Post by Devin O on May 24, 2011 19:45:09 GMT -5
Info:
Genre: Progressive, Experimental, Rock, Metal
Members:
* Frank Sacramone: keyboards, sampling
* Ben Shanbrom: drums, percussion, vocals
* Jamie van Dyck: guitars, programming
* Sean McCusker: bass
Hometown: New Haven, CT
Record Label: Bushwhack 4 Music
About Bushwhack: 'Beethoven On Steroids!'
Biography: Managing to be complex, heavy, and melodic all at the same time can pose quite a challenge for any band. Which makes it all the more impressive that the New Haven, CT-based Bushwhack - which is comprised of four young lads still in college - has been able to pull this off with their two releases thus far, 2007’s self-titled debut, and 2010’s four song EP, ‘Canvas.’ Comprised of Frank Sacramone (keyboards), Sean McCusker (bass), Jamie van Dyck (guitars/vocals), and Ben Shanbrom (lead vocals/drums), Bushwhack started out as an all-instrumental act, that brought to mind such respected prog metal acts as Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater. But the band broadened their horizons on their second release, by honing their sound and introducing vocals to the mix for the first time. Or as Frank describes it, “The band's sound is a careful arrangement of musical density without undermining the importance of good songwriting over production.”
“We recorded the debut album over the course of a year, and we recorded the EP in four days - and then mixed all four tracks in two more,” recalls Jamie. “One major difference between the two records is that the debut album, as a full-length album, feels much more like a record. The track order was painstakingly decided over the course of a month discussion. The album had to feel like an epic journey from start to finish, and we wanted songs to transition naturally while also having each song have elements that the previous song lacked, keeping the album from feeling monochromatic or stagnant during any segment of the record. With the EP being as short as it is, we just wanted to present four songs that we had written since our debut album that showed our new direction, with the order not mattering as much, as the four songs are all very different. The EP feels more song-oriented and less album-oriented, which likely comes from the length of the EP as well as the presence of vocals. Each song on the EP showcases a unique and specific side of Bushwhack, which is intentional as we only had three original songs and one cover song to show everything we had. I think because of that, the songs are more accessible, and every track on the EP is strong, while our debut may have had one or two songs that in retrospect might have been better left off the album.”
Despite clocking in at 20 minutes in length, ‘Canvas’ still succeeds in taking the listener on quite a sonic journey, and is comprised of tunes that the band feels definitely stand up well to their all-encompassing full-length debut. “I really liked how ‘Morning’ and ‘Clubbed to Death’ turned out,” says Frank. “‘Morning’ has so much harmonic complexity, along with having a thick layer of acoustic and electric guitar tracks. And even through all that, it really gets stuck in my head. ‘Clubbed to Death’ sounds epic, I hope we made Rob D proud.” Another standout is “Flawed,” which also happens to be one of Sean’s favorites. “It is our heaviest song but also has some of the prettiest piano lines mixed in. It is also really fun to play, it just grooves.”
With vocals now doing battle with all the heaviness and complexity, ‘Canvas’ undoubtedly will expand Bushwhack’s fanbase even further. But it turns out that although Ben did a fine job handling vocal duties on the release, he would like to return to solely focusing on his drumming duties. “Our most immediate concern is getting a lead vocalist. It is just too much stress for me to handle hitting all the high notes, screaming, and banging out all of my non-sense beats. Jamie and I plan to keep some of our vocal duties in this band, but to perform at our best we would like to focus on our instruments and find a stable lead singer. From there, we'd like to start playing out more consistently, possibly tour, and create the sophomore album of our dreams.” Also, Jamie expects to see further Bushwhack releases on a more regular basis. “We're also all only about a year away from graduating from college, so we should become more prolific in our output after that point.” (read less)
Managing to be complex, heavy, and melodic all at the same time can pose quite a challenge for any band. Which makes it all the more impressive that the New Haven, CT-based Bushwhack - which is comprised of four young lads still in college - has been able to pull this off with their two releases thus far, 2007’s self-titled debut, and 2010’s four song EP, ‘Canvas.’ Comprised of Frank Sacramone (keyboards), Sean McCusker (bass), Jamie van Dyck (guitars/vocals), and Ben Shanbrom (lead vocals/drums), Bushwhack started out as an all-instrumental act, that brought to mind such respected prog metal acts as Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater. But the band broadened their horizons on their second release, by honing their sound and introducing vocals to the mix for the first time. Or as Frank describes it, “The band's sound is a careful arrangement of musical density without undermining the importance of good songwriting over production.”
