Interview with Shadows of Eyekahna, contributed by Drift N Die

Straight from Boston, dripping in clown white and red blood, comes Shadows of Eyekahna! This theatrical rock band is working hard to give their crowds a show worth seeing. Recently bassist Brandon Blackout and drummer Izzy Scott allowed me to pick at their brains quite a bit!

DND: What’s the concept & message of Shadows of Eyekahna?

Izzy: The concept behind the band is that we’re a rock ‘n’ roll band trying to put on a show and stand out. We wear 20 pounds of make up, have big drum sets, cool looking guitars, and spit blood on each other for the entertainment of the people who come to our shows. Which, many local bands in our area and bands in general do not do or want to do.

Brandon: The message itself, I would say, is that we’re tired of being chained to various cycles that are expected of local bands and civilians in general. We are here to play music because we enjoy it, and we enjoy theatrics because it gives folks their money’s worth. We don’t need to have the lines that will save someone from themselves or the most brutal of lyrics because our ears work just fine and I’d like to think music is for performance and listening, not blending into every other band or fandom.

DND: What’s the story behind the band name?

Izzy: It’s the name of a valley of death.

Brandon: Two past members came up with it, but we were fortunate enough to keep the name going.

DND: How’d you all meet & get started as a band?

Izzy: I was brought into the band by Cam on bass (now on rhythm guitar), and Dan (ex-lead guitarist) with Fox (ex-singer) and Tyler sharing vocals!

Brandon: Funny enough, I met Izzy at my first performance with a different band due to him telling me where to place my equipment. After the show, we started talking and it came down to me auditioning for his band. Things have been going strong ever since!

DND: Do personalities ever clash?

Izzy: Cam and Tyler do from time to time ’cause they’re brothers. It’s bound to happen with them, haha.

Brandon: We constantly give each other shit but not in the sense that we clash. We laugh it off and the other throws it back.

DND: How long has the band been together?

Izzy: The band itself has been together for about a year now.

Brandon: I haven’t been in it for all that long but I’m told it’s been active for a year or so.

DND: Any interesting stories from the early days of the band?

Izzy: Um, not really. It was just lots of going back and forth, and trying to figure stuff out for a very long time.

Brandon: Now that we have the ball rolling, all of the interesting stories are more-so based upon crowd reactions.

DND: Who’s the band trouble maker? Worst trouble he ever got himself into?

Izzy: Tyler, definitely. He’s got some interesting stories…

Brandon: I would have to say Tyler, honestly. He seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, but he handles it well!

DND: Who’s the band’s ladies man? Has he ever had any horror story w/ groupies?

Izzy: Probably Tyler or me, to be completely honest. Him and I tell each other stories and everything and it’s just funny. We haven’t had any real experience with “groupies” yet but I’m sure it’ll come around someday, haha.

Brandon: Izzy and Tyler have a knack for flirtation and whenever they set their sites, they’ll let one of us know that they’re ready to pounce. Savages.

DND: What’s the best gig & the worst gig stories you have?

Izzy: The best for me would probably honestly be our first show. There was such a rush and energy, and we still have the rush and energy, but there’s nothing like playing your first show. The worst, I’d say would be a Halloween show we played. It was such a shit venue and the crowd energy was non existent.

Brandon: Well my worst, in contradiction to Izzy’s, would have to be my first. We were left with a fill-in that didn’t know all of the songs and everyone complained about the levels of the mics; but it’s over with and was a fun experience! Now my best, would probably have to be our show in Cambridge. Lotta sweat and energy, great crowd support and a bit of blood makes for a nifty day!

DND: Best tour/studio prank you’ve ever pulled or been victim to?

Izzy: I don’t think we’ve ever really pulled any pranks on each other, to be honest.

Brandon: We never got into pranking but as I mentioned earlier, we joke with each other a lot verbally.

DND: Tell me about what work you’ve already done?

Izzy: Well we released a demo of our song “Shadows” on Band Camp, and we’ve gotten a very good reaction to it!

Brandon: “Shadows” was released a few months back and people have been into it so far, so that’s been fun. We’ve also started up shows again recently.

DND: Can you give a little insight towards what you’re working on at the moment?

