Unleashing the 80s Vibe: Striker's Unique Approach to Music

Brian (00:00:00) - Dan, you're very welcome to the show.

Dan (00:00:03) - Hey, man, thanks for having me.

Brian (00:00:04) - That's fantastic. No, I'm looking forward to diving into your music over the next bit. So striker recently released the track Give It All. You describe it as written for an 80s action movie that doesn't exist. Tell us a bit more about it.

Dan (00:00:18) - Yeah. So, uh, I mean, for the longest time, I've been a big fan of, I mean, just 80s music, 80s movies, that kind of stuff. And, uh, I think I've also been equally a huge fan of just like the montage music that goes along with it, like movies like Over the Top where you've got, uh, what was it? Uh, Sammy Hagar did the, the, the montage song for that and stuff, and then like eye of the Tiger and things like that. I've always liked those songs for whatever reason. I mean, they're just cool, but, um, and so we when we were writing this song originally the, the, the lead guitar line, uh, or the saxophone was originally just like a lead guitar.

Dan (00:01:01) - And we were like. Why don't we try? You know, I was like, listening to Eddie Money or something like that. Like, take me home tonight. It's just like, you know, that would be cool if that was, like, a saxophone in there. And then, uh, yeah, we were. Luckily, we were able to get a guy to, uh, to do the saxophone on the song, and it kind of fit the mood, right? Like, fit the vibe of the song.

Brian (00:01:19) - Definitely did. Definitely did. I was actually going to ask, how did you manage to get Tim Cappello on? Why is he wearing a balaclava, a balaclava in the video?

Dan (00:01:27) - Man, I like as an afterthought. That would have been so amazing if we could have. I mean, even if he was just available to play on it. I hadn't even thought of that at the time. Like we we got a, um, a guy, uh, Randy Villers, who he actually did saxophone on, uh, a New Kids on the block album and was a saxophone player in Bootsy Collins band.

Dan (00:01:50) - Oh, man. So it was like a guy who's way, way better musician than we are. It was just like, it took him like two seconds to record that and was like, there you go. So.

Brian (00:01:59) - You know, how do you go about creating such an authentic sounding 80s action movie song, you know, and make it sound like it was actually genuinely released back in the 80s?

Dan (00:02:12) - But that's just years of listening to that style of music, I guess. We've we've perfected the nuances, I guess. But, uh. Yeah, I think it's, uh, um, uh, in the technical side of, like, the songwriting, I guess it's like I've always liked, um, guitar riffs that have a lot of space. So, like, um, a really good example would be Rocky, like a hurricane. It's like Dan in that space. Dan it space. Dan it you know what I mean? So it's like a lot of a lot of newer metal. Uh.

Dan (00:02:47) - Like everything's full all the time. Like the everything's ringing out all the time. Where everything's chugging or everything's being picked the whole time. And I find that that's a big part of like 80s. The 80s sound is like that, that space in between the riff kind of thing.

Brian (00:03:03) - Yeah, yeah, that's a secret sauce. You know, do you think there's much of America these days? You know, because when you sit back and think of it, you're like, not the 80s. No one's interested. But then when you find a song like this, people are like eating it up.

Dan (00:03:20) - Yeah. I mean, I think it's always it's funny that that 80s stuff. I mean, you know, we weren't I was born in 88, so I wasn't necessarily around listening to music in the 80s. So I don't know what it is that I like so much about it, but I just, I just like it and, uh. I think a lot of people are the same way, regardless of whether it's like, uh, strictly metal or if it's just like the movies or especially if you're into horror movies, it's like, that's a big part of that.

Dan (00:03:51) - Culture is just like everything that came out in the 80s. So I mean, musically. Yeah, like we didn't get into writing 80 metal to, like, get Rich.

Brian (00:04:04) - So.

Dan (00:04:04) - So we're not too worried about the there being a market for it necessarily. But, um, yeah, we just enjoy doing it. So.

Brian (00:04:12) - Right, right. Well you do. Well, anyway, I have to say that and, you know, walk us through the video. It has everything. I was watching it and I was like, where's the training montage? Next thing a training montage starts and you even have, like, the rooftop helicopter shop or shops. Yeah. Walk us through.

Dan (00:04:33) - Uh, yeah. We just wanted to do something that was like sort of tongue in cheek a little bit, you know, a little bit like deadpan humor, kind of just, you know, staring at the camera. It's like, we obviously know it's a ridiculous song. And so we figured we got to get the visuals have to match in some ways.

