WHITE NOISE ZINE - ISSUE 9 by White Noise Zine

Issue 9 // Sept 2016

THE MAINE Head out to rock band summer camp

+ eMAROSA + ICE NINE KILLS + The WORD ALIVE + MORE!

White Noise (noun) - A steady, unobtrusive sound, as an electronically produced drone or the sound of rain, used to mask or obliterate unwanted sounds.

S TA F F / /SEPTEmBER Co-Founder - Art Director Crisanne Glasser Co-Founder - Features Editor Danielle Gittleman

Issue number 9! We’re almost at number 10 and we’re definitely don’t have any plans of slowing down anytime soon.

Contributing Writers Melissa Thayer, Casey Wolfe, Gianluca D’Elia, Danielle Gittleman, Ryan Pugh, Emily Klingman, Rebecca Panico, Nicole Cortese

We have a lot of great features this issue! We spent a few days out at Vans Warped Tour and got the inside scoop for you guys. We’ve got a pretty good mix of bands this issue, so definitely check out what all of these bands are doing postwarped.

Contributing Photographers Sheri Berman, Alyssa Kromelis, Crisanne Glasser, Sam Polonsky, Ryan Pugh, Dominique Benedict, Dani Sacco

The summer’s coming to a close, which means that all of the fall tours are starting to gear up and we couldn’t be more excited to show you guys what’s in store for the rest of 2016.

We are currently looking to expand our team. If you would like to become a contributor to WHITE NOISE ZINE, please contact either crissy@whitenoisezine. com or danielle@whitenoisezine.com

Thank you to all of our readers for your constant support! We would be nothing without you. We’d also like to give special thank yous to Vans Warped Tour, The Maine, I See Stars, Ghost Town, Young Guns, Knuckle Puck, The word Alive, Ice Nine Kills, Emarosa, and Can You Hear Me?. We’re constantly working on cool things to include for you guys, so make sure you stick with us and see you in October!

CONTENTS I See Stars

Ghost Town

Young Guns

Knuckle Puck

The Maine

The Word Alive

Ice Nine Kills

Emarosa

Can You Hear Me?

Album Reviews

I SEE STARS

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MAKING MUSIC FOR THEMSELVES Words by Melissa Thayer // Photo by Ryan Pugh

MICHIGAN

based band, I See Stars is celebrating the success of their newest album, Treehouse which debuted this past June. Over the summer, the band, whose sound is often described as electronicore, hopped from city to city along with The Vans Warped Tour. The guys of I See Stars — Brent Allen (guitar), Andrew Oliver (drums), Devin Oliver (vocals), and Jeff Valentine (bass) are definitely no strangers to the tour. Now that Warped Tour is over, the guys have been really excited for where the year has taken them thus far. The reception toward Treehouse has been good, with most fans having thought about it, and saying something about it. Allen said that fans have vocalized not enjoying the album upon the first few listens, but after listening to it more, they found themselves loving different bits that it had to offer. Like any album release, the process is nerve wracking; never really knowing what’s going to happen. But all in all the album has become a hit amongst fans. Despite the changes that the band encountered with this album this time around, not much differed when it came to the writing and recording process. Allen commented, “...we decided what type of band we were going to be a long, long, time ago.” And even going so far to note that, “...every album will be forever different.” Even though the band notes that this album was difficult, it was able to come together thanks to the amazing and talented people who worked so hard to make it possible. Along with the new music comes new videos. The band recently released a video for “Break,” which was inspired by Sinjin Hawke; whose music releases become more of an experience than anything else — one that keeps you guessing as to what’s really happening. The band was drawn in by this concept and hoped to emulate something similar with this new video; something that speaks about the song while also being about them rocking out in a warehouse. “We just wanted to do something unique and get the point across,” Allen explained, and continued on to mention how the opportunity happened to fall into their laps at just the right time which made for something so incredibly interesting and different. As far as new music and videos go, there is still more to come. Though the band couldn’t give away too much, fans can expect to see new things within the year, from videos that they’re whipping up to new singles, the excitement is sure to continue. In addition to some of this new stuff, the possibility of more acoustic songs and covers are not out of the question by any means. Despite what people may think, I See Stars loves all different types of music from country to indie. “We’re going to keep writing records to please ourselves and to give the fans something interesting to listen to,” Allen commented. The fun doesn’t stop after Warped Tour ends, after the tour ends, I See Stars hopes to do some international touring as well as releasing those new music videos and singles mentioned earlier. Allen signed off letting fans know to check out the new record because there’s something for everyone on there. http://whitenoisezine.com 5

n w o T l l t A t s Ho ing i Bar

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WHEN

you think of the words “ghost town,” you may think of dirt roads, abandoned buildings, graveyards, and tumbleweeds instead of an electronic metalcore band, but Ghost Town is here to turn that around. The band played for fans on this year’s Vans Warped Tour and the guys — Kevin McCullough (vocals), Alix Koochaki (guitar), and Manny Dominick (drums) — loved their time on the tour. “[It has been] awesome, there’s really good coffee at catering every single day. I think I’m at four cups today,” laughed Koochaki.” “But, if that’s giving you any indication to where we’re at on the tour, trying to stay awake is a challenge.” The band’s latest record, Evolution, has been out for a few months at this point. The album kind of has a mix of almost everything that goes on at the punk rock summer camp, and fans have been eating it up. “It’s been great. We’re lucky enough that our Ghosts are so open minded, because we put out things that are really heavy, or electronic, or pop, or all mixed together, so there’s just room for us to do what we want, so that’s what we’ve done with Evolution, and it’s been great,” said McCullough. With the release of their album, Warped has been a great opportunity to get new songs out to the fans’ ears. Old school fans who were around in the “Ghost Town Tuesdays” days are in for a treat as well, as the band has released three new songs. “We actually just put out three Ghost Town Tuesday

songs that have nothing to do with the album at all, so some people are wondering if there’s a new album coming out, but anyone who knows this band from the beginning knows that that’s just what we do and we will always do that,” explained McCullough. The band does plan on releasing more “Ghost Town Tuesday” songs throughout the year. Fans have been loving those songs too. Leaving the

