spinelanguage

Seven (via MySpace)

Meshuggah is an often copied, never duplicated kind of band.  They influence a shitload of new metal musicians, but the fact is that so many of them can’t find their own voice with that sound.  One band from Illinois is doing a good job of breaking away from the pack: Seven.  We got a chance to catch up with Brad Tuttle and rest of Seven recently for an interview.  Check it out!

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1. There’s not much out there as far as a biography for Seven. Could you elaborate on how and why the band exists as it does today?

Brad: I started writing/recording songs for Seven in 2001 as a solo recording project when i was 16. Although a couple incarnations of the live band have come and gone, I remain the only musician on the recordings to date besides a few small pieces here and there. Having all the right musicians at one time has been a struggle. The rest of the band is just now contributing to the material now that there are enough members to do so as a group. Album #3 looks to feature every member but that is still a ways down the road. Steve Holliger and Derek Necessary, local virtuosos joined up and brought things to completion with my brother, David doing the electronics stuff at the time.

The band that I played guitar/lead vocals for at the time, Soldier, was rather limiting and I wanted to make music that I didn’t have to worry about my band being able to do justice…Basically stripping myself of the limitations holding me back from my full potential as a writer. I never really intended to do it live initially. Soldier eventually split after about 7 years of existence so focus shifted to Seven…Eight years after I recorded the first track, Seven is more of a creative addiction for me than anything–I just love writing and recording music. When the right people are in line to play it live we do our best to make that happen.

2. Seven’s sound is quite unique. The majority of what people will hear are the Meshuggah and Tool influences, but there are also some Deftones-ish moments and industrial tinges. Your songs regularly teeter-totter between experimental and mainstream. Where does Seven’s sound fit into modern metal? Do you think there’s an untapped fanbase out there that has been waiting for something like your style to come along?

Brad: Hope so! There’s definitely a strong vision we pursue and I think similar styles are gaining popularity. I at least hope that the strong electronic element sets us apart from most of the bands being put in similar categories right now such as the low-tuned polymetric metal or atmospheric ‘Isis” type sound among other things…Don’t get me wrong polymetric atmospheric metal describes us well but we’re still finding our niche. Once the influences of the other members are incorporated, the spectrum will broaden much further. I listen to a lot of both experimental and mainstream stuff so I suppose that influences the results.

3. It’s interesting that you would use auto-tune vocals on your songs, considering how many popular artists are using that plug-in these days. However, much like the vocoder fit with Cynic, the auto-tune effect fits well with the machine-like nature to your music (reminds me of Ivan Moody from Five Finger Death Punch/Motograter at times). Did you guys plan on using auto-tune from day one or did it come about as an afterthought? Do you think people will judge the band harshly for not using cut-and-dry clean vocals?

Brad: Auto-tune wasn’t popular or very developed when Seven began so it wasn’t always there. To be honest when I first started using it, like most people it seems, I used it because my vocals sucked at the time. Now that I can actually sing I still use it to excess out of habit as its kind of became part of our defining sound. I think that as long as my live vocals aren’t pitchy, people wont be harsh–at least that is the case so far as anyone who’s seen me sing live knows I’m not pitchy, and no live auto-tune. I might have to plug my ear sometimes during shows but I don’t need auto-tune to sound on key and people can see that. People usually look down when it lacks emotion and that hasn’t been a problem for us yet.
I haven’t had much criticism on that really. I know that I over analyze a lot when I’m producing and mixing my own vocals. I’ve also had a lot of people tell me that the first time they hear me live–there some things I do with my voice that people initially thought were auto-tune. My weird speedy vibrato for instance sometimes resembles auto tune ‘bouncing’. Its really more like a tremelo than a vibrato. I guess after hearing things like that I have to wonder if I really abuse it as much as people may assume. Either way its overused and eventually it will be used for occasional effect and only that.

Keith: Being that I was a fans of Seven’s music before I joined the band, I wondered the same thing about the use of auto-tuning for the vocals and how would effect the live performance. After countless jam sessions I’m sure that Brad can more than make up for anything that might get lost in a live show. As brad mentioned earlier I too assumed there were parts of the songs that had the vocal effect. In reality, I found that he’s just a badass and he’s really hitting the notes that I was sure were auto tuned.

4. You are currently seeking a bassist. How is the search going? You’ve said that your last bassist set the bar pretty high for his replacement; what specifically is so difficult about finding who you’re looking for? Will you sacrifice some of the qualities you want in a musician if you can’t find anyone perfect, or will the search go on regardless?

