One on One Interview with Metal band - Affiance
By Dan Locke
Unrated Dan: How did you put together the band?
Affiance: We formed in 2007 but it took us a while to find the right members. Three years and several musicians later we released No Secret Revealed with a solid line up.
Unrated Dan: Tell me about your background. How did you get interested in Music?
Affiance: I've always been interested in music. I had a special affinity for underground bands. Anything that broke away from the predictable pop structures and sounds. That love for music drove me to want to create my own.
Unrated Dan: How did you get your name Affiance?
Affiance: Our original lead guitarist came up with the name. It means the betroth in trust and confidence. We all loved it and feel that it matches the the band so the kept it even after he left.
Unrated Dan: You band was formed in Cleveland Ohio. Is Cleveland really the center of rock music?
Affiance: You'd only have to come to one of our hometown shows to see that it is. Clevelanders love music and support their local acts.
Unrated Dan: What is your feeling about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame being located in Cleveland?
Affiance: It seems fitting for a city that is so great to start a band in. We feel a great amount of pride when a tour we are on comes through Cleveland. We get to show off how supportive our fans are and how awesome our city is.
Unrated Dan: How were you discovered?
Affiance: A lot of persistence. We've done countless tours and do our best to make friends and connections on the road.
Unrated Dan: I know you have toured with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE with PROTEST THE HERO. Who are some of the other bands you have open up for?
Affiance: Bands like Miss May I, Memphis May Fire, Architects, Darkest Hour and others too.
Unrated Dan: How was your tour of South Africa? Tell me some of the bad things and good things that happen while on tour there. Because not many bands tour there.
Affiance: I honestly can't think of a bad thing that happened over there. They treated us amazing, the shows were packed, and we had a blast. I hope we get the opportunity to go back again soon.
Unrated Dan: What can you tell me about your new record what is it like?
Affiance: It's another step forward for us. The music is heavier and darker. We focused on song dynamics and experimenting with new structures. I think it should come across as very fresh to new listeners and fans.
Unrated Dan: What is the release date for the record?
Affiance: March 11th
Unrated Dan: Did you have anyone special helping you get the record finished?
Affiance: We worked with Danny Cullman at Central 8 studios in Akron OH. He gave us some great direction and even tracked bass for the record.
Unrated Dan: What song will be be release as the first video from the record?
Affiance: We will be releasing a video for Reboot shortly.
Unrated Dan: Will you be using Stephen Mlinarcik as the director of the video again?
Affiance: This time around we went to Josiah Moore. He filmed our Fire! music video and was the perfect fit for what we were trying to accomplish.
Unrated Dan: Any plans to tour the United States during the summer?
Affiance: Nothing solidified yet. We plan to tour most of this year though.
Unrated Dan: What is the Genre of your music?
Affiance: Metal
Unrated Dan: What is your feeling about Vinyl?
Affiance: I hope we can get some vinyl of Gaia out there. It is hard to accomplish independently though so we'll see how it goes.
Unrated Dan: What are some of the some of the bands which Influences your music?
Affiance: Nowadays we mostly just influence each other. We’ve been a band so long we don’t look to other bands for influences. We just know what we are aiming for and we go for it.
Unrated Dan: Who are some of your guitar heros?
Affiance: I never really had a guitar hero. I’ve always been more big picture. I’d love bands as songwriters instead of just one stand out member. The bands that I admired the most were Thrice and Radiohead. It’s bands like that that made me want to create music of my own.
Unrated Dan: Where does you music come from?
Affiance: Hours of locking ourselves in a studio space and hashing out ideas.
Unrated Dan: Who would you like to open up for you? Being alive or dead.
Affiance: Mitch Hedberg. He could get people loosened up with jokes and we can serenade them with some metal.
Unrated Dan: What is the biggest crowd you have play for?
Affiance: We played for some pretty big crowds on the Killswitch Engage tour. I think the biggest crowd was 1,800 people. Those were great shows!
Unrated Dan: What direction do you see your music heading in the next 2 years and your long term goals of your music?
Affiance: With every record we find new ways to create a duality between heavy parts and soft parts. We learn about how to get more intense and couple it with more melody. I think we will stay that coarse.
Unrated Dan: What fest would you like to play?
Affiance: Anything we can play alongside metal legends.
Unrated Dan: Who would you like to open up for?
Affiance: Linkin Park, Deftones, Iron Maiden.
Unrated Dan: What artist would you like to record with and why?
Living or dead?
Affiance: I’d like to hear Chester from Linkin Park sing on a song of ours. It would be pretty awesome to hear him and Dennis go back and forth
Unrated Dan: What is on you ipod right now?
Affiance: A lot of podcasts at the moment. I’m also in love with Letlive and Puscifers newest records.
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Unrated Dan: If you could pick any cartoon character who would it be and why?
Affiance: Darkwing Duck. That show was the stuff.
Unrated Dan: What music do you listens to relax?
Affiance: A lot of Radiohead and David Bazan. Those bands put me in a different place.
Unrated Dan: Anything you like to close with?
Affiance: Gaia will be released on March 11th. Check it out. Also, thank you to everyone who supported our Indiegogo campaign. You made this album possible!
Unrated Dan: Thank you for you interview.
https://twitter.com/AFFIANCEmusic
https://www.facebook.com/AffianceMusic/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affiance_%28band%29
AFFIANCE ON TOUR:
3/11 — Cleveland, Ohio | The Agora Ballroom
3/12 — Columbus, Ohio | The Summit
3/13 — Warren, Mich. | The Ritz
3/14 — Connellsville, Pa. | The Cinema
3/15 — Rochester, N.Y. | Waterstreet Music Hall
3/16 — Providence, R.I. | Firehouse 13
3/17 —Amityville, N.Y. | Amityville Music Hall
3/18 — Poughkeepsie, N.Y. | The Loft
3/19 —Trenton, N.J. | Championship Bar & Grill
3/21 — Greensboro, N.C. | Arizona Pete’s (hold)
3/22 — Pensacola, Fla. | The Handlebar
3/23 — Houston, Texas | Scouts Bar
3/24 — Austin, Texas | Dirty Dog
3/25 — Ft. Worth, Texas | The Rail Club
3/26 — San Antonio, Texas | Korova
3/28 — Merriam, Kan. | Aftershock Live Music Venue
3/30 Burnsville, Minn. | The Garage
3/11 — Cleveland, Ohio | The Agora Ballroom
3/12 — Columbus, Ohio | The Summit
3/13 — Warren, Mich. | The Ritz
3/14 — Connellsville, Pa. | The Cinema
3/15 — Rochester, N.Y. | Waterstreet Music Hall
3/16 — Providence, R.I. | Firehouse 13
3/17 —Amityville, N.Y. | Amityville Music Hall
3/18 — Poughkeepsie, N.Y. | The Loft
3/19 —Trenton, N.J. | Championship Bar & Grill
3/21 — Greensboro, N.C. | Arizona Pete’s (hold)
3/22 — Pensacola, Fla. | The Handlebar
3/23 — Houston, Texas | Scouts Bar
3/24 — Austin, Texas | Dirty Dog
3/25 — Ft. Worth, Texas | The Rail Club
3/26 — San Antonio, Texas | Korova
3/28 — Merriam, Kan. | Aftershock Live Music Venue
3/30 Burnsville, Minn. | The Garage
- Read the full story at UnRatedMagazine.com