Dan (00:04:52) - So, uh, yeah, we ended up filming that. Actually, it's at our, um, our guitar players aunt's house. She got a really nice house and we were like, that's perfect for this. We've we've had a few house parties there in the past and we're like, yeah, this would be a good, uh, good fit for that. And then, uh, yeah, we just I don't know, we just kind of thought, you know, what can we do to make it give it that vibe where it's it's expensive, but in, like, the stupidest way you could possibly be.

Brian (00:05:24) - Yeah. Oh, it's pure entertainment. And, you know, the track is off your upcoming album, Ultra Power. It's your seventh full length. What? What can we expect from this one?

Dan (00:05:38) - Uh, this one's got a lot. Uh, it's the the first album in. I don't know, I guess maybe like 8 or 9 years that we've recorded with the producer. So we went to, uh, Michigan to record with Josh Schroeder.

Dan (00:05:54) - Schrader who? Um, he's he's known for stuff like Launa Shaw and, like, you know, the most brutal. It's like deathcore and stuff like that. And, and we ended up going to him because we were like, it would be funny to see what happens, right? Like, uh, you know, we what we didn't realize was he's just a really great producer across the board. So it's not like he was like, oh, we have to do deathcore stuff in your music. It was like, no, we just. He was. He was just good at, you know, anything. So we, you know, we went in there thinking like, oh, we might come out the other side with like a crazy deathcore album or something like that. And it was just that's always the case for us. We're like, this is going to be our craziest album ever. And then it just sounds like us in the end, because that's our just our natural instincts are just like, oh yeah, this should be like this or whatever, but, um, but yeah, this the album has a lot of, a lot of different songs.

Dan (00:06:49) - I think there's a lot of strange character to each track. And, uh, uh, we just had a lot of fun with it. We we weren't. It's like we always take things. This might be a Canadian thing, but we we take it seriously, but we don't take ourselves seriously.

Brian (00:07:06) - Right? We're kind.

Dan (00:07:08) - Of like, yeah, we're just. You having fun doing the music that we like and then, uh, you know, hope hopefully other people like it, too.

Brian (00:07:16) - Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Kind of. When you look into you guys, you seem like a bunch of friends just having fun and on the face, it's like these guys don't take it seriously. But then you listen to the music. And as you said, it's the perfect mix of not taking yourself seriously, but taking the music seriously.

Dan (00:07:36) - Yeah, yeah. And I mean, like, we are all friends to like, uh, um, the band has had some member changes, but luckily we've been able to like, you know, continue to just find people who who we know or friends or, you know, it's like, uh, Simon who? This is his first album with us.

Dan (00:07:54) - He was he came in the band, um, like, maybe it was like 2016 to do some touring with us, uh, when our other guitar player, Chris, had left, and then Chris came back, and then Simon, you know, he stepped out because he was just doing the touring. And then when Chris left again, Simon came back. So it was like, we've been friends for a long time. Uh, we've all been playing in the same, you know, local scene for forever. So. And then, uh, Pete, our bass player, uh, we knew him way back, and then he moved to Japan for seven years, so he's just, like, gone. But, you know, we'd see him on Twitter now and again, like retweeting our posts and stuff like that, and, and, uh, but all in Japanese. We were like, oh, that's crazy. So and he ended up moving back. Uh, and then we were looking for a bass player, and he was just he just sent us a message like, hey, I play bass.

Dan (00:08:49) - We're like, oh, really? Like sick. Let's do it. So yeah, it's been, it's it's we've been lucky to be able to get so many like, rad dudes in the band. So yeah, it's been lots of fun.

Brian (00:09:01) - Yeah, definitely. And you know, when you complete a body of work such as this album personally, how do you kind of look back on it in your mind?

Dan (00:09:13) - Um, usually like it depends how long it's been. Sometimes it'll be like, here's all the things I should have done differently on this album. I should have done that. Like, whatever. Uh, but like, right now, I still really enjoy the album. Um, I mean, it's been recorded for almost a year now, so. Yeah, it's like it takes that long to get everything sort of sorted out and released, but, um, yeah, I still like the album, so that's a good sign.

Brian (00:09:44) - Yeah, exactly. Have you you've obviously had the chance to play some other tracks.

Brian (00:09:48) - Leave then, have you?

Dan (00:09:50) - No. Not yet actually.

Brian (00:09:51) - Really?

