– Hi, thanks for your time. What are you currently up to? How is everything doing right now with MUTINY WITHIN?

Currently working on figuring out how to distribute CD’s worldwide! Everything is as well as we can expect considering we’re not a fully formed band. We just released our second album which was entirely self made and it seems to be going down well.

– First off, why did you pick «Mutiny Within» as the band’s name?

The band was originally called «Mutiny». As you can imagine, it’s fairly popular name. To avoid legal issues, and because the bands sound had changed somewhat, it was decided a new name was the best way to go. People still see us as «Mutiny», but that band ended the day «Mutiny Within» was formed.

 

– You have just released «Synchronicity» after taking a year and a half break so, how are you feeling about it?

Feeling great about it. We’ve had positive feedback from everybody, the fans are really enjoying it and we’re really glad that it happened. It’s strange being somewhat disconnected from our fans. With no tours or shows, it’s literally all through Facebook. It’s not the same as our first album, but we have to make the most of the situation.

 

– And are the expectations on this new opus different to the expectations you had on your debut album years back?

I think we’re more realistic now. Being signed to Roadrunner I’ll be the first to admit that we got hyped up by the industry and the actual release was somewhat of a let down. It didn’t sell too well but we’ve built a solid fan base and we’re glad they’ve stuck with us. We didn’t have too many expectations for this album as we’ve been pretty much silent for 2 years now. It started off as Chris being sat around at home, opening up some unfinished songs and working on them. Eventually it turned into a full album.

 

– This has been your first opus with drummer Bill; how is everything going with him so far?

It’s been great having Bill back behind the drums. When we went our separate ways, we all knew that it didn’t feel the same. We tried out so many drummers, but Bill is and will always be a part of the Mutiny Within sound.

 

– If I’m not mistaken, you have self-released this new album so, how different has been compared to having a big label such as Roadrunner releasing it? Do you think has been something positive for the band? As I guess you may have had more freedom and less pressure, but it may also be a harder work.

The new album is entirely self-released, recorded, produced, mixed & mastered. It’s cost us literally nothing to make. It had to be that way as we have no money and we have some pretty nasty debts. I think it’s a positive move for the band in some ways, but we definitely miss the power of the label behind us. There is next to no press or advertising and touring is impossible without the label funding. Mainly because we don’t live in the same country, it would be more plausible if that wasn’t the case. Roadrunner never really gave us any pressure. We wrote songs, and then they helped pick ones that we should put on the album. We were free to do whatever we wanted, they heard around half of this album 2 years ago and decided not to keep us. It was their decision and ultimately, it killed off the band, but we can’t blame them. With the state of the industry at the moment, we saw it coming.

 

– And maybe due to this we could say «Synchronicity» is the album you have always wanted to get? As I guess this time you have had no rules whatsoever.

Synchronicity was just the natural evolution of the band. The songs were written after our last tour and over half the album was written over the internet, with Chris & AJ exchanging arrangements and ideas. There were no rules, but we never had any.

 

– Digging deeper into this new record, the first thing that caught my attention off it is that is more varied, dynamic and specially easy-listening than «Mutiny Within». Was this the result you wanted to obtain?

I think with the first album we were trying to prove something: «hey, look how fast we can play, and look how hard this is to play on drums/guitar/vocals…» I think we matured a bit after hearing the album so many times. Personally I found it hard to listen to. It was so in your face from start to finish that it gave me a headache. It’s great for people who are into that, but I think there’s a time and a place for that. We definitely chilled out a bit with some of the guitars leads, and vocals. Some might say this album is more accessible, but at the same time it has our heaviest song to date: Machines.

 

– Maybe is a more easy-listening album due to the fact there are less progressive elements, going for a more straight-foward approach. Maybe this has helped getting a more dynamic final result and, therefore, with more impact on your listeners?

I guess so. We never saw the band as progressive at all ourselves. We only used odd time signatures twice on the first album, and most songs were very simple structures. I think the vocals and songwriting took the forefront on this record as oppose to the drums and guitars. They have become more supporting instruments that shine when the vocals aren’t present.

