THE NAMM Show 2017 Interviews – Behind The Fallen

THE NAMM Show 2017 Interviews – Behind The Fallen

Musicians from all over the world converged upon The Namm Show 2017 in Anaheim, CA to discover the best in new music instruments and sound equipment.  And although Behind The Fallen from the OC did not need to travel very far to attend the supremely anticipated yearly event, expect this exciting new band to tour the world in no time at all, especially if their dynamic new As The Sky Falls Through EP is indicative of greater glories ahead.

Highwire Daze interviewed Behind The Fallen in the midst of the insanity known as NAMM to find out more about this fantastic new hard rocking post hardcore collective headed for grand and stratospheric heights!  Read on and discover Behind The Fallen…

Introduce yourself and tell me what you do with Behind The Fallen.
Dylan: I’m Dylan I am the drummer.
David: I am David. I do guitars and vocals.
Johnny: I am Johnny and I do just the vocals.
Eric: I am Eric, I pretend to play bass.

What are you guys looking forward to the most about The NAAM Show this year?
Eric: Just looking forward to all of the stuff that is coming out this year. Especially with Ernie Ball – all of their beautiful new colors of the bass guitars and all of the new models that are coming out. Their new Paradigm strings are supposed to be unbreakable and just amazing quality. Better strings without reducing quality. It is just amazing. That is what I am looking forward to that honestly.
Johnny: My thing I look forward to every time I come to NAAM is just being able to just hang out with a bunch of musician and with people who are like-minded such as ourselves. Just being able to see our endorsers. Ernie Ball. I love visiting 1964. The Schecter and DW. It is great to see the new products and what is coming out this year.
David: Now it always feels like a high school reunion. You get to meet with your musician friends that you might not get to see because they are on tour. Our schedules just don’t match together so it is always cool to all meet here and reminisce and catch up on things. I look forward to that every year.
Dylan: Same thing as David. I have been in I don’t know how many bands and it is really great seeing all of the old musicians I have played with. It is just one big old reunion. Seeing all of the new products coming out that I am really stoked to try out and break as a drummer and buy again. that is pretty much it.

Your EP is called As the Sky Falls Through. Is there any story or concept behind that title?
Johnny: It is a hard question to answer because to me it means so many things and everyone has a different perspective on it. To me, the meaning behind As the Sky Falls Through is just everything going to shit. The sky has fallen through and everything is just being destroyed. With this album and going through everything we have been through over the past three years and all of the people that we have dealt with. It just embodies that we have just been through hell and now we are coming out of it. That is the story behind that. Then the artwork as well. Just the world on fire, that says it in itself.
David: The EP itself, each song pretty much tells the story of our personal experiences. Our personal experience with the music industry, our personal experience with relationships and just the people that we are dealing with. Each song really embodies those emotions that we went through. It was awesome to just go through and think of a good title for all of those collective songs. As The Sky Falls Through is just a perfect embodiment of that because even when it feels like everything is falling apart, we are still standing together.

Select two songs from the As The Sky Falls Through EP and what inspired the lyrics.
Johnny: Chasing Glory. I was the one that was personally affected by some of the people in the music industry and how we have gotten the shit end of the stick with a few people. And that was just my way of being able to tell my story without pointing those people out. One of the lines is ‘here is to the one that wants the glory’. Like you want the fame, you want the money, go ahead and take it. That isn’t what I am here for. That is not what we are here for. That to me holds a special meaning.
David: Satellite is an awesome song because it just feels like a good radio song. Not only that but when we were writing it, we went through two different choruses. Satellite means a lot to me, because me and Johnny were on our way to a studio in Vegas to record the vocals, and we wrote the chorus in the car on the way there. We really put ourselves into that song.

What was it like working with Telle from Word Alive on the song Reflections?
Johnny: That was a really great experience. I love that band! All of the guys are awesome in that. He just knows what he is doing. He just came in. We were there with him and the producer. He came in and killed it and just really added way more than I expected and really brought it up to what it is now. It was a great experience and he is a really awesome dude. Great to hang out with, funny guy.

Did Telle bring his dog?
Johnny: He did not. But the engineer on that song – he actually had a studio pug and Telle was playing with him and they both live next to each other and their little pugs have play dates and stuff.

How did you wind up being signed to EMP Label Group and have you met owner Dave Ellefson?
Dylan: We never personally met Deve Ellefson unfortunately. We have talked to him on the phone many times.
He is a busy guy.
David: Yeah, he obviously is always busy. I remember the first conversation with him, me and johnny were sitting in the car and we have Dave Ellefson on speakerphone.  And we were like ‘We are talking to ‘Dave Ellefson!. It is crazy. To hear someone like that say “I listened to your songs. I love them. I saw the music video of you. I loved it! I want you guys for us! You guys are a perfect fit.” To hear that from someone of that caliber was pretty awesome.

If Behind the Fallen could open for any band from now or from the past who would it be and why?
Johnny: Obviously my all time dream is either, the guys might disagree with this, Falling in Reverse or Panic at the Disco. I am in that alternative pop genre so I like that and I think that it would be a great fit. Obviously with Falling in Reverse because Ronnie Radke has been my idol since I started singing. If you listen to our first record you can see that a lot.
Eric: I would love to play a show or tour with Steel Panther. Just because I like that every performance is unique and their performance is always on point. The best I’ve ever seen. Anytime anyone ever asks me what is the best show you have ever been to, I always say Steel Panther.
Dylan: My all time favorite band is Avenged Sevenfold. My idol The Rev, RIP, he got me into drumming, he got me into double bass. That would be my ultimate dream to open for Avenged. They are like my gods. Funny story: Knotfest 2015 – I ran into M. Shadows. Literally RAN up to him said I love you, and hugged the mother fucker. Then took a picture with him and ran away. That is the only time I have ever fan-girled in front of everyone. Johnny was there for that.
David: I would love to tour with Bullet for my Valentine just because I feel like I am very similar to their guitar style. So it would be awesome to actually sit there and see them play. Avenged Sevenfold as well. I am more of a guitar guy, so if the guy shreds I want to play with them. That’s the thing.

What is next for you guys?
David: We have a lot of things coming up this year. We have tours in the works. We honestly are just trying to get all over the country at this point in time. We want our music to be heard, not only in the States but outside of the States as well. We just want to get our music out there.
Johnny: Everything is all in the works and verbal. Nothing is confirmed yet. But as of right now, we do have Rock in the Springs coming up on April 27th. That is supposed to be a huge festival in Las Vegas. A bunch of pool parties, a lot of alcohol, so I am really excited about that. It will be cool, man, to see me in my speedo rocking.

The Vans Warped Tour in Vegas last year was poolside. You could have done that already…
Johnny: I have seen the videos from that and the singers and everybody were getting into the pool. That is why if we are able to be by the pool, I am going to be in that pool while we are playing. If I have a wireless I can go anywhere I want.
David: I don’t blame him. We did Vegas Warped Tour two years ago and it was 103 degrees and it was at the University of Las Vegas parking lot. The asphalt. We all almost had heat strokes!  It was pretty crazy.
Johnny: David lost 10 pounds.
David: Yeah, I definitely lost 10 pounds in just sweat. It was a good experience. I wish we had a pool then.

(Interview and NAMM Photo by Ken Morton)

Behind The Fallen on Facebook