nown for their musical brutality and perfection in performance, August Burns Red has risen out of a sea of metal to make a run at the top spot in the genre. Though as kind and well dressed as they are you would never guess it if you saw them on the street.
Since their first full length release of Thrill Seeker in 2005 ABR has been knocking down the walls of our boxes, allowing us to believe that music can sound as good live as it does on the album, that metal can be extremely technical yet appear simple, and all the while it can carry a strong message along with it. There is not an ABR track that doesn’t stand straight up in defiance against the norms of society; from materialism and the emptiness of the American dream, to an over medicated population, you’re not going to get party anthems or a feel good summer soundtrack from August Burns Red. When they capture your attention with their technicality and precision, they proceed to use that platform with responsibility and humility.
For those that know ABR, I am showing the six o’clock news at seven.
We got an opportunity to ask ABR’s drummer Matt Greiner about touring the world, their influences, and some advice, but most importantly, we get a look at the guts of their July 14th release of Constellations. Matt fills us in on the meanings behind tracks, the album art, and the writing process from his hotel room in Finland.
There are a lot of bands that have been heading in the same direction that ABR has been heading for the last three years. What is
it that keeps you guys ahead of the curve?
Matt Greiner: I think we’re more conscious of writing a great a record then attempting to stay ‘ahead of the curve.’ We are always trying to get better as musicians so that we’re capable of experimenting with different tempos and creating dynamic songs. We always focus on writing songs that we’d not only enjoy listening to but will enjoy playing live as well.
What are some of your metal influences?
MG: I love Between The Buried And Me; I don’t think they’re incapable of anything. I also enjoy Converge, UnderOath, Meshuggah, Darkest Hour, Extol, and The Agony Scene.
Is there any other music that influences you that we wouldn’t expect?
MG: Yes, I actually don’t listen to that much in the metal genre, comparatively. Coldplay is one of my favorite bands. Lately I’ve been listening to Band Of Horses, Justice, mewithoutYou, Johnny Cash, The Avett Brothers, Circa Survive, Bon Iver, and a few worship artists like Phil Wickham and Ian McIntosh.
Your sophomore slump was non-existent. How have you continued to progress in the writing of this third album?
MG: We worked harder then ever in ‘fine-tuning’ both the lyrical and musical content for Constellations. We had an extremely busy 1 ½ years touring the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Europe in support of Messengers. We started piecing the new songs together in late November of last year and quickly realized that this record would be more dynamic then anything we’ve ever done. We really tried to push ourselves as musicians and, in doing so, explored more diverse tempos and song dynamics.
Do you feel that Constellations is a big departure from Messengers?
MG: Yes and no. I think so many things came into fruition on Constellations. We’ve been touring for 8 months/year over the past 3 years through which we’ve all matured significantly as musicians. In addition, we’ve all grown significantly as people. I think both these aspects helped create a record that showcases an August Burns Red that might catch some people off guard. However, I’m confident that Messengers and Thrill Seeker fans will thoroughly enjoy Constellations.
Where is the inspiration for the lyrics coming from for this new album?
MG: Some of the lyrics on Constellations tell stories; others encourage the reader to take action. Overall I think the inspiration comes from simply living life, being 100% genuine everyday with everyone in everything. Because the inspiration is truly real, I feel like these lyrics will really hit home with the reader. There is something for everyone to relate to whether it’s that pain you experienced as an unloved child, or that friend that tragically passed away with no warning and no reason. One of the songs entitled, “Indonesia,” is about a friend of mine that passed away in a tragic accident. His name was David Clapper, father of 4 children, happily married for over 20 years, a missionary to a remote tribe in Indonesia. He owned a small single engine plane, which he’d fly injured folks in from their tribe to the nearest hospital, a 4 hour flight away. He was returning one evening from the hospital after dropping off the last patient that day and got caught in a terrible windstorm on the way home. The storm blew his plane into the side of a mountain where he was pinned beneath the plane and died shortly thereafter. I had jotted down something at church the night before finding out about the accident, and it was eerily similar to the story of the plane, the missionary, and the family left behind. “Indonesia” tells the story of a family who surrendered all they had to minister to a remote tribe, the story of a husband and father killed in a tragic accident, and most importantly, the story of a widower and 4 children that kept their faith in God, even when all seemed lost.