 

– It’s also catchier so, due to all the aforementioned, do you think this new record will get you new fans?

I think we’ll get some new fans off this release. Some people who found the first record «a bit too much» can probably relate to this more. To me it’s somewhere between modern metal and commercial rock. I don’t think those two styles have been blended too many times like this. (somebody is bound to comment below.. «have you ever heard of metalcore»). I just think these songs stripped down are rock songs with metal instrumentation.

 

– On this CD there are no filler tracks, which means you’ve created a more complete and cohesive opus but, what’s your favourite song on «Synchronicity»?

I don’t really have a favourite song to be honest. It depends what mood I’m in. If I’m feeling reflective, «Lights» is great, «Never» is good for just being a bit more chilled, and «Machines» for those more metal moods.

 

– As I said, it feels like a more cohesive and compact album as a whole, specially on songwriting terms so, could you please tell us how did you work on the songwriting this time around? And did you have a clear idea of how did you want this new record to sound like or do you just let things gloew naturally?

I think we spend around a year on the last record just figuring out what was our sound. After listening to the finished debut, and playing the songs, AJ and myself knew which direction we wanted to go. It was just an evolution of our sound. The more you write with somebody, the more you understand each other and your sound. It’s about combining the best elements of each songwriter into each track. As a vocalist, my strong points are catchy choruses and producing. AJ writes amazing riffs and big open chorus parts, so we combined those together and it comes out as Mutiny Within. AJ writes the music, I come in as the vocalist/producer and we change parts to fit around my ideas, re-write entire sections sometimes… whatever needs to change. It’s all about the song. Each song can be made better or worse with each decision. If you think «lets put a sick guitar part here», it won’t work. Nobody cares if you’re showing off all the time, it has to fit the song.

 

– You have always had a pretty varied sound, due to this I would like to know what have been some of the most influential bands for MUTINY WITHIN.

I’d say: Soilwork, In Flames, Dream Theater, Queen, Born Of Osiris, Joey Sturgis (as a producer), Trivium, Bullet For My Valentine, Metallica… the list goes on. It’s just a combination of everything we listen to. I love Brad Paisley and Alan Jackson (country) and there’s definitely a fair amount of ideas which come from that.

 

– Leaving the musical aspect aside; what are some of the lyrical ideas covered on your new opus?

In the same way I left the first album open to interpretation, the same goes for this. Embers could be interpreted as «Mutiny Within will find a way». It was written when we were on the chopping block. «Falls To Pieces» was written after we were dropped. Lights is about a friend of mine who, out of nowhere, hung himself alone in his room. There’s a variation of topics, but nobody really cares what the lyrics mean to me. It’s about what they mean to you.

 

– And what does the cover artwork represent?

The artwork was done by Bill Fore (drums). It represents everything to do with synchronicity. It’s also heavily based on the ancient aliens concept which most of us are very interested in.

 

– All this about «Synchronicity» being said; how could you describe it in just 3 words?

Music never dies

 

– You have already done a video for the track «Embers», collecting different video recordings of the band. How did you come out with the idea and why did you pick that song? Elaborate a bit on this if you don’t mind.

We felt to the track was the middle-ground for the album. It had a bit of everything in and it represents our sound well. It was actually Tommy Jones (video director) who came up with a lot of the concept. We just told him we wanted something that made people think about what they were doing to bands.

 

– And finally, what are your near-future plans?

As a band, we don’t have any plans. There may be a 3rd album, their may not. Time will tell. Right now we’re all getting on with our individual lives and careers. We found it impossible to survive in the music industry and have had to move on to new things.

 

– That’s all, thank you once more for answering our questions. If you want to add some final words; feel free to do it.

Thank you to all the fans who have stuck with us. I think some people took our stance on piracy as an assault on our own fans. It was never intended to be taken that way. It’s simply pointing out the issues we, and other bands, face in the modern industry. Thanks to everybody who has supported us through everything and especially to those who continue to buy our CD’s and keep the fire burning.

 

Sergio Fernández

sergio@queensofsteel.com

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