Step Aside for The Beguiled!

June 18, 2008 1 Comment

On a day that had temperatures in the high-80s, in the early evening hours, it was pretty freaking miserable. That’s when I went across town to sit in on a rehearsal for a native Santa Rosa band, The Beguiled. Practicing in a space the size of a medium walk-in closet, myself and the six members of the band packed into their studio and settled in amongst the amps, electrical cords, solitary fan, drum set and keyboards.

Fliers and posters from previous shows were on display, partially covering some of the pearls of wisdom which had been scrawled on the walls. Little nuggets of insight such as, “My anus is bleeding!”

The Beguiled
Brian – Vocals
Ernest – Guitar
Chris – Guitar
Jake – Bass
Christian – Drums
Ben – Keys

Next Show:
June 28 @ 7pm
The Shop in Sonoma
w/ At Dawn, Discordia, and X-Ray Cat
$5 at the door

The first two songs played were brand spankin’ new, in-the-works tracks, which, I must say kicked ass even in their unfinished state. A couple of breaks were taken because the temperature in the room was unbearable — enough to K-O my laptop for a short while.

Tell me about how you guys got together

Brian, Ernest, Jake and Christian were in a band called The Deathtoll Syndicate, which eventually broke up. Everyone went separate ways and after about a year of various side projects, Ernest, Jake and Brian got together and began auditioning for drummers and second guitarist.

We had a lot of people come out and audition for the band, but nothing really came together. Christian, also from The Deathtoll Syndicate, auditioned and was brought on board to man the drums.

Then Chris and Ben, who played together in another band called Fall to Arms, auditioned for spots. Chris came on to be our second guitarist and Ben signed on to play the keyboards.

Do you guys write songs in a group jam setting, or does someone come with a basic structure for a song and you all go from there?

Christian usually comes in with drum beats and Chris comes in with riffs. The conversation usually starts something like “Hey, these are the riffs I have, which ones don’t you hate?” The process builds from there and usually involves putting some things to vote. Our lyrics are usually written mostly by Brian with some help from Ernest.

Brian, which song’s lyrics do you like the most?

“Dyed in the Wool”. I wrote it for my girlfriend, talking about how my life changed when I met her.

Alright, I’m looking around and I see a lot of ink: How many tattoos do you guys have, total?

[After pulling up sleeves and taking off shirts] 20… and that includes a bunch of sleeves.

How would you classify your music?

We like to write epic songs that involve emotion and melody, like at the end of the video for “November Rain” when Slash is playing in a burned down church or something.

We don’t like to classify our sound, but we wanted it to be hard and edgy, but also appeal to fans of all genres — like progressive, indie, metal, and stuff like that.

Here’s an obligatory question: Name some of the bands that have heavily influenced The Beguiled

One band that has influenced each of us has been “Between The Burried And Me”. We’ve also been very influenced by “Meshuggah,” “Mystery Signals,” “Poison The Well,” “Deftones” and “Darkest Hour”. Everyone in the band likes very heavy, vocal-driven music.

How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with sample songs or a demo CD?

By going to our Myspace band page (www.myspace.com/thebeguiledmusic) people can check out our music and find out about our upcoming shows.

If they come to any of our shows we also sell our shirts and demo CDs there. In between shows, we’re usually going around doing a lot of self-promotion for whichever show is next.

Any crazy traditions or rituals before taking the stage?

Nothing crazy or anything. We like to drink before a show but nothing extreme.

Any last words?

From Ernest: I’d like to see some big, all age venues in the north bay that has a bar. That would bring some big name bands to the area and make a huge impact on the local music scene.

From Brian: The best thing anyone can do for any local band is to just take a chance and go watch a show, even if there’s not a huge crowd. Local bands need a lot of support!

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE!

The guys of The Beguiled are so appreciative of the local support that they wanted to do something special: For one week only, anyone who sends them a message from their myspace profile, mentioning this interview, will be sent a link to download their music, 100% free!

They also let loose with a little teaser: “Look for a very large show at The Phoenix Theater, in Petaluma, this August with some major labels!”