FALLEN FIGURE

PHOTO COURTESY OF FALLEN FIGURE
WEBSITE: www.myspace.com/fallenfigure
COUNTRY: United States STYLE: Death Metal / Metal

WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELVES AS A “DEATHCORE” BAND AND WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE NAMES THAT PEOPLE GIVE TO NEWER GENRES THESE DAYS AND THE IMPACT THEY HAVE ON THE BANDS THAT SUPPOSEDLY FALL UNDER THEM?

We would definitely not consider ourselves a deathcore band. I would describe us as a modern death metal band or even just a metal band. What we're doing and the music we're playing is just our generation’s personal interpretation of what old school death metal bands like Cannibal Corpse and Suffocation did 20 years ago. We're taking that aggression and mood, modernizing it, and then combining it with all of our own tastes and other various influences we've picked up a long the way. People can call it what they will, but we're just calling it metal.

And as far as categorizing a band and labelling them in a certain genre goes, that whole situation is a bloodied double edged sword. It's the listener that defines where a band belongs, and it's those same listeners and musical elitists that seem to have turned genre names like "metalcore" and "deathcore" into insults. Throwing up those walls around a band by confining them to a certain genre could be unintentional murder if the band doesn't have a means to break out of those metaphorical walls. Whether those means be the creative ability, money and support for that genres market, or just failure to replicate a certain sound that was achieved on a past record. It's a tough game we're playing, but its fun as fuck and we wouldn't have it any other way right now.

YOU GUYS PLAY SOME SUPER TECHNICAL TUNES. IS IT A CASE OF PRACTISE, PRACTISE, PRACTISE TO STAY AT THAT LEVEL AND ARE THERE STILL MORE THINGS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO ACHIEVE MUSICALLY WITH YOUR INSTRUMENTS?

Ah, thank you man. Yeah, I'd say that it is somewhat a case of practicing to get to where we are at...but the tightness we achieve when performing these songs comes from the chemistry that we've built with each other through all the bullshit that we've been dragged through. Through countless hours of sitting in a van together on the road, practicing together and individually, playing shows & partying together, sharing beds, taking this band as seriously as we can, and having a common dream and goal...we've become a unit as a band.

I think that’s when a band really becomes more then just a group of people playing music together, and that’s what makes the music and performance real and believable. But that's not to say that we're happy with where we are at. We're definitely proud of how far we've come, but we plan on taking this band as far as humanly possible in a musical sense and in a literal sense, and there is still a very long way to go.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT YOUR MUSIC AS THAT IT IS NOT JUST TECHNICAL BUT THERE ARE PARTS THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY HEADBANG TO. IS IT HARD TO KEEP THAT BALANCE THOUGH?

Haha hell yeah! That's what we're all about man. Head banging, circle pits, weed, and metal. There's nothing better hahaha and as much as we try to please our own musical tastes when we're writing, we're always trying to make sure it has that groove that you're talking about. The one that takes control of your neck and commands you to bang your head. There is nothing else like it.

ARE YOU GUYS ALWAYS WORKING ON NEW SONGS AND HAVE SONG IDEAS “FLOATING” AROUND?

Always. We are constantly working on new material; we're just waiting for the proper time to bring all that shit forth. At this point in time we already have our first full length finished and ready to be put out...we're just waiting for it to be released. So right now isn't the best time to be actively working on new material as a band since the old material isn't even out yet, but that’s not to say we're not working on new shit individually though. We have a few new songs already laid out, about four or five new ones I believe.

Nothing is set in stone yet, but it's a positive direction we're going in. We've actually played one of them a few times live as our encore already haha. It's called "Expiration Day". In hindsight it probably wasn't the best idea to unveil that track yet, but since we're still unsigned and not necessarily in the "public eye", fuck it!

THE BAND ALSO USES BREAKDOWNS. SOME SAY BREAKDOWNS HAVE BEEN USED TO MUCH BY BANDS OVER THE YEARS BUT THE SAME THING WAS SAID ABOUT GUITAR SOLOS YEARS BACK BUT BANDS USE GUITAR SOLOS AGAIN ALL THE TIME THESE DAYS. WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE ISSUE?

Comparing breakdowns and solos haha I've never heard that comparison before. They're total opposites in my opinion since it seems that a lot of newer bands these days are opting for the easy crowd pleasing breakdown over a badass solo, but I'm just taking your question too literally. It's the idea of musical trends that you’re talking about if I'm not mistaken. And we have both. We have a few heavy parts and breakdowns on our album, but so did Suffocation and Pantera though right? Suffocation is one of the greatest death metal bands of our time, and Pantera is one of the most legendary American metal bands of all time. You don't see people labeling them deathcore or metalcore, or any kind of "core" do you? It's all about the delivery and the way the music is performed and how the crowd reacts to that music.

