Interviews: Seven Cities Dead

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the  Metalcore band, Seven Cities Dead, from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the project on his FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you plan it or come out just like that?

So we were contemplating different names and picking our top few and seven cities dead was in the top few that stood out the most. So the name came before the meaning. As far as meaning it's a play-off of Dantes Inferno where Dante has to atone for his sins before ascending into heaven and there's a city (or terrace) he must pass through for each sin. So there are the 7 cities that all the dead must pass through t9 achieve inner peace and heaven. In modern terms we take this as self-accountability and self-reflection for your shortcomings and doing what you can to be better and honest with yourself will bring balance and peace into your life. So this world can be your heaven or your hell. Which is a common theme in our music.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

We are all avid music fans of a ton of genres and styles but at the end of the day, we all love metal and its many subgenres the most. So naturally we want to be in a metalcore band. Metalcore still has the breakdowns, the riffs, the screaming, the technical sides, but also has breaks of melody and singing and intense feeling varieties... one second it's anger, violence, and throwing some shit around, next second it's calming peaceful and beautiful! So it has a good balance of opposite spectrums! And we are all for it!

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

None of us knew each other at all before this band. So it has been a really cool journey of a bunch of strangers becoming lifelong friends and brothers. We actually built most of this band with bandmix.com, which is basically like a dating website that helps you find band members! Ha. However, Jason (bass) came from other bands he played in, and a position was left open from a bass player leaving so we filled it with him. As well as our newest member Tyler (drummer) came to a basement show to watch us and we mentioned it was one of our last shows with our drummer. He talked to us after the show and then set up a try out and the rest is history!

4. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

A. As far as bands collectively go we would have to say our biggest inspirations are as I lay dying, in flames, motionless in white, trivium, and all that remains.

B. As far as real-life things that inspire us to write songs we are definitely focused on personal life experiences and shortcomings, problems we see in the world around us, and life lessons we have come into contact with.

5. Where was your last gig?

Our last gig was a local homegrown festival late in the year 2023 which is called farmageddon. The people who run it are some of the coolest most genuine people in our scene here in wi! They built a giant awesome outdoor stage, they have vendors and food trucks there, awesome sound guys, and they basically put this all in the guy who runs it (local legend named Brodi) big ass backyard out in the boonies! And everyone there rocks out together and anyone who attends and is new to it or not is one big metal family! It's a ton of fun. You can camp there for the weekend and party and have a good time! They have big ass fires there as well! If you haven't gone you should! It grows every year!

6. Where would you like to act?

We would love to play at Milwaukee metalfest. That's a fest we all went to as kids so naturally as an adult we would love to play it. Especially since it went away for a while and now Jamey Jasta brought it back to life!

7. Whom would you like to feature with?

Ooh, that's a tough one cause there are so many artists we all look up to and would love to feature with... ha but I will say this we have a new unreleased song coming up that we wanted to do a more unconventional feature of a violinist and we were totally thinking of Lindsey sterling! That would be dope!

8. Whom not?

We're just gonna skip over whom we would not like to feature with. That's not our style! And I think you see all the time on social media people get too caught up in their right to voice their opinions especially negative opinions or how they don't like this band or that vocalist or they don't like certain band members' political opinions etc. We don't want to add to that negativity and would rather focus on positive stuff and what we do like Ha.

9. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

So our guitarist and clean vocalist Guy will answer this one cause he deals with some anxiety and stage freight and is afraid of any kind of public speaking to the point where he gets pretty shakey ha. So for me what works, and I was pretty bad for the first year or two of playing but it's gotten better over the years, is when that anxiety voice starts going and its getting loud in your head to tune it out with your own voice and who saaa for lack of a better term. Walk around a bit by yourself before you go on it helps calm your nerves, then start reassuring yourself you got this, you practice this, you know what you're doing and it helps me get my confidence back. If you go up there without confidence in yourself it generally doesn't go well and that anxiety voice breaks your confidence. That anxiety you don't choose it chooses you so you don't get rid of it. You learn how to manage yourself and be aware of your own mind and what it's trying to do to you. I walk around and calm myself down before every show and build my confidence up in myself by talking and camping myself up. Over the years after tirelessly doing this that anxiety voice ain't as loud now. As soon as that first ring out comes I'm confident as hell in myself!

10. What bands have inspired you the most?

We answered that with 4 ha whoops

11. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

We actually had a fan offer to buy our used sweaty clothes before. From socks to underwear to shirts etc. Ha, he was a really nice guy and we were like we don't know how much to ask for that or how to go about it. Ha, cause we know with our merch how much we spent on getting it and what we need to sell it for to gain money and to be competing with what other bands are charging, etc. He actually ended up complimented us for not treating him weirdly or badly based on the unusual request.

12. What do you think of your fans?

You always got to love and have the utmost respect for your fans. They are the reason you get to do what you love the most! Your art your expression. And you always as a musician have to act and think the way you would want your favorite musicians to. So we try to stay humble and thankful to the infinitive degree! We love and respect everybody that vibes with us for those reasons. We also love our scene here in wi! They are the best fans, bands, venues, videographers, etc alike!

13. What do you think of our site?

We love your site and your guy's style and this was a really fun interview to think of and respond to! We enjoyed these questions!

15. Something add?

Be on the lookout for new music and for Seven Cities Dead to start up mini touring again and will also be really active in the wi scene in 2024! We also just released a new jam featuring Josh Gilbert formerly of as I Lay Dying and woven war called take this to My Grave! It was tracked by Josh Gilbert featured his vocals and mixed and mastered at Sparrow Sound by Joseph McQueen in California. And that whole experience is one will always remember!