{"id":64138,"date":"2017-10-26T00:00:33","date_gmt":"2017-10-26T00:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/?p=64138"},"modified":"2017-11-20T23:41:17","modified_gmt":"2017-11-20T23:41:17","slug":"feature-act-of-defiance-10-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/feature-act-of-defiance-10-17\/","title":{"rendered":"ACT OF DEFIANCE – Wounding With Intent (October 2017) | Features \/ Interviews @ Metal Forces Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

ACT OF DEFIANCE – Wounding With Intent<\/strong><\/span>
\nAnthony Morgan<\/span>
\nOctober 2017<\/span><\/p>\n

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Act Of Defiance (l-r): Matt Bachand, Shawn Drover, Chris Broderick and Henry Derek<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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\nSeptember 2017 outing Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> – the second full-length studio album from Los Angeles, California-based metal group Act Of Defiance – included the songwriting contributions of vocalist Henry Derek and bassist Matt Bachand, which had not been the case with August 2015 debut Birth And The Burial<\/em>. Birth And The Burial<\/em>\u2019s material had been authored prior to their entry into the ranks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe started off individually, coming up with songs that we had written, and then as we had submitted those songs, we then began to go back collectively as a group,\u201d continues Chris Broderick, guitarist of Act Of Defiance. \u201cThen we tried to form things such as the song format, and the way that a song would move from one section to the other, or things such as the melody and the vocals – stuff like that. We very much played a collective role, like I said. Once the demos were written, we played a collective role in shaping the songs from then on, and that was the main songwriting process in a nutshell.\u201d<\/p>\n

The authorship prowess of Henry Derek and Matt Bachand is audible on select numbers. \u201cFor example, for this round, Henry wrote the song \u2018Overexposure\u2019, and Matt wrote songs such as \u2018The Talisman\u2019 and \u2018Another Killing Spree\u2019,\u201d the axeman cites. \u201cThen I should say that we all collectively had input lyrically, though. That was just on the musical side of things, and lyrically we kind of came back together collectively and wrote lyrics for the songs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> encompasses a wide variety of lyrical topics. \u201cFor me personally, I wrote songs such as \u2018Misinformation Age\u2019 (\u2018M.I.A.\u2019) and \u2018Broken Dialect\u2019,\u201d Chris lists. \u201c\u2018Misinformation Age\u2019 is definitely about the current state of getting your information online, and you have to know your source. You can\u2019t just trust whatever is posted, and believe it\u2019s true, even if you want to believe it\u2019s true. If it sides with what you want to be the truth, then you have to make sure that it\u2019s coming from somebody that\u2019s an unbiased, impartial source and that their motive isn\u2019t to just sway you to their view. That\u2019s \u2018Misinformation Age\u2019 in a nutshell, and \u2018Broken Dialect\u2019 kind of takes that a step further where it talks about how society today seems to have trouble being able to talk about its differences in views. People kind of shelve themselves off from other people, and just stick with people who side with their views. They don\u2019t have any discussion from varying sides of the fence. \u2018Broken Dialect\u2019 deals with that aspect of things. <\/p>\n

\u201cI also wrote lyrics for \u2018Lullaby Of Vengeance\u2019 and \u2018Rise Of Rebeliion\u2019. \u2018Rise Of Rebellion\u2019 is basically a song about being oppressed and being subjugated for long enough that you\u2019ve finally had it, and you want to rise up and rebel. The name of the song speaks for the meaning itself, in that case (laughs). It\u2019s an anthemic song; it\u2019s just meant to be a fists in the air kind of song. That\u2019s the main premise of that song. \u2018Lullaby Of Vengeance\u2019 is basically kind of like a song parody, where I take the idea of songs or singing and pair that with the idea of being angry. It\u2019s a song about anger, and getting out your anger. This is probably in the context of more of a personal view, maybe a personal relationship. Friends that have maybe stabbed you in the back, or something like that. This song is about being angry about those things and singing about them.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Chris Broderick<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>\u2019 title can perhaps be deemed self-referential. \u201cOld Scars, New Wounds<\/em> to me is kind of the idea that we\u2019ve gotten scars from the battles that we\u2019ve fought in the past, and getting wounds from battles that we\u2019re fighting today,\u201d the axe-slinger shares. \u201cIt kind of reminds me of a zen saying where you fall down seven times, but you get up eight.\u201d<\/p>\n

