Posts Tagged ‘exclusive’

RED’s Anthony Armstrong Talks New Album, Winter Jam Tour + More

Essential Records RED ’s latest album ‘Release the Panic’ was recently unleashed and hit the Top 10 on the Billboard album chart in its debut week. The disc, which features the hit single ‘Perfect Life,’ marks the first time the band has worked with producer Howard Benson ( Halestorm , Papa Roach , P.O.D .). The band is also in the midst of Winter Jam Tour 2013, an annual Christian music festival featuring artists in many different genres. After that tour wraps up, they plan on embarking on a headlining run in April.  Loudwire recently caught up with RED guitarist Anthony Armstrong to discuss the album and tour, staying connected with his faith, the first time they heard a RED song played on the radio and other topics. How did the songwriting and recording process for ‘Release the Panic’ compare to previous RED albums? They are all pretty comparable. We spent about a year and a half writing this record. A lot goes into it. Picking a producer was a challenging process. Once we got that locked in, we started the pre-production process. How did you decide on working with producer Howard Benson? He wasn’t the only guy that was on our radar. We did several interviews and talked with different producers. Howard spelled it out pretty clearly for us as far as what the process would be with him. You don’t waste a lot of time with Howard. A lot of things get done. We took about 2 1/2 months to make the record and actually moved out to Los Angeles for a while to work with Howard. He made it very clear that he’s not the best at everything. That’s why he has a team of guys. He’s not the best ProTools guy, so he has the best ProTools guy in the business. He’s not the best amp engineer, but he’s got the best guy in the business. He said the process would work really well for us, and he was right. We got in the studio and it was all about the music, not wasting a lot of time on the side trying to get things worked out. If something went wrong, he had a guy there to fix it and get us ready to go. It was cool. How do you think the band’s sound evolved on this album? Each record is its own thing. You go into it wanting it to have its own identity more than anything. That’s what we wanted with this record. We didn’t want it to be another “Until We Have Faces,’ another ‘Innocence & Instinct,’ another ‘End of Silence.’ We wanted it to be its own thing, and I think we accomplished that by taking some production elements out, to try some new things. The whole idea behind making this record with Howard was to get to the point. Let’s not be so dramatic and poetic when we don’t need to be. It’s about getting to the point faster and making it memorable. Were there more electronic elements on this album? I wouldn’t say electronic. It’s mostly programming elements. You’re not hearing as many symphonic elements. You’re not hearing as much piano or strings. These things have always been in our music, you’re just hearing more of them out front more than ever. People say we’ve “gone electronic,” but we’re doing nothing different on this record as far as that is concerned. Like I said, it’s a mix thing. We just decided to bring it out and make it more prominent in the mix. You’re currently in the middle of the Winter Jam Tour. How has that been going so far? This is the fourth time we’ve gotten to do Winter Jam, and that’s definitely a highlight for us. It’s a great tour, and a great time to release a record. Playing in front of thousands of people every night is definitely going to help record sales and help generate new fans and give everybody a chance to hear the record. You have to be in people’s faces for them to get a taste of what you’re going for. Winter Jam affords us that opportunity. It’s the biggest tour in the world during the first quarter. It’s great for any band. You’ve also developed quite a production to accompany your live show. We’ve kind of painted ourselves with that brush, and it’s something we look forward to. We have created more of a theatrical element to our band. We’re big believers that there has to be a visual element to carry along with the music. We have focused on that with our live show. We’re working on our new set right now. It’s a whole new fresh look We want to show the fans what we were going for and give them something to visualize along with the new songs. When you’re playing with such a diverse linup in Winter Jam, how difficult is it to win over the crowd, many who may not be familiar with your band? It’s a challenge. There are people covering their ears, people cowering in their seats in the fetal position (laughs). They aren’t there for the hard rock element. But our meet and greet lines are wrapped around the arena. We know that there is a need and a want for this type of music. We’re here to do our thing, and I think there are a lot of kids that relate to this type of music. Winter Jam is a great place because there is every type of person that comes to this show. What do you have coming up after Winter Jam? We’re going to take 10 days off, then we start our headlining run. We’ll be doing a brand new show in support of the new record. RED appeals to many different audiences; rock, metal, Christian, secular. How do you balance all those different marketplaces? I think the balance comes from not labeling ourselves. We don’t call ourselves a Christian band. We don’t call ourselves a mainstream band. We’re just a band. People find comfort in throwing a label on a band. We just set out to play shows It’s easy for us because we know exactly what we’re there for and what we’re doing. Every band has to learn how to tour, learn how to be on the road, learn how to be professional. When you were starting out, who were some of the bands that helped you learn? I feel like we went through band boot camp. We went through a lot of growing pains on those early tours that we were on. Bands like Sevendust, Breaking Benjamin and guys like that had crews that had been on the road for 15 or 20 years who weren’t willing to put up with greenhorns. They whipped us into shape really quick. It was a matter of us staying humble. There’s a pecking order and you have to earn respect. It worked out well for us. We just kept our mouths shut and worked our butts off. If you listen and learn, your band grows. Being on the road so much, how do you stay connected to your faith? It’s difficult for anyone to be on the road, even if you’re doing devotionals and group discussions and Bible study. On Winter Jam, we have ‘Jam Church” on Sundays. On a tour with ten bands, you’d be surprised how many guys aren’t at Jam Church. You have to make the time, you have to put in the effort to stay connected. One of the things the pastor on this tour says every night to the audience is that I have this iPhone, but if I don’t plug it in, it doesn’t work. If we don’t plug our faith in, how is it going to work? How are we going to be useful in the right moment? We just have to make the time. Because the four of us are like-minded and believers, if one person isn’t motivated, the other three are and can provide encouragement and accountability. These days RED songs are on the radio all the time. Take me back to the first time you heard one of your band’s songs on the radio. We finished our first four songs. We were in Franklin, Tenn., about 10 to 12 miles away from downtown Nashville. A local rock station played what they called “the local buzz” on Sundays. We had given them our four songs. That Sunday night we got together and went up to the top of this power station on the top of a hill in Franklin to hang out. The guy on the radio said he didn’t know where these guys came from, but I think they have a bright future, and then he played our song ‘Breathe Into Me.’ I can’t tell you the feeling when he started playing it. We were so overwhelmed with excitement. We thought we had made it and were on top of the world. As young and green as we were, we didn’t realize how much work we had ahead of us. Watch RED’s ‘Perfect Life’ Video