Dan (00:09:52) - Yeah. So, uh, when, when we finished in the, in the studio, our drummer left the band and that sort of left us with, like, well, no drummer. So we were like. And and we weren't in a super huge hurry to try and find a replacement. Um, just because in the past, we've, you know, we've sort of quickly rushed into being like, oh, yeah, you can come on in and then and then maybe without, um, explaining the, the tribulations of what it is to be in a band. Not everybody's interested in all that, you know, like, let's go on tour for six weeks and stuff like that. So, um, yeah. So that's part of the reason. And then we've just been super busy with, like, we're an independent band. We just basically do everything ourselves. So we've been busy doing like the music videos and and getting everything set up for the release and all that stuff.

Dan (00:10:45) - It's like a surprising amount of work, um, you know, and everybody still work in their own day jobs and stuff like that. So, um, it hasn't been too hard for us to not play shows, but we're also really looking forward to actually getting out and playing shows this year, which I mean, last year I think we only played two shows and which is like weird for us. Usually it's like somewhere in the ballpark of like 80 to 100 shows in a year, something like that. But yeah.

Brian (00:11:13) - That that's a big drop off. How did you kind of I'd imagine it was like you had a massive hit, you couldn't scratched. And how did you deal with it?

Dan (00:11:22) - Yeah. Um, I don't know. We just like, luckily, I think because we've been busy doing other stuff for the band, like, um, you know, if it was like, the album's been out and we haven't played any shows, we'd be, like, in rough shape, I think.

Dan (00:11:36) - But because we were still busy, like, you know, getting everything sorted out, getting the artwork, getting all the, you know, this stuff. There was always something going on. So it's sort of easy for us to be like, oh, well, you know, there's something still going on with the band. So, um, but it, it is super weird because I think in the, in the end, the two things we love about being in a band or making music and then playing it live. So it's sort of like, you know, we're missing half of the reason. Yeah.

Brian (00:12:06) - True, true. And, you know, in the past you guys have won so many awards. I mean, the Juno Awards, Western Canadian Music Awards, the Edmonton Music Awards. Bit of a weird question now, but how does that impact new music? Is it intimidating or are you kind of thinking, right, how do we follow on from an award winning album?

Dan (00:12:27) - Uh. Not really.

Dan (00:12:28) - Like right now, we never really thought about it. It's like one of those things where I think this is probably, uh, similar to a lot of people who are in metal. Uh, it's like it's never been about that kind of thing, you know, like, it's almost like the the counterculture person in me is like. I don't even need that award or whatever, you know what I mean? Although we it is awesome. It is super fun to like, talk about and, uh, you know, like, uh, it is like a good thing to have on your resume as, like a musician and a band. Uh, I think it helps. People take you seriously to a little bit. You know, as much as we don't take ourselves seriously, it's nice to have that to be like, well, actually, you know, we kind of, you know, we do take it seriously. Um. But, yeah, it's, uh, it's nice to have, but we don't worry too much about, like, upholding that.

Dan (00:13:24) - I think the, the biggest thing for us is we're in a race with, do you know the band Unleash the Archers. Mhm. So they're, they're from Western Canada as well. We, we won a Juno the year before them and we're good friends. And so now we're racing to see if we can win one, a second one before they win a second one.

Brian (00:13:48) - Right, right.

Dan (00:13:49) - I mean that's a, that's maybe we maybe neither of us win ever again. But uh, it's always just like we're just trying to, like, one up each other and see, you know, it's like it's like, oh, you guys might have sold more albums, but look at this here.

Brian (00:14:02) - Yeah, exactly. Exactly. And how we're, uh. How's it holding up at the moment? Any critics saying either one has the the lead?

Dan (00:14:10) - Oh, um, I mean, in the last little bit. Unleash the Archers is kind of, like, exploded as a band, so we're just kind of like.

Dan (00:14:18) - Hey, don't forget about.

Brian (00:14:19) - Us, bro. Like, you know.

Dan (00:14:21) - But, um. But you never know when it comes down to the, uh, the critics that that vote for this stuff. You never know. Maybe they like the saxophone. Because I know for a fact that they don't have a saxophone on their new album.

Brian (00:14:33) - Well, see, you're a bit ahead already. And, you know, at this point I'd like to dive into your history when it comes to music, to give the listeners a sense of who you are. It's a bit of a tricky one, but can you remember your earliest musical memory?

