus’s but still being able to have an experimental feel throughout our tracks. From a stage presence standpoint it has just been the hundreds of shows we have played. Just that experience of big and small stages/crowds all over the country has weathered us. How was the writing and recording process for your latest release, “Nocturnal Masquerade?” It was awesome. We all collaborated on song writing over the course of several months. We had the luxury of using our rehearsal space in conjuction with Pro Tools, which allowed us to keep jumping back and forth and continually hearing our product as we
built songs. Then once we hit the actual studio we really dug into this songs and fine tuned them. They really came to life! What were the intentions that the band had for the latest release? We wanted to write an album packed full of killer songs that really stuck with our fans through the years. We didn’t want any filler material. We wanted to focus on keeping every bar of music interesting to our listeners. There is a a very wide range of instrumentation on this release. Who and what were your influences while writing this album? Some notable influences across the band would probably be Tool, Mastodon, Between the Buried and Me, Meshuggah, Faith No More, Dillinger Escape Plan. However, all of us individually have a lot of influences that no one else in the band really shares. I know Wills is a super big fan of The Budos Band and no one else really listens to them. Justin listens to everything Maynard, specifically Puscifer, who no one else really digs into outside of Tool. We also toured with Periphery, The Contortionist and Intervals right before we did a bulk of the writing
for Nocturnal Masquerade and that definitely left an influence on us. How has the response to the latest release been since it dropped late last month? It been amazing, overwhelming at times. Everyone has been so positive, from our general fan base to all the media outlets doing the reviews. It really makes every one of us proud that our first LP is being perceived the way that we felt and hoped it would. 2016 is already busy for Toothgrinder! What are some big plans for Toothgrinder in the coming months? We are hitting SXSW in March which is going to be super rad and I know all the dudes are stoked about that. We got some other big tours in the works, but nothing I can spill at the moment, so you’ll just have to stay tuned! 10. Is there anything else you’d like to add? Just like to thank all of our fans, new and old, for all the support we have received! interview by Kamna Talwar photo provided
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ALBUM R Hands Like Houses // Dissonants Rise Records Release: February 26th, 2015 Put down every other album you are listening too and get ready to hear one of the best releases in 2016. Hands Like Houses Album Dissonants has a 12 song tracklist full of melodies, breakdowns and incredible sound. It has been two year since they released their album Unimagine and they are back at it ever than before with Dissonants. Dissonants starts off with their single “I am” that they released in March, 2015 with a video. This track is still a favourite and was a good choice putting it first to make the listener familiar with the sound right off the bat. Throughout the album we can see that the guitarists Matt Cooper and Alexander Pearson have kept the sound that they are known for but add a little more of a heavy aspect to throughout the album in the slower parts and the breakdowns. The drummer, Matt Parkitny, and the bassist, Joel Tyrrell really hit it off in the song “New Romantics”. They continuously work off each other in the song creating really groovy riffs and making you head bang the whole time. The whole band really comes together in the song “Glasshouse”. You can really tell that the band wrote this song together the way they make every part fit with every instrument. It is by far one of the heaviest albums on the album showing the band’s full potential. The album itself shows the band’s maturity since it is more composed. Compared to past releases, especially their first full length album Groundwellers. Their first album has a much more playful and experimental vibe while Dissonants brings a more honed in aesthetic. Songs like “Division Symbols” and “Motion Sickness” focus on the atmospheric slick and smooth vibe the band brings out. Finally they slow it down with “Momentary” and let Trenton Woodley do his thing. Woodley really shows off his voice in this song, which is one of the stronger emphasis in the album. He starts the song off with his gentle singing, but then quickly changes and show how powerful and filled with raw emotion that his voice can have. Even though that this is a slower song on the album, the whole band still kicks in while not losing the powerful atmosphere the song has. All in all, this album will make you groove along and sing along to every track in the way that each component on the album sees the strengths the band has in their best. Hands Like Houses has really upped their game with Dissonants, which comes out Feb 26, 2016 via Rise Records; make sure to pick it up and give it a listen for yourself! review by Ryan Stacey and Jake Lahah
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REVIEWS Can’t Swim - Death Deserves A Name Pure Noise Records Release: February 26th, 2015
Like Pacific - Distant Like You Asked Pure Noise Records Release: February 19th, 2015
Can’t Swim’s Death Deserves A Name is exactly what Pure Noise Records is all about; the pure noise. Their first studio release is the definition of raw emotion. Can’t Swim has iconic vocals that are raw and rough showing a sense of anger and outrage.