Bullet for My Valentine’s Matt Tuck on ‘Riot’ Riff: ‘It Was So Annoying That It Was Cool’

Simone Joyner, Getty Images Bullet for My Valentine are enjoying the success of their current single ‘ Riot ,’ but frontman Matt Tuck tells Loudwire that the song’s start initially struck them perhaps in the wrong way. He recalls of the track’s beginnings, “It was just that, ‘De-da-de-lada-dow-dow,’ that annoying riff that we had that was the intro of the song. It was a riff that Padge had on one of the songs he was kind of writing so we offered to finish it. It was so annoying that it was cool.” Once the band got past the initial ‘annoyance,’ Tuck says he and the group began to envision grander plans for the song. “I could just hear it being live in a big arena. I thought it would be an amazing song, so we kind of stole that riff from Padge, wrote the rest of the song musically and it was so in-your-face and direct and punk rock that it had that rebellious spirit and anarchy and punk rock, and I just thought ‘Riot’ was a perfect kind of theme for the song really,” explains the frontman. The singer says it’s been great so far hearing the “whoa-oh-oh’s” back from the audiences, as the band recently played a show in Cardiff before returning to the States. Tuck says, “I think it’s definitely going to be one of the highlights of the Bullet shows for years to come. It’s just an undeniably catchy kind of rock song. I just know it’ll go over live. The tempo’s perfect, the lyrics are nice, the melody’s cool and there’s that flashy section in the middle where you can get circle pits going. It’s kind of the perfect modern kind of metal tune in my eyes, you know what I mean? So yeah, it’s good.” Bullet for My Valentine fans will be able to hear ‘Riot’ on the band’s HardDriveLive trek with Halestorm. To see the dates for the tour, click here . And check back very shortly for our full interview with Matt Tuck. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/bullet-for-my-valentine-temper-temper-album-review/” title=”Next: Read Our Review of Bullet for My Valentine’s ‘Temper Temper’ Album” align=”center”]

