DeadJournalist Exclusive Interview: All The Saints

EXCLUSIVE Interview: All The Saints
Chuck Norton, DeadJournalist.com

It's easy to compare genre-breaking music that is made by US artists as sound as if it is from the UK. Time-and-time again, review will say, " … although they are from Anytown, they sound as if they are from across the pond." That's been said about All The Saints as well. So be it.

What you'll find when you listen to the Atlanta-based All The Saints is driving, psychedelic-influenced rock. Leaning heavily on sounds gleaned from the artists from the 1960's and '70's that influenced them, the band is focused on producing a music that relies less on hype and more on substance.

Titus, Matt and Jim (first names only) unabashedly proclaim their distain for the commercial "indie" music label and are equally passionate about their desire to create a vigorous, energized music - both recored and live.

For more information on All The Saints, visit their Web site: www.allthesaints.org or their MySpace.com page: www.myspace.com/allthesaints.

DeadJournalist.com caught up with Titus of All The Saints for this exclusive interview.

You guys knew each other before forming All The Saints in Atlanta. So what made you decide to start the band and how long have you been performing together?

T: We wanted to play together before in Alabama and when we originally moved here, but things got delayed for about a year before we could really get something serious going.

We're glad we waited. It's better that we did. We have grown a lot in the past year and a half together.

Did you know early on that you wanted to focus on playing '70's-inspired rock? Who most inspired you musically?

T: We just like classic, psychedelic sounds and want to explore them further. We want something heavier and trashier than what we're hearing. We listen to a lot of records from the late '60's early '70's and that has a big influence on us.

What do you consider the most important part of your live shows?

T: We tend to focus on the dynamics and textures of our live shows and that comes across in the songwriting as well. We're all very aggressive players. We aren't up on stage to look good in tight pants and eyeliner.

It's important that we have real songs. We want the live shows to be honest and not just a set of our songs. We mix up set lists and arrangements from show to show. If we aren't feeling a particular song, we don't play it. If people want to hear the songs they can listen to a CD.

We hope the audience embraces the unpredictability of our show.

Are you in the process of working on a new album? Is it important for the band to capture your live sound in the studio?

T: We've recorded with Ryan Pitchford from Variac and we'll finish mixing when he gets back in town. He's seen us live many times and knows how to capture that. We're really thankful to be working with him.

Does the band have plans to tour in the near future?

We're concentrating on releasing a CD, but yes, we will tour.

Do you think the "indie" scene is dead? If so, where do you see music moving over the next few years?

T: Honestly, we can't fit a whole "scene" in our basement. We don't know or care what the "indie" scene is. We see "indie" as a worn out term, much the way "alternative" became worn out in the late '90's.

A lot of the music we hear today is so polished, commercial and watered down. We really have no clue where music is going but we are sure there will be a shift from the manufactured images and sounds that so many bands today share. No more cock rock.

Jump back to 1996, what were you listening to that summer?

T: Well, we were only 15. Nirvana for sure. Lots of Zeppelin, Beatles, Rancid ... anything on Epitaph Records. Oasis, Smashing Pumpkins, Lemonheads, Veruca Salt, Rage Against the Machine, Beastie Boys, Supergrass, etc. We were all over the place.