Dan (00:14:49) - Yep. I think the one I remember the most is I would have been. Maybe.

Dan (00:15:01) - Try to thank you.

Dan (00:15:03) - Six. Maybe. Grade one. Maybe around there somewhere. 5 or 6. Um, my dad had a vinyl record of, uh. What the heck is he called? What's the band? Okay. The song is money for nothing.

Brian (00:15:23) - Yeah, yeah.

Brian (00:15:25) - Uh. Dire straits, dire.

Dan (00:15:27) - Straits, that's it. Yeah. So that album, I remember, I remember listening to the riff at the start of that and being, like, sick riffs are sick. Like that was sort of like, that's the first one I really remember. And I and maybe it's because I just have remembered it so many times, but um, and I just remember the, the cover it has like the, the what do you call that guitar? Uh, it's like it's kind of like a slide guitar or what, a dobro. I think maybe it's called, but, um. Anyways, I remember that, uh, pretty vividly. Yeah. Doing some air guitar with the, uh, tennis racket.

Brian (00:16:05) - And, you know, what's the for us listeners over here, over this side of the world, what's the music scene like in in Canada? The rock metal scene.

Dan (00:16:14) - Uh, it's really good. Um, there's been a lot of bands coming out of especially western Canada right now.

Dan (00:16:21) - Um, finally, like a lot of bands that we've. Kind of grown up with that, have been doing little things here and there, finally starting to like get serious and get out there and tour and stuff like that. So it's really awesome to see. Um. I mean, metal is a big part of, uh, our culture up here in Edmonton, where it's a little bit farther north, it's a little bit more blue collar, I'd say up here. And, uh, I mean, like, our hockey team skates out to Metallica and stuff like that. You know, it's it's definitely part of the, the vibe here. Um, so yeah, like, it's the scene is good. I think the hardest part for us, particularly up as north as we are, it's been harder to get shows to come up here, which is a bummer. Like we for a while we had lots and then I don't know, there's some some politicking going on or something like that, Live Nation, that kind of thing.

Dan (00:17:15) - Just some tours just aren't getting up here, which is too bad. So it's like then the closest place we can go usually is like a 12 hour drive, or you have to fly there, so.

Brian (00:17:26) - Oh, lovely.

Dan (00:17:27) - Yeah. So if you're in a band and you're listening, don't skip Edmonton.

Brian (00:17:33) - Yeah, exactly. Exactly.

Dan (00:17:35) - Yeah.

Brian (00:17:36) - And, you know, growing up then how did your local scene influence your sound?

Dan (00:17:42) - I guess like the, the, the group of people that we hung around in high school, we were all into, like classic metal. And then, I don't know, we it was a weird little, like group of people that just all loved, like we're like, okay, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, you know, all that stuff. And then, um, and then we once we got to the age where we could go to the bar, we would go to, like, the. But the rock and metal bars and you meet some of the older guys there with the patch vest jacket on and they're like, they're like, oh, you you like that? Like you got to listen to this, this, this, this and this.

Dan (00:18:19) - So it's like that sort of like molded us, that got us into like all like the sort of more obscure, like speed metal and, and and like European like power metal and stuff like that. So, um, yeah, we had lots of, uh, you know, like seasoned veterans of the metal scene kind of guide us and show us new music and stuff like that. So yeah, it was really good.

Brian (00:18:44) - I like it, I like it, you know, it's called concerts that matter. So I have to ask you as a concert, Gore, what concerts they think have made you.

Dan (00:18:54) - It's probably more the concert DVDs that I've watched that have made me like, I've been like, uh, early on I went to, you know, like a few bigger concerts. Like, I think the first concert I ever went to was. Maybe Velvet Revolver.

Brian (00:19:13) - Oh, man.

Dan (00:19:14) - Weird one. But yeah. And then, uh, and then shortly after that was like, I think Van Halen and then.

Dan (00:19:22) - Uh, I think ozone or something like that.

Brian (00:19:26) - But, uh.

Dan (00:19:28) - Yeah, I mean, one of the concerts that made us was the, uh, in in 2011. This is like really early, early on in our like, we had just put out our first full length album. We, we won a contest, uh, in Edmonton to open for Metallica.

Dan (00:19:45) - Right.

Dan (00:19:46) - For two nights in a row at the big, like the stadium. Right. Like.

Dan (00:19:50) - Yeah.

