Band Interview: The Interrogation
Games, Brrraaains & A Head-Banging Life are pleased to bring you an interview with pop punk/metal hybrid, The Interrogation!
1. How did you get started as a band?
My name is Thom Turner, bandleader/guitarist of The Interrogation. Our band began in earnest in the summer of 2019. I was deep in grief from the passing of my mother in December 2018. In our family music is everything. The way we deal with every emotion is with songs. So in my depression I began to write the songs that would become The Interrogation. After I had gotten them all demoed out I sent them to my good friend and engineer Kevin Billingslea (https://kevinbillingslea.com/) to see if they were any good. He got right back to me and he produced the recordings for our first EP.
Seeing as how my mother was the catalyst for all the music I have made, decided I needed to make the project into a real band. So I got a hold of the guys and we began to rehearse and make ready for summer tour season. Of course that is not an option now but we are still actively putting together so many things for our fans.
2. How would you describe your sound?
I grew up playing in the punk/metal/ hardcore scene in my hometown of Oswego NY in the early 2000’s. The sounds of Coheed and Cambria, Earth Crisis, Thrice, Thursday, Victory Records, Ferret Records and Roadrunner Records filled my life. The Sound of The Interrogation is derived from that scene. Equal parts punk pop and metal all spun around in the soup. We like riffs, deeply emotional lyrics and BIG DAMN SINGALONGS!
3. What bands/artists would you say have influenced your style of music?
Well my musical heroes, people like Claudio Sanchez of Coheed for his masterful weaving of story into a pop rock idiom. Karl Buechner, Dustin Kensure and Jesse Barnett for their social conscience and never say die rebellion. Bands like Taking Back Sunday, Thursday and one line drawing for their honest and emotional lyrical content. Beyond music my parents were first. Then it comes from all the Film, TV and Books that I am constantly consuming. Ideas beyond anything are what really influence me.
4. Has the rise of YouTube & music streaming helped or hindered you as a band?
This is a great question! I believe that as far as exposure, the streaming services are amazing. It gives you such a great platform as an artist and consumer. However, it does make it incredibly difficult to cut through all the noise. At the end of the day it is not something we are going to turn away from anytime soon. So, in that way it is a great tool. Even in these times with the pandemic, the live in person in the crowd getting pushed around and screaming along with all the other people there is vital to the experience of our music. When the times come and we can get back out there, that’s where the real conversation will happen.
5. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not making music?
I am what you might call a mediaphile. I love Film TV and WAAAY too many books. I tend to lean toward a lot of non fiction sources.
6. What are your future plans musically? Tours?
We are just beginning and meeting people like you all. We are bringing in partners like Greg Burt at Wavelink Agency (https://www.wavelinkagency.com/) to plan out our touring when that reappears. We are going to release the full EP “Posters on My Wall” on September 25th on all platforms. Also, we never stop creating and making more stuff to share with our new friends.
Thank you very much for listening and taking the time to feature The Interrogation!