“Don’t lose sight of your dream and your vision and it’ll all come true” boys almost aghast, as the songs are not off any album. The set has been one of the most responsive ones the band has had yet. “Some of them we didn’t expect to take off, and some people have even been like ‘Why aren’t you playing that one now?’ We put one called “These Illusions are My Latest Addiction” into the Warped set, so it’s kind of cool to have an extra thing in there,” said McCullough. “We have so many songs to fit in 30 minutes, it’s so hard to choose!” “We have an unreleased song in there too, and some people are still loving it! It’s just the intro to our episodes, so it’s not a well known song at all

and people are singing along,” added Dominick. The songs that don’t make it on to the albums are released under the GTT moniker as YouTube exclusives, how the band actually broke out onto the scene. “We love putting out music, why would we just not? That’s kind of our mindset. Each song is a new piece of artwork, and it adds to the Ghost Town universe,” said McCullough. When it’s time to sit down and write a song, the band has a specific formula that they follow, although it varies for each song. “It depends, we all come to the table with ideas. Things start at the most bare form, and from there we kind of lay electronics on top of it, the drum patterns, and then tighten everything up lyrically, story wise, and it starts with guitar and vocals and everything is built on after that. We inspire off of each other, usually,” explained McCullough. When inspiration hits, it hits in the most real ways. That’s where it’s drawn from. Where does Ghost Town get their inspiration? “Real life situations, and another thing is, our artist, alistairthemachinist, he’s the reason that we work so tightly together and he is actually one of my favorite artist and a huge inspiration to all of us,” said McCullough. “There have been moments where as opposed to him painting a piece of artwork based on one of our songs, it’s the other way around where we write a song based off a piece of his artwork. There’s just so many things to pull from and we interject our real life http://whitenoisezine.com

experiences and it turns into this awesome thing.” Being so open with thousands of people has to be intimidating. But, not for Ghost Town. They take pride in being able to help people with their music and lyrical content. “That’s the thing, the things we’re talking about and singing about are real life things that everybody goes through in life. That’s the connection everyone can relate to, and the fact that people do by coming to the show and seeing it live is the ultimate validation of any artists,” said Koochaki. “To see ‘admirers’ or people who actually admire your art, it makes you feel some type of way. For any artist, that’s the ultimate goal.” “We spill a lot of beans in songs, and I’m surprised people don’t take it so literal because there’s some REAL stuff in there,” added McCullough. Now that Warped Tour is over, Ghost Town has a lot of big plans. Some even overseas. They’re scheduled to play Reading and Leeds, one of the biggest festivals in the UK. The festival is a huge deal for Ghost Town. They’re excited to see how it will compare to the other festivals the band has played throughout their musical

career. “Sometimes it depends. Like, at Warped Tour it definitely feels like we’re 100% apart of this community, but when you’re thousands of miles from home it feels like ‘do they know who we are...?’ but, last time we played Warped U.K., we had a massive crowd. It was insane,” said Koochaki. “It all happened so fast. We look back at videos and are like ‘wait... WE did that?’ It’s crazy,” added McCullough. Ghost Town has had a busy year and it’s only about to get even busier. As for the fans, they’re thankful for being with them every step of the way. They even offer them a word of advice. “Don’t settle for less. If you feel like you don’t know what you wanna do with your life, find what you love. That’s a good place to start,” said McCullough. “Believe it. Don’t lose sight of your dream and your vision and it’ll all come true,” continued Koochaki. “Consistency,” ended Dominick.

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Young Guns

Making Echoes Around the World Words by Gianluca D’Elia // Photo by Tarina Doolittle