Dan (00:19:50) - And holy crap. Yeah, it was crazy. So it was like we peaked so early in our career. We're just like, oh, open for Metallica. We've played like, you know, 20 shows or something like that at the time. And uh, so yeah, we like that was amazing. And one of the things that was so surprising about that is when we we got to meet the guys from Metallica, like they were just around all the time. They would be they they were kind of forced to walk past where we were.

Dan (00:20:15) - So we got to talk to them.

Dan (00:20:17) - For.

Dan (00:20:17) - Like their all day. We'd never left. We're like, well, we're we're going to see these guys. But they were so cool. Like, uh, the first night we were sound checking and they, uh, James Hetfield came in and they had, like, a camera crew following them for this because they had a bunch of behind the scenes stuff they were doing that was for their their movie that through the never, they played like warm up shows before they filmed like the main one. So uh, yeah. Like he came in and walked up on stage while we were sound checking and said hello to us and stuff, and it's like, we're in there. It's funny, we're in like the, uh, the one of the behind the scenes. Uh, videos on YouTube. From that you can see us. It's like. It's like looking into the past, like ten years ago. It's like, oh, these guys are young.

Dan (00:21:03) - Oh, man.

Dan (00:21:04) - So yeah.

Dan (00:21:04) - We got that was like a concert that gave us a real taste of like, wow, this is insane. To play on a stage this big and with this kind of, like, production going on and and just like, you know, that was very inspiring for us. And so we've just been chasing that high ever since.

Dan (00:21:20) - Yeah. Yeah.

Brian (00:21:21) - Jeez. That'd be like, at that stage in your career, like winning the lotto. But when you're playing with guys like Metallica, then especially that early, what do you learn?

Dan (00:21:32) - I mean, the main thing we learned, well, you can't see anything on stage when there's a spotlight on you. Just like I was like, I might fall off the stage because you just can't see anything. I was funny, but, um, uh, other than that, it was. I think the biggest thing I took away from that was just that those guys are really nice still. Like, they're just nice people. They. They weren't.

Dan (00:21:56) - I mean, maybe they're not nice to everybody. You know, the opening band that won the the contest, maybe they have to be nice to us or whatever. But they were they went like above and beyond, like they talk to us all the time. They actually, uh. Lars. So what happened was we we were in like a because they had so much film stuff going on because they're doing like the 3D movie. Uh, they didn't have like a room really for us. So we were kind of just like out on the floor, you know, in the back part of the stadium there. And, uh. They. Kind of had to walk past us all the time to get like where you get dropped off to where their dressing room was, was we were like in between that. So they walk past all the time. And the second day, um, Lars came by, he had the newspaper and was like showing us the review of the show from the night before. And then he was like, why are you guys out here? It's like you don't have a dressing room.

Dan (00:22:53) - And we're like, no, no. They said they don't have room. And he's just like, that's crazy. Oh. What did he say? He said, uh, even when we open for Megadeth, they gave us a dressing room or something like that.

Dan (00:23:03) - So we were like, okay.

Dan (00:23:05) - Um, anyway, so he walks off and then our, uh, guitar player at the time came back over and he's like, I just heard Lars yelling at someone to, like, get us a green room. So he's. Yeah. So he he, like, tore a strip off of someone and got us a green room with, like, a cooler full of beer and all this stuff. And it was just like, wow, that was crazy. It's like they. There's no way he needed to do that. But that was really cool. So yeah, I think that's. Something that we try and, you know, try and just be nice to everybody, right? Like, if shit, if Metallica is still nice to people, it's like, you know, we ought to be.

Brian (00:23:41) - Yeah, exactly. Exactly. You know, you've played at this stage. You've played over 1000 shows. You've played some of the biggest festivals across Europe and North America. But for any listeners that haven't caught one of your shows, what are they like?

Dan (00:23:58) - Um, for our live shows, we, we just try and have, like, a a good vibe, a lot of energy. I mean, a lot of people always comment that we're smiling a lot on stage. And it's funny because it's like, well, yeah, I mean, like, it's fun, like, why wouldn't we be smiling? But I mean, you know, if you go see, like, you know, Belphegor or Immortal or something like that, it's like, yeah, that makes sense that they're not smiling. But like, for us, it's like, yeah, man, we're having fun. This is what we love to do. So, um, yeah, that and like, not a lot of bands are doing the, uh, everybody sings in the band.

Dan (00:24:33) - Right, right.