Daily Reload: Anthrax, Machine Head + More

Megaforce – Anthrax cover  AC/DC ‘s ‘T.N.T.’ and we’ve got the exclusive premiere of the song here: [ Loudwire ] – Machine Head  and their longtime bassist Adam Duce  have parted ways. [ Loudwire ] – Who would you cast as the members of Black Sabbath in a movie? We offer our suggestions here: [ Loudwire ] – Chris Jericho , Scott Ian and many other of your favorite rockers star in a funny new commercial for the 2013 Revolver Golden Gods Awards. [ Loudwire ] – Pearl Jam ‘s Mike McCready says the band hopes to have a new album “this year, for sure.” [ Loudwire ] – Shadows Fall have called off their upcoming tours of Europe and the U.K. [ Loudwire ] – Pete Townshend cursed out an audience member at a recent show. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Deep Purple give you a glimpse of their new music with an album preview video. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Twenty years ago, Radiohead started their path to becoming one of the biggest bands in the world with the release of their ‘Pablo Honey’ album. [ Diffuser.fm ] – Black Rebel Motorcycle Club are offering up the new free ‘Let the Day Begin’ EP ahead of their full-length album release. [ Diffuser.fm ]

Bullet for My Valentine Discuss New Album ‘Temper Temper’ – Exclusive Video Interview

RCA Bullet for My Valentine are set to release their highly anticipated fourth album, ‘Temper Temper,’ their first full-length since the band’s 2010 album, ‘Fever.’ The band stopped by Loudwire’s offices for an exclusive interview about ‘Temper Temper.’ Among the topics they discussed were how the new record sounds compared to previous efforts, how the album’s title track reflects on the rest of the album and why Bullet chose Thailand as the ideal destination for the recording of ‘Temper Temper.’ ‘Temper Temper,’ featuring the title track and the first single ‘Riot,’ drops on Tuesday, Feb. 12. It is available at iTunes  and Amazon . In addition, BFMV are set to headline the HardDrive Live tour with Halestorm, Young Guns and Stars in Stereo. Check out the full list of dates here . Look out for more from our interview with Bullet for My Valentine coming soon, but in the meantime, enjoy the exclusive clip below: Bullet for My Valentine Talk to Loudwire about ‘Temper Temper’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/bullet-for-my-valentine-choruses-temper-temper-album-exclusive-preview/” title=”Next: Check Out Exclusive Previews of ‘Temper Temper'” align=”center”]

Upon This Dawning, ‘The Sound of Your Breath’ – Exclusive Video Premiere

Fearless Records Italian metal band Upon This Dawning dropped their latest album ‘To Keep Us Safe’ in October, and now they’re unleashing a lyric/music video for new single ‘The Sound of Your Breath’ exclusively on Loudwire. “‘The Sound of Your Breath’ is one of the last songs we wrote and it’s absolutely our favorite song to play live,” says frontman Matteo Botticini. ”We always have so much fun when we play that song.” The lyric/music video portrays the band’s intense performance onstage while showing black and white clips of the band loading up their gear and roaming around Los Angeles. As for the video itself, Botticini adds, “We shot the video in Hollywood during the Infamous tour with Motionless In White and it was definitely one of the funnest moment we had on that tour. I really hope our fans are gonna like this video.” ‘To Keep Us Safe’ debuted at No. 9 on Billboard’s Heatseeker’s Album Charts. The release is available on CD at the Fearless Records merch store  or digitally at iTunes . Upon This Dawning have a handful of shows in February with bands I See Stars and For All Those Sleeping. For a full list of dates and cities, go here . Watch Upon This Dawning’s ‘The Sound of Your Breath’ Video [Exclusive]

