(We, The Undersigned is, from left, Jai Sadler, Andy Stevens, Chris Gatza and Tyler Feeney.)
In a fairly short period of time, We, The Undersigned has made quite a name for itself on the east coast metal scene. Touring relentlessly with everyone from Protest The Hero, Fuck the Facts, Cancer Bats and a variety of fellow east coasters, the band hasn’t stopped.
As we reported yesterday, the four-piece (Jai Sadler, Andy Stevens, Tyler Feeney and Chris Gatza) is part of a tour of loud showcase shows leading up to East Coast Music Awards 2010 in the next few weeks (dates are reprinted below).
Since signing with busy metal label Diminished Fifth Records of Halifax, the band has released its full-length record Bleed The Constants, which is nominated for a 2010 ECMA for Loud Recording of the Year.
Band bassist Jai Sadler was kind enough to join us this week for our e-mail Q&A feature Fridays with …
1. What are you up to these days, musically or otherwise? (Feel free to plug whatever you’ve got coming up.)
Well my current musical project is my band We, the Undersigned. We just put out an album on Diminished Fifth Records, toured Canada and most recently shot a video for the song Burning Bodies (in the Distance) that should see the light of day come mid-February.
WTU will also be part of the ECMA’s Loud Nominations Tour before we head to Sydney for a few showcases. Besides that I’m working three part-time jobs, paying off some debts and saving cash for the plans WTU have for this coming year, which include more touring, hopefully outside of this continent.
2. How did you get into the music business and what was the first major lesson you learned once you got your feet wet?
I start booking and promoting shows in Sussex, N.B. with a close friend of mine from high school. I was in a band at the time and throwing shows was something we did for fun, once a month, to kill a Friday night.
This operation was completely do-it-yourself and with next to nothing in terms of guidance or advice from others. We were 16 and 17 at the time, so we were ripe with ignorance. I can remember learning about riders and contracts pretty quickly.
We had booked Silverstein into Sussex for a show with a few other bands, but I had not properly handled the contractual obligations and we didn’t make enough money at the door to pay them their guarantee. They’re weren’t happy. I came home that night to their booking agent more or less screaming at my mother over the phone.
3. What song or album have you been listening to most lately?
There’s a few albums:
Everytime I Die - New Junk Aesthetic
Genesis - Foxtrot
Fall of Troy - Manipulator
Andy Stevens - The Awakening
Black Dahlia Murder - Nocturnal
4. What’s your favourite way to waste time or relax?
Loud music mixed with either Mario 64, Super Mario All Stars or Super Mario World - I’m on a retro kick. I generally need music going all the time though, that’s really what keeps me relaxed.
5. The Internet and social media are allowing artists to get closer to their fans than they ever were in some respects. What are your thoughts on this?
It’s good and bad, for a lot of what I think are obvious reasons. It’s great for bands who truly want to get to know their fans, and for those fans who have been truly touched and inspired by the artists music.
On the other hand, it leaves the door wide open for bands and musicians who are simply there to play the business game and propel themselves forward by taking advantage of the sites and systems.
With everything that comes about to help musicians connect with their fans there seems to be a new aspect of image that comes along with it.
An obvious example would be the customized MySpace sites. A great tool, and it’s neat to see everyone’s ideas, but at the same time there are many bands out there who are being judged solely on how their MySpace looks and navigates. It’s just another thing that takes away from the actual music that is created.
It also makes it a lot easier for bands to connect with other bands in terms of booking tours. Again, this is good and bad. Touring is essential, but having it be easy to book a tour means that the scenes can become overwhelmed and oversaturated relatively quickly.
6. If you weren’t in the music industry in some capacity, what would you be doing today?
I honestly have no idea. Since Grade 9 it seems as though everything I’ve done has been centered around music in some aspect, be it learning to play bass, forming my first bands, promoting shows, recording albums. Even my post-high school schooling was in audio engineering so I don’t think I have much other choice then to try and stay afloat, financially, with music in some respect.
7. What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned recently?
We just recently shot a music video for the first time so that was an interesting learning experience. I can’t really sum it all up in a couple sentences, but knowing what goes into that sort of effort was really neat. We’ll be even more prepared when we shoot our next one.
8. If you could hit the “delete” button on anything related to music (a song, artist, trend, whatever), what would you delete?
Two things come to mind: the Loudness Wars - brought on by digital mastering - and the abuse of pitch correction.
Melodyne’s latest, or I believe it’s their latest, pitch correction invention - DNA (Direct Note Access) - could be considered pretty neat, but it should also be considered pretty scary.
9. What’s your favourite thing to drink (alcoholic or otherwise)?
Water is probably my favorite, followed by Hochtaler wine (Right now anyway - my preferred alcoholic drinks switch up every few months.) And then chocolate milk … though I can’t remember the last time I had any. A few years ago it was my favourite drink, hands down.
10. Finish the sentence below and please elaborate on what you mean:
The east coast music scene … is an awkward thing.
The Maritimes feels like a big small town. Everyone knows everyone, and it feels like there’s a lot of unhealthy competition going on.
I can only really speak on the metal scene though, and more so the Fredericton scene. Bands dissing bands, no one going to each other shows, no one supporting other bands’ accomplishments - it’s weird and frustrating. The strangest thing is that all of the metal bands basically fit into a different genre. There’s really no band that sounds like their neighbour’s band, yet everyone is worried about not being the best and feel the need to diss the others.
It’s odd. I could understand that if all the bands sounded the same, competition would then make sense, but they don’t.
11. What’s the next thing you want to accomplish, musically or otherwise?
I’d like to tour Europe for at least a month, and the same goes for the U.S. Getting another full-length record underway also ranks high on the list.
Check out We, The Undersigned at the following dates:
Wednesday, Feb. 24 – Fredericton @ Nicky Zees
Thursday, Feb. 25 – Halifax @ Gus’ Pub
Friday, Feb. 26 – Moncton @ The Manhattan
Saturday, Feb. 27 – Saint John @ Sun Star Lounge
Friday, March 5 – Sydney @ Maxwells
Check back to EastCoastNoise.com next Friday for a chat with: Warner Music Canada’s John Poirier