Dan (00:24:35) - We we do all the harmonies on the album live to the best of our ability. That's always sound perfect. But, um, and I think a lot of people are really surprised by that because a lot of the time it'll be like maybe one one other guy in the band does backing vocals or something like that, but with us it's everybody singing. So it's it's fun to fun to see.

Dan (00:24:56) - Yeah, yeah.

Brian (00:24:56) - It sounds, it sounds it. And you know, if you think back on all the gigs you've played by Metallica, one is the one that sticks out in your mind. Is the most perfect experience you've had.

Dan (00:25:08) - I'm trying to think there's been a lot of really cool ones. Um, we did get a chance to play at Vulcan, and that whole experience was just like. Like a perfect experience. Like the weather was nice. We, we we got there early and we're able to, like, hang out backstage for like, a few days, you know, which was like, I mean, that was a huge bonus.

Dan (00:25:31) - It was like, you know, something we originally we thought were like, okay, we we get we get to go the day we play and we can hang out that night, and then we got to get out of there. But then we, we asked them, we're like, if we come early, can we stay? And they're like, of course. So we just like hung out the whole time, you know, we got like we were like side stage watching like uh, some of the big bands and, and that kind of thing. So it was just like, wow, that was, that was so fun. And, and that's the type of thing when you're like first starting out, you're like, man, wouldn't it be amazing to play at Vulcan? Like that's like sort of like the top level and then to get there and and then it be like so hospitable and we can just like do whatever we want. And yeah, you know, you wouldn't expect us. Yeah.

Dan (00:26:14) - No. And I mean, we were super lucky with the weather too because it can get like really muddy and stuff. But it was just like perfect weather. It was awesome. So that was sort of like a like that was like the perfect show.

Brian (00:26:27) - The stars aligned.

Dan (00:26:29) - Yeah.

Brian (00:26:30) - And here's where the fun part comes in. If you think back on all the gigs, is there one that sticks out as the worst and how did you overcome it?

Dan (00:26:38) - Oh, man.

Dan (00:26:41) - How much time do you.

Dan (00:26:43) - How many do you want to know about?

Dan (00:26:46) - Um. Uh, we had one show where. And, I mean, these ones are always tricky because it's like this. This show was bad because we didn't get proper promotion, and we were like. It wasn't like. It was just like. So we showed up, we set up all of our gear, we sound checked, and then we waited. And just like no one showed up. Oh, man, we're just like. We're just like, what? What happens? Like they're like, oh, well, there's a big concert going on in town.

Dan (00:27:16) - If it's like a smaller place and like a smaller town and they're like, oh yeah, like Glass Tiger or something was playing or some, some Canadian band and um, we just. Yeah. Like nobody came and we were just like, does nobody know about this show? And so we set everything up and then we just started packing it all up because we're just like, okay. And everybody's in a real bad mood. It was like raining outside and all this stuff. And then then and then like, one person showed up and was like, hey, are you guys going to play? And we're like, no, we're done too. We're out of here. Sorry. We'll give you a refund for your ticket or whatever. It was just like, that was like humbling too, because that wasn't even that long ago. And then it was. So we played a tour with Steel Panther. And so we went from like, uh. That show on the way to the Steel Panther gigs and then played like sold out shows, you know, with huge crowds and everything.

Dan (00:28:18) - Like right after, it was like like two days later, it was just like, what the hell is this?

Dan (00:28:23) - Yeah, it was a.

Dan (00:28:24) - Very weird experience, but, uh, that one was not great. Um. Well, yeah, I mean, that's not the only time we've had a show like that. We played in the UK. Uh, new Nuneaton, I think it's called in, in, in. I think that's in England somewhere.

Brian (00:28:43) - Sounds like an English place anyway.

Dan (00:28:46) - Yeah, like that one was like two people came and one was on the guest list and one was a press guy, and we were like, what happened? It's like, there's no way there's only two people in this town who want to see a show tonight.

Dan (00:28:57) - It's like, yeah, it happens.

Dan (00:29:00) - But yeah, whatever.

Brian (00:29:02) - Did you play it at night?

Dan (00:29:03) - Yeah, yeah, we did play that night. I mean, we usually we do like, even if the show is like, you know, a bummer or like, it just doesn't go the way we thought it would go.

Dan (00:29:12) - It's at least just an opportunity to, uh, to practice and, and usually we, you know, for the most part, we've, we've had the, the motto of, you know, even if one person pays to see you, you have to put on the same show, right? Like, it's like they don't they don't show a different movie if you if only one person goes to see it. Right. So it's like.