Falling down is a pitfall to be avoided in crafting what is sometimes referred to as \u2018the difficult second album\u2019. \u201cI think we were really happy with how this one came out, because it wasn\u2019t such a shotgun wedding type of affair,\u201d Chris reasons. \u201cWhen Birth And The Burial<\/em> came out, Shawn and I were not only trying to write the music, but we were also trying to form the band, come up with the band name, search for a label, get support in those areas, trademark things, come up with graphics and merch, and all of that stuff at the same time. We just felt such a huge pressure. We just wanted to try to get it out as soon as possible. This time around, not only did we do it collectively but we had the other voices of Henry and Matt. Also, we kind of took a bit more time to make sure that we crafted the songs structurally, made them more sound, and just really listened to the end product before we recorded it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The musician as well as drummer Shawn Drover bonded within Megadeth\u2019s line-up, the pair having exited that respective unit in late November 2014. Act Of Defiance would be forgiven should it have consequently harboured a Megadeth vibe, even if extremely minute. \u201cI had a couple of ideas that I had submitted prior to Birth And The Burial<\/em>, but none of it was necessarily planned on being used in Megadeth, or anything like that,\u201d he highlights. \u201cThey were submissions, but very little ultimately ended up making it. I would say my part probably maybe 10% of the riffs made onto Birth And The Burial<\/em>, and then with Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>, all of the material is brand new. When Birth And The Burial<\/em> came out, we were just pushing hard to try to get material out that we had. I think Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> is really the embodiment of what Act Of Defiance is, which is the freedom to write what you want.\u201d<\/p>\n

Such comments might cause readers to wonder how much freedom exists to write what one wants within the Megadeth framework. \u201cWhen you\u2019re in a band like Megadeth, you have to realise that Megadeth has been around,\u201d Chris cautions. \u201cIt\u2019s been a band that\u2019s been around longer than you\u2019ve been in it, therefore you end up having to conform to that band. As opposed to you joining that band and becoming a part of what that band is about, it\u2019s more like you\u2019re coming in to play a role of what Megadeth actually is. Therefore, I think your freedom is really confined to that space, and that\u2019s ultimately what led me to leave Megadeth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Confined to that space\u2019, perhaps a given member\u2019s contribution is restricted to the odd individual number. \u201cIt can happen in different ways,\u201d the composer details. \u201cYou\u2019re talking about in Megadeth, correct? Dave definitely wanted us to submit a lot of music, but ultimately what made the record was entirely up to him. For my part, I knew when I first joined Megadeth that that\u2019s the way it was going to be. It\u2019s a band that\u2019s been around for a long time and it\u2019s iconic, so Megadeth and its fans have certain expectations of how they want to sound.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of the three Megadeth full-lengths to feature Chris\u2019 services, September 2009 effort Endgame<\/em> – the opening gambit of the three – happens to be his favourite. \u201cIt was the heaviest,\u201d he muses. \u201cI really got to voice some of my style in my soloing at that time, so that\u2019s the main reason why.\u201d<\/p>\n

