THE ABSENCE

\r\n"Testament for the 21st Century- THE ABSENCE stand bound to\r\nlead another thrash revolution!"Tampa, FL area natives, THE ABSENCE,\r\nlaid waste to an unsuspecting metal community with their debut Metal\r\nBlade album, From You Grave. After nearly two years of touring, the\r\nguys hit Mana Studios of Florida in February & March 2007 with\r\nSwedish producer Jonas Kjellgren (Scar Symmetry, Carnal Forge) to begin\r\nrecording. THE ABSENCE’s sophomore album, „Riders Of The Plague“, is\r\nfull of the band’s brand of high flying guitar histrionics and melodies\r\nfans and critics alike have grown to love. Jamie Stewart’s vocals are\r\nmore aggressive and punctuated than ever before and Jeramie Kling’s\r\ndrumming is the perfect, tight backbone needed to hold together the\r\nband’s speedy melodic onslaught. Just before their latest release on\r\nAugust 7th of , RIDERS OF THE PLAGUE Jeramie, takes\r\ntha time to talk to us about their new album, their upcomming tour and\r\nmuch more. So go on and read!
\r\n
\r\n\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: First of all congratulations on your debut album. Before we continue with it, give us a small introduction of the band
\r\nJeramie: Peter Joseph and Patrick Pintavalle- Lead Guitars, Jeramie Kling- Drums, and Jamie Stewart- Vocals\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nYou are a based Tampa, Florida band yet your sound has a more European\r\nfeeling around it. What is your prospective on your music though?
\r\nJeramie: We\r\nare influenced by a multitude of bands, from all over the world; Bay\r\nArea Thrash, Swedish Metal, Tampa Death Metal, 80s Guitar Virtuoso...\r\nthe list goes on\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: You’ve\r\nsigned a contract with a major label. I supposed you are thrilled by\r\nit. How exactly did the contact with Metal Blade rec. occurred in the\r\nfirst place?
\r\nJeramie: Well, being a good band definitley, haha. But also making the right contacts and knowing how to present Ourselves\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nYour new cd will be available in the stores on August 7th. However\r\nthere is some great movement in the feedback already. What are the\r\nfirst reactions so far?
\r\nJeramie: That\r\nit kicks ass! We are all really stoked on the new record, and very\r\nproud as well. There is alot of the "paint by numbers" thing going on\r\nin Metal right now, especially in America, and We really wanted no part\r\nin that, so in turn, We really made the record we wanted to, plain and\r\nsimple.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: How long did you work on the album before its completion?
\r\nJeramie: Months and months and months of pre-production, sweating, arguing, and sitting in Our houses cut off from the world\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Did you encounter any difficulties when entering the studio?
\r\nJeramie: Other than the bass player situation, no. It was rather pleasant once We got into the groove. We were there for 3 weeks.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Are you pleased with the final result or are there still some things you think you could have done otherwise?
\r\nJeramie: Maybe...\r\nbut there always will be. You can always take more time for this or\r\nthat. I honestly wouldn’t change a thing though. It is a fantastic\r\nrecord!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: When you write music, what comes first – the lyrics or the music?
\r\nJeramie: I only write the lyrics, but the music, for the most part, comes first. I try to go off of the music as much as possible.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Is there a main composer responsible for your sound or do you all have something to say about it?
\r\nJeramie: Well,\r\nas far as the songs musically, it’s either Patrick or Peter, with\r\nJeramies help of course. Sometimes We all tweak things or make\r\nsuggestions.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: The main goal for any musician is to create a unique and distinctive sound.
\r\nJeramie: I agree.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Do you consider that you have achieved that as a band or are you still in the process of it?
\r\nJeramie: We\r\nwill always be in the process, if You really think about it. We will\r\nalways be pushing our sound and style to the next level of creativity\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Do you change the songs in the studio at all or do you have them pretty much in their initial form?
\r\nJeramie: There\r\nis always some sort of "finished" form of the songs when ENTERING the\r\nstudio, but by the time the ball gets rolling, tons of little changes\r\nare always made, and some big ones.... at least in Our experience so\r\nfar, haha.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Who are your own musical influences?
