I'm not typically drawn to music with this style of vocals, but after listening to one song, then the next, etc.. It didn't take long for me to realize that these guys are incredible musicians, and pretty friendly fellows. Unfortunately, they broke up before their summer tour so I don't feel the need to write a ton.
J: Let's start by telling me a bit about yourselves as a band, and as individuals. You've been around for a minute and have had lots of changes in your line-up, who does your band currently consist of, and who's the mastermind behind the lyrics?
A:Well, we are A Wolf. A Liar. out of Guthrie, Oklahoma. In terms of genre, we started out as a post-hardcore band, but our newer stuff is referred to as a more technical metalcore most of the time. We have gone through a lot of changes, but our current line consists of Dalton Lott(Harsh vocalist/frontman), Max Young(Guitar/Cleans), Nathan Graeber(Bass), and Eric Donnell(Drums). Dalton has written pretty much all of the lyrics.
J: Can you tell me what it's been like putting out your first full length? Do you plan on pressing vinyl in the near future?
A: It has definitely been a journey, to say the least. During the writing process, we lost 2 of our members, one of which was our other guitarist. So Max(guitarist) had to go back in a few days before we were set to begin tracking, and restructure the album to have a fuller sound with just one guitar track. Some of the songs had been sitting around for a year, some were written in a day, but they all had to be rewritten. In the process, we became a 4 member band instead of a 5. We don’t know about vinyl, but we are definitely going to have physical copies as soon as we can.
J: Your backwoods benefit party went over pretty well, yeah?
A:Yeah, it was pretty rad. After it was all said and done, we got to deliver a truck load full of help to the victims of the tornadoes that hit all around Oklahoma. Our biggest thing with our music has always been to have solid live representation of what we record. Like, what you hear on the album, we do live for the most part. We have been told that our stage presence is very tight, and we are energetic. It’s not uncommon that some of us will end up in the crowd throughout the course of our set. Haha.
J: You guys all prepared for your tour? Is this your first, or?
A: We would definitely like to think we are ready for tour, and yes this is our first one. Some of our members have touring experience though, so we are hoping it goes smooth. There should be dates and locations available on our Facebook page.
J: I listen to a lot of early thrash and post-hardcore stuff, and some older screamo before it got all weak. I can't quite put my finger on your influences, but have heard you compared to lamb of god. I don't really agree. Who inspires you?
A: Haha. That is funny. We have heard that too, oddly enough. We have a pretty diverse range, in terms of influences, especially since our member changes. We all listen to a lot of hardcore music, and definitely lean towards the heavier side of things. We also strongly like softer styles, like acoustic music. There is some rap in there too. Our road trip playlists have anything from Mumford& Sons to Impending Doom.
J: What can you tell me about your instruments? (i.e., Are you subject to brand loyalty or will you play with whatever's available?) I've noticed a way subtle synth in some of your stuff. I'm a korg enthusiast myself.
A:Well, we are kind of all over the place. We are working on endorsements, but currently our drummer is the only one that has anything going. (Imperial, Dark Horse, Silver Fox) We all like ESP guitars, and that is what our guitarist is currently playing, but we aren’t necessarily gear snobs. Definitely gear nuts, but not snobs. Haha. About the only thing we are dead set on is our live guitar rigs, which consists of Fractal Audio Systems Axe Fx guitar processors. They are the shizzle.
J: Back when you guys were younger, who were the small unsigned bands that you went to go see/ looked up to/ wanted to die/ etc? describe them, who were the gems that never got to see the light?
A: Man, there have been so many good bands come and go. We all like Harp&Lyre, they are about the only one that we all were into at some point.
J: Now that we've talked about influences and old favorites, what are you currently listening to? Who are some of your favorite locals?
A:We are all jamming a lot of hardcore, and metalcore right now. Gets ya pumped up. Been listening to Glass Cloud, Fit For A King, and Northlane as well, just to name a few. As far as locals go, our friend’s bands Keeper(pop punk), and In Honor(hardcore), have been tearing it up lately. Love those guys.
J: As artists, we're all pretty familiar with the term "starving artist" How do you cope with your major obstacles?
A: We work as hard as we can, and eat off of the dollar menu.
J: What would you consider your largest fan base, and why?
A:Probably just the local kids around here. We also have a lot of overseas support too, for some reason.
J: What's been your most personal project so far?
A: Probably the new album, and organizing the benefit show. There was a lot of time and emotion put into both.
J: Is there anyone you'd like to acknowledge for offering financial or emotional support?
A: Just a huge shout out to all of our families, and friends. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.
**Thanks to Max Young, sorry about your band.
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