The Word Alive
I recently got the chance to speak with band vocalist, Telle, about the band’s new album and what their plans are after its release.
André Monnéy: For the record, introduce yourself and what you do in the band.
Telle: Telle, and I'm the vocalist for The Word Alive.
AM: Which one of your favorite childhood shows would best describes your band?
T: Probably X-Men. We all have special gifts in our band and combined we make a badass team. Either them or Captain Planet! "By our powers combined...!"
AM: You guys are getting ready to release your new record, Deceiver, later this month. Are you guys pretty excited to get it out there?
T: Excited would be an understatement. I'm not sure what words to use, but think excited times 100!
AM: From the three songs, we’ve heard so far, the material on Deceiver is definitely more “mature” than the songs on Empire. What do you attribute to this growth?
T: Well bonding as friends, a band, touring for the last year and just growing as musicians I think.
AM: A lot of people seem to be curious as to why “Battle Royale” is making an appearance on this record. Is it being redone or is it the same version that appears on Empire? Why did you include it in the full length?
T: We re-recorded Battle Royale for a few reasons. We wanted to give it a makeover and truly show how we wanted that song to come across. We added parts, beefed up some vocal parts and recorded it in a lower tuning to match the feel of Deceiver better. It's been a fan favorite from day 1 and we wanted to continue playing it. This way it makes sense to continue to play it for a longer period of time.
AM: Was the writing and recording process different on the full length than it was with the EP?
T: Very much so. We wrote all but 2 songs on the road while touring. The only ones that weren't were "You're All I See" and "Dream Catcher" which was the last song we wrote. It was quite stressful but worked out for us in the end.
AM: This record also welcomes your new drummer, Justin Salinas, what do you feel he brought to the table with these batch of songs?
T: He definitely fits the style of drumming Tony and Zack were looking for, and brings in a lot of experience as well as much more technical drumming than we previously had.
AM: You guys also went back to Wade Studios to record the album. How was it working with Andrew Wade again?
T: We love working with Andrew and the record definitely wouldn't have turned out as good as it did without him. He really knows our sound and knows how to get the best out of each of us. We had a great time with the phase master as we call him.
AM: I personally feel like these songs opened up some of the heavier sides that were not fully explored on the EP. Would you say that’s pretty accurate?
T: Of course. We really took the time to think about our songs, the direction the band wanted to go and how that would effect our live show. Which to us is most important. We want everyone to have a great time and move around at our shows. We play the kind of music we play for the raw energy. Hopefully it pays off, figuratively of course.
AM: After Warped tour and a few one off shows, you guys are heading out on tour with Bleeding Through. What do you look forwards to the most about this tour?
T: Bleeding Through has been a staple in heavy music for several years and we're looking forward to touring with such great musicians who have made a career out of shredding. It's also the heaviest tour we've ever done so hopefully we can hold our own and have a great time in front of a lot of new fans.
AM: Are there any touring plans after the Bleeding Through tour?
T: Yes, we have a tour booked with our friends in Miss May I and Confide as well as some other bands. Dates haven't been announced yet but should be up soon. We're really stoked to tour with a couple bands we've been friends with for a while now.
AM: Are there any plans for a music video in the works?
T: We're gonna let the album come out and whichever song becomes the standout track, we'll plan the most amazing music video ever! We've had bad luck with videos in the past so the next time we go to shoot one, we're going all out.
AM: If you could do anything other than this interview right now, what would it be?
T: Well since I'm currently riding in our bus on our way to Vegas for a show on the way home from Warped Tour, I'd like to be in our hotel, freshly showered, and full from eating some amazing food! Our a/c went out in the bus, so I really would settle for a cannonball into the nearest pool.
AM: Is there anything else you’d like to leave with our readers and your fans who may stumble across this interview at some point?
T: Thank you so much for listening to our band, and even more so if you've supported us by spreading the word or buying a cd or t-shirt. We really do appreciate each of our fans, so we hope you know that.