So is lyric writing often a collaboration between all the band members?
MG: JB and Jon Hershey (our previous vocalist) wrote lyrics to two songs on Thrill Seeker, but we first really started collaborating with the lyrical content on Messengers and continued sharing the responsibility on Constellations. Our theory is that whatever makes the songs their very best at the end of the day, that’s all that matters. For example, if Dustin were to come up with a sweet drum pattern over a particular riff, I would use it and see how/if it complemented that part. The same applies to lyrics; if someone other then Jake comes up with a great set of lyrics that fit the mood of a song, we utilize them for the good of the music.
You mentioned that you wrote something down in regards to that same plane crash scenario the night before. What do you make of that?
MG: I was at a 24-hour worship and prayer service called Gateway that night the ‘story’ came to me. I was on my feet praying when I suddenly felt dizzy and lightheaded. I sat down and felt the need, the prompting, to write something down. I didn’t have anything in particular in mind to write but nevertheless put pen to paper and started jotting words as they came to me. I drove home, went to sleep, woke up the next morning and was told of David Clapper passing away in a tragic plane accident. Instantly I thought of what I had written the night before, the first line of which is, “This plane’s going down in flames, and this time there’s no black box to capture your last words.”
I think that God gave me a prophetic word that foreshadowed the news I’d hear the next morning. In addition however, I think He wanted to highlight how the family would react to the news of their father/husband passing away. My favorite line from the song is, “…the white on his flag brings colors to shame.” It then goes on to talk about the cycle of life, how the earth will swallow the water and the clouds refill the oceans. David’s family can’t possibly understand why he died that night. But they also can’t fathom eternity; they can’t even explain their own chemical makeup. What’s most profound is that they get it. They understand that they’ll have to settle for now in not knowing why David passed away. They are still living in Indonesia where they’ve devoted their life to ministering to the tribe David died lending his own hand.
What is the significance behind the title Constellations?
MG: The name Constellations is based on the art concept for the record. The CD cover shows a small figure pulling on a rope that’s attached to the biggest and brightest star in the sky; it looks as if the figure is playing tug of war with the star. The figure represents our generation while the star symbolizes God and the Heavens.
Inside the booklet are other figures (like the one on the cover) flying kites illuminated by the brightest star in the sky. Some of these kites are soaring in the air and others are lying on the ground. The kites represent our own abilities and intelligence. The ‘kite runners’ represent those who choose to ignore the hard to believe, the untouchable (the star). Meanwhile, the ‘kites’ that guide their lives fly aimlessly in the sky, shifting course with every burst of wind.
I believe that our generation should be focused on bringing heaven to earth. It’s crucial that we direct our passion towards God, the steadfast, never changing ‘entity in the sky.’ Everything else in life will leave us empty and alone.
ABR has been overseas quite a bit in the last few years. How are you received and how do those tours differ from American tours?
MG: Europe can be a very uncomfortable place to tour. It’s hard to be so far away from home in a foreign place where things we all take for granted are often unavailable. That said, we’ve started to develop a fan base there and are excited to continue performing for new faces. Our first tour in Europe was in early 2008 with Misery Signals; it was rewarding to have fans already familiar with our music and excited to see us perform. Since then we’ve toured Europe numerous times, playing places as obscure as Ireland and Portugal and places as popular as Germany and Switzerland.
What do you want listeners to walk away with after seeing your live show?
MG: First and foremost, we strive to get the audience involved during our shows. We want kids to enjoy themselves whether it’s in the mosh pit, screaming along to the lyrics, or just soaking up the performance. I hope listeners walk away stoked on how we played and sounded, but also with the understanding that we’re just a bunch of dudes blessed with the opportunity of playing music together.
The opportunity to travel the world playing music with your friends is no doubt a huge blessing but we see so many bands succumb to the perils of the road and being away from their support systems for long periods of time. How does ABR deal with those issues when or if they arise?