“We recorded the debut album over the course of a year, and we recorded the EP in four days - and then mixed all four tracks in two more,” recalls Jamie. “One major difference between the two records is that the debut album, as a full-length album, feels much more like a record. The track order was painstakingly decided over the course of a month discussion. The album had to feel like an epic journey from start to finish, and we wanted songs to transition naturally while also having each song have elements that the previous song lacked, keeping the album from feeling monochromatic or stagnant during any segment of the record. With the EP being as short as it is, we just wanted to present four songs that we had written since our debut album that showed our new direction, with the order not mattering as much, as the four songs are all very different. The EP feels more song-oriented and less album-oriented, which likely comes from the length of the EP as well as the presence of vocals. Each song on the EP showcases a unique and specific side of Bushwhack, which is intentional as we only had three original songs and one cover song to show everything we had. I think because of that, the songs are more accessible, and every track on the EP is strong, while our debut may have had one or two songs that in retrospect might have been better left off the album.”
Despite clocking in at 20 minutes in length, ‘Canvas’ still succeeds in taking the listener on quite a sonic journey, and is comprised of tunes that the band feels definitely stand up well to their all-encompassing full-length debut. “I really liked how ‘Morning’ and ‘Clubbed to Death’ turned out,” says Frank. “‘Morning’ has so much harmonic complexity, along with having a thick layer of acoustic and electric guitar tracks. And even through all that, it really gets stuck in my head. ‘Clubbed to Death’ sounds epic, I hope we made Rob D proud.” Another standout is “Flawed,” which also happens to be one of Sean’s favorites. “It is our heaviest song but also has some of the prettiest piano lines mixed in. It is also really fun to play, it just grooves.”
With vocals now doing battle with all the heaviness and complexity, ‘Canvas’ undoubtedly will expand Bushwhack’s fanbase even further. But it turns out that although Ben did a fine job handling vocal duties on the release, he would like to return to solely focusing on his drumming duties. “Our most immediate concern is getting a lead vocalist. It is just too much stress for me to handle hitting all the high notes, screaming, and banging out all of my non-sense beats. Jamie and I plan to keep some of our vocal duties in this band, but to perform at our best we would like to focus on our instruments and find a stable lead singer. From there, we'd like to start playing out more consistently, possibly tour, and create the sophomore album of our dreams.” Also, Jamie expects to see further Bushwhack releases on a more regular basis. “We're also all only about a year away from graduating from college, so we should become more prolific in our output after that point.”
Current Location: New Haven, CT
www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/bushwhack
Genre: Progressive, Experimental, Rock, Metal
Members:
* Frank Sacramone: keyboards, sampling
* Ben Shanbrom: drums, percussion, vocals
* Jamie van Dyck: guitars, programming
* Sean McCusker: bass
Hometown: New Haven, CT
Record Label: Bushwhack 4 Music
About Bushwhack: 'Beethoven On Steroids!'
Biography: Managing to be complex, heavy, and melodic all at the same time can pose quite a challenge for any band. Which makes it all the more impressive that the New Haven, CT-based Bushwhack - which is comprised of four young lads still in college - has been able to pull this off with their two releases thus far, 2007’s self-titled debut, and 2010’s four song EP, ‘Canvas.’ Comprised of Frank Sacramone (keyboards), Sean McCusker (bass), Jamie van Dyck (guitars/vocals), and Ben Shanbrom (lead vocals/drums), Bushwhack started out as an all-instrumental act, that brought to mind such respected prog metal acts as Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater. But the band broadened their horizons on their second release, by honing their sound and introducing vocals to the mix for the first time. Or as Frank describes it, “The band's sound is a careful arrangement of musical density without undermining the importance of good songwriting over production.”
“We recorded the debut album over the course of a year, and we recorded the EP in four days - and then mixed all four tracks in two more,” recalls Jamie. “One major difference between the two records is that the debut album, as a full-length album, feels much more like a record. The track order was painstakingly decided over the course of a month discussion. The album had to feel like an epic journey from start to finish, and we wanted songs to transition naturally while also having each song have elements that the previous song lacked, keeping the album from feeling monochromatic or stagnant during any segment of the record. With the EP being as short as it is, we just wanted to present four songs that we had written since our debut album that showed our new direction, with the order not mattering as much, as the four songs are all very different. The EP feels more song-oriented and less album-oriented, which likely comes from the length of the EP as well as the presence of vocals. Each song on the EP showcases a unique and specific side of Bushwhack, which is intentional as we only had three original songs and one cover song to show everything we had. I think because of that, the songs are more accessible, and every track on the EP is strong, while our debut may have had one or two songs that in retrospect might have been better left off the album.”