No longer a member of an iconic act of the ilk of Megadeth, Act Of Defiance can perhaps be seen as the guitarist and fellow ex-Megadeth member Shawn Drover\u2019s attempt to develop their own catalogue, and pen their own iconic tracks. \u201cNo, we don\u2019t have any grand scheme like that,\u201d he chuckles. \u201cWe\u2019re really just writing to get our songs out. We\u2019re writing the way we want to write, and that\u2019s the main thing; to be able to carry ourselves, and to write metal. There\u2019s no more stipulation on it other than that. The band is us four individuals – myself, Shawn, Matt, and Henry – and the one thing that we definitely do is we give each other the freedom to be able to express ourselves the way we want.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The way Chris wishes to express himself is through the medium of heavy metal. \u201cTo me, basically it means that you\u2019re not writing with any other stipulations or conceptions,\u201d he judges. \u201cI think some people get the idea that if they write a song this way or that way, then it will sell more, or that they\u2019ll be in this particular genre or something like that. I\u2019ve always loved metal, because it\u2019s been kind of anti-populist in a way. It exists because it isn\u2019t so fabricated and contrived, and stuff like that. In my mind, metal gives me the kind of freedom to write something extremely heavy in one moment, and then go into a cello concerto the next if you wanted to. That to me is what metal is; it allows all forms of music to exist inside of it, but at the same time, it doesn\u2019t expect any sort of conformity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Act Of Defiance dwells under the general metal umbrella, as opposed to a subgenre. \u201cFor example, if you listen to Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>, Shawn wrote the song \u2018Molten Core\u2019, which is extremely just thrash,\u201d the performer offers. \u201cStraight through the whole song, it\u2019s straight up a thrash tune. If you look at a song of mine like \u2018Rise Of Rebellion\u2019 though, it\u2019s got a much more progressive edge to it. It\u2019s all inside the metal genre; thrash metal, progressive metal – it\u2019s all metal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> furthers that notion arguably, following on from its predecessor. \u201cI would say that Birth And The Burial<\/em> was a great jumping off point to get to where we\u2019re at,\u201d Chris reckons. \u201cThat\u2019s exactly the way I feel. I feel like we set things in motion with Birth And The Burial<\/em>, and we developed into what Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Developing into Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> as it were suggests an improvement of sorts. \u201cThe idea of an improvement in music and artistry is subjective, but I would say personally it\u2019s definitely an improvement in the fact that we got more time to really look at the songs, and consider their format and the melodies, and just how they were gonna be sung – all of that stuff,\u201d the axeman submits. \u201cWe took that more consciously this time around and brought it to reality, whereas Birth And The Burial<\/em> was \u2018We\u2019ve got to get this material out\u2019 kind of a thing, so I do feel it\u2019s an improvement. I also feel like the sound has improved on this one as well. I think the mix is better; I think it sounds bigger and fuller.\u201d<\/p>\n

Recording sessions for Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> took place across a number of studios. \u201cI recorded all of the guitars and the acoustics at my house, Shawn recorded his drums at Glow In The Dark in Atlanta, Matt recorded his bass at his house, and then Henry recorded his vocals at his friends\u2019 house – at Red Light Studios,\u201d Chris divulges.<\/p>\n