MG: Most of us in ABR grew up in Christian homes where we had accountability to help keep us in check. Naturally, we are who we are today because of our upbringing. We keep each other in check on tour, in love, not by pointing fingers and accusing each other. It’s really just like anyone in any particular job setting; you are faced with situations where there is a decision to do right or to do wrong; situations in real life, not in a book or a seminar, situations that separate those living intentionally from everything else. And in these situations it’s important to have someone looking over your shoulder, giving you a heads up when your vulnerability starts showing itself.
What’s behind your infamous flip-flop and popped collar, AE stage attire?
MG: Every time someone asks me that question I chuckle out loud. We wear what’s comfortable, simple as that. It’s not a gimmick, it’s not for show, it is what it is.
Come&Live is a featured article in this month’s issue and we see that they are in your top friends. Could you see ABR joining a vision such as theirs in the future?
MG: Chad Johnson, the man behind Come & Live, is a good friend of mine. I actually flew down to Nashville in early March to hang out with some friends and ended up getting lunch with Chad. We talked about his career in the music industry, his goal for Come & Live, and what God has been doing in his life. Chad knows business. He has worked for and owned labels in the past, has set band’s careers in motion, and has personally touched the lives of so many people. His heart and soul are in this 110% and he needs our help to make his goal come into fruition. Do yourself a favor and get informed about Come & Live. His blogspot is currently my homepage and is a great spiritual reminder and source of profound information. Check it out via: http://comeandlive.blogspot.com/
Your new album Constellations comes out on the 14th of July. What’s the plan for the rest of the year?
MG: We have an incredibly busy year. I’m actually doing this interview in our hotel room in Seinajoki, Finland where we are playing Provinssirock Festival tonight. We are headed to Switzerland tomorrow and continuing our 4 week tour here in Europe. We will then embark on a 4-week U.S. headline tour in July and an Australian tour in August. In September we’re headed back to the U.S. for the second leg of the headline tour, back to Europe in October, and touring the U.S. again in November/December.
Pick up the new record, Constellations, on July 14. That’s the only date you need to remember!
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Oh, Sleeper | More Than 14th Century Mythology
cried more the first time I heard the Oh, Sleeper track “Charlatan’s Host” than your parents did to Bary Manilow’s 1970’s hit “Mandy”. Any band that can evoke that sort of emotion must be more than good breakdown’s and 14th Century mythological stories. A verse in Ephesians cries out from the pages, “Wake up O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you” and that is just what was done when Oh, Sleeper stepped onto the scene in 2005 as a collective unit, gathered from other projects like the well known Tooth and Nail band Terminal.
Since their birth they have refused to make their music about less than exactly what they want it to be. These songs were not going to be about parking lots and pillow fights, no, lead vocalist, Micah Kinard has much more conviction and passion than to let what he really wants to say be swallowed up by a radio hit. “As a lyricist I strive to be as honest and blunt as possible with our message and the rest of the band has always been super supportive of that.” states Kinard. Though he owned enough tact in the writing of When I Am God to make his messages out of metaphors, requiring us think in order to find the meaning. On the surface many of their songs sound like a story you have read in your college English Lit class but when the metaphors are grasped the song and its meaning seems to come to life in our minds through these stories and the imagery that comes with them.
Don’t get me wrong though, Oh, Sleeper knows that their message is only as good as the music that drives it and since the 2007 release of When I am God, fans are anxious to hear their 2009 follow up, Son of the Morning and Oh, Sleeper has really tightened up and buckled down to insure that we will not be disappointed by their sophomore release. “The new album has some really cool new elements musically,” Micah tells us, “and, in my opinion, sounds a lot differently than WIAG. Structurally, the new songs are much more thought-out. During our last album cycle we observed crowd responses throughout all the tours with the new record in mind and tried to write an entire album of favorite parts.” Oh, Sleeper will also stray from the heavy use of metaphors in this next album, “Son of the Morning is a concept album. It is a story from start to finish and we all are really excited about it.” Micah adds that, “the new record is actually more literal and blunt than When I Am God. All of the references in Son of the Morning are more spiritually inspired than mythologically.”