The members of Young Guns are from Buckinghamshire, U.K., but they spent their teenage years listening to the same music as any Warped Tour fan from the United States. Lead singer Gustav “Gus” Wood said he used to dream of seeing his favorite artists perform at Warped Tour, if only he could have made a trip overseas to the U.S. That changed this summer though. As Young Guns prepare to release their new album Echoes in September, the rock band has been traveling the states all summer for their first Warped Tour. “We’re not sure what to expect when we do something for the first time,” Wood said. “But everything is going how I want it to go so far. I grew up a fan of this kind of music, and it was always a dream just to go.” Warped Tour is a new experience for the band, but they are no strangers to extensive touring. Young Guns have spent so much time in the states, Wood said they haven’t been back to Europe in three years, where they have previously supported All Time Low and Yellowcard on tour. But Young Guns have enjoyed prolific success in the United States, reaching number one on the Billboard rock chart in 2013 with the single “Bones.” “We’ve done U.K. stuff but in mainland Europe, I think people are confused, thinking ‘are you coming back or what?’” With the release of Echoes approaching, the band will have less than a month off after the last day of Warped Tour before starting their own tour in the U.K. and making stops in Belgium, Finland, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden this fall. By December, they’ll be back in the U.S. again. Wood does not seem to mind that things are moving so quickly for the band lately. It seems like moving slowly is just something Young Guns doesn’t do anymore — the band’s latest album Ones And Zeros (2015) took two years to record, but this time around, the band only needed eight weeks to write Echoes and five to record it. “It’s the fastest we’ve ever written an album, and it has that spirit to it,” Wood explained. “It’s very ‘of the moment.’ We wanted a very alive, organic, urgent-feeling record, and the whole thing is very uptempo.” Wood explained that the writing process was different for Echoes because of changes the band went through this year. “We just parted ways with our original drummer [Ben Jolliffe],” Wood shared. “He was one of the founding members, and we’ve known each other for 11 years so it was a big change. It changed our dynamic — we had less people writing, so everyone was listening to each other more it felt more engaged.” The addition of a new band member, drummer Chris Kamrada, also made the band feel “like we’re starting again,” said Wood. In July, the band released a new single “Mad World,” the second from the new album following the anthemic “Bulletproof.” “It’s kind of a ragey, uptempo song — a lot of the album is like that,” Wood said. The music on Echoes will sound more like earlier material on their debut album All Our Kings Are Dead, which was released six years ago, Wood said. “I can’t believe it’s been just a few years and we’re already doing Warped Tour,” he said, looking back on the band’s achievement so far. “I hope the next six years are as good as the first six. I’d like to think we’re just getting started.” http://whitenoisezine.com

KNUCKLE PUCK STEPPING UP TO T H E P L AT E Wor ds

E mi l y

K l i n g m an

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P hot os

M ol l y

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IT WAS

round two for Knuckle Puck out on Warped Tour

this past summer. With last summer’s experience to draw on, guitarist Kevin Maida said knowing what to expect made the whole experience even better than it was. “It’s been a much different experience, but in the best way possible,” said Maida. “You know what to expect every day, and generally everything is going a lot smoother.” This is also the second summer fans are hearing songs off their album, Copacetic. And despite it almost being a year old, Maida said that even now fans are still discovering it. “It’s weird that it’s almost a year old, it’s like two more weeks and we’re at a year,” he said. “It’s been awesome, just seeing that people are still getting into it, like people are still finding out about the album even though it’s almost a year old.” The album also gave Knuckle Puck a chance to go out on their own and prove themselves as headliners on tours of the U.S., U.K. and Europe last fall. “It was kind of intimidating at first, but finding out what we could do on our own court was a pretty good experience,” Maida said. “It was our first time really not being a support band, so it was cool seeing that transition.” After the year since Copacetic, Knuckle Puck is eager to not only go home and take a break, but also start writing new music. “We’re going to go home and hopefully start writing a little bit,” said Maida. “We are going to have some time off, but we just want to start writing new music again because it’s been almost a year.” Though the band would rather write at home, Maida said they have taken advantage of their spare time at Warped, as it “is a really good environment for that because there’s a lot of free time.” With all that spare time, Maida said he also used it to catch up on some reading and rewatch some favorite TV shows of his. “I like reading a lot,” he said. “I’ve been reading this book called A Light That Never Goes Out. It’s a really renowned Smiths biography.

My friend lent it to me right before the tour. And I usually re-watch The Sopranos a lot.” Some of Maida’s favorite parts on Warped have been looking towards more experienced bands and taking notes for future Knuckle Puck shows. “It’s cool watching people put on a show,” he said. “I just watched The Maine like an hour ago, and it’s cool seeing how fluid their set is. There doesn’t seem to be any bumps or anything. Everything is very fluid and rhythmic and it works. So I try and pick up a lot of stuff like that from older bands who have done the tour over and over again.” Any fans looking to see a current show? Maida with a laugh described a typical Knuckle Puck show as “energetic, but not necessarily violent or anything.” “We toured with The Maine last year and I think a lot of The Maine fans were taken aback by us and Real Friends, who was also on the tour,” he said. “It’s just really energetic, but it’s fun. It’s really interactive.” Maida can easily tell what the fan favorite song is too: it’s “No Good.’ “Like every day that’s the one that basically everybody wants,” he said. “I can tell, every single day.” The Knuckle Puck fans have had an impactful role in the way the band approaches their music and their standing in the community. “It’s kind of crazy that when we meet kids every day, the kids will tell us how much our music meant to us, because that’s what I would think about bands when I was their age,” said Maida. “So it’s kind of, strange being on the other side. Because I still feel like that for some of my favorite bands today. It’s kind of like, I’m still getting used to it. But it’s very cool and we’re very grateful nonetheless.”

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THE MAINE STILL GOING STRONG Words by Danielle Gittleman // Photos by Crisanne Glasser

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The

Vans Warped Tour is known for playing during some of the hottest days of the summer, where fans face some of the most unbearable heat. The Maine, who are Arizona natives, are no stranger to the heat or the Vans Warped Tour. The five piece rock band made up of John O’Callaghan (vocals), Garrett Nickelsen (bass), Pat Kirch (drums), Kennedy Brock (guitar), and Jared Monaco (guitar) had their first release in 2007, and have been going strong ever since. Many might consider the guys of The Maine to be Warped Tour veterans, as they’ve played the tour several times in their career. “It’s been our best experience — or at least my best experience so far,”

said O’Callaghan. And they’ve created quite the experience for fans too — playing every day to a massive crowd, the band played the entire tour wearing blue dress pants and white dress shirts; keeping things a little more formal.

“it’s really cool to just have put something out and people are really excited.” The band always has a lot to offer for fans, having released five studio albums, and a number of EPs, the most recent EP, Covers (Side B), was released at the end of June.

