ION INDIE MAGAZINE December 2014, Volume 7 | Page 65

circle there and became friends with the guys from STONEY CREEK (local PA band), most of who would
eventually become M80.”
M80, the award-winning 1980’s-inspired cover band with which Train currently devotes much of her musical
time, is among the most dynamic live acts--original or cover--to play the PA/NJ/NY area in 2014. “M80
became so popular, so quick, that I didn’t’ t even get to give Brian my notice at the bar,” she begins, “I just
kept calling off more and more because the band kept becoming too busy. I thought that yeah, this must be
my new career. We’ve done great--I’ve been with them for ten years, which I can’t believe.”
Though M80 continues to be a central focus of Train’s life, her heart always lied within her original music
and the freedom of expression it brought her. That leads us to her new “Diary” solo album—a document of
the trials, tribulations, and ultimately, the overcoming that she’s done in recent years. “A few years ago I got
the itch to do my music again,” she tells. “Having gone through a lot of heavy stuff, the only way I knew to
express myself was through music and words. Now, that I’d had a failed marriage that was so incredibly
toxic, I had a lot to get out. I wasn’t feeling that fulfillment in a cover band. The artist in me came alive again
after going through something so traumatic.”
Train launched a successful Kickstarter campaign to help with the record. Even though she’s incredibly
grateful for the assistance in getting the album out, the Kickstarter funds were only the tip of the iceberg
when it comes to the scope of this album and the amount of time it’s taken to materialize. “It gave me about
a third of the money I need which is part of the reason it took so long to finish. Between that…and I’m still
busy with M80. There were other holdups, like I had to wait for other artists to finish in the studio before I
could get back in. At least I learned what not to do with my next record, which will not take two years against
my will. I did everything myself--right down to the graphic arts.”
The other artists of which Train speaks are some of the biggest names in the contemporary Hard Rock world-all of whom she can call friends--guests like DUG PINNICK from KING’S X, AARON FINCKE, MARK JAMES
and CHAD SZELIGZ (all ex-BREAKING BENJAMIN), CLINT LOWERY of SEVENDUST and DEREK SHRINIAN (exDREAM THEATER)--all came together to lend a hand in the recording of “Diary”. “I’ve known most of these
guys for a while, but I never asked them for anything, because I wasn’t doing anything for all these years. The
only thought I’d put to these celebrated friends was to call them once in a while to catch up, or if they’re
passing through on tour, go see them.”
Most of the other artist’s parts were recorded remotely--as Train jokes--she wasn’t about to ask them all to
pack up and head to Pennsylvania. Impressed that her famous friends had turned in for the record, she
began to turn to even newer acquaintances; like DALE STEWART, bassist for national recording act SEETHER.
“I met him while I was planning all of this, and I said, ‘Hey, you should play in this,’” she says. “He’s a big
fan of Dug Pinnick’s. I asked Dale if he had any way to record his parts at home, and he said ‘No.’ I thought,
‘Wait a minute, Dug does!’ So, I got him in touch with Dug, and got the two of them to hang out and that’s
how they recorded for me.”
As far as the material on the “Diary” album is concerned, you’ll find a healthy mix of radio-friendly ear candy
wafting among the darker-edged songs--all in a trend towards the uplift that music tends to give to hardfought experiences. “I tend to write even poppier than I want to,” Train jokes. “You’ll find that the edgier stuff
on the album when Clint from Sevendust (the album’s producer) came into the picture. When I first started