It seems that Oh, Sleeper will be unleashing a new beast on August 25th and one that will not be easily tamed. The band sets this album into the hands of fans with the hopes that it have as much of a positive influence on them as WIAG did. “The talks I have with people at shows and hearing how the music has helped them through struggles in their lives really recharges my batteries and keeps me going,” Micah tells us. “It’s Gods way of telling us that we are exactly where we are supposed to be.”
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Come&Live! | An Interview w/ fmr Tooth & Nail A&R rep, Chad Johnson
ell us a little about your decision to leave your long time home at Tooth N’ Nail Records.
Chad Johnson: My decision was quite abrupt as I felt a very clear directive from the Lord to put in my notice and trust Him 100%. It was a challenging decision and one that I can recall very distinctly. I went to bed on a Thursday night feeling huge knots in my stomach. I awoke the next morning and just had a total peace in my spirit that God was with me and that I could trust Him to work out the details. As much as I loved and learned in Seattle, I was haunted by Jesus’ final command to “go and make disciples of all men”, a commission I had felt early on in my Christian life but one that I had turned my back on. I felt somewhat akin to Jonah trying to run from God. I knew He had placed a calling on my life and it was time to fully obey. I believe the Lord still used me where I was but my heart’s desire was to focus 100% of my time, money, and resources on growing with Jesus and helping others do the same. My years at the nail were incredible - I love and wish all those guys the very best. I have many warm memories of a very special time in my life.
We’ve seen support from August Burns Red, As Cities Burn, Oh Sleeper and other major acts. Do you see bands of this caliber eventually maybe breaking away from bigger labels and grasping a hold of your vision?
CJ: It’s honestly just way too early to say. We’re still in the very early foundational stages of living out this vision but what is so liberating to me, is that as much as I would love to work with some well-known acts, I’ve always enjoyed helping bands from the ground up. So many of the acts that I worked with in the past required years of development before they took off, so I see this as an investment in bands that might require a lot of work early on, but have huge potential to impact others, in the end.
Come & Live is a missionary label and you plan on giving all of your profits to different charities. How will this work in terms of financially keeping the label and its bands afloat?
CJ: It’s currently (and likely always will be) as simple as seeking God’s presence and then trusting Him to breakthrough for us. Taking God’s word seriously in giving all our hearts, minds, souls and strength and then laying our lives down for our friends. I believe this effort is easily worth our while even to the point of doing it all over again even if just one soul came into the reality that God is everything. That apart from the forgiveness of Jesus, they don’t stand a chance – not just of entering His courts for all eternity – but even of living life full of abundance on earth. We are serious about this message of hope, and are willing to make sacrifices to share it. The truth is that we are all missionaries, whether we are in rock bands, working as plumbers, living on the streets, working for a mega-church, etc. etc. None of us escape the calling to set all selfish priorities aside and follow Christ completely.
What charities have you been working with so far?
CJ: We’ve mostly been scoping out charities that we’re considering working with but we have experience and relationships with wonderful charities focused on helping others, both physically and spiritually.
Tell us a little about your current roster.
CJ: I prayed the Lord would bring me twelve artists and we currently have sixteen. I couldn’t be more pleased by the quality and caliber of our roster. Many of them are very young and most are relatively unknown. But I see potential and opportunity in every one of them. They’re all just brothers. This is a brotherhood or community of friends and believers who are convinced that our topmost priority is loving and living the example of Jesus to others. Period. Everything else in life is secondary.
It’s no secret that major labels have a problem with the personal touch and care when it comes to dealing with their bands. How will your label achieve this?
CJ: Trust. Major labels don’t have as much of a problem with personal touch as they have a problem with personal trust. I don’t believe that most artists truly trust their labels. By focusing on a Non-profit missions group, rather than purely a record label, we’re able to look to the overall success and needs of our artists rather than just one element of what they do, which for record labels is obviously the recorded music component.
What will set the actual bands apart from other indie label bands?
CJ: Hopefully their pursuit of Jesus ahead of everything else will be the determining factor that sets them apart from most bands. The objective behind C&L! is to raise missionaries out of artists. We don’t believe that it’s enough to just raise artists (something that I’m all too familiar with). What good is it if we raise artists that sell millions of units but don’t have a vibrant relationship with Jesus? I’m certainly not implying that our bands are the only ones that are passionately seeking the Lord but I know they exist for one thing and one alone – to worship the Lord and bring others into the joy and intimacy of His presence.