Like Pacific’s Distant Like You Asked shows the maturity and advancement of the band. Being their first release, Like Pacific have strategically showed how to compose thought and attitude into a pop-punk and aggressive album that appeals to all sorts of emotions.
The song is simply an outlet for outrage and frustration. With songs like “Way It Was” and “Come Home,” there is a level of aggression in both these songs in the voice. But it is done in a more punk way than a grungy metal with the incorporation of guitars and drums that clash. These syncopate well with the vocals in a raw pure emotion.
The album opens up with “Richmond” with a straight-forward and in your face lyrical experience from vocalist Jordan Black. It sets a mood and tone of frustration but furthermore questioning. There’s an interesting connection between this and how it relates to the concepts within the album.
The album itself is at a level where it’s not produced in a basement, but not a studio. It’s a nice middle ground between these two medias that this release exists in, and it works well for the band. This album is perfect for those that like something a bit more emo and aggressive without going over the fence with it. Death Deserves A Name is perfect for those that enjoy artists such as La Dispute, Superheaven, and Defeater. review by Jake Lahah
Lyrically, the album touches on ideas of relationships and motives behind actions people have within themselves. Their clever use of lyrics such as “…my body’s a doormat, there is no welcome” in their song “Commitment” are one of the many examples of the use. For a song that expands emotionally on the idea of promise and vow. Songs like “Dim” and “Chine Drive” are a bit more toned back while still holding that threshold of injury in both instrumentals and vocals. It’s catchy and grabs the listener. Overall, Distant Like You Asked is what we’ve been wanting to see from an emerging pop-punk band like Like Pacific. It’s a must listen to because it has something relatable to all listeners in some way shape or form. review by Jake Lahah
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The metal scene is constantly expanding and contracting with new fads, viral trends, and a dynamic juxtaposition of elitism and brotherhood. Few bands rise to fame and solidify their ground in the scene as strongly as Ohio-based metal-core band Miss May I. After years of touring and recent struggles both personally and professionally, the band released their angriest album yet last year and are stronger and more resilient than ever.
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Miss May I has come a long way since their formation in high school, where they met and became close friends. “BJ loved southern music and had cowboy boots, and Justin loved pop punk,” said vocalist Levi Benton. “I loved very emo bands at the time along with Ryan who also loved the 90s. Jerod was in band and just practiced all day.” Their varied personal interests overlapped when it came to the metal-core scene, and they found something that they could all enjoy and create together. “We all had different backgrounds until we all sort of stumbled upon metal-core together and felt that it was something we all could relate to,” said Benton. Miss May I has since released five albums and performed all over the world, drawing in thousands of fans and consistently gaining momentum along the way. Their ambitious energy and exponential growth has made them a household name in the heavy music scene, all while staying true to their original sound and intentions. “It’s all about patience,” explained Benton. “We don’t ever strive to be like anyone else or follow the hype.”
The band has had a mixed balance of headlining or supporting tours and playing huge festivals throughout the course of their seasoned career. Their live performances are energizing and unforgettable whether you are a newcomer to their sets or a recurring mosher. An ominous stack of amplifiers is a visual cue to the audience that Miss May I is a powerful force to be heard, and Benton is an enthusiastic front-man by taking full advantage of the space on stage and the eager captivity of the audience. Benton explained that he aims to be “the best band on that stage that day; I want to play better then whoever is before me and whoever is after me.” Crowd interaction is to be expected at their shows and there is a mutually respectful bond between Miss May I and their fans. Everything from circle pits, walls of death, and stage dives contribute to this interaction. Benton often makes an effort to hop off stage and onto the barricade to get even closer to the fans, which is something that makes the shows a lot more personal. “I make sure every song has its own special moments that don’t repeat in the set,” said Benton. “This makes every song one to remember and for the crowd to talk about.” Miss May I spent another summer on the 2015 Vans Warped Tour, undoubtedly the largest music
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festival in the scene and an industry-wide indicator of a band’s success. This Warped Tour run marked the band’s third appearance on the popular festival and their second time on Main Stage.