Brad: Judging from past replacements it will probably go on regardless…We’ve been through several tryouts now so I can’t say its going smooth but I’m getting offers almost daily so options are opening and we have some good prospects at the moment. There’s definitely a constant feeling of need to keep moving forward and progress. ‘Downgrading’ musicians conflicts with that–but no more for us than any other band. Steve just happens to be the most talented bass player I’ve ever had the privilege of playing with–not to mention the only bassist involved with Seven so that makes things extra difficult.
Every musician I’ve chosen for the project has given me a certain feeling that’s hard to put your finger on–an immediate musical chemistry–If I’m not inspired by the presence of the musician things can start to lose feeling as Seven’s being set up for a collective creative contribution from every member, rather than 99 % me. Chemistry with the rest of the band members is just as important but to take things one a time: If I’m not feeling it, its “next…” Not to be stuck up hehe. Seven’s kind of my creative baby and we’re just very careful about who we let influence our evolution. We need someone who enhances the machine for this to work. Steve’s one of a kind but we’ll find someone who fits the part. Being selective in the past has never ended in regret.

5. What I find most interesting about your songs is that they are so multi-faceted. Some of your older blog posts are dedicated to single songs and are full of diagrams and explanations for some really abstract concepts, but the lyrics themselves are fairly simple. What specifically inspires your lyrics? How concerned are you with creating an overall artistic experience as opposed to simple stand alone songs? Is it conscious or natural?

Brad: I consider myself a pretty ‘artsy’ person and my music has always been thematic in some way…It comes natural. I can definitely see this as being a band that does basically concept albums. Lyrically, There is a lot of personal stuff I don’t get into with many people for several of the songs. Depending on the song you might not get much out of me. I was never abused as a child or anything like that–my childhood was pretty normal. Some things are just better left unsaid. Plus, I like to let people interpret things for themselves when possible.
During the writing and recording of the first album is when all the 9/11 conspiracies started and the trust in our government went to shit. Most of the anger from the first album is centered around that state of society in relation to control as my eyes were slowly opened to the possibilities and dark history of our ancestors. I won’t elaborate any more on that stuff or I’ll start arguments hehe.
I don’t believe a whole lot of what’s printed in the Bible and I’m not shy about it in my lyrics. There is nothing satanic or anything like that despite the concerns that our dark imagery might sometimes entice. We just question everything and I can speak for the whole band when I say that. Its amazing how little we actually know about ourselves and that inspires a lot of lyrical themes. Apocalyptic scenarios in my lyrics seem to be reoccurring and probably always will until 2012.(Joke)

6. There’s a lot going on for the band right now. In addition to releasing the new full-length album “Cymatics” this summer, you’re planning on releasing an accompanying movie at the end of the year. This is a radical concept, especially for a band that isn’t signed to a label. I know you don’t want to reveal too much about what’s in the film, but what can people expect? Why did you decide to do an album/movie pairing like this?

Brad: I’ve always wanted to do that–since back before I started recording the first full length…I just haven’t had the tools to do it until recently: HD camera, supercomputer, 35 MM etc…
Our music works well in soundtrack type settings and I’ve always had a passion for visual art so it seemed like a rational thing to try–And a good way to help bring things to the next level…
Its another big project and yea, without a label we can’t afford big production but we didn’t have big production on the album either and it turned out alright…So why not give it a go?…
There’s a lot of dark depictions and abstract imagery in the film. Its like several short films that all tie into each other as one body of work. Like the album, each song in the movie is a little different but each meet at some common ground…
I can’t say that the film is totally official until its more deveoped. This is my first attempt at a movie so if it turns out to be a big long turd then I don’t want to put it out there. If nothing else its pretty much guaranteed to at least yield a damn good music video hehe. If it turns out as planned I’ve even toyed with the idea of making a film for every album.

7. Seven, as a band, didn’t play its first live show until August 18th of 2007. What took so long to make that happen? A lot of bands and artists these days have pre-live incubation periods where they are strictly studio projects thanks to home recording software, and I assume that’s how Seven started as well. But, as everyone probably knows, playing music in your headphones is far and away from playing with a live band. Have you found the transition difficult?

Brad: Our drummer quit. Hehe I wish there was a better story behind it but sadly that was the biggest setback the group has experienced so far. The live aspect didn’t begin until 2003 when we finally found a drummer who could pull it off, Cody Holiday…I really wouldn’t even have tried it if not for that. By the time musicians were gathered and ‘rehearsed’ he ended up leaving due to scheduling conflicts before we had the opportunity to bring it to the stage. It took over 2 years to replace Cody. Hehe what can I say I’m picky. Bloomington/Normal isn’t a very populated area and the metal scene is small here.
Oh yea, recreating the songs live is a bitch. Finding the musicians first of coarse is the first obstacle. There’s always fun parts but analyzing songs like these gets frustrating for all of us at times…Mike, our drummer probably has it the worst hehe. Its always worth it though in the end…I have a tendency to like the live version better than the CD because the songs get a chance to evolve and improve. Everyone throws their own spin on things and it gets more dynamic but still sounds like Seven–the parts that differ from the CD sound better. We don’t cut corners. Having to live up to the precedent the recordings set never holds us back from anything once the right musicians are in place.
Another highly challenging task for me is getting the electronics to blend the same way because we don’t use a metronome of any kind live. The samples and MIDI need to be able to fluctuate with and adjust to a human tempo rather than a preset BPM. As heavily used as the synths are, that’s a project in itself but its kind of fun to figure out ways to pull it off live, to program the samplers and watch it come to life.