What is some of the criteria you keep in mind when deciding whether or not to sign a band?
CJ: Do they love the Lord? Are they willing to leave everything behind to seek out the revival of broken down hearts? Are they gifted musically? Do they love others and serve sacrificially?
What are some things that the average music fan can do to help out Come & Live?
CJ: Stay tuned for a full-blown website where you’ll be able to start downloading our artists’ releases totally free of charge. In the meantime, check out the Myspace (http://myspace.com/comeandlive) or the blog (http://comeandlive.blogspot.com) and then help us spread the word! Pray for us and ask the Lord to keep filling our hearts with faith, opening doors of opportunity, and establishing the work of our hands. Be massively encouraged that God is for you and with you. He has a plan, a hope and a future for your life. He will deliver His chosen and He is Trustworthy!
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ecently signing to Strike First Records, Portland Oregon’s A Hope For Home isn’t pulling any punches on their way up the progressive hardcore latter. This is a band whose inception into the scene was marked with a tragic loss of a founding member.
Their music reflects struggle and questioning but ultimately perseverance and triumph. The latest record, The Everlasting Man, has been pleasing audiences in the Northwest since late last summer but now with a wide release through Strike First, the boys are hungry for more.
Touring behind the concept album and graciously opening for acts such as Wrench in the Works and War of Ages, A Hope for Home couldn’t be more excited about what the future has in store for them. We talked with guitarist Matt Ellis a bit about the past, present and future of A Hope for Home.
“A couple of us were in different bands throughout high school, not really taking anything seriously. I left to go to college and do my own thing and a couple months in I get a call from Kyle, who I knew was not doing too well, and he basically was like, “dude, we need to start a new band. Come home, drop out of school, andlet’s do this!” And I agreed for some dumb reason (laughs). We basically just continued on from there, through Kyle’s death, to be where we are now.”
Founding member, Kyle Cooke was diagnosed with cancer in his early teen years and struggled with it greatly throughout the band’s early years. Starting in his legs, the cancer even took one leg before eventually spreading too close to his heart to operate. Kyle Cooke passed away on August 5th, 2006.
“Kyle’s death really encouraged me to continue with making music in this band. Just as our lives have to continue when a loved one passes on, I really felt that I owed it to Kyle to keep making music, and keep going on.”
A year later, A Hope For Home’s remaining members, guitarist Ellis, vocalist Nathan Winchell, guitarist Tanner Morita, bassist Dan McCall, keyboardist Eric Gerrard and drummer Ian Vidovic, soldiered on to record Here, The End in McCall’s home studio.
“Looking back (on that album) I can see how much God really formed us in those days to be something none of us really imagined, and uprooting us into a scary place of uncertainty, but in His plan.”
Fast forward to the summer of 2008. After dozens and dozens of hometown shows and smaller tours around the Northwest, A Hope For Home immerses themselves once again into finding a their sound as the band they have become. The result of another session in McCall’s home studio is The Everlasting Man, a concept album based on the G.K. Chesterton novel of the same name.
“The Everlasting Man is a really cool book wherein Chesterton basically gives a whole world history that culminates in Jesus Christ, and what that means. I really feel that the church today emphasizes feelings and emotions and how good God makes you feel, or how wonderful it is that Jesus will love you even if you’re a jerk on one day. Which are all valid statements, but did we forget just how radical and important the concept of Jesus is? His very existence turns what it means to be a human, on this earth, right now, upside down. Each song signifies an important event in biblical history and how it shifted our entire consciousness as a people, to culminate in the physical being of Christ, and our unity and purpose in him. That was the point of the novel, and that was the purpose of our record.”
The album’s credibility spread quickly and eventually caught the eye of Strike First Records, a subsidiary of Facedown Records. A Hope For Home was signed shortly after and has been touring in support of the record pretty much consistently ever since.
“I can’t say enough good things about Jason and the Facedown/Strike First team. It has been tough assimilating onto the national level, especially since most bands on our label don’t really sound like us, but it has been a challenge we are all stoked to take part in.”
