ION INDIE MAGAZINE November 2015, Volume 18 | Page 80

Interview with

3 QUARTERS DEAD
Music by
3 QUARTERS DEAD
“The Two of Us”

Interview and Photography by Gary Carota
www.facebook.com/pages/Gary-Carota-Images/1446109878980969

GC: It feels a little weird to be asking you guys questions about yourselves, since I’ve known you guys for a few years now…lol.
For anybody out there, who doesn’t know who 3 QUARTERS DEAD is, tell the world a little bit about yourselves--like where
you’re from, how long you’ve been together as a band, how you formed--that sort of thing…
3 Quarters Dead: We are 3 Quarters Dead (3QD) from Wilkesboro, NC--the moonshine capitol of the world…ha! We formed in
1999 with mostly different members and recorded one album (“Blueprint of a Strange Mind”) with that lineup (1999-2004).
The present lineup has been together since 2007, with the exception of ALLEN ROYAL (drums), who joined in 2013. We have
recorded 4 full length albums (“Between Angels & Demons”, “Once Upon this Broken Glass”, “The Cycle of Dust” and
“Tribulation”) since that time, and are currently leaving a path of destruction up and down the East coast. We all basically
grew up in the same town around each other with the exception of JASON (SAIN/vocals). A cohort of ours--BLACKBIRD
PRODUCTIONS--told us about him, so we met him one night at ZIGGY’S in Winston-Salem, talked, and he came for an
audition…and the rest is history.
GC: How would you describe your music? And who and what influences the band?
3QD: As Jason would say, “It's emotion.” I think we five each have such different influences that causes a clash of style, that
when it all comes together, it makes for something truly unique. Make sense? Ha! I would say that we influence each other.
We try to feed off each other’s ideas and different approaches to writing our music. As far as other band influences, I would
say MEGADETH, MOTLEY CRUE, SLAYER, IN FLAMES, TESTAMENT, MACHINEHEAD, SLIPKNOT, MUDVAYNE, DEVILDRIVER, etc.
We listen to a lot of different music. Ha!
GC: Who are the creative minds behind the band, who writes the music, the lyrics; or is it a collective effort?
3QD: We all have a say-so in everything we do. If anyone doesn't feel good about a certain riff or any song part, then we mess
with it until it becomes something we all are into. Everyone is included from stage show to art concepts, merchandise; you