Interview @ 4/24/2011
"Like" The Brother's Highhorse here: http://www.facebook.com/thebrothershighhorse
The Brother's Highhorse is a band I've known about for a while now. They bring some promising deathcore to the table while bringing strong song structure with a punk rawness and unpredictability into the mix. I decided to interview guitarists Dan and Mark to learn more about them and to let the fans (and people who haven't heard them yet) a little of the history and what upcoming projects they have coming up.
RB: So tell your fans a bit about the history of The Brothers Highhorse. How did you all meet and what's the meaning behind the name?
BH: Our guitarists Dan and Mark had been in prior projects and metal bands together, and so when they started going to the same college, they decided to start another band in 2008. Our first drummer was Richard Sollenne, now in Destriers Gait and our first vocalist was Mike Sharrow, who was jamming with several members in the band Surrounded By Monsters in a band called Backroad Gunslingers. That's also how Dan met Mike, and called him up to join The Brothers Highhorse.
By summer of 2010, we parted ways with Richard and Mike, and started looking for new members. We got Sarah Hazelton, an awesome pianist (and Mark's sister) to jump on keys for us, and Mark switched from bass to guitar. We stumbled across John Lane because he had a bunch of awesome vocal covers up online, and we got him to come try out, and he was really down to join the band. We were booked for Summer Slaughter that year but needed a drummer, so after asking around, we got Arlo Tippit from Embrace the Embers to fill in for us. We played the show, had a great time and he enjoyed the music we were making, so he wound up joining our band. A bit later we got Paul Campbell, the former vocalist of Cyclosarin, to start playing bass with us.
Our name was the result of an inside joke from when Dan and Mark were in high school. Dan and one of our buddies sat next to each other in band class and always got bitched at for talking. At one point, the band director shouted: "How about you two brothers get off your high horse?!?" So, they went and printed up shirts with the words, "The Brothers Highhorse" just to spite the band director. When we were working on a name for this band, we liked the sound of it, because it's not a metal sounding name, so when the music hits you, it hits you that much harder. We got the same kind of vibe from Job for a Cowboy, and decided to run with it.
RB: Do you guys have any demos/EPs/albums out right now? Where can I get "The Undoing?"
BH: “The Undoing” was the demo we released with Richard on drums and Mike on vocals. We had it online for a bit, but decided to take it down when they left the band, because we wanted to pursue a much more brutal and progressive sound. We recently released our first single, “Biomechanical Emancipation” from our upcoming EP, which we are in the process of recording with Braxton Henry of 138 Studios. He recently worked on The Famine’s Architects of Guilt album and has worked with other national acts like Devourment and A Dozen Furies.
RB: I listened to the single "Biomechanical Emancipation." What is the overall message of the song and of your upcoming release?
BH: “Biomechanical Emancipation” is one part of a story which our entire EP will tell. The general concept is that our world is being ravaged by aliens, who have returned after a long visit during the dawn of civilization. These aliens capture humans and perform cybernetic operations on them, turning them into mindless slaves and warriors. One of these people wakes up in a field of discarded corpses, and realizes that he has the powers of the slaves, but not the failsafe which keeps his mind under control. He begins going throughout the world and freeing other cyborg slaves, eventually leading a massive rebellion against the alien conquerors. Each song on the EP describes a part of the story.
RB: Tell the fans about your next show and why we should be there?
BH: Because our current drummer, Arlo, will be moving away, we will be finding a new drummer soon. At our next show, we will only be better, have even more great merch and music, and we will have this new drummer to unveil.
RB: What are your guys' musical influences?
BH: We are influenced by a variety of bands in different subgenres of metal. Some great bands we listen to are Behemoth, The Black Dahlia Murder, Abigail Williams and various hardcore/deathcore bands.
RB: What comes first when you're writing, the lyrics or the music?
BH: It depends on the song, but generally our music has come first, and then we write lyrics to fit with the music.
RB: What are your favorite places to perform?
BH: When it was still around, Ridglea Theater was awesome for big shows. They were always great about getting local bands on the bill for big signed tours. Nowadays, Dad’s Venue in Lewisville is a really chill joint, we just played our first show there not long ago and really enjoyed it.
RB: Random question - Where is your favorite places to chow down at?
BH: Taco Bell and Chinese buffets.
RB: What are some of the things today that you hate? Being part black metal, there's gotta be something that doesn't beat your meat.
BH: DFW traffic, ignorant loudmouth dicks, and people who talk up the local scene and then never go to shows or support the local bands.
RB: Are you guys involved in any other projects?
BH: At the moment, we are all focused on this band, but we all like to mess around with other styles of music.
RB: Any last words for your fans?
BH: We’re losing our current drummer, but it won’t slow us down. We will be playing more shows as soon as possible, and we will be releasing our EP this year! We also want to give a shout out to our homies in the bands Onward We March, Descendant, Unto Acheron, Surrounded By Monsters, and Lizard Professor!
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