Their progressive sound has drawn comparisons to Haste The Day, Means and Living Sacrifice with their challenging lyrics ethereal messages. The chemistry between Ellis’ backing vocals and Winchell’s surprisingly deep tambour is a rarity in today’s scene, which just further goes to show these guys’ potential. The Everlasting Man is a result of years of hard work, chaos, tragedy and triumphs. A Hope For Home has an agenda and they won’t be silenced anytime soon.
“I guess we just want people to walk away with a deeper understanding of what it means to live in this world. And to realize there is so much more to this world and our lives than what we can see. And that goes for the Church as well. There is so much more to the Gospel of Christ than just feel good emotions and a couple metaphors here and there. I never really consciously tried to sway anyone’s world view with this, but I hope I could reinforce what I see to be true and real and maybe that would inspire someone else.”
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Bradley Hathaway | Far From Speechless
ith a charming Arkansas twang and poems that seem to cut to the core of what we’re all thinking but may be too afraid to say, Bradley Hathaway has been blazing his trail for some time now. Using a mix of spoken word poetry, country and folk, Hathaway has given us two full length albums since fully transitioning to songwriting. His newest release A Mouth Full of Dust offers a darker look into the head of this poet who is successfully finding his voice in a whole new way.
Your new record, A Mouth Full of Dust, seems to be a lot darker and heavier than your last release. Tell us a bit about the themes and influences that went into making this record.
Bradley Hathaway: Yeah, it’s a lot darker and heavier. Basically it’s about struggling and searching for answers and meaning. From being burned out and watching everyone burn out around you to dealing with suicide or boredom or what have you...it’s just about searching, waiting, hoping for hope. All of the songs are being sung from the perspective of someone that is trying to follow Jesus and what that means day in and day out. While many of my songs prior have some sort of answer or hope in the end, this record tends to leave a lot of stuff hanging maybe.
As most people know, you are also a spoken word poet but in recent years you have turned into a singer/songwriter. Why the transition?
BH: As quick as the spoken word came to me it left and everything since then has come with more melody. So I started singing those melodies instead of speaking them.
Do you feel like you have lost or gained more fans since committing to this change?
BH: Ha, though I wish it were not so I lost a lot of people. Oh well.
The last few times I’ve seen you, you have done “The Hug Poem”. Is there anything about that one that you still feel obliged to perform it?
BH: Well I still like the idea of doing a spoken word poem now and again and the last few tours “The Hug Poem” still fit nicely into the set. And that tends to be peoples’ favorite. I feel like that poem amongst a couple other will be with me my entire performing career. I like to surprise people every now and then so I don’t always do it but it’s going to be on the radar for a long time to come.
You’ve never been signed to a label but you’ve toured with some pretty big names including mewithoutYou, The Chariot and Blindside. How have you managed to continue doing larger tours such as these for over five years now without a label?
BH: Relevant Books put out the poetry book and record, so I’m technically a published poet but other than that, no label of any sort. Those bigger tours were in the very beginning just because they all liked what I did and I asked them, but I’ve not been on a big tour in a long time unfortunately.
On The Side
w/Levi McCallister
A long time intern at Veil Arms Clothing, Levi McCallister aka Levi the Poet, is an up and coming spoken word poet who is anything but ordinary.
Extremely passionate about writing since the 5th grade, McCallister’s brand of poetry is the definition of wearing your heart on your sleeve. The stage is his confessional and while sometimes he is inclined toward inducing an uncomfortably honest experience, it’s impossible not to love this guy. He’s been performing for just over a year and is currently preparing to embark on a west coast tour with In the Midst of Lions and All or Nothing.
McCallister had this to say when asked where his words come from;
“I would love to be one of the people that can say they just sit down and think up a topic and write and there you have it. But I think I’m influenced to write by things that happen to me, or random spurts of emotion that pop into my head, or something I feel strongly about or affected by. I’m really vulnerable when I write, and don’t censor myself much.”