Mixing was handled by Dave Otero. \u201cHe has this awesome ability to mix,\u201d Chris enthuses. \u201cWe recorded everything, and sent him the recorded tracks. He mixed and mastered for us. For me, the album sounds bigger and fuller. It\u2019s got more bottom end to it, and the guitars sound a little bit meaner. That\u2019s what I would attribute the mix sounding better to. I think the drums sound more natural on this record. He did a great job; I\u2019m super-happy with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mix-wise, musicians aren\u2019t always happy with full-lengths listed among their curriculum vitae. \u201cI haven\u2019t had that be the case so much with the end product, but I have had it where the initial mix has come back and I\u2019ve been disappointed in it,\u201d he recalls. \u201cNever in the final mix, though. I think it has always sounded better and more cohesive. I\u2019m trying to remember which record I felt that way with… It was recorded a long time ago, but I remember having that feeling. I can\u2019t recall off the top of my head.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris\u2019 guitar work on Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> happens to be a further demonstration of creative freedom, as broached elsewhere in this feature. \u201cThis time around, again I just think that we were free to create the songs that we were wanting to try and get out,\u201d he discloses. \u201cAs far as my guitar work goes, I originally had the idea to lay off of some of the fast playing a little bit, just to be able to go up and enjoy myself when I go up onstage in terms of not having to worry about this terrifying passage, or that particular sequence of notes or whatever. I initially had that idea, but then I had all of these new techniques that I wanted to incorporate into the album, and that ended up negating that idea. Now, I have all of these techniques and ideas that I incorporated on this album that have definitely made it at least as difficult as the last album (laughs). So, that\u2019s my guitar work in a nutshell.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Act Of Defiance (l-r): Shawn Drover, Henry Derek, Chris Broderick and Matt
Bachand<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n
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For guitar aficionados reading this article, the axe-slinger provides some examples of the \u2018new\u2019 techniques he wished to incorporate on Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>. \u201cIt would be like using right hand classical guitar fingering in your soloing while you\u2019re sliding in and out of notes,\u201d he tells. \u201cMore use of the tremolo bar in terms of flutters and warbles is what I guess you might call them. Finally, there is more two-handed tapping on this compared to the last. I actually use the Fractal Axe FX for everything that I recorded, except for the acoustics of course.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of the 12 tracks laid down during recording sessions, 11 figure among Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>\u2019 final track listing. \u201cThere was one that we held back,\u201d Chris explains. \u201cWe\u2019re either looking to do the bonus track for the Japanese release or something of that nature, to hold it back for a special release. It\u2019s really fast, super-heavy and a really good mix of different styles, with clean singing to super-heavy. I\u2019m gonna hold the name of that one back, because I want it to be a surprise when people hear it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cover artwork duties fell to Travis Smith, once again. \u201cWe love Travis\u2019 work,\u201d the songwriter exclaims. \u201cWe worked with him on Birth And The Burial<\/em>. This time around, what I wanted was more of a figure as opposed to different artwork and scenes, and stuff like that. I think he really came through on that with the cover of the CD. He took ideas from song titles and song lyrics, and kind of brought some of those to life in the images that he created. In my mind, Birth And The Burial<\/em> is more subdued. You have to think about what the image is trying to tell you, whereas with Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em>, I think the image is a little bit more in-your-face – it\u2019s amped up a little bit. The cover image is a little darker, where you\u2019ve got the idea of this menacing figure.\u201d<\/p>\n

Music videos were filmed for the tracks \u2018M.I.A.\u2019 and \u2018Overexposure\u2019. \u201c\u2018M.I.A.\u2019 was the initial release; it was our single that we first released,\u201d Chris specifies. \u201cWe talked about the lyrics earlier, which is about the current age of misinformation on the internet and how it can\u2019t be trusted. The video kind of followed suit with that idea where it opens up with a news reel and how it\u2019s very potentially deceptive, but then it\u2019s mainly a performance video.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen the second clip, \u2018Overexposure\u2019, was actually filmed by Vince Edwards of Metal Blade. We went in there, and just knocked out a really killer performance video. I thought he treated it really well with some of the effects and the transitions that he put on the edit, and also the filters that he put over the camera.\u201d<\/p>\n

Further promotional videos are in the pipeline. \u201cWe might do a lyric video for \u2018The Talisman\u2019, but that\u2019s undecided at the moment,\u201d the guitarist notes. \u201cThen we\u2019re definitely going to be releasing some performance videos and some playthroughs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Old Scars, New Wounds<\/em> was released on September 29th, 2017 via Metal Blade Records.<\/p>\n

Interview published in October 2017. All promotional photographs by Stephanie Cabral.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ACT OF DEFIANCE – Wounding With Intent Anthony Morgan October 2017 Act Of Defiance (l-r): Matt Bachand, Shawn Drover, Chris Broderick and Henry Derek September 2017 outing Old Scars, New Wounds – the second full-length studio album from Los Angeles, California-based metal group Act Of Defiance – included the songwriting contributions of vocalist Henry Derek […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3462],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-64138","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-act-of-defiance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64138","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=64138"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64138\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":64149,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/64138\/revisions\/64149"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=64138"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=64138"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.metalforcesmagazine.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=64138"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}