Izzy: Writing, writing and writing…

Brandon: …And writing. But also looking into some new venues and areas that we’d enjoy playing.

DND: What’s the studio atmosphere like for you all?

Izzy: We’ve only been in the studio once and it was a pretty nice atmosphere for the most part.

Brandon: Personally, I was pretty stressed until I finished tracking bass. After that, I was free to kick back and make a few jokes. Good times, overall.

DND: What’s your writing process like?

Izzy: Sometimes long and difficult, others quick and easy. We wrote shadows in two days!

Brandon: One of us usually starts playing around with a riff or a fill, and once it’s played and the rest of us take to it, we spend a few hours each practice piecing everything together. Then after we have the general skeleton, we sit down and see what we can add extra bits and spice to.

DND: Outside of your own work, what songs touch your heart?

Izzy: For me it’s gotta be a lot of Halestorm’s ballads!

Brandon: Anything that has a message that isn’t handed to me on a platter. I enjoy HIM lyrically, Ville has a pretty touching way of writing.

DND: What song do you want played at your funeral?

Izzy: “Break In” by Halestorm.

Brandon: Cliff Burton’s “Anesthesia” bass solo.

DND: Three albums you’d want to be buried with?

Izzy: Into The Wild Life by Halestorm, Victim To Villain by New Year’s Day, and Appetite For Destruction by Guns ‘N’ Roses.

Brandon: Dr. Feelgood, Dying Is Your Latest Fashion, and either The Drug In Me Is You or Holy Wood. That’s a difficult question and the answer seems to change every month!

DND: When did you decide you wanted to be musicians?

Izzy: I was in second grade I think.

Brandon: When I realized that I couldn’t ever see myself living a comfortable, yet overly uneventful life. I believe I was six when I was first introduced to bands like Megadeath and ACDC, then that energy set me down this path.

DND: What career would you have taken if you never became a musician?

Izzy: I probably would’ve stuck with hockey.

Brandon: I can’t say what I would’ve ever done if music wasn’t always here but even if I didn’t make it a career, I’d still write poems and lyrics.

Expression is key, regardless of where you’re at.

DND: Any humbling fan experiences?

Izzy: Um, not that I can think of.

Brandon: I don’t think we’re at the point where we have a stable fan base but it’s always humbling when people are nervous to meet you. A very humbling compliment in general, is when someone can point out one specific thing they enjoy about our sound. It shows that they’re actually listening to us.

DND: Any crazy or strange fan experiences?

Izzy: We have one fan who’s almost obsessive about us it’s kinda funny.

Brandon: I second Izzy’s, it’s pretty great actually.

DND: What’s the most memorable experience you’ve had as a band?

Izzy: For me, it was when Brandon and I first did our blood bit because it got all over my fucking drums!

Brandon: Making a mess of Izzy’s kit was a fun time!

DND: You all have individual influences, but as a whole, who is your biggest inspiration as a band?

Brandon: It’s hard to say but I think we all enjoy Slipknot!

Izzy: We do all enjoy Slipknot as Brandon said but we all come from so many different backgrounds of music it’s hard to pin point one specifically! I think Mötley Crüe could be one. We all like them a lot.

DND: On an individual basis, who inspires each of you?

Izzy: My drum teacher.

Brandon: Obviously the already established rockstars like Nikki Sixx or Rachel Bolan, but my family and even girlfriend have a hand in getting me writing.

DND: What’s it like to know you inspire others with what you do?

Izzy: Is that a thing? Do we actually do that!? That’s cool as fuck!

Brandon: I would like to think we’re capable of such a thing but even if we aren’t, I think that’s the biggest favor a fan could do for a band.

If they’re inspired by us, they’re carrying a piece of our ideals and evolving it into something that could further immortalize that individual and our band itself.

DND: Finally, what’s down the road for the band, and where would you like to be in your career by this time next near?

Izzy: With an EP out and working on a full length and playing shows regularly again.

Brandon: With either an EP or a full length and preparing to reach out to labels while playing shows consistently. Shows are what keeps us stable.

Band

Brandon

Izzy

Interviewer

Photographer – Sarah Mankoff Photography