Keith (guitar): The only hard part for me is having to press rewind a few more times than I’d like to while I’m learning the songs. I’ve joined other bands that have established songs before, but there wasn’t a whole lot to the music. As far as playing with the whole band its awesome to recreate what’s on the albums and I think we all do a great job at it. Whenever we get a part of a song locked in I’m always going, “holy shit!, We’re actually playing it just like the CD.”

Ike (samples, MIDI): I wouldn’t say its difficult I would say its more fun because we’re taking music we all love and turning it into a live experience.

Mike (drums): Have I found the transition difficult from ‘on disc’ to live? God damn right I have lol. The music Brad writes is extremely intimidating for me as a drummer. The struggle to recreate the music live, and recreate it well is very tedious. With the first album, Echoes, the drums had a very electronic feel to them, which I found difficult to recreate live. Being that this was my first experience playing with any form of electronics (samples, loops, etc), it was quite challenging for me at first. Coming into this project, Brad was always very open in his allowing us to ‘tweak’ parts, making small changes along the way, as long as we didn’t deviate away from the main theme of the song. With the newest album “Cymatics”, Brad used a much more natural drum tone, which made recreating the sound a little easier. Making sure that what I am playing live serves the album justice can be a struggle, however in the end, we find a way to make it work. Keeping that in mind, we always strive to recreate live what you hear on disc.

8. Seventh Productions is your new recording studio, if I’m not mistaken. Is it finished being outfitted yet? Why did you decide to open a full of studio in the midst of so much activity for the band? I assume one or more of you must be formally trained in professional recording. Has anyone been jumping at the opportunity to record with you yet? Is there any one band/artist that you would like to record (and I mean any band, famous or not)?

Brad: Construction actually started last October but its taking FOREVER. It started from scratch in an empty rented warehouse where we (several construction workers including Ike and I) built the design I drew up on a piece of graph paper. After that the rest of the building still had to be outfitted. When we started it was literally just concrete floor and metal walls…I’ve never been formally trained, I’ve just been recording for a long time and feel confident enough with my experience and gear to give it a go. I’ve done a few small projects but wont have the resources to do much until the studio is finished…Its a huge project but its finally coming to a close and I couldn’t be happier with the results. It turned out exactly the way I designed it–to the detail. Indeed fucked-up timing though, I agree.

9. When “Cymatics” gets released, it’s probably going to be ripped and uploaded to a torrent site to be taken for free. That’s just the nature of the industry now. Aside from the film, is there anything else you’re doing to boost the public’s interest in actually paying for your music? What do you think people will miss out on if they don’t buy “Cymatics” the way it was intended?

Brad: Yea the movie’s definitely the main one. I did all the artwork for the album: 10 full color pages, 8 page booklet. That seems to make the artwork a little more interesting when the band is directly involved. The artwork has always been an important part of what we do and a lot of fans recognize that. This will also be the first time a lot of fans will have access to a physical copy of one of our albums professionally manufactured so I know there’s a lot of people waiting for that.
The album flows as one unit from front to back–each song flowing into the next with no silence in between. Usually if you download a torrent and burn it you get that half second space b/w each track. Unless you’re familiar with setting track markers with digital masters then that’s always going to be the case. I suppose a half second of silence disrupting the flow of an album is a minor detail to most but it really does keep the record from being heard in its intended form.
At the same time though I actually hope to see it being downloaded a lot–legal or not. Regardless of the fact that I pretty much slaved over it for 2 years I’ll just be glad to know that its getting out there and that people are hearing it.

10. The final question is one I ask everybody: if you could go on tour with any band from another country, who would it be and why?

Brad: Definitely depends on which member you ask–I’m sure we couldn’t all decide on one answer. For me: Meshuggah because I think we could learn a lot from them and at least a couple of us are huge fans…
Mike: Soilwork because “they’re the shit”…
Keith: Hypodust. they’re a branch off a band called Varga who back in the early 90’s were playing a style that most didn’t catch onto until 2001 or so. They’ve always been an inspiration for me.
Ike: Arch Enemy because he wants to fornicate with the singer.

http://www.myspace.com/seventhband

DISCLAIMER:  ALL INTERVIEWS ARE PRE-APPROVED BY THE ARTISTS INVOLVED. NO CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE TO SAID INTERVIEWS BY THE INTERVIEWER WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF THE ARTISTS. NO INTERVIEWS ARE TO BE RE-SOLD FOR PROFIT.