Perennial Quest – Timeless Warriors Part II

Friday, 19th January 2018 By Matt Coe

Read Part I HERE.

Dead Rhetoric: What is the band’s stance on intricacy and technicality versus hooks and feel when it comes to Perennial Quest and songwriting? Are there times where you dial things back for fear of being too bombastic or over people’s heads?

Andrew: Actually for me, making the song catchy and having good feel is the most important part, to me the technicality is just the cherry on top … but I never hold back on the insanity. (laughs) Well, unless it’s a ballad. I think we’ve done a good job at making the songs both catchy and technical though.

Davy: Technicality is definitely more of the band’s forte, but I feel as if we try and find the right balance between the two.

Tony: I don’t think we dial anything back. I think part of why the songs are starting to resonate with people is because they’re authentic. They’re formed organically and come from a real place. The guys give me a lot of creative freedom with the melodies, and I will say that I am very mindful of the hook, and aspire to have choruses that are memorable and catchy. The verses tell the story, and the chorus should be a carefully crafted summary of that story, but people won’t care about the content if the melody is bad, and the music is off! It’s all relative and should complement each other.

Kevin: We almost never hold ourselves back when it comes to songwriting. I definitely try to push this band to go “more out there” musically but we’ll always have a strong root in catchy parts that’ll make you wanna sing or woah along, thanks to Andrew and Tony. We usually start with a few good catchy riffs that we start working with when writing a song but as a very instrumentally driven band we like to indulge ourselves sometimes. So we’ll have a perfectly fine song that we just gotta drop some elaborate solo section in. Sometimes it feels like half progressive metal and half circus act, I love feeling like we got away with something we shouldn’t have when we finish a song.

Sam: I like to keep a good balance of catchy hooks and shred, but at the same time, use both to play off each other and tie everything together. When I write, I want it to be something that appeals to the musicians and casual listeners both. Shred can be made melodic and tasteful without getting lost in a sea of meaningless alternate picked 32nd notes and sweep arpeggios, but at the same time, dialing everything back for a cool clean section or catchy chorus can serve just as equal of a purpose.

Dead Rhetoric: What three to five bands do you believe most of the members of Perennial Quest respect and admire in the heavy metal field based on their discography or career arc/professionalism?

Andrew: Dragonforce, Wintersun, Jason Becker music-wise, career-wise I look up to the bands that really hit it big like Metallica, Iron Maiden, or Kiss.

Davy: Dragonforce, Blind Guardian, and Iron Maiden.

Ben: Honestly everyone has different tastes, so I don’t know.

Tony: Mine are Iron Maiden, Helloween, and Edguy.

Kevin: I would say Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Dragonforce, Gloryhammer, and Kiss.

Sam: That’s a tough question, we all tend to have vastly different influences, but I think most of us can bond over liking Gloryhammer, Dragonforce and Alestorm to say the least. Bands that can maintain crazy over the top sections and also write catchy choruses and riffs while keeping a kickass performance going and make their passion for the music shine are always bands that we can enjoy.

Dead Rhetoric: Where would you like to see Perennial Quest go in the next twelve to eighteen months? How does the band handle the work/life/school balance that probably exists while aiming to make more of a deeper imprint locally and internationally?

Andrew: I’d like to see us play out more often and make a bigger name in the scene, make a music video, maybe make a second demo or real full-length album. It gets really hard to balance the band around so many people’s school and work lives, but for me this band is the most important thing, so I usually revolve my school and work stuff around the band instead of the other way around.

Davy: I’d like to see us playing out as much as possible and maybe even venturing out to other states in New England.

Ben: I would like to see us play more shows. It can be hard to balance work and the band and family, but we work it out. And we finally have some music out online so we can get our music out there across the globe.

Tony: I’d like to see these new recordings reach a broader audience. I think that despite being power metal they are palatable for most listeners and could transcend the power metal genre in a way that could make them uniquely their own. I would like to see that happen to the material that we’ve turned out so far. We’ve been good so far with working around people’s work/life schedules, and it helps to now have a line-up that is cohesive and productive.

Kevin: I definitely see us working harder than ever now. We have a lineup that I feel confident with that’s chock full of amazing songwriters. For me personally priority one is to get back to work writing our next batch of songs for a new demo. Other than that, we aim to play more shows than ever and hopefully even try to do a little tour in the near future. Recently we’ve been working on creating merchandise. I’ve also had a couple ideas for music videos that we started and abandoned due to the issues with an unstable lineup that I’d like to revisit in the upcoming months.

As for living a balanced life I don’t think I handle that well at all with this, it’s tipped way in favor of work and music right now. I rarely leave the house these days if it doesn’t involve music.

Sam: I would love to be able to produce another demo, or even album with our current lineup, book a lot more shows in and out of our area, hopefully find a keyboard player, progress further musically and really push our sound to the max. I feel incredibly confident with the band and everyone in it shares the same optimism. Maintaining a full-time job and a social life can be hard, but at the same time, I get a lot of enjoyment out this band and can see us taking it pretty far, so the commitment is well worth it.

Dead Rhetoric: What interests, hobbies, or passions do the members of Perennial Quest like to engage in or pursue when you have the free time to do so? Also, how important is the support of loved ones and family in the band – are you able to lean on this when going through certain challenges or obstacles that may come up?

Andrew: I’m a big collector of music and old 80’s and 90’s video games. I usually spend a lot of my free time hanging with friends driving around doing absolutely nothing (laughs). But when it comes to this the support of friends and family means everything, fortunately I’ve always gotten a lot of support especially now that they’ve heard this demo most people I know seem really excited for us.

Davy: I also sing and play guitar in a pop punk/indie band named Good Intentions (I’m also pretty skilled at the yo-yo.) The support of loved ones means a lot and is what drives me to progress. I grew up in a family of musicians where I was always the weakest so a lot of where I am today (comes) from trying to catch up with others.

Ben: When I have free time which I never do I love building stuff. I’ve been working on a cigar box guitar, and I have always wanted to make a guitar.

Tony: I’m currently in another project called Full Metal Rakket. We play hard rock and heavy metal cover songs from the 70’s and 80’s. I also write acoustic-folk music in my spare time. My time spent outside of work and music is usually at the gym, or with my girlfriend /friends.

Kevin: As I mentioned earlier music is the top priority in my life. Whether it’s Perennial Quest, listening, practice, jamming, or a couple of projects I’ve been working on lately that are on the more punk and sludgy side of heavy music. In the rest of my free time I enjoy woodworking, reading, podcasts and films. Also, when I can manage to save up some semblance of a budget, I enjoy film making.

Sam: Outside of PQ, I actively enjoy exploring nature, going on random 3 am adventures with friends, playing video games, and writing a bunch of music on the side for future projects. I always give first priority to family and everyone I’m close with before anything. Although I can always keep balance with the band, I’m always insistent on caring for everyone in my circle.