Levi the Poet usually opens for hardcore bands, which would make one think that his job is just that much more difficult. Thankfully, he has been blessed with receiving warm welcomes which is something he can only accredit to the Lord. He feels that his words can reach a deeper level and that by being so honest and frank on stage, his listeners will connect on that human level. It seems that connecting with the crowd will hardly ever be something that McCallister will lack. His poems do anything but dance around the topic. “Werewolves” has the poet struggling with thoughts of demons and how he strongly believes in constant spiritual warfare. The poem “Pretty in Pornography” is the squirmer of the batch. Dealing with his personal battle against an addiction to pornography, he pleads with these women to realize their self worth, their real potential in this world.
Soon to be armed with a full length album and more tours to come, Levi the Poet’s intensely honest words will soon be on a constant rotation on your i-pod.
“I guess the plan is to tour more and more, and see what the Lord can/might/will do with this stuff. I would love to see it go far, because I’m passionate about it and I want it to succeed, so I’ll push this thing into the ground until the Lord says “stop,” but we’ll see what He has in mind, and I just pray every day that he gives me the courage to trust whatever He decides to do.”
Do you still write poetry that stays poetry? If so, are you planning on ever putting out another book of poems?
BH: I wish I still did write spoken word but no, it just stopped coming to me one day. I expect it to pop back up anytime soon and then I’ll start writing and release them if they are good enough, sure. Never say never about one’s art.
One of your most famous poems that you have retired is “The Hardcore Kid…” Are you still a hardcore kid at heart? Who have you been into lately?
BH: At heart, yes. I love the spirit of hardcore and punk rock that I knew in my younger years that doesn’t seem to be around much today. I’m not really into much new heavy music except Comeback Kid and I’m getting into Have Heart. But I still regularly rock Strongarm and Living Sacrifice of my youth.
Where do you see yourself in ten years?
BH: Hopefully still being able to make a living off of music. So writing, touring, and being married with a kid or two by then. If not being a full time artist is in the cards then cultivating my land and having a full on farm, working with the animals and plants of the earth located in the beautiful state of Arkansas.
What advice would you have for a kid who wants to get into spoken word poetry?
BH: If you want to perform it, perform it anywhere can you as often as you can. You have to practice and get comfortable in front of people. Don’t fret if you sound like someone else in the beginning but eventually try to find your own voice and let it be. Don’t expect to make a living because I’m one of a couple people in the world that did and those are not very good odds in your favor! But who knows. Follow your heart and make the art you want to make and don’t worry about what other people think of it, be it them praising or dissing you.
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t all began with a call and a vision: to design clothes that were not only inspired by God but appealed to the youth in today’s music scene. Co-founders of Veil Arms Clothing, Ashley and Shawn Ulmer, grew up in this music scene and began to feel the need to simply create something that would draw kids closer to God and even give an explanation for what the design represented, which is always a different passage of scripture.
Veil Arms’ hope is that someone somewhere will be touched by these designs. Even the name itself, Veil Arms, stems from a passage very near to the founders’ hearts.
“Our name as well as our logo (an anchor) is both based off of the verse: Hebrews 6:19-20. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the veil, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. As the veil protects a bride’s face from being revealed Christ’s arms protect us.” Ashley explained to us.
Music plays a huge part in the Veil Arms family. Many of their interns and employees are artists themselves which I cannot help but think inspired the clothing company to begin booking shows and sponsoring bands.
“Music is one of the key ways we can reach the youth directly.” Ashley tells us. “We love supporting bands that share the same vision as us, and companies such as Come and Live and Hopecore are the types of businesses we want to be associated with.”
Veil Arms feels called to the kids in the underground. They want each one of their shows to draw attention to the power and glory behind the music itself.
“Whether a band is secular or Christian, the goal is the same; congregate kids and love on them, listen to them, and create an environment that is conducive for growth. We combined both because it allows us to be a part of musician’s dreams.
What the future holds for Veil Arms is uncertain but the team knows that they want to continue down the path they have started and hopefully grow as a family and as a company. They hope to see their apparel in more and more stores across the country while hoping for a revival among the youth in this scene.
“We truly feel that we are all destined for greatness and teaming up with other visionaries and bands that are not afraid to dream big and chase after their dreams is something that should be supported in anyway possible.”