“We continue to just play what we like to play and if you don’t like it then don’t come. We have always been true to ourselves and sound,” proclaimed Benton.
“Playing Vans Warped Tour is like nothing else!” said Benton. “There is no where else in the world you can play in a parking lot to 5 thousand kids in 100 degree weather, and while you are playing 50 of your best friends in bands stand side stage,” he added.
Nonetheless, they have showed real musical development throughout their discography. Mainly, their music has matured into a more serious sound.
Miss May I has also played other large festivals, like Mayhem, which caters more to the metal scene.
“I feel each record tells a story of the band and where we were when we were writing,” said Benton. “I think the biggest change is that we are better musicians and it shows through each album.”
“Both tours though have their metal heads that come out for us and we are thankful they come out in the beating sun and rage!” said Benton.
One thing in particular that fans can expect from Miss May I regardless of what is trending in the scene is traditional heavy riffage.
The band’s latest album, Deathless, was recorded by Joey Sturgis and released at the tail-end of summer festival season last year. Sturgis also recorded Miss May I’s first two albums - Apologies Are For the Weak (2009) and Monument (2010) - and Deathless clearly builds on some of the familiar sounds from those previous releases while adding in new layers of maturity previously unheard from Miss May I.
“We will always have riffs. For some reason I feel this is disappearing in metal and it isn’t disappearing with us,” Benton said, “Shred!”
“This is the first time we have been very transparent and angry,” said Benton. “We went into this record in very bad spirits and upset, which was something we have never done before. I am however thankful for that because it showed our fans a whole new side of our band,” he added. This anger and passion fueled a relentless and hard-hitting release that respectfully built on and expanded upon their overall heavy metal sound. The main theme of the album is best captured and represented in the title track. “We went through a lot as a band and it wasn’t easy; we toured a lot and we had a lot of people screw us over personally and as a whole but in the end we still prevailed,” said Benton. Miss May I has always stayed true to their traditional metal-core roots throughout their discography, and Deathless is no exception. Their unique artistic integrity is hard to come by in a scene that is absorbed with emerging trends, and definitely sets them apart from similar bands.
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“Going into the studio each time we go in ready to try new things because of what we have discovered in ourselves on the tours prior... Song structure and musicianship comes with time and I feel we can experiment the more we grow and it changes our records so much from record to record,” said Benton. Miss May I will be embarking on tour with Blessthefall next month as a direct support band. The band also has plans for more global tours later in the year. “We have a lot of touring coming up in 2016 and a lot of awesome ones I cannot announce - worldwide though and maybe a headliner!” said Benton. Yet, even after all of their worldwide tours, an exploding fan base, massive record sales, and overall success in the scene, Miss May I remains humble and proud about their accomplishments. “We just remember that we are the same dudes who started this band for fun and ate Taco Bell while writing heavy songs. That’s what we don’t forget.” story by Kamna Talwar photos by Ryan Stacey
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“I FEEL EACH RECORD TELLS A STORY OF THE BAND AND WHERE WE WERE WHEN WE WERE WRITING. I THINK THE BIGGEST CHANGE IS THAT WE ARE BETTER MUSICIANS AND IT SHOWS THROUGH EACH ALBUM.” - LEVI BENTON
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GALLERY END
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ASKING ALEXANDRIA PHOTO BY TIFFANY CHACON sailor’s talk | 31
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VANNA PHOTO BY RYAN STACEY sailor’s talk | 33
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PHINEHAS PHOTO BY RYAN STACEY sailor’s talk | 35
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GALANTIS PHOTO BY JAKE LAHAH