A followup to Covers (Side A), the EP features four tracks including Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself,” and Rihanna’s “Bitch Better Have My Money.” “For us it was important to do something a bit more relevant as far as the covers that we chose,” explained O’Callaghan. “We wanted to do a bunch of different songs but it’s really hard to end up picking because we were like, ‘okay we can pick something from the 90s that we really like, or do we do a bunch of songs that people know or a bunch of songs that people don’t know?’” said Nickelsen. “I think the thing we learned from the first one was a lot of people didn’t know those. They were songs that we grew up with but maybe some of our

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fans were too young to know some of them you know? This time we picked stuff that was more recent.” The guys of The Maine recently celebrated the eighth anniversary of their debut album, Can’t Stop Won’t Stop, and they can’t believe how fast time has flown right by. “I think we’re having — dare I say — more fun now than we ever have,” said O’Callaghan. “I think it’s because we’re stepping into what believe is our own, finally. We have great guys on the road with us that help us and we’ve tried to do that since day one — surround ourselves with great people and just not forget what we’re actually doing and how special it really can be, and is. It makes us feel maybe a little bit old, but at the same

time, it makes us very excited for what’s to come — hopefully in the next eight years of whatever’s next.” “I think the good thing that we feel that it’s flown by. I feel like the most recent record we put out is the most well received by a lot of people. I think it’s really cool to just have put something out and people are really excited and also be like, ‘wow we put our first album out eight years ago how have we fucking done it for this long?’ So it’s really cool, it’s really nice to just feel good about it,” Nickelsen added. The band has a lot of things going for them, one of them being the solidarity within the band. Many bands these days have gone through lineup changes left and right, but The

Maine has been pretty solid. “No bullshit from anyone ever,” O’Callaghan laughed. “Even within the band if someone’s being an asshole, you let them know they’re being an asshole. I think we just found what worked,” said Nickelsen. “I think we found a solid way of keeping everyone in check, and we know when to say and when not to say and I think that’s an important thing,” said O’Callaghan. “We live on the bus eight months out of the year, and we can’t step on toes. And we know when it’s appropriate to say something and when it’s not. I think it’s also really relative. It doesn’t necessarily work for everybody else but it works for us. The core of who we bring out too, is really important and it kind of re-

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emphasizes the fact that we’re all in it together.” Another contributing factor to The Maine’s success would have to be the band’s dedicated fan base, and their dedication back to them. “You couldn’t ask for anything better than this. People that like us are so diehard, they know everything about us, they know and love every song,” said Nickelsen. “People come up to us and they’re like asking us to play some weird old b-side that was just some throw-away song to us and they’re like ‘why don’t you play that?’ and you’re just like, ‘man I completely forgot about that song!’ You couldn’t ask for anything better than what it is.” “They’re creating a community of their own, too, which is really special and important. It’s just wild to see

people apart of 8123, meeting new people and expanding,” said O’Callaghan. “That to us is the most important. That’s the stuff that even after we’re done doing what we’re doing, that’s what will continue and that’s hopefully what we’ll leave behind.” Now that Warped Tour has come to an end, the guys of The Maine are already planning what’s next for them — tucking away and recording yet another album. “We’ve already started it and we haven’t started it together, but I’ve started it,” said O’Callaghan. “Once this tour ends, we’ll go full steam and these will be the last shows of 2016 for us. By the end of October is when we’ll record. It’ll be done, conceivably by the end of this year and then tour in the late spring or something like that.”

While The Maine continues on their path to success, they really do stay humble. They know that the fans have done so much for them already, and the support is incredible. “We appreciate you, man. We really couldn’t ask for a better group of people who enjoy what we do,” said Nickelsen. “You guys come out here and help with everything — you guys are waiting in line for two hours just to meet us. It’s just, wow, it just blows my mind.” “They’re a part of it. They are fully a part of what we do,” continued O’Callaghan. “We think that’s what makes this really work. What we don’t really sometimes recognize is how far away we are from home and people care. And that’s like, incredible and really cool.”

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THE WORD A L I V E

FIGHTING THROUGH DARK MATTER Words by Ryan Pugh // Photos by Crisanne Glasser

Warped

Tour. The punk rock summer camp. Home to all sorts of talented musicians, expressive fans, cool vendors, and more. Someone who is not a stranger to the Warped circuit, however, is The Word Alive’s Telle Smith. Warped is always crazy, but for The Word Alive, it’s been particularly wild. “It’s been crazy. It’s been the biggest summer ever for us on warped, we’re having a lot of fun, there’s obviously a bunch of friends that makes it that much more enjoyable, you know, it’s Warped Tour, it’s the summer camp for band dudes,” said Smith. Since TWA aren’t strangers to Warped, they’ve seen Warped Tour in all different settings and scenarios. Positive and negative. This year has been scaled down somewhat dramatically. There’s a feeling of almost intimacy at Warped this year. The band has embraced it, and the positives outweigh the negatives.“I love the changes that Kevin made this year, less stages, less bands, less vendors, just a quality over quantity mentality, that really makes it so you can kinda get to know more of the bands, make new friends easier since there’s not a billion people,” said Smith. “I think it’s better for fans, the stages are easier to access and they have more energy because things are closer together, so someone doesn’t lose as much energy going from the main stage to the monster zone. So, I think everything about this year is set up for everyone to have a good time this year.” As previously mentioned, The Word Alive are veterans when it comes to Warped Tour. Being a somewhat older band, you get to see the newbies coming up in the scene. You can watch your new friends, acquaintances, and even lablemates grow and shape their sound to what they feel it should be. Warped Tour is a mecca for new bands and can be both an enjoyable experience or an absolutely horrible one. “Some of our friends are doing this tour for the first time, our lablemates Wage War are doing it for the first time, and it’s cool to be a little bit more on the veteran side where fans know we’re