Despite clocking in at 20 minutes in length, ‘Canvas’ still succeeds in taking the listener on quite a sonic journey, and is comprised of tunes that the band feels definitely stand up well to their all-encompassing full-length debut. “I really liked how ‘Morning’ and ‘Clubbed to Death’ turned out,” says Frank. “‘Morning’ has so much harmonic complexity, along with having a thick layer of acoustic and electric guitar tracks. And even through all that, it really gets stuck in my head. ‘Clubbed to Death’ sounds epic, I hope we made Rob D proud.” Another standout is “Flawed,” which also happens to be one of Sean’s favorites. “It is our heaviest song but also has some of the prettiest piano lines mixed in. It is also really fun to play, it just grooves.”
With vocals now doing battle with all the heaviness and complexity, ‘Canvas’ undoubtedly will expand Bushwhack’s fanbase even further. But it turns out that although Ben did a fine job handling vocal duties on the release, he would like to return to solely focusing on his drumming duties. “Our most immediate concern is getting a lead vocalist. It is just too much stress for me to handle hitting all the high notes, screaming, and banging out all of my non-sense beats. Jamie and I plan to keep some of our vocal duties in this band, but to perform at our best we would like to focus on our instruments and find a stable lead singer. From there, we'd like to start playing out more consistently, possibly tour, and create the sophomore album of our dreams.” Also, Jamie expects to see further Bushwhack releases on a more regular basis. “We're also all only about a year away from graduating from college, so we should become more prolific in our output after that point.” (read less)
Managing to be complex, heavy, and melodic all at the same time can pose quite a challenge for any band. Which makes it all the more impressive that the New Haven, CT-based Bushwhack - which is comprised of four young lads still in college - has been able to pull this off with their two releases thus far, 2007’s self-titled debut, and 2010’s four song EP, ‘Canvas.’ Comprised of Frank Sacramone (keyboards), Sean McCusker (bass), Jamie van Dyck (guitars/vocals), and Ben Shanbrom (lead vocals/drums), Bushwhack started out as an all-instrumental act, that brought to mind such respected prog metal acts as Porcupine Tree and Dream Theater. But the band broadened their horizons on their second release, by honing their sound and introducing vocals to the mix for the first time. Or as Frank describes it, “The band's sound is a careful arrangement of musical density without undermining the importance of good songwriting over production.”
“We recorded the debut album over the course of a year, and we recorded the EP in four days - and then mixed all four tracks in two more,” recalls Jamie. “One major difference between the two records is that the debut album, as a full-length album, feels much more like a record. The track order was painstakingly decided over the course of a month discussion. The album had to feel like an epic journey from start to finish, and we wanted songs to transition naturally while also having each song have elements that the previous song lacked, keeping the album from feeling monochromatic or stagnant during any segment of the record. With the EP being as short as it is, we just wanted to present four songs that we had written since our debut album that showed our new direction, with the order not mattering as much, as the four songs are all very different. The EP feels more song-oriented and less album-oriented, which likely comes from the length of the EP as well as the presence of vocals. Each song on the EP showcases a unique and specific side of Bushwhack, which is intentional as we only had three original songs and one cover song to show everything we had. I think because of that, the songs are more accessible, and every track on the EP is strong, while our debut may have had one or two songs that in retrospect might have been better left off the album.”
Despite clocking in at 20 minutes in length, ‘Canvas’ still succeeds in taking the listener on quite a sonic journey, and is comprised of tunes that the band feels definitely stand up well to their all-encompassing full-length debut. “I really liked how ‘Morning’ and ‘Clubbed to Death’ turned out,” says Frank. “‘Morning’ has so much harmonic complexity, along with having a thick layer of acoustic and electric guitar tracks. And even through all that, it really gets stuck in my head. ‘Clubbed to Death’ sounds epic, I hope we made Rob D proud.” Another standout is “Flawed,” which also happens to be one of Sean’s favorites. “It is our heaviest song but also has some of the prettiest piano lines mixed in. It is also really fun to play, it just grooves.”
With vocals now doing battle with all the heaviness and complexity, ‘Canvas’ undoubtedly will expand Bushwhack’s fanbase even further. But it turns out that although Ben did a fine job handling vocal duties on the release, he would like to return to solely focusing on his drumming duties. “Our most immediate concern is getting a lead vocalist. It is just too much stress for me to handle hitting all the high notes, screaming, and banging out all of my non-sense beats. Jamie and I plan to keep some of our vocal duties in this band, but to perform at our best we would like to focus on our instruments and find a stable lead singer. From there, we'd like to start playing out more consistently, possibly tour, and create the sophomore album of our dreams.” Also, Jamie expects to see further Bushwhack releases on a more regular basis. “We're also all only about a year away from graduating from college, so we should become more prolific in our output after that point.”
Current Location: New Haven, CT
www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/bushwhack