\r\nJeramie: Dan Swano, Tompa Lindberg, Jeff Walker, Bruce Dickinson, James Hetfield, Speed Strid, ect ect\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nDo you consider your lyrics to be as important as the music itself\r\nwithin the band? What are the main themes you are usually dealing with?
\r\nJeramie: I\r\ndo, but maybe that is because I am the vocalist, and I pay attention to\r\nlyrics. You also have to take into consideration, aside from lyrics,\r\nvocal
\r\npatterns.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nTheme wise, I\r\ndeal with real life. I do like to take an artistic approach, using\r\nimagery instead of using direct lyrics ALL of the time.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Do you have any plans on creating a video for the new album, and if yes, which one would it be, and why?
\r\nJeramie: Absolutely, but We haven’t come to a conclusion on which song to do as of yet.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nComing from America, would you say there are some major differences\r\nbetween the American and the European metal fans as far as their\r\nreaction to
\r\nthe music?
\r\nJeramie: As far as I can tell, yes and no. We haven’t been to Europe (yet), so a definite answer is yet to come...\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nDo you believe that there is a revival of Thrash Metal music in the\r\nlast years? Florida a decade ago was known as the hottest center of\r\ndeath metal’s movement, including some of the most notable bands as\r\nMorbid Angel and Deicide. What is the situation with the scene of\r\nFlorida at this moment?
\r\nJeramie: There\r\nis a Thrash revival coming up I think, but that’s because everything\r\ngoes in cycles and gets popular, and then disipates. As far as Tampa\r\ngoes, all the Godfathers are still pummeling away... Cannibal, Deicide,\r\nMorbid, Obituary, ect.. a few bands have been getting back together\r\nover the past
\r\nfew yeas as well, like Eulogy and Ressurection.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nThere\r\nare alot of up and coming bands as well that paly everything from old\r\nschool Thrash, to Black Metal, to Brutal Death Metal to Metal Core,\r\nlike Left in Ashes, Legions, Fatal, Morgue Party, Trojan Warfront,\r\nChaos, Blood By Dawn, This Will Be Remembered, and again, the list goes\r\non. All of those
\r\nbands are on Myspace.com, and I urge everyone to check them out as soon as possible!!!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nYou will be touring for a long time for what I’ve seen. Is there any\r\nspecific favourite band you would like to share a stage with?
\r\nJeramie: way\r\ntoo many to list.... Amon Amarth, Kreator, a Carcass reunion, haha. We\r\nwill be touring in the States with Cannibal Corpse, The Black Dahlia\r\nMurder, The Red Chord, and Goatwhore all of September.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Since we haven’t seen The Absence live so far how would you describe yourselves on the stage in a few words?
\r\nJeramie: Fast, brutal, and non fucking stop!!!!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nCan you describe some of the best and worst memories that you have\r\nbeing on the road and how do you find life travelling all the time? Do\r\nyou enjoy touring?
\r\nJeramie: Touring\r\nwith vader and Destruction is up there. Touring can be awesome and\r\ncrappy all at the same time; You are away from Your Family and friends,\r\nas well as Your comfort zone. It’s worth it though, to be able to play\r\nfor people that actually get it, and are taking time out of their lives\r\nto check us out.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: What are the best and worst things about being in a band?
\r\nJeramie: Seeing the same dudes every waking second, hahaha.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: What’s your worst habit?
\r\nJeramie: hmmmm, maybe putting things off...\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone:\r\nHow important is the underground metal scene for you and what’s the\r\nsupport you’ve received so far? In what way do you think the internet\r\naffected the way underground people work and communicate?
\r\nJeramie: The\r\nundergroud is what spawns everything. It is very important, because 9\r\ntimes out of 10, Your going to find the real deal right there, as\r\nopposed to the mainstream.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nThe internet has help so\r\nmuch, it’s not even funny. Everyone everywhere has immediate access to\r\nsomeones music AND contacts. It’s a great tool.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: What more can we expect from the band and what are your plans for the near future?
\r\nJeramie: More touring, getting overseas, and non stop head banging fury!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nMetalzone: Give us a last comment for our readers
\r\nJeramie: August 7th, RIDERS OF THE PLAGUE! Request it and get it at Your local record store or pre-order it through METALBLADE.COM!!!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nThank You for the interview, and thank You readers for checking it out!
\r\nThrash on forever!\r\n

\r\n

\r\nVasso Prassa \r\n

\r\n