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a band where you’re gonna see us on Warped Tour and we’re not gonna be a disaster just because you’re playing outside, you know?” explained Smith. “But, it’s hard. One day you could play last and one day you could play first, so you gotta always take care of your body, try to not get too run down because it shows. That’s something we try and tell the young bands, you know, early on in the tour you might think you have all this energy but come midway point, that’s when you really see the bands that have done it and know who to pace themselves, versus the ones that are doing it the first time that may have been going a little too hard in one way or another.” The Word Alive released a record back in March entitled Dark Matter. This record has been a gateway to a rapid amount of growth for TWA. This summer has been particularly good for the band, as they’ve had a great reception to the record both online and at shows. “It’s been incredible, you know, one of our favorite songs we’ve written, “Trapped,” was the lead single, it was the fastest song we’ve ever had to 1,000,000 streams, from the first time we played it when it was out people were singing along, we’re like ‘okay, this is new, this is awesome’ and usually when you play a new song it takes awhile, but everything has been so much more organic and faster this time around. People are diving a little more deeper into our band, our previous bands, they’ve been around two, three albums, maybe this is their fourth record, and on top of that, I think these are better songs. So I think if it is your first record with us, it’s more digestible and you can understand what’s happening and if you’re seeing us for the first time and hearing us for the first time, you can comprehend and feel it more. So, we’re really excited, we love Dark Matter and so far our fans do too, so it’s awesome,” said Smith. However, don’t be confused by the artwork and the title, Dark Matter is not about space. It’s a journey into the band’s dark moments and struggles. “Basically it’s a little less space oriented than the artwork may suggest, and more of a dark subject matter. It’s basically ‘here’s what the mood of the album is,’ it’s kind of taking a step on the other side of what our album REAL. was, where the art was a light at the end of the tunnel,” explained Smith. “This is kind of opposite. There isn’t always a light at the end of the tunnel for certain people or certain experiences, certain things just leave you feeling lost, broken and kind of just questioning things. It doesn’t mean you can’t overcome it, but there’s definitely where we felt like we were as a band, a lot of dark subject matter was coming out naturally.

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The way I was writing lyrics, and just the way the music sounded, my writing style adjusted to that and just started coming out that way, so we were just kind of like ‘this is how the album feels.’ Zack had the title track, it was originally just a demo title — we always name things random stuff — and he saw something about dark matter and how it makes up the most amount of substance in the world, I don’t know how exactly it’s worded, but it’s like the most known unknown thing, which is a kind of weird thing to think about. Because, everyone know’s what it is, fully, but everyone knows it does exist. It’s kind of cool thing because we kind of poured all that through our band. People know The Word Alive, but this is kind of another side of who we are, this is expressing that and it just made sense and it felt right.” The Word Alive has some pretty big plans for the upcoming year. Smith’s really excited about them, and we can’t help but assume the rest of the band is as well. “We play Portland, the last show, drive overnight to San Fransisco, then fly out to Europe. We do ten days in Europe I think, some festivals, some headlining shows, and direct support shows to Parkway Drive. Then we finally have a break. Most of September and October we have off, but we have two shows announced now, Rock Allegiance Fest in Philly, and Houston Open Air, in Houston obviously, and we have another festival in October on the west coast and a lot more to come from that. We’re staying busy this year,” said Smith. Smith has this message for all the fans who continue to support The Word Alive. “Thank you for supporting our new record, we got two music videos out for “Trapped” and “Sellout,” go hit the replay button a few times!”

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ICE NINE KILLS

SONGS FOR THE BOOKS Words by Danielle Gittleman // Photos by Crisanne Glasser

Ice

Nine Kills, a metalcore band hailing from Boston, Massachusetts, isn’t your typical metalcore band. With their recent release, Every Trick In The Book, the band took elements of literature and horror movies to create an out of the ordinary metalcore masterpiece. Since forming in 2006, the band is no stranger to the scene. This year, the band embarked on it’s third Vans Warped Tour, making this year their second time playing the full tour. The band, consisting of Spencer Charnas (vocals), Justin “JD” DeBlieck (guitar), Justin Morrow (bass), and Conor Sullivan (drums), loved every minute of Warped Tour. “Is it better than past ones? Yes, it’s the best one we’ve done,” said Morrow. “This is our second time doing the whole tour, we first did the whole thing two years ago but it was kind of hit or miss a lot of the times, Now this year every day has been consistently good — huge crowds, doing really well in merch so I really can’t complain.” It’s been a few months since the guys have released their newest album, Every Trick In The Book, and the album has been received really well so far. “I think people are really gravitating to the theme of it; every song is based on a piece of literature that is something that bands don’t do a lot,” explained Morrow. “So I think that was a cool thing that a lot of fans really latched on to. I know a lot of kids are coming up to us and saying ‘oh I’m going and reading these books now’ and that’s always good because I feel like nobody really reads anymore.” That is something very out of the ordinary that Ice Nine Kills brings to the table. Each song tells a story, based on a story. “The stories we used are classics for a reason,” said Morrow. “They’re timeless stories. Even though they take place 200 years ago I feel like you can find something in there that is relatable to today so I think that’s why people are connecting with it so well.” It’s hard to believe that the guys of Ice Nine Kills didn’t exactly plan out this album of storytelling. In fact, they accidentally came up with the idea. “We were doing a bridge track between records, and we wrote the music for it and we were listening to it and we just thought it had a schizophrenic kind of vibe to it, like it had a freaky chorus and the rest was kind of chaotic so we decided to make it about Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” explained Morrow. They were unsure about the

