-Interview- Epitome Of The Weak (2/27/11)

Epitome Of The Weak
(From The Depths Entertainment)

Genre: Melodic Metal.
Interviewed on: 2/27/11
From: Fairfax, VA
http://www.facebook.com/epitomeoftheweak

http://www.facebook.com/epitomeoftheweakVA?sk=info


1. You're a relatively new band just forming in July of 2010. How did the band come about and form?

The band formed when Evan, Brian, and Justin organized a jam session for a new project we wanted to create. We tried out multiple singers and after a long string of auditions found a match for the band. Danny has been with us ever since and that’s how Epitome of the Weak came to be.


2. You guys have your "Shallow Tides" album being released on March 4th, what can people expect from it?

What people can expect is something different with a lot of variety from heavy riffs to melodic leads.


3. How is the new bassist search coming along?

We’re holding auditions in early March after our CD is released. Hopefully, we will have a full lineup shortly after then.


4. What was the recording process like for recording "Shallow Tides"?

It was a long and strenuous process that took several weeks to get the sound and quality we were looking for, but we had a lot of fun in the process and the experience helped us grow as a band.


5. You guys have an upcoming show with Like Moths To Flames (Rise Records). Is there any show so far that you've played that's just stuck out as being your favorite?

That’s a hard one…it would have to be between Rocktoberfest and the ABACABB Farewell Show because the crowd was fucking awesome and we nailed our set perfectly for both shows.


6. What's your favorite song off the "Shallow Tides" album? Why's that?

Danny: “That’s kind of tough for me; I’m at a toss up between Rising Sun and Relapse because Relapse really encompasses that heavy and melodic vibe that we go for, but Rising Sun is my favorite song vocally because I can really connect to the lyrics.”

Justin: “My favorite song is Rising Sun because I feel that it’s our most well composed song and is one of my favorites to play. Also, it was heavily influenced by one of my favorite bands, Killswitch Engage.”

Brian: “Consecrated Voyage is my favorite because it sounds so different than any other song on the EP and I got to project a lot of my melodic influences in writing it.”

Evan: “The song I like the most on Shallow Tides is definitely Relapse because it is both heavy and melodic at the same time. I wrote the drums around my musical influences from Maiden to Lamb of God which I feel really gives it a nice ring.”


7. What are some of your influences?

Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage, All That Remains, Iron Maiden, Bullet For My Valentine, Soilwork, Pink Floyd, Dream Theater, Avenged Sevenfold, Born of Osiris, As I lay Dying, Decapitated, Pantera, Amon Amarth, Veil of Maya, It Dies Today, Chimera, Slipknot

…just to name a few.


8. How did the artwork of "Shallow Tides" come about?

The concept behind “Shallow Tides” is that people in general never really live their lives to the fullest, but instead just coast through life with shallow expectations that are put in front of them. Therefore, they live as they die in the shallow tides and never truly explore the ocean that is life. That is the concept of “Shallow Tides”.


9. Justin just formed a side project called "Horizon". Could you tell us more about it?

Justin: “I started the project for a few reasons; one of which was to get use out of a drum program that I spent a lot of money on. Secondly, was to better increase my knowledge of studio engineering and the recording process. Finally, I wanted to experiment with different types of music to better shape myself as a musician and broaden my experience with all different styles of metal.”


10. What's next for Epitome Of The Weak?

We are hoping to spread our music to a national/international level, put out a full-length album, and go on tour.


11. Any shout outs?

We would like to thank all of our friends, family, and fans that have helped and supported us along the way. We would also like to thank Tyler Greene and Outerloop Presents for booking us on a majority of our shows and opening up a lot of opportunities for us.


-Interview- Almost Failed (2/20/11)

Almost Failed
(From The Depths Entertainment)

Genre: Melodic Hardcore.
Interviewed on: 2/20/11
From: Linz, Austria
http://www.facebook.com/almostfailed

http://www.facebook.com/almostfailed

1. How did you guys come together? How did the name come about?

Except of our drummer everyone of us has been in a band before. We often hung out and decided to make music together. Then we found our drummer on the Internet and started to write songs. The story behind our name is really funny, but in short: We went to a band contest we wanted to see and in the end our two guitarists almost got arrested because of something they didn't even do and our bass player also got lost on this evening. In the end everything went smooth, but we "almost failed"!


2. How would you best describe your sound to a new listener?

It's always a tricky thing to describe your own sound, most of the bands would now say that their music can't be put in any genre but c'mon there is always a genre that describes it the best. Melodic Hardcore with an idea behind it would be the best description.


3. What can people expect from your upcoming album? Is it titled yet?

We wouldn't call it an album because it will only contain of six songs, but it will definitively be a fast one with intense breakdowns combined with catchy melodies and some sing-along parts. There is no title for it yet, but by July when we are going to record the EP there will be one.


4. Being from Austria, what's the music scene there like? Any thoughts on touring in the US?

In Austria it's very hard to make it as a metal or hardcore band, because the music scene here doesn't really give shit about this kind of genre! And that's sad, 'cause there are many bands in this country that have great potential and just can't develop. For this reason we already talked about touring the US and right now we are planning everything for the tour, but we do not have the exact dates yet.


5. You guys just released the track "Playing With Wolves". How has the response been thus far?

Response has been pretty good so far. We didn't expect so many positive comments and likes in this small period of time we have this song online.


6. What can people expect from a Almost Failed live show?

People coming to one of our shows can expect 5 people standing on stage giving 200% and playing as if there lives would depend on this show!


7. Who are some of your influences?

Bands like Gallows, Bring Me The Horizon, Your Demise , Defeater, While She Sleeps, Architects, to name a few.


8. You guys have an upcoming show with More Than A Thousand. Has there been any crazy shows thus far? If so, what happened?