That's one of the biggest misconceptions about us I think. The musical elitists come in and label us as something without fully understanding what we're about. Being labelled a "deathcore" act and then seeing us perform live are two completely different things. I'm not denouncing deathcore or anything; it just doesn't exist in the Fallen Figure camp. But breakdowns in general have become extremely monotonous and predictable. In my opinion it’s gotten this way because of how easy it is to get a 16 year old scene kid flailing his fucking arms...people just don't have to try as hard. I don't know...I could go on, but then I would just get as monotonous as the subject itself haha

IS THE SEARCH FOR A FULL TIME BASS PLAYER FOR THE BAND STILL ON?

Indeed it is. Fuck. How long has it been? hahaha We've had our old bassist Juan Ramirez from the band Dreaming Dead (www.myspace.com/dreamingdead) filling in for all of our shows so we haven't been looking as hard as we should be. Convenience turned to laziness perhaps?! But we are still looking and just recently decided to put the search into overdrive so we can find the right dude and move forward. We're looking for someone who is 18-25, has show experience, tour experience is a plus, professional gear, a drivers license and mode of transportation, some type of income (being in a band burns green, lets face it), can write and handle the written material, has an understanding of music theory, and Sonik will like you more if you play with your fingers. These are pretty detailed guidelines, so if you read this and think you mostly qualify; just hit us up and we'll talk it out.

FOR PEOPLE LIKE ME WHO ONLY RECENTLY “DISCOVERED” YOU GUYS. DO YOU HAVE AN ALBUM OUT AND WHERE CAN I FIND AND BUY YOUR MUSIC?

We actually don't have an album out yet, but we're working on it. The album is definitely done though...so it should be out sooner then later. We hope. In the mean time you can stay updated with us and hear tracks off of our myspace page (www.myspace.com/fallenfigure). I'm also sure you can download some of our tracks from one of those music blogspot download sites if you feel like going on a cyber hunt for our music, but otherwise I'd stick with the myspace, facebook (www.facebook.com/fallenfigure), purevolume (www.purevolume.com/fallenfigure) or anything else you can find on the world wide inter web. And to those people who just recently came across us and our music, thank you for giving us a chance. We'll do our best not to disappoint haha

THE BAND DID A PERFORMANCE VIDEO FOR THE SONG WAKE UP. ARE YOU LOOKING INTO MAKING MORE VIDEOS BECAUSE IT IS ALWAYS GREAT TO VISUALLY SEE BANDS PLAY THEIR MUSIC?

Absolutely. As a band we've always been a fan of music videos, and the combination of music and a visual is definitely the most effective way to go about things. Whether it be album art, a live performance, or a music video...It's the full on visual and aural assault of the senses that gets the strongest and longest lasting reaction. And we are definitely going to be making more music videos in the future, that’s for sure. We're also going to be putting up more live videos, tour videos, and other forms of multimedia in the near future, so stay posted!

YOU HAVE SOME REALLY COOL SHOWS LINED UP FOR NOVEMBER. IS IT ALWAYS FUN TO GET OUT AND PLAY FOR AN AUDIENCE AND MEET OTHER BANDS AND THE PEOPLE WHO SUPPORT YOU?

Yeah, we have had some really cool shows lined up lately; it's an exciting time for us. Things just seem to be moving in the right direction and getting better day by day, it's fucking awesome haha. And playing out in front of people is one of the best feelings there is, nothing is comparable to it man. It's the reason why we're all in this band. And the support we receive from our friends and fans is what keeps us going. You're in on tour; you're cold, sick and tired. Motivation to pour your all into the performance comes in the form of a few kind words from a fan. Thank you to each and every one of you who has continued to support this band, hopefully we'll see you soon.

DO YOU STILL LEARN NEW THINGS ABOUT IMPROVING YOUR OWN LIVE SHOW AND THE INDUSTRY BY WATCHING THE OTHER BANDS YOU PERFORM WITH?

If we didn't take every moment out of the day to improve ourselves as a band and as individuals then we failed. It's as simple as that. Every day should be dedicated to self improvement and learning new things about yourself and others. Even if its only tiny progress, it is still progress none the less and in my opinion that is what every human should be constantly striving for in his/her life. Personal maintenance and upkeep of that progress is also incredibly important. For the sake of proving my point, let’s say you consider yourself a good friend. If you don't practice being a great friend every day, (or whatever it is that you believe yourself to be) then that attribute that you once considered a huge part of yourself slowly fades away. Loyalty, honesty, listening, respect, selflessness, and everything else "friendly" should be put into practice constantly.

Failure to maintain yourself is almost unnoticeable if you don't work on yourself ever day, and before you know it your an asshole! So with that being said, the answer is yes. We are always keeping our eyes out for things that can be improved upon. Playing out with professional bands with talent is one of the greatest opportunities that we could get right now. We can observe and absorb any knowledge that is kicked down our way and we were taking full advantage of that.

ANY OTHER COMMENTS; THINGS FANS SHOULD LOOK OUT FOR?

Yeah man, thank you for the interview dude! We appreciate your level of seriousness in these questions, we’re tired of pointless interview questions already hahaha.

Stay posted for announcements on a release date for our record, upcoming tour dates, smoke weed, and thank you for the love and support we've received thus far.

We love you all.