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track, but the fans absolutely loved it. That’s what kicked off the idea and the band decided to do the whole record like that. Some of the songs off of the album are inspired by The Exorcist, Carrie, Dracula, and of course, Romeo and Juliet. Writing a record with a theme in mind seems like it can be challenging, and Morrow assured that it wasn’t an easy feat. “The real challenge was trying to get the music itself to fit the vibe of the story. The way it sounded lyrically was not necessarily easier, but you had something to go off of.” But will that stop them from writing another record based off of a theme? Absolutely not. The guys love the challenge and will most definitely do it again. “The next record is gonna be a theme record again, but it won’t be books,” explained Morrow. “We do have something in mind that we want to try, something that is a little more ambitious than books. I can’t tell you what it is, but it will be interesting. If we can pull it off, I’ll be really excited.” A lot of the cool things that Ice Nine Kills has been doing over the past few months have been with the help from Fearless Records. The band recently signed with the label, and Morrow noted that without them a lot of this wouldn’t be possible. “It definitely makes things a lot easier. Bands don’t have a lot of money, and if you’re on your own it’s harder to do things, and if you do do things, it’s probably not the best quality like, say, a music video for example. We’ve been signed to Fearless for not even a year, and this is our first record with them, and they’ve been a huge help. We walked into their offices and we had a whole team of people assigned to us and we’ve never had that before,” explained Morrow. “We’d always done everything on our own so it was almost a learning process to learn how to let go a bit, and let people help you. It’s definitely been beneficial they take care a lot of things for us. They’ve helped us get our band in front of a lot more people which is at the end of the day the most important thing. You can make it without a label, you can definitely do it, but it’s a lot harder.” Between signing with Fearless and releasing a new record, it’s been a busy year for the guys of Ice Nine Kills. But, the year isn’t quite done yet, and neither are the guys. They recently announced a headlining tour with Secrets that kicks off in September. Morrow also mentioned that the band has something in November that they’re working on but right now it’s in the beginning stages and he really can share much. As for music, they’re already ready to start working on a new album. “The goal is to have the next record probably by this time next year. Hopefully — don’t hold me to that but that’s what we’re gonna try to do. I would say towards the end of the year we’re really gonna crack down on the next one,” said Morrow. “I do know that before this year’s over we’re gonna do a new single. Possibly, it might be the last song we do based on literature. We might just do one more and then move on to our next concept.” Although Ice Nine Kills are no strangers to the music scene, it’s taken them a while to get the recognition that they very much deserve. “I feel like we’re a band that’s been around for a long time and I feel like this industry can be really unforgiving to bands who don’t get big really fast. They tend to get kind of pushed aside and I’ve seen it happen many times — bands that are really good, they just never blew up fast and everyone just kind of writes them off. Once upon a time we were in that boat and we had a few key people in the industry who saw past that, and believed in us and gave us an opportunity,” said Morrow. “I’ve been in this band since 2009, Spencer started this band in 2004 and just in the last two years we got our deal with Fearless. We’re starting to do really well now and it took us a long time.” Morrow also knows that they band would be nothing without their dedicated fans who have stuck with them through thick and thin, and the band is really grateful. “I know a lot of our fans have been with us for a long time, and I think it’s good that it’s taken us a long time because we’ve been able to build a very loyal fanbase,” said Morrow. “So thank you for sticking with us. Our sound has changed pretty much every record and people will say they love a record from six years ago which is completely different from what we do now, but they love it all. We have a loyal, dedicated fanbase and without that we can’t exist as a band. So, thank you keep coming out.” 32

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Emarosa

Finding Strength in Numbers Words by Casey Wolfe // Photos by Ryan Pugh

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Emarosa, a hardcore band from Kentucky, just finished up the last leg of performing on the 2016 Vans Warped Tour, and what a jam-packed summer it has been. With the release of a new album, and brand new songs to play, the guys of Emarosa had an exciting summer on Warped Tour. Not only were they playing some new tracks, this was the first year that the band has played the entire tour. “The crowds have been three or four times what they were last year,” said Bradley Walden, lead vocalist. The guys of Emarosa were really excited to play the West coast Warped Tour dates because last year, they were only able to play half of the tour and missed out on the West coast. The band was ready for the long haul, however. Walden said, “I could do this all year.” That

didn’t stop them, though. Warped Tour has been different than past tours for Emarosa because the weather conditions are harsher, stage placement is different for every show and press and production are in different locations at each date. The band’s latest release, 131 has been doing really well and Walden was really happy to report that the fan reception has been all around positive. As for the album title, It’s not very often that you see an album with a number for a title, but this one is something special. 131 holds multiple significances to the band. The number is Walden’s birthday, the address where the band recorded the record, and a number that has been “following” Walden his whole life. Emarosa, who recently signed and released 131 as their first release under

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Hopeless Records, said the mere publicity they have been receiving under Hopeless has been a big step from their last records. “We can’t say enough good things about Hopeless. We released seven music videos, which is unheard of, so it’s been awesome.” Walden added that most of their fans have only heard their new songs, which is a positive way to know that people are still listening to them, and that there has been a huge response to 131. Emarosa will be heading out to the U.K. for a tour now that Warped Tour has ended. This will also be Walden’s first time traveling to and playing in the U.K.. They have had endless fan requests to travel to the U.K. and so finally, they are going with the new record under their belt. When asked what songs off the new record they

are most excited to play, Walden said, “Every single one.” They will highlight, of course, the singles off of the album, however, Walden would play all of their new tracks if they had room in their set list. Fans already have their favorite tracks, “Miracle” being one of them. Walden said perhaps that’s because it’s the most recent. He added that “Helpless” is another favorite because it’s been “all over the radio,” and they’ve drawn a larger fan base. For fans that haven’t yet listened to 131, Walden recommends that they do so. “I think that this is the best record the band has made.”

