Metalcore/Hardcore
About :
We live in uncertain times. Technology has undoubtedly enhanced our existence, but it has also made us vulnerable to government interference, sensory overload and identity theft. Generally this isn't the type of subject matter breached by hardcore bands, but then again Buffalo, New York's Every Time I Die have never been a typical hardcore act. In fact for over a decade the band have been forging their own musical and ideological path via their immediately distinctive brand of aggressive music—and that process is culminating with the band's fifth full-length (and Epitaph debut) New Junk Aesthetic, an album that sees the band not just shifting the hardcore paradigm but completely reinventing it via brutal riffs, impassioned lyrics and kinetic energy.
Currently comprised of vocalist Keith Buckley, guitarist Jordan Buckley, guitarist Andy Williams and bassist Josh Newton, New Junk Aesthetic sees Every Time I Die returning to their roots in order to craft their most devastating release to date. However in true EITD fashion, there's a method behind their madness. "When we were writing these songs it was a real awakening for the band," explains vocalist Keith Buckley. "We were like, ‘we've been a band for almost 12 years and now we're on a new label and have a second chance at life'—and I think it invigorated everyone to write heavier, faster music," he continues. "When we were listening to the demos I was like, ‘Jesus, I haven't worked on stuff that's this difficult to write to since [2003's] Hot Damn!, so it's really cool to go back to that again and capture it on tape."
From the opening battle cry of "Roman Solider" to the album's grandiose rock finale "The Sweet Life," New Junk Aesthetic is a sonic progression for the band that takes their seasoned sound to the next level. "The scene right now is saturated with people doing nonsense; just sort of adding a million different instruments and ignoring time signatures, so I think in some ways this entire album is a reaction to that," Buckley explains. This statement is especially evident in tracks like "White Smoke" and "Who Invited The Russian Solider?" which are instrumentally stripped-down, yet manage to sound far more aggressive than so-called metalcore acts who rely more on gimmicks and empty posturing than anything of substance.
Correspondingly, in usual Every Time I Die fashion, the lyrics on New Junk Aesthetic are anything but typical hardcore ranting and read more like a thesis statement than rehashed rhetoric. "A lot of the songs on the record turned out in the theme of constantly being watched or followed; it delves a little into paranoia, but there's reason for people to be paranoid now because there are people watching them all the time," Buckley explains. "It's not something that's an irrational fear anymore, it's legit," he continues. "With YouTube and cameras everywhere, everything you're doing could show up on the internet without you even knowing [it]; you could have a million views of you doing kung fu in your backyard when you think you're alone and you won't even know that many people have seen you—and that sounds funny, but it's actually kind of scary when you think about it."
However while the subject matter may be serious, that doesn't mean that Every Time I Die haven't abandoned their iconic sense of humor, which has helped them forge a deep relationship with their fans and given them a reputation as one of the most entertaining acts to tour alongside. "No one writes riffs as jokes, but I think of humor as a really good defense mechanism to truncate all the things that could cause you to micromanage your own life," Buckley explains. "I think humor is the best defense mechanism because once you understand what's bothering you it's easier to deal with if you spit it back out as a joke," he continues. "Obviously I've been around long enough understand the way the world works, but I'm just not going to let my own issues get to me the way they get to so many other people. I'd rather laugh about something than let it ruin my day—and I think that ideology figures into our music, too."
Every Time I Die's unorthodox approach to music has also allowed them to crossover to various scenes and make dedicated converts all over the world. "I'm really grateful for the fact that we can go on Ozzfest one year and Warped Tour the next," says Buckley. On these tours Every Time I Die have bonded with countless acts from across the sonic spectrum which is evidenced by the fact that Bronx's Matt Caughthran lends his vocals to "The Sweet Life" while Dillinger Escape Plan's screamer Greg Puciato is featured on "The Marvelous Slut." "Obviously as a musician you have an obligation to the people that like you and you don't want to let them down," Buckley explains, "but as someone who listens to many types of music, being able to work with people in so many different avenues is a blessing—and I'm not going to bypass that because I'm worried about what other people think."
Ultimately that type of attitude is exactly what has helped Every Time I Die thrive for over a decade and forge their own path in an increasingly homogenized musical landscape. "I think that we're always one step ahead of the curve and we know that this isn't going to last forever so this is the only chance we have to make this count," Buckley responds when asked how the band have managed to outlast so many of their peers. In the end, ETID acknowledge that everyone will have their own interpretation of New Junk Aesthetic, they just want people to give it a chance and make up their minds for themselves. "Maybe this album is the best thing in the world and maybe it's garbage, but at least you're hearing it," Buckley summarizes. "It's all personal interpretation."
