Ventura-based metal band Too Sick To Pray explodes onto the scene with their powerful debut single, "Meet Me At The Gates." We dive into its themes, creation, and what’s next for the band.
1. "Meet
Me At The Gates" is an incredibly powerful debut. Can you tell us about
the inspiration behind the song and its central themes?
Jake: “Meet Me At The Gates” is about becoming one with your emotions. The
good, the bad and the ugly. Anger, sadness, fear and happiness. Your emotions
are a part of you, it's not about suppressing them; it's about controlling
them. Meet my demons.
2. Your lyric-writing process for this track deviated from the usual
approach, with the lyrics shaped to match the drum patterns. How did that
decision influence the final sound?
Jake: Writing the lyrical pattern for "Meet Me At The Gates" was
interesting because my natural inclination was to write to the drum pattern
instead of the guitar or bass. So, it was kind of a different approach than
usual. It felt heavy but catchy, so it allowed me to shape a song that makes
you sing along!
3. Jake, your vocals bring raw emotion to the track. How do you channel such
intensity into your performance, and what message do you hope listeners take
from the lyrics?
Jake: I honestly don’t know why I’m so comfortable being so vulnerable with
music, but that’s why it feels so intense to others because it is coming from a
place of passion. Nothing more than a labor of love. I’m up there having a
therapy session with everyone in the audience or streaming this track!
4. Jay,
you mentioned that the melody and structure came from riffs you had stored
away. What made this the right moment to bring those ideas to life?
Jay: All guitar players write riffs without the forethought of knowing when
they’ll come into play. I have a mental shelf where I store ideas, and it just
felt like the right time for these particular riffs to come to life.
5. Brittney and PJ, the rhythm section is relentless and tight. How do you
both collaborate to build such a solid foundation for the band’s sound?
PJ: Lots of
practice, the longer we play together, musically we get to know each other
better and the tighter we can lock in to create that hard hitting rhythm
section.
Brittney: PJ works so hard writing material on his own. He’ll write his bass
lines and program drums for a general rhythm, and then I go in and dissect his
patterns for opportunities to add accents and find those groovy in-the-pocket
beats that feel good to me. It’s definitely a lot of back and forth, and we’re
in constant contact.
6. Your production team for this track included industry heavyweights Addasi
Addasi and Brendan Duffey. What was it like working with them, and how did they
help shape the final product?
Jay: It is always a pleasure to work with Addasi and Brendan. Addasi is
extremely efficient in the studio and is an expert at producing bands, shaping
performances for recording and getting the sounds mixed for a powerful metal
sound, whereas Brendan is as expert as it gets at all the technical intricacies
needed to produce a quality master recording. I have teamed up with them on
several occasions over the years. It’s important to work with people you trust,
and they’ve always produced the highest quality product imaginable.
PJ: Addasi
Addasi is a good man, a friend and he is the absolute best guy to work with.
Always very professional and laid back, he works with and listens to the
artists and with his own experience and ideas, he helps create a finished
product that to me, was better and tighter than the idea we walked in with.
Brendan Duffey, is very professional and efficient as well. He has mastered our
first 2 singles and they are absolutely monstrous. Great guy to work with and
I'm very happy that we got the opportunity to have him help create our music
for the world to hear.
7. The lyric video for "Meet Me At The Gates" has dynamic
animation that really enhances the song's impact. Can you tell us about the
creative process behind the video?
Jake: Britt, our drummer, called me and was like, “Hey, I need the idea for the
cover art and lyric video.” As usual, she’s cracking the whip. I envisioned
dark steel gates and a man approaching them while demons gathered waiting for
him on the other side. So, on my work break I ran to my car and drew up a
scribble and sent it off. The video captures the concept of meeting your demons
exactly as I had imagined with the gates opening towards the end of the video.
PJ: The creative process behind the video was a collaboration of Jakes lyrics and individual ideas from the band members for the art animation.
8. Too Sick To Pray blends heavy riffs with introspective lyrics. How do you
strike a balance between musical aggression and emotional depth in your songs?
Jake: As much as I love metal, I love 70s rock too, and that was a time
when people weren’t scared to write music that took you on a journey. I love
heavy riffs and metal screams, but I also like to sing about hope and getting
through the darkness. Self-help metal is what I like to call it. Just because I
sound angry doesn’t mean I am.
9. The concept of embracing and controlling emotions is central to this
track. Why do you think this message resonates so strongly with metal fans?
Jake: I think the message resonates because metal doesn’t make you stray away
from your feelings, especially anger and fear which are closely related. It’s
music, but the community around it is also like a brotherhood – a place where
you can be yourself. It’s not about your singing ability in terms of how many
notes you can hit; it’s more about your ability to channel passion into your
vocals. The same is true of punk rock; that’s why fans of both genres attend a
lot of the same shows.
PJ: From a fans perspective I believe it would resonate with me because I can identify with it. Which I think so many people can. We all get older and we all get to know ourselves as we grow. How to deal with our emotions and learn from our mistakes. Our lyrics are aggressive but understandable so you can feel the aggression but we also hope the story will help the listener create a visual scenario in their head as well.
10. Ventura, CA, has a vibrant music scene. How has the local community influenced your sound and your journey as a band so far?
Jay: I’ve been playing in Ventura County for over a decade and worked my way into booking metal acts in the region. I created a metal night, Wicked Wednesday. And that’s where I met both PJ (bass) and Brittney (drums) as they were playing in other projects, and I had booked their projects for shows. I was looking to start a new project, so I reached out to both of them to kick things off, about six months later we found Jake, and less than a year later, here we are. The metal community brought us together and continues to be a driving force for creating a support system for emerging talent, our band included.
11. What can fans expect from your future releases? Are there any themes or
musical directions you're excited to explore?
Jay: Fans can expect our band to keep pushing forward. The four of us are tight
knit, extremely focused and driven. We look forward tonally to keeping it heavy
and real as we continue to shape our sound.
PJ: More interesting and creative beautiful brutality. We will explore whatever direction our minds and musical talent takes us. We like to incorporate different techniques and styles in all of our songs so you never know what to expect next.
Jake: Our next single will be the first time I’ve told a story through the eyes
of someone else. It’s not so much about conveying an emotional message, but I’m
invested in the story we’ve crafted and the journey it has taken me on. Each of
our songs sounds like Too Sick To Pray, but none of our songs sound the same.
Each one punches you in a different part of your gut!
12. Finally, what does "Meet Me At The Gates" represent for Too
Sick To Pray as a band, and how does it set the tone for what’s to come?
Jay: “Meet Me At The Gates” isn’t the first song we wrote instrumentally, but
it is the first song we completed as a band, lyrics and vocal patterns
included. As our first song, it has already shaped the direction in which we’re
moving. It’s heavy and powerful and raw, we’re very proud of the song as our
debut single, and we look forward to exploring our sound from this foundation.
PJ: To me, the release of our single MMATG and the lyric video represents TSTP as a serious metal band and much more than a just local act. We're all very dedicated to this band so we aim to represent ourselves to the highest standards. We love what we do and we're always thinking about the next step. We're shooting past the stars.
Jake: “Meet Me At The Gates” represent what’s to come. At the end of the track,
when I say “Meet my demons” – that’s an invitation for what’s to come… it’s up
to you to decide if you wanna walk through the gates. We are about to unleash
the beast with the next single, so stick around. If you think “Meet Me At The
Gates” was heavy… haha, just wait!
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