Dan (00:29:34) - You know, it's a good.

Brian (00:29:35) - Way to look at it.

Dan (00:29:37) - Yeah.

Brian (00:29:38) - And when it comes to short time then how do you guys psych yourselves up? And then afterwards, how do you wind down?

Dan (00:29:45) - Uh, just a couple beers.

Dan (00:29:47) - Right? The secret sauce?

Dan (00:29:51) - Yeah. Really? I mean, um. Yeah. We don't we don't do too much. We just. Yeah, a couple beers, get on stage a couple beers after doing good.

Brian (00:30:02) - Simple enough, simple enough. And you know, when you think of the band down the line, say it.

Brian (00:30:10) - Treat five years. How would you like to evolve? Or is there any plans to evolve? Do you want to, you know, have you find have you found the perfect recipe as it is? Do you think?

Dan (00:30:20) - Yeah. It's, it's it's hard to say because like on on this album, we, we were sort of just like, I think we're slowly getting to be a band that that's just like more of, uh, the influence of all the members in the past, there's been like, okay, it's maybe just me doing a lot of the writing and then, um, you know, and I think it helped working with the producer to be like, actually, that is a good idea. You should change part of your song to be more like this. And then, you know, instead of me being like, no, it'd be like, okay, yeah, sure. Um, but yeah, I don't know. I, uh, I have a lot of ideas about where the band could go.

Dan (00:31:03) - I mean, I do really want to do, um, I'm really big into, you know, more heavy music, like heavier music, like thrash and death metal and stuff like that. And I do think it would be fun to, like, throw a curveball at people and just be like, here's, here's the heaviest album we've ever done, right? You know, next. That's the next one. But, um, it's hard to know because it's it's sort of like that would be, uh, like, just for myself, you know, and maybe wouldn't, wouldn't serve the, uh, the band as a whole or something like that. But yeah, we'll see. I mean, I think this album definitely leans a little bit to the, like, lighter, sort of more rock side. Um, and then I think usually when we, when we lean to pretty far one way, we end up trying to compensate by going back the other way. So maybe the next one will be a little crazier, I don't know.

Dan (00:31:57) - Right, right.

Brian (00:31:58) - How do you think your fanbase would react? Would you be worried about alienating some of them?

Dan (00:32:04) - I mean, if they're not already alienated. It's always funny because it's like even, um, we recorded our first EP, Road Warrior, and then right when we released our first actual full length album, we went to Europe for the first time and played a festival, and a guy came up to me and told me he didn't like my singing on the new album, and he liked it better on the EP. And I was like, bro, I didn't know how to sing like that. That's why it sounds like that. That's why it's like it was just like, so funny. I'm like, damn, we have like hardly even started. And there's already people telling us they like our earlier stuff. It's like we only put out an EP. It's like, I like the EP better than the album. It's just like, damn. It's like, okay, it's going to be like this the whole time for sure.

Dan (00:32:53) - So, um, yeah, I think a lot of, I think people who get the band know that we're just, you know, we we just write music like we're not necessarily trying to be or do anything particular. It's just like we write this stuff that we like. And then if people like it, I mean, people are always going to kind of put it in a box and be like, you know, this is not this kind of thing or, you know, this is I like thrash and I don't like this or whatever. It's like, yeah, that's fair. It's like, that's okay, you can do that.

Brian (00:33:23) - Like it's a load. It's a load. And before we dive into the last couple of questions, then future plans for the rest of the year after the album comes out, the gigs lined up. What can you tell us?

Dan (00:33:36) - Yeah, we got a couple of festivals lined up right now. We're still looking into some touring options. Um, it's a little harder these days to sort of nail that stuff down.

Dan (00:33:45) - Like the the logistics of touring is, is a bit more brutal than it used to be. Like we had to we had to cancel a trip to Europe last summer because we were like, we don't want to lose $10,000. Like, like that's like, you know, we'd love to go, but it's like, we can't take like a financial hit that hard. It's like, that'd be like the end of the band. It'd be like too much, right? Like, how do we take ourselves out of that? So I mean, it it's always funny. You see comments from people. They'll be like, well, they could have come. It's like, not really. I was like, no, we could have come, but then I'd have to we'd have to sell the tour van and like.

Dan (00:34:22) - You know, like that kind of thing. So.