Currently comprised of vocalist Keith Buckley, guitarist Jordan Buckley, guitarist Andy Williams and bassist Josh Newton, New Junk Aesthetic sees Every Time I Die returning to their roots in order to craft their most devastating release to date. However in true EITD fashion, there's a method behind their madness. "When we were writing these songs it was a real awakening for the band," explains vocalist Keith Buckley. "We were like, ‘we've been a band for almost 12 years and now we're on a new label and have a second chance at life'—and I think it invigorated everyone to write heavier, faster music," he continues. "When we were listening to the demos I was like, ‘Jesus, I haven't worked on stuff that's this difficult to write to since [2003's] Hot Damn!, so it's really cool to go back to that again and capture it on tape."
From the opening battle cry of "Roman Solider" to the album's grandiose rock finale "The Sweet Life," New Junk Aesthetic is a sonic progression for the band that takes their seasoned sound to the next level. "The scene right now is saturated with people doing nonsense; just sort of adding a million different instruments and ignoring time signatures, so I think in some ways this entire album is a reaction to that," Buckley explains. This statement is especially evident in tracks like "White Smoke" and "Who Invited The Russian Solider?" which are instrumentally stripped-down, yet manage to sound far more aggressive than so-called metalcore acts who rely more on gimmicks and empty posturing than anything of substance.
Correspondingly, in usual Every Time I Die fashion, the lyrics on New Junk Aesthetic are anything but typical hardcore ranting and read more like a thesis statement than rehashed rhetoric. "A lot of the songs on the record turned out in the theme of constantly being watched or followed; it delves a little into paranoia, but there's reason for people to be paranoid now because there are people watching them all the time," Buckley explains. "It's not something that's an irrational fear anymore, it's legit," he continues. "With YouTube and cameras everywhere, everything you're doing could show up on the internet without you even knowing [it]; you could have a million views of you doing kung fu in your backyard when you think you're alone and you won't even know that many people have seen you—and that sounds funny, but it's actually kind of scary when you think about it."
However while the subject matter may be serious, that doesn't mean that Every Time I Die haven't abandoned their iconic sense of humor, which has helped them forge a deep relationship with their fans and given them a reputation as one of the most entertaining acts to tour alongside. "No one writes riffs as jokes, but I think of humor as a really good defense mechanism to truncate all the things that could cause you to micromanage your own life," Buckley explains. "I think humor is the best defense mechanism because once you understand what's bothering you it's easier to deal with if you spit it back out as a joke," he continues. "Obviously I've been around long enough understand the way the world works, but I'm just not going to let my own issues get to me the way they get to so many other people. I'd rather laugh about something than let it ruin my day—and I think that ideology figures into our music, too."
Every Time I Die's unorthodox approach to music has also allowed them to crossover to various scenes and make dedicated converts all over the world. "I'm really grateful for the fact that we can go on Ozzfest one year and Warped Tour the next," says Buckley. On these tours Every Time I Die have bonded with countless acts from across the sonic spectrum which is evidenced by the fact that Bronx's Matt Caughthran lends his vocals to "The Sweet Life" while Dillinger Escape Plan's screamer Greg Puciato is featured on "The Marvelous Slut." "Obviously as a musician you have an obligation to the people that like you and you don't want to let them down," Buckley explains, "but as someone who listens to many types of music, being able to work with people in so many different avenues is a blessing—and I'm not going to bypass that because I'm worried about what other people think."
Ultimately that type of attitude is exactly what has helped Every Time I Die thrive for over a decade and forge their own path in an increasingly homogenized musical landscape. "I think that we're always one step ahead of the curve and we know that this isn't going to last forever so this is the only chance we have to make this count," Buckley responds when asked how the band have managed to outlast so many of their peers. In the end, ETID acknowledge that everyone will have their own interpretation of New Junk Aesthetic, they just want people to give it a chance and make up their minds for themselves. "Maybe this album is the best thing in the world and maybe it's garbage, but at least you're hearing it," Buckley summarizes. "It's all personal interpretation."
