whats to know when we will get our hands on the 3rd?
DF2012: That is a good question. We have it almost finished but 2014 has been a very strange year to say the least. As a band, we have been through some major challenges that have truly tried our dedication and desire to continue. Having that said, we are considering waiting to release Issue 3 further down the road. Our heads are in some new stuff we are writing now and we are anxious to get it out and share it. This doesn’t mean we won’t ever release Issue 3, it’s just not where we feel we should be at the current moment. This could change and we’ll be sure to keep our fans in-the-loop.
Next, where did the idea of a concept album come from, as well as the comic book..and can you explain Mr Everyman?
DF2012: When writing the 16ish songs
that encompass the Mr. Everyman 3-parter, we initially hadn’t considered how
linear the subject matter was. In pre
production our producer Jim Finley made
a comment “these songs seem like they
are all connected…are they part of one
big story?” He encouraged us to look
deeper into the material and asked we
consider broadening the connections
between songs. I assembled the songs in
an order that seemed to make sense,
and wrote a vague, simple short story. I
submitted the music (in order) and the
story to local graphic artist A.Tomic who took it and ran! His interpretation of the story was where Mr. Everyman (a fictional political figure with divine power and a split personality) was created. Its about his personal conflicts combined with his power struggle as a leader, and the process of taking control of both. This is all illustrated in comic books which come with the records.
Once completed do you think Downfall 2012 will revisit this idea of a concept album again in the future?
DF2012: I definitely think it’s a possibility. We’ve thought about some “spin-off” ideas about some of the other characters in the Everyman story. Everything is up in the air though. If we do, we will definitely have to get creative! haha
One thing that is well known about Downfall2012 is that fans need to see the live show...you guys put on one hell of a show, both visually and musically. How did you stage show develop? What are you trying to project to the crowd?
DF2012: Hey thanks! We work hard to make it what it is! Our main goal is to entertain and captivate the entire room, no matter if it is 1 person or 1,000. This is a competitive industry and people have a lot of other options to give their time and attention to. We want to reach more than just the local music fans…more than just the metal heads. Don’t get me wrong we love all of them and couldn’t do it without their support, but to win over people who would never listen to your genre, or attend a show otherwise is a challenge that I feel Downfall 2012 handles pretty well. Creating the production that comprises a Downfall 2012 performance has proven to be very successful and has been well accepted by virtually every venue we venture to. We take great pride in what we do and I feel it shows. It all started with a silly comment from Boo at one of our first rehearsals. He was like “It would be awesome if we made a drum kit out of home depot buckets and used it to spice up the show! I told him “have it ready by the weekend”. Come rehearsal time that Saturday he rolls into the studio lugging this giant metal rack with plastic buckets mounted to it. The rest is history! lol