Yeah we are really proud to share the stage with these guys! One of our craziest shows was at Posthof, Linz. During our last song we went off the stage to play in the midst of the crowd and all the people went wild moshed and even made a circle-pit around us, that was pretty insane!


9. What are you guys currently listening to?

Defeater, Have Heart, Bring Me The Horizon, Miles Away, Letlive, Your Demise, Lower Than Atlantis, More Than Life, While She Sleeps, Dead Swans, Casey Jones, Architects, More Than A Thousand , August Burns Red, Parkway Drive, City And Color and Mumford And Sons.


10. What’s next for Almost Failed?

Next thing on our to-do-list is recording our EP in July and than touring and playing as much shows as possible.


11. Any shoutouts?

We would like to thank all the people who came to one of our shows, bought a shirt or just hung out with us, it really means a lot to us! And of course From The Depths Entertainment for believing in us and supporting us in every possible way.


-Interview- The Hand Of Glory (2/6/11)

The Hand Of Glory
(From The Depths Entertainment)

Genre: Melodic metal akin to As I Lay Dying or Killswitch Engage.
Interviewed on: 2/6/11
From: Wiesbaden, Germany
www.facebook.com/thehandofglory
Last Fm Page
Soundcloud Page

http://www.facebook.com/thehandofglory

1. You guys formed back in 2005, having the experience you have now, are things any easier than they were in the earlier days?

Randall: Well as you go through the years you learn what works and what doesn't work. I think the easier thing for us nowadays is touring and being better organized. When we started out we didn't have the contacts and resources as we have now.


2. You recorded with Sky Van Hoff (Machinemade God, Caliban), how did the recording process go? How did the awesome artwork come about?

Jappo: The recording process was very very awesome and a bit difficult to be honest. Only in part because there was a line-up change during the time of recording. Tom was the singer for the band and decided to leave to provide a better commitment to his family. We picked up John and he hit the ground running but there was a bit of a break during the time Tom left and the time John joined so it delayed the record for some time. The artwork was originally going to be done by Mike D. of Killswitch Engage but we collectively felt that it did not represent want we wanted to have on the cover. We then decided to ask Juan Franco to do the artwork because he had done such an awesome job on a shirt design from us but again it wasn't what we were really looking for. So then Sky's girlfriend Julia surprised us all and came up with the artwork that you now see on the album. We felt that the Medusa had a great representation of the album concept and title "Break The Illusion".


3. You guys have shared the stage with big name acts such as Slayer, Sepultura and Trivium to name a few. Was there a show you played that you'll never ever forget? What happened?

John: Well sharing the stage with big name acts like that is just an awesome feeling in itself. Some of those bands are childhood heroes for us, but if we'd have to pick one that we'll never forget it would have to be Rockarea Festival last summer. It was a lot of hanging out with the Sepultura dudes, getting photos with Entombed, Sacred Reich, and Napalm Death. And our merch guy "The Dude" was tackling everybody like in those Terry Tate commercials. Of course we were all intoxicated so that always raised the level of craziness!!!


4. How did the name THE HAND OF GLORY come about?

Jappo: Well the name came from Tom our former singer. The story behind the name is that it's a dried and pickled left hand from someone who had died in the gallows. The hand was then formed so that a candle could be placed inside and then was used to cast a sort of spell and render motionless all persons to who it was presented. At the time the band was formed George W. Bush was in office and America was then deeply involved in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. We chose the name because it fit with the message we were trying to get across. It's as if people were put under a spell and nobody cared that hundreds of people were dying each day in a war that should have never been waged.


5. What's your favorite song off the album? What's the crowd favorite?

Chris: We think "Break The Illusion" is a favorite from all of us. It deals with a pretty intense subject having two of our members who were in the US Army at the time America invaded Iraq. We have friends that are still over in Afghanistan and Iraq and we hope for their safe return back to their loved ones. I think it's also the favorite one from the crowd. They get pretty crazy on that one!


6. Your music has a underlying deeper message to it, what's your views on what's going on in Egypt right now?

Sascha: We think the people are standing up for what they believe in and that's a good thing. It's a shame that peaceful demonstrations turn out to be violent and we hope that the violence will resolve itself. The people have spoken and the world is listening! We just hope the outcome will be a peaceful one and the President of Egypt will step down.


7. What three bands would you love to tour with? Any thoughts on coming to the US?

John: We would love to tour with Darkest Hour, As I Lay Dying, and In Flames. Also would be cool would be At The Gates and Himsa but they are no longer around. We are planning to go to the US next year in the spring. It would be cool because myself and Randall are both from the states and road trips in America are always awesome!!!


8. You guys have a headlining tour coming up in April, you guys excited to be out on the road again? Any cool stories from the road?

Randall: We are always excited to get on the road we live for that! There are so many cool stories but I think the coolest thing on the road is just hanging out with friends and meeting new people.


9. What are you guys currently listening to?

Blind Witness, As I Lay Dying, Carcass, The Ghost Inside, All That Remains, Misery Signals, Heaven Shall Burn, Darkest Hour, The Sorrow, man there are so many others.


10. What’s next for The Hand Of Glory?

John: Well we have this tour coming up in April, we will also be doing a video soon. We just released our album as well so we will be supporting that pretty much this whole year. We haven't decided which song to do the video for yet that's something that we still have to decide on.


11. Any shoutouts?

We'd like to say what's up to Sky, Tom, Kevin, Black Xion, Devilstick, Unleash The Sky, Centerfall, For All My Sins, Arma Gathas, Awaken Demons, Avenue Six Left, The Green River Burial, I Defy, Destroy Yourself Clothing, and of course all of our fans who support us you guys rule!!!