The band was established by brothers Keith and Jordan Buckley, whose father, Michael Buckley, lectures Computer Science and Engineering at the University at Buffalo. They added to the initial lineup with guitarist Andy Williams, bassist John McCarthy, and drummer Michael "Ratboy" Novak. In their first short tour covering the Buffalo, New York and Toronto, Canada vicinities, the band met Goodfellow Records producer Chris Logan, who released the band's debut EP Burial Plot Bidding War in 2000. The following year, Aaron Ratajczak replaced McCarthy as bassist before the band released its debut full-length album Last Night In Town that year under Ferret Records, leading to a tour for that album in collaboration with Killswitch Engage the following year.
In 2003, Steven Micciche replaced Ratajczak as bassist for the band's second full-length Hot Damn! and the band's subsequent American tour supporting Jackass star Steve-O. However, Micciche resigned from his position in 2005, being replaced by Kevin Falk of Between the Buried and Me fame. However, three months after recording sessions for the band's third album Gutter Phenomenon, he was replaced by Chris Byrnes of NORA, who left the band after touring with them at the Warped Tour 2006.Their sixth bassist, Keller Harbin of The Chariot, replaced Byrnes and played with the band for its tour with Atreyu on the World Championship Tour along with From First to Last and Chiodos. The band was featured on the 2007 Sounds Of The Underground tour. Former Shiner guitarist and From Autumn To Ashes bassist, Josh Newton, was inducted in September 2007 as the band's seventh bassist for a tour with Underoath.
In 2006, their song "The New Black" was featured as a bonus track in Guitar Hero 2 and also in the PlayStation 3 game MotorStorm. The band performed the song "We'rewolf" live on the ABC late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live on Halloween of 2007. From January-February 2008, Every Time I Die went on a tour with Killswitch Engage, The Dillinger Escape Plan, and Parkway Drive. They also headlined the Take Action Tour, playing alongside From First to Last, August Burns Red, The Bled, and The Human Abstract. The band played the entire Warped Tour 2008.
On an episode of Steven's Untitled Rock Show, the band stated that their fifth full-length album would most likely be released during the summer of 2009.
Jordan and Keith are the cousins of Winston McCall of the band, Parkway Drive.
At their 4th Annual Christmas Show in Buffalo, NY, Keith announced that the band had signed to Epitaph Records, stating that, "I haven't said anything yet, but we have, in fact, signed to Epitaph."
According to Keith, they "have a propensity to screw up interviews" by joking around with the interviewer.
At their February 2009 show with Underoath and Poison The Well in Auckland, New Zealand, Keith announced on stage that we can expect a new album this year.
During the 2009 UK tour with Gallows, a song titled "Buffalo 666" from their then-upcoming album New Junk Aesthetic was played for the first time. The album also included guest vocals byPete Wentz of Fall Out Boy, Matt Caughthran of The Bronx and Greg Puciato of The Dillinger Escape Plan. At the end of June it was announced that drummer Mike "Ratboy" Novak had left the band due to "personal conflicts".
A new song, "The Marvelous Slut," was released on July 8 as a free download.
On August 18, Every Time I Die released a second new song entitled "Wanderlust" on their MySpace.
On September 8, new Drummer Ryan "Legs" Leger will start touring with the band. Legs is from Cornwall/Toronto Canada and is known in Canada for his former touring gigs in bands The Salads, Kiki's Wonderland Adventures, Skye Sweetnam, Third South, Dead and Divine, Gone Hollywood and the female fronted thrash metal group Oh The Humanity.
The band was part of the European Taste of Chaos Tour at the end of 2009, supporting headliners Killswitch Engage and In Flames.
Every Time I Die will headline the 2010 Australian Boys of Summer Tour. In support of Every Time I Die is Australian bands; 50 Lions, House Vs Hurricane and Mary Jane Kelly. The band will tour nationally across Australia playing shows in Sydney, Gold Coast, Brisbane, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth.
Members :
Current Members :
Keith Buckley : Vocals (1998-Present)
Jordan Buckley : Guitar (1998-Present)
Andy Williams : Guitar (1998-Present)
Josh Newton : Bass (2007-Present)
Former Members :
Sean Hughes : Drums, percussions (1998)
John McCarthy : Bass (1998-1999)
Aaron Ratjczak : Bass (1999-2003)
Stephen Micciche : Bass (2003-2005)
Chris Byrnes : Bass (2005)
Mike Novak : Drums, percussions (1998-2009)
Kevin Falk : Bass (2005-2006)
Touring Members :
Keller Harbin : Bass (2006-2007)
Jake Schultz : Bass (2007)
Steve Bache : Drums, Percussions (2008)
Ryan Leger : Drums , Percussions (2009-Present)