Dan (00:34:25) - Um, but yeah, so we, we got a couple festivals coming up. Uh, there's the Legions of Metal Festival in Chicago, and then we have, uh, that's in May and then Prague Power in Atlanta in September, and then we're just looking at tours.

Dan (00:34:41) - We'd love to get back over to Europe again. This is always fun and we've always had a great time there. So, um, still looking for the right tour for that one, but, uh, I'm sure we'll find something.

Dan (00:34:54) - Fingers crossed.

Brian (00:34:54) - Fingers crossed. I'd absolutely love to see you guys over here. At some stage this year or next year. It'd be a hell of a time. And, uh, we'll dive into the last few. So these are a couple of random hard music questions, but I'm intrigued to see your answers. The first one, it's easy. What are you currently obsessed with? It can be anything at all.

Dan (00:35:16) - Currently I'm a, uh, musically probably, uh, the band Cavalry Attack. I don't know if you've heard them. They're from, uh, Norway to cool, cool band, kind of like an eclectic mix of, uh, all kinds of things.

Dan (00:35:32) - Really great. Really great. Yeah.

Brian (00:35:33) - Sounds interesting.

Dan (00:35:35) - I don't want to do too much of a promo for them, but they're great.

Dan (00:35:38) - And then, uh, aside from that, like, uh, it sounds funny, but like, uh, color grading in. Like, uh, for video. Yeah, I can't stop. I got I'm looking at that because I've been editing the videos for the band, and it's just like, there's so much to learn, and it's just like another thing to do. And I'm just like, oh, there's like a whole world of like, you know, it's like first, first I was into, you know, the, you know, recording the music and there's like a endless world of, you know, YouTube videos and tips and stuff like that. And then and then there's the same thing with video. So it's just like, man, I got sink a ton of time into that right now.

Dan (00:36:22) - Yeah.

Brian (00:36:22) - Oh, God. That sounds like I'd be like, oh, I don't even want to open that can of worms. I have enough to do over here.

Dan (00:36:29) - I know. Right?

Brian (00:36:31) - Oh, man.

Brian (00:36:32) - And the next one. So if you could collaborate with any musician from history, who would it be? And what sort of song would you create?

Dan (00:36:41) - Oh, might.

Dan (00:36:42) - Be it might be Eddie Van Halen, which would be sick. I think like Van Halen is a just in general. The band is like an. I guess they're not underrated songwriters. They're they're rated.

Dan (00:36:56) - Right. Yeah.

Dan (00:36:57) - But, uh, yeah, I think that would be lots of fun to, uh, you know, I've it's always been super inspirational and, and I just happen to lately have been talking with a couple friends about listening to the entire Van Halen discography in one sitting. Right. And it's like, about seven hours long. It's like watching, like, all the Lord of the rings movies or something like that. Just like, I think it would be fun to just listen, like, front to back whole thing. Case of beer.

Dan (00:37:25) - Yeah, yeah.

Brian (00:37:27) - When you mention Lord of the rings, it could be done.

Brian (00:37:29) - When you said of ourselves like, jeez, that's a laugh. But no, you can watch all the Lord of the rings in one sitting.

Dan (00:37:34) - So yeah, and that's about the.

Dan (00:37:36) - Same, right. If if it's the extended ones, it's like 12 hours.

Dan (00:37:39) - So yeah. Yeah.

Brian (00:37:43) - And the final one, what song would appear on the soundtrack to your life?

Dan (00:37:49) - Um. Let's go. This is a funny one, so people will have to watch the video and listen to the song. Uh, man behind the oxygen mask.

Dan (00:38:02) - Right.

Dan (00:38:02) - Uh, and the the song. That's the song title. And the band is the good, the bad and the ugly.

Dan (00:38:08) - Right? Oh, cause you gotta listen to it.

Dan (00:38:10) - It's funny. The whole song is about sleep apnea, so it's.

Dan (00:38:14) - Like I.

Dan (00:38:15) - Get roasted all the time because on tour, you know, be sleeping. And, you know, some people snore, some people don't. And then I always get, like, made fun of like, bro, you definitely have sleep apnea.

Dan (00:38:24) - Like, no, dude, I don't. And they're like, I heard it.

Brian (00:38:29) - Has to be that one.

Dan (00:38:30) - So yeah, it could be a good one.

Brian (00:38:32) - Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Listen Dan it's been a blast. Now thanks a million.

Dan (00:38:36) - Yeah. Thank you so much man. Appreciate it.