OK, well since my day usually consists of going through the news, finding somewhat interesting pieces to talk about, trying to grab interviews and (my favourite part) checking out new bands/albums, this group from Akron, Ohio caught my attention the other day. Say hello to progressive newcomers WIDE EYES. This 5 piece group just released their debut CD (from what I can see, with no help from a record label) on August 21st and have already garnished quite a bit of attention and fans in the short time span.
As you can see from the video below, they got themselves a notable musician (Adam Getgood from Periphery) to master the tracks into the finished product that you can check out below. But mind you, the band seems to be taking care of every other step of the way, with tracking, mastering and more done all done by themselves.
Wide Eyes consists of:
"The album breaks down into 20 songs and 6 bonus tracks. I did my best during the mixing process to make all of the songs flow together, but that wasn't the point of the album. This album was a way for us to take all the music we have written over the past few years and just get it out there so that we could start fresh, very similar to what Lil Wayne did way back in the day when he dropped his 10,000 bars mixtape. Remember when he actually tried to rap? SMFHLOL. Anyways, we called it Volume, because between Godge, Chriggz, and myself, it literally is a volume of our works. So I hope you all enjoy it! The next release will sound much more like an album rather than a compilation of songs!" -Danny (DBrick, Operative Me!, Danny Boy, whatever the hell you want to call me.)
1. Inception
2. Genie
3. Hah!
4. Sighborg
5. Eskalofrio
6. Higher
7. Diamondize
8. Immortalize
9. Champagne Charlie
10. Decimator
11. Terra Tellus
12. The Galveston Key
13. Uno
14. Slipt
15. Jet Black Pope
16. Progress
17. Empirical
18. Sidewards
19. Revival
20. Demarcation
21. Marahute
22. Kamel Krush
23. The Alkonost
24. New Order Of The Ages
25. Chronicles Of Zuo
26. End Of The Sun
Notable tracks to listen to:
Immortalize, Decimator and Empirical
Now I know a fair amount of you would be looking for some vocals for a debut album with two session vocalists enlisted. The guys have replied (via Facebook) to a few fans and advised them that the next album. Judging by the way these guys make albums (26 tracks!) that they will most likely be starting that soon. Can't wait to see what the added vocals are going to sound like!
So if the article about these guys wasn't enough for you guys and gals, I managed to get in touch with Danny for a quick Q&A about these guys and what their ultimate goals are for this project. I was thoroughly intrigued by the answers I got here and it seems Wide Eyes has a plethora of music just waiting to be heard!
Hey Danny, thanks for taking the time to stop by AFGM for a quick Q&A. So, what are you guys up to today?
We're starting pre-production on our new EP!
So how did Wide Eyes come together?
It actually started as just a little project for me (Danny) and Chris Saniga (AKA Chriggz). At the time we played in a band called Among The Hidden, which played generic deathcore, and after we broke up, we were searching for a new outlet. Our friend had misinterpreted the lyrics to the BTBAM song "Alaska" in which Tommy Rogers says "Keep writing", and thought he said "King Wide Eyes". So we dropped the "King" and Wide Eyes was born. After that, Chriggz was going to school at the University of Akron, he met our other guitarist, who is also our drummer, Chris Vogagis (The Godge). After that we all just started writing!
Any other influences besides David Blane and Magic? haha
We all grew up on BTBAM, Dream Theater, Misery Signals, August Burns Red and were always attracted to the more technical aspect of metal!
Do you find your hometown of Akron to be a good spot for a band such as yourselves to get a career started?
Akron sucks, but in 2012, social networking rules everything, so it has been fairly easy to reach our target audience!
Do most the tunes you write just come to mind (in Psych class haha) in random or do you guys ever have sit down sessions where you hash out new tunes?
Both actually! Some songs/riffs are written by us individually and sometimes we get together and jam stuff out! Guitar Pro is also a big help ;)
So lets talk about the album "Volume". How were you able to secure mastering duties by Adam Getgood and artwork by Daniel Wagner? They seem to be both notable masters of their craft. Was it as simple as a request/phone call?
Pretty much. We hit up Daniel shortly after we started production and he was totally down to do the art! I had been asking Nolly for mixing and tone tips via Facebook messaging and we got the idea to ask him to master it for us. When we heard the finished product, we we're EXTREMELY happy with the sound.
From what I have seen from numerous fans, they are very pleased with the fact that this LP contains 26 tracks? What made you guys want to release all 26 instead of doing two separate albums?
We basically just had all of these completed songs that we wanted to release. The whole idea of "Volume" was basically to take all of the songs we had written and just release them all at once. It is a collection, or "volume" (hehe), of all of our works. Some of the songs were written 2 years ago and others were written during the production process!
"The next release will sound much more like an album rather than a compilation of songs!" Are we to expect some more material in the near future? And with vocals?
Absolutely!
What software were you guys using for the tracking and mastering of "Volume" and the drum programming?
For drums we used Superior Drummer, however, most of the drum parts were actually written by our drummer The Godge. For our guitars, we used the Axe Fx Ultra and for bass we used a Bass POD. Everything was tracked and mixed in Logic!
So being that the album is available on Bandcamp, it seems you guys are definitely a DIY kind of band. Do you plan to continue releasing material independently or you looking for a label right now?
At the moment we have the ability to do everything ourselves, and it seems like a lot of signed bands still have a hard time making a living, so why not just keep going DIY!
What's your hardware setup looking like recently? Any specific pieces you could recommend to readers/fans to try out?
AXE FX!!!!
Words of inspiration to musicians/bands looking to follow in similar footsteps of yourselves?
Do you and don't let anyone else tell you what your music should sound like!
Now that "Volume" has been released, are there any short term goals that Wide Eyes is looking to attain?
Trying to find a way to release the hundreds of songs we've written and putting together an epic live performance for the future!
What's your favourite album of 2012 (no bias! haha)
2 Chanz - Based On a T.R.U. Story (our biggest influence)
***
Anyways, pre-orders and more info about these guys can be found at any of their official sites, so check em out, like their pages and drop a comment or two on your take of their debut album:
Facebook: www.facebook.com/WideEyesOH
Twitter: www.twitter.com/wideeyesoh
Myspace: www.myspace.com/athmetal
YouTube: www.youtube.com/wideeyesoh
Tumblr: wideeyesoh.tumblr.com
Bandcamp: wideeyesofficial.bandcamp.com
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