Tomahawk, ‘Oddfellows’ – Exclusive Video Premiere

Ipecac Tomahawk are a unique band in more ways than one. Besides honing an incredibly eclectic and experimental style, Tomahawk happen to be comprised of modern rock heavy hitters from legendary bands such as Faith No More , Mr. Bungle, Fantomas, the Jesus Lizard and Helmet . The band recently released their fourth studio album, ‘Oddfellows,’ and we’re proud to debut Tomahawk’s new music video for the album’s title track exclusively here on Loudwire. Faith No More / Fantomas / ex-Mr. Bungle legend Mike Patton formed Tomahawk in 2000 shortly after Faith No More called it a day in 1998 (they’ve since reunited to tour). Housed within Patton’s record label, Ipecac Recordings, Tomahawk is comprised of former Jesus Lizard guitarist Duane Denison, ex-Helmet drummer John Stanier and bassist Trevor Dunn, whose resume includes stints in Mr. Bungle, Fantomas and Melvins among others. The video for ‘Oddfellows’ complements Tomahawk’s intense and strange sound perfectly, splattered with captivating animation on top of performance footage from the musical collective. Directed by Vincent Forcier and shot in black and white, the video is filled with animation of ghosts, demented cartoon faces and the band dangling as hangmen, along with distortions of the Tomahawk members while they perform ‘Oddfellows.’ For fans of experimental rock and unique video accompaniments, take a few minutes to check out Tomahawk’s clip for ‘Oddfellows.’ To purchase a copy of Tomahawk’s ‘Oddfellows’ album, click here . In addition, Tomahawk are kicking off a tour in support of ‘Oddfellows’ tomorrow night (Feb. 12) in Seattle. See the dates below the video. Tomahawk, ‘Oddfellows’ Tomahawk 2013 Tour Dates: 2/12 – Seattle, Wash. @ The Showbox 2/13 – Portland, Ore. @ Wonder Ballroom 2/15 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Great American Music Hall 2/16 – San Francisco, Calif. @ Great American Music Hall 2/17 – Santa Ana, Calif. @ The Observatory 2/19 – Los Angeles, Calif. @ The Mayan Theater 2/23 – Brisbane, Australia @ RNA Showgrounds 2/24 – Sydney, Australia @ Olympic Park 2/26 – Sydney, Australia @ The Metro 2/27 – Melbourne, Australia @ Billboard 3/01 – Melbourne, Australia @ Flemington Racecourse 3/02 – Adelaide, Australia @ Bonython Park 3/04 – Perth, Australia @ Claremont Showground 3/30 – Sao Paulo, Brazil @ Lollapalooza Brazil 4/02 – Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Malvinas Argentinas Stadium (w/A Perfect Circle) 4/04 – Santiago, Chile @ Teatro La Cupula del Parque O’Higgins 4/06 – Santiago, Chile @ Lollapalooza Chile

Daily Reload: Marilyn Manson, Tool + More

Liz Ramanand, Loudwire – Marilyn Manson collapsed onstage in Canada on Wednesday night and had to be carried off by his road crew. [ Loudwire ] – Tool ‘s Danny Carey reveals the group may still try to get new music out this year and that he was the injured band member in a recent Vespa accident. [ Loudwire ] – Metallica will play the National Anthem and throw out the first pitch at a San Francisco Giants’ home game in May. [ Loudwire ] – Queens of the Stone Age have added Elton John to their stellar guest list for their next album. [ Loudwire ] – Buckcherry ‘s Josh Todd discusses the ‘Confessions’ album, the seven deadly sins and the group’s upcoming film in our exclusive interview: [ Loudwire ] – Jack White has already started working on 20 tracks for his next solo album. [ Diffuser.fm ] – TheFW shows us what several Grammy nominated record covers should really say. [ TheFW ] – Led Zeppelin ‘s Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones discuss their difficulties finding a singer. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ] – Forty years ago, Iggy Pop and the Stooges released their ‘Raw Power’ album. [ Ultimate Classic Rock ]