Interview: Eyes Set To Kill

Pheonix-based Eyes Set To Kill are set to release their sophomore record 'The World Outside' on June 2nd. The 5-piece blend post-hardcore with screamo vocals, along with deep, personal lyrics from front woman Alexia Rodriguez. Alexia is joined with sister, Anissa on bass guitar, vocal and keyboard player Brandon Anderson, guitarist Greg Kerwin and Caleb Clifton on drums.

Sean recently spoke with Alexia, Greg and Caleb about 'The World Outside', their forthcoming US tours with Sky Eats Airplane and Drop Dead, Gorgeous. As well as life on the road.

ATP: How would you describe Eyes Set To Kill’s sound to people who may have not heard of you before?
C: If I were to describe our sound to some one who has not heard of us before I would tell them we are a heavy melodic blast of unique music.

ATP: You’re just about to release your new album ‘The World Outside’ what can we expect from the album?
C: With this new release you can expect a sound from us that shows we have matured in our capability to write music. Along with that the album has a heavy and dark presence.

ATP: How is this album different from your first album ‘Reach’? You’ve
said you had more time to write this record.
C: Because we had more time to write this time around, we had to the chance to make all the changes we wanted to make even after writing each song. Also we weren't pressed for time in the studio, we all went in not having to make up any drum or guitar parts in the studio.

ATP: I understand ‘The World Outside’ is lyrically darker. Are you worried about the reaction writing darker songs?
A: I think that everyone has a darker side to them that they try to keep locked inside. I'm looking to connect with that side of fans because that's where most dramatic emotions and secrets are hiding. I'm guilty of always hiding my problems and trying to forget bad memories but I let those pour into my lyrics so that others can use them to deal with their own.

ATP: The album was produced with Dave Aguilera. What was it like working
with him?
C: It was a lot of fun working with Dave he had some good ideas and
he pushed us to write to our fullest potential.

ATP: Were there any particular bands or artists that influenced the album or lyrics?
A: There weren't any bands or artist that influenced the album but there were certain people in our lives that inspired us. Just good friends going through difficult hardships, distant family members, broken relationships. In each song you will hear a story Whether it is a personal experience or something a friend is going through.

ATP: You’ve just released the video for ‘Heights’. How did filming go and what is the concept behind it?
A: I think that Heights is a very raw straightforward song, so we wanted to compliment it with a straightforward video.

ATP: Why did you choose ‘Heights’ as the first single from the album?
C: I think we chose Heights as the first single because its the first track on our new CD, plus its a heavy hitting song that starts with a bang and also shows our fans and anyone else out there what are new sound is like.

ATP: You’re about to go on tour with Sky Eats Airplane, In Fear and Faith and The World Alive on The New Nu-Metal Tour. How is that going to be like?
G: Its starts tomorrow ha. We have toured with In Fear and Faith before, and we know all the dudes in the Word Alive. So I'm guessing its going to be a blast. Plus I heard the guys in SEA are really cool people. Should be a rage fest.

ATP: What do you have planned after this tour? I see you are touring with
Drop Dead, Gorgeous, Before Their Eyes and He Is Legend.
C: Yeah after the Sky Eats Airplane tour we will be out with Drop Dead, we got to tour with them a few months ago and we really enjoy their company so this summer should be a blast. As for after that we won't have anything planned but I'm sure there will be some tours in the mix.

ATP: In the past you’ve toured with bands such as Drop, Dead Gorgeous, Gwen Stacey and Brokencyde. Do you have memorable or funny stories to tell from previous tours?
G: We became really close with the dudes in DDG. We partied almost every night on that tour ha ha. One day Stills(singer of DDG) and I walked to the liquor store. We decided to buy a bottle of Everclear, which is extremely flammable. So I decided to spit fire with it and ended up lighting the grass on fire. It was pretty funny.

ATP: What is your opinion on Brokencyde? A few bands have spoken out
against them recently.
A: I get it. I understand why kids are so nuts for Brokencyde and it makes perfect sense. They know how to party and get the crowd excited. They deserve what they have right now. One thing they don't deserve is having all these jealous people in bands talking crap about them so constantly. It really irritates me to hear people gossip on tour about Brokencyde or any other band that is doing well right now. I started touring to get away from that gossip type of stuff. Frankly I think that whenever I catch other people talking shit, I feel like I'm back in high school again. I think it's even more immature that more respected bands are trying to get them kicked off tours. where is the love? we are all supposed to be on the same team here!

ATP: How would you describe a normal show for you?
G: We usually get to the venue around 4 and load in our gear. Then we play the waiting game. We usually don't go on to around 8 or 9, so everyone tries to keep them selves occupied for 4 or 5 hours. I usually warm up for an hour or so before stage time. We play and then try to get to the merch table as soon as possible. Then we drive to the next city and repeat it all over again.

ATP: How do you keep yourself busy during long drives whilst on tour?
A: I love to doodle so I always keep a pad of paper on the road along with my ipod. Lately I have been obsessed with Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. I used to play the Zelda on Nintendo 64 so playing it on DS brings me back to those days, haha.

ATP: Is there anywhere else you’d like to play where you haven’t yet?
G: Japan would be really rad to play. I know a hand full of people that have tour there, and they said it was awesome.

ATP: Any plans to come over to Europe?
G: I would love for us to tour Europe. We just got back from Brazil, and that was amazing. I figure Europe would be just as cool. Unfortunately, we don't decide where we get to tour.

ATP: What do you have planned for the future?
G: Touring non-stop.

Eyes Set To Kill's new album 'The World Outside' is released on June 2nd on BreakSilence Recordings.

More Information on Eyes Set To Kill can be found here.