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Words by Nicole Cortese A lot of people talk, but not everyone listens. In a society that revolves around social media, you can have thousands of online friends, yet not talk to anyone in real life. It’s easy to have your voice get lost in the shuffle, but Can You Hear Me? (CYMH?) aims to bridge the gap between just listening and actually hearing what people are trying to say. CYHM? is a non-profit organization made for teens and young adults that are just looking for someone to listen. Upon entering cyhm.org, users are met with a collage of black and white photos, many anonymous, and the haunting voices of those asking for help. “What our site does for kids, it gives them a voice, but for parents I think it educates them,” said Ashley Adler Coro. “It slaps them in the face a little in the nicest way possible. Your kids are talking, you’re just not really listening to them. They might not be talking to you directly face to face, but they’re texting, writing on social media, they’re writing poetry about it, drawing about it. It’s there, we’re just trying to educate people on how to listen.” Ashley Adler Coro and her family have experienced various hardships when life threw them some curveballs. She and her mom, Jessica Adler Coro, started the foundation in September 2015 in order to give kids a voice. “About 12 years ago, we lost my cousin to suicide,” Adler Coro explained. “Since then, we have been trying to do something to make sense of what happened, and also make it so other people don’t have to go through what he went through.” Topics like suicide or addiction are often viewed as a taboo, which caused some bumps in the road for Adler Coro and her mom when it came to bringing this idea to life. “Every time we tried to do something, we were met with negativity or no’s, and no one wanted to talk about it because it was such a dark subject,” Adler Coro said. “We kind of gave up for a little while, but most recently my brother was in treatment for addiction. It re-sparked that need for us to do something for kids.” The idea came about after an important conversation between Adler Coro’s brother, Chase, and her mom after his release from rehab for the second time. “So they were sitting down at dinner, and he was like, ‘mom, I really need you to listen, I need you to hear what I have to say. Don’t formulate answers before I’ve even asked the question. I need you to hear what I’m saying to you.’ He went on to tell her how he was in agony and how he needed 38

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to come home for various reasons.” They found the void that the scene was missing, they put together a business plan and have been non stop since. CYHM? has created a safe space for teens to just talk or write about their experiences, feelings and opinions. “No one can comment on the stories that are shared, so there’s no place for anyone to bully anyone.” When visiting the site, users are encouraged to express their thoughts in creative and healthy ways. Visitors can check out other artists and musicians who are participating, or share art, photography, writing, poetry, and videos. “They can share stories on the website,” said Adler Coro. “Sharing this with their friends is huge. Word of mouth is the biggest thing for us.” As part of their business model, they have included musicians to help them create a safe and comfortable space in hopes to encourage kids to share their stories. This is the first year CYHM? has joined Warped tour, but Adler Coro has previously volunteered with Music Saves Lives during the roadshow. They have garnered a lot of attention from the musicians this summer, including From Ashes to New, who they’ve partnered with for the whole summer doing signings and giving Warped attendees the chance to win exclusive march. “I knew the band As It Is,” Adler Coro said. “I knew Patty Walters pretty well and their drummer Foley. He was the first person I asked to get involved because he’s straight edge and he talks about these things about the struggles. I thought what better of a person to do it than him.” In addition to people sharing their personal stories, they have a teen rep program that kids can join in order to help others. “We have a teen rep group that’s basically a closed Facebook group where kids can sign up and help spread the word about what we’re doing, but also a teen support group,” Adler Coro said. “They’re helping each other out every single day. It’s about 200 kids right now from all around the world with about 10 different countries represented.” Over the past year, Adler Coro has started to notice the impact that her efforts have made. “We have a lot of kids that come around and they’re like, ‘Because of you guys I’m alive today,’ or ‘I can help other people,’ or ‘I’ve stopped harming myself.’ We’ve also had a lot of kids come out to their parents and feel safe doing that because they have something to fall back on — a support system because we always are there for them,” she said. As for the topics of conversation, it can literally be about anything and everything. “Nothing is off limits,” said Adler Coro. “It’s the most broad spectrum of things. We’ve dealt with everything from addiction, self harm, suicide ideation, wanting to come out to their parents, bullying is a big one — just everything.” Their overall goal is to help those who just need an ear and potentially inspire others to help their peers as well. “Honestly, we want them to speak up and maybe eventually not need us anymore,” Adler Coro said. “I would love it if the kids could cycle through and start doing their own things. We have some girls and guys that have gone through, needed all the support and are now making their own things. They’re making Facebook pages and helping other people. It’s going full circle. They have big plans for the next year, hoping to further help people who need it. “We’re planning a college tour in the winter, and we’re gonna speak at colleges,” Adler Coro said. “Kids going into college that first year is the hardest year. That’s our target for the winter and probably back out on Warped again next summer. I want kids to know that we’re here, and that even if it’s not through us, there are other organizations out there that will listen as well,” Adler Coro said. “Just speak up and say what you’re feeling, because you just never know what’s out there or who can help you. Having someone to truly listen to them is huge. We’re just listening. We’re not therapists or anything — we’re just people.” http://whitenoisezine.com

