Friday’s always a highlight of the week, and we’re here to make it better by introducing you to a new band you may not have heard of before…
How did you meet?
Danny: I was playing at this charity event with my dad’s band and after the show, Chippy’s (Gabriel) dad came up to me and told me all about his son. Fortunately enough we were looking for a bassist at that time! As for Nikki, after our former guitarists’ departure, Nikki immediately came to mind as a perfect replacement. Back in 2011 we used to have another metal band together with Kyle as well so we already had existing chemistry.
How long have you been playing as a band?
Chippy: This is our third year together as Align the Tide but Danny and Kyle have been playing together for about 9 years now.
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
Kyle: We were just chilling by the pool having some beers thinking about band names and Danny’s house has a sea view so we were just taking the piss out of the sea and Align the Tide came out!
What are your influences?
Chippy: As individual musicians we all have our own music tastes and preferred style of playing, this helped a lot in shaping the Align the Tide sound as we see it as an interesting mixture of genres and sounds that come from our personal experience. I personally come from a background of technical bass playing as my influences come from bands like Death, Rings of Saturn, Born of Osiris ect. Danny listens to and is influenced by bands like Guns and Roses, Motley Crue and Slipknot. Kyle spent most of his teenage years listening to Killswitch Engage, Bullet for my Valentine and Korn. Nikki enjoys most genres of metal but is mostly influenced by Lamb of God, Slipknot and Killswitch Engage.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
Chippy: Align the Tide has an active nu-metal sound that is constantly evolving as we mature together in our musical tastes and learn how to mix this interesting mixture into more tasty and head banging material.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
Chippy: Kyle is the main lyricist of the band. He hits a wide spectrum of subjects in his lyrics from social problems and political issues, to partying and alcohol.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
Chippy: Anyone attending our shows can expect a lively energy, a lot of head banging and partying, and a general great vibe. We have played many shows, both locally and in other countries in the past years. Till now we have played in America, Germany, Czech Republic and many local shows.
What kit do you use / guitars do you play /etc.?
Danny: Tama Superstar Hyper-Drive, Sabian Cymbals, Speed Cobra double pedal.
Kyle: Laney Ironheart, BOSS GT-100 pedal, 7 string Ibanez.
Nikki: Peavey 6505+, Ibanez 7 string.
Chippy: Gallien-Krueger 700RB Bass Head, 2x Gallien Krueger NEO410/8 Cabs, Ibanez BTB1605 5 string Bass.
What are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
Chippy: We released our debut album Dead Religion last year, we recommend checking that out. We also released a new single titled “Red Label”.
What are your plans for 2018-2019?
Chippy: We are looking to tour as much as possible and hopefully later on this year, we will release our second album. So stay tuned for more!
If you were second on a three band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you?
Kyle: Definitely, Slipknot, Killswitch Engage or Lamb of God. We’re all huge fans of their music – amazing musicians! Superb artists!
What do each of you like to do on a night off when you aren’t working or playing music?
Kyle: We all like playing video games and going out for drinks to bond further with each other as a family. We are not just band members – we are brothers in metal so we usually meet up at our favourite bar and have a few drinks on our time off.
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