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BAD CASE OF BIG MOUTH

Break It to Build It

U Words by Emily Klingman

M R E V I E

Pop punk fuses together with metalcore sounds to create Bad Case of Big Mouth’s new EP Break It To Build It. The EP blends together the two instrumentally and vocally with metalcore hooks and dirty/growl vocals, and the big band, pop punk sound and clean vocals. The EP opens up with a loud, strong instrumental in the track “We Wasted The Good Surprise On You.” It’s probably the most metalcore track on this EP with nice heavy guitars throughout. The other more metalcore song on the EP would be “Growing Distance,” which also features an instrumental beginning. While the final track, “No Guarantee,” doesn’t have as obvious of a metalcore influence, the opening instrumental features heavy, fast drumming that continues throughout the track. Lyrically, Break It To Build It has some ups and downs. “Growing Distance” has the best out of the five tracks. One line that really connected with me is, “this is a hurricane / you’re wind and I’m the rain / you’ll never know how I feel.” The track also does the dynamic between the melodic and growl-type vocals very well, especially in the first part of the bridge. The track that lyrics were lacking a bit in is “We We Wasted The Good Surprise On You.” Sonically, the track was good, but the lyrics were not nearly as memorable as some of the others on the EP. Another track with lyrics that stuck out to me was “Take Off.” In it, the lines “I’ve had it, I’m done / there’s nowhere to run / its driving me insane,” really grabbed my attention and stuck with me. Overall I thought the dynamic Bad Case of Big Mouth created an interesting back-and-forth dynamic of the two subgenres. The whole EP is used to explore it, and the switches back and forth between the tracks really kept me paying attention the whole time I was listening. As a word person, my one complaint would be that in some of the tracks the lyrics weren’t as engaging as they could have been. I did want them to be a bit better, but most of the time the instrumentals, riffs and hooks brought me back in.

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CITIZEN ZERO

State of Mind

U Words by Rebecca Panico

M R E V I E

You wouldn’t think Citizen Zero’s upcoming album, State of Mind, was their debut LP. The 11 track album, was released August 12, showcases the chops of a band that knows exactly what it’s doing. Josh LeMay’s robust vocals are a highlight of the Detroit-based band and reminiscent of 90s rock singers like Scott Weiland of Stone Temple Pilots or Gavin Rossdale of Bush. What sets LeMay apart is his energy: he packs a powerful punch on every track and gives the band’s sound an extra dose of testosterone. Although LeMay’s voice is a bit nostalgic, Citizen Zero still sound modern and relevant with polished guitar work and just the right amount of effects. The title track of the album — with its opening drum roll, staccato power chords and extracool guitar solo — seems like it’s suited for a NASCAR racetrack rather than a concert hall. Driving to that song will definitely make anyone go a little faster. “Applause And Fame” slows things down a bit, but keeps things interesting with LeMay flexing his vocal muscles over a catchy bassline. “When The Rain Comes” picks things up again with fast runs found in metal and crunching guitars. The album winds down with more traditional rock ballads on “Banging in the Nails” and “Home” — gospel-like background vocals and high-flying guitar solos included. Citizen Zero take some of the best parts of rock music in its broadest terms. There’s a little bit of everything for a rock fan in this band: the 90s, metal, swooning ballads, soaring solos, catchy songs and a fast-paced, modern sound. If you’re not a fan of one characteristic, you’ll definitely appreciate another.

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MY HEART TO FEAR

The Draft

U Words by Gianluca D’Elia

M R E V I E W

My Heart To Fear are back and getting ready to release a new EP titled The Draft on August 26. The long-awaited new release from the Pennsylvania progressive metal band does not disappoint. The band’s last album Algorithm came out three years ago, and The Draft is their first release after signing to Luxor Records. But since 2013, the band, which formed in 2006, has gained even more attention by touring North America with It Lies Within, Norma Jean and In Dying Arms after releasing Algorithm. Each song on this new EP has a different element that pulls in the listener. On “Rent Past Due,” it’s the atmospheric vocal arrangement that swells into the first screaming verse; on “The Draft” it was the quick-paced guitar hook — this track definitely highlighted the guitarists’ skills the most; and on “If It’s Aliens, It’s Not,” it was the drum beat. “Years Gone By,” the album’s shortest track, breaks into a frenzy almost immediately whereas other tracks build up slowly to an all-out, headbanging-worthy jam. This track also offers a different flavor with more intense and abrasive percussion, the best out of the five tracks for drummer Luke Brady. The lead single and closing track “You’ve Been Distant Lately” gives the best preview of what the group’s upcoming music will sound like. It perfectly captures their ability to incorporate screamed verses with soaring, triumphant choruses — vocalist Trevor Pool does both of these excellently. I found that the songs on this album provided a solid balance between melodies and heaviness. The poetic lyrics are a force that drive this EP, especially because the five tracks on this EP were stylistically similar. The guitar solo on “You’ve Been Distant Lately” and the line it leads into — “Let go of what you see, we were meant to be free” — was one of my favorite moments on the EP. Though this release left me craving more variety, I have faith that My Heart To Fear’s next full-length album will provide that, given the strong musicianship, powerful vocals and sophisticated songwriting that The Draft displays.

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