Serrate - Sound In The Signals Interview
I recently had the opportunity to interview Dave Reinhardt of Serrate. We discussed how the band was formed, recording their demo, musical influences, the mid-90s to early 2000s hardcore and metalcore scene, releasing a cassette via Bitter Melody Records, and more. Check it out below.
First, thanks for the interview.
No problem! Thanks for reaching out!
Can you tell me how you started the band for those who may be unfamiliar with it? How did you initially become interested in music?
Brandon, our singer, had been wanting to start a band for a while. I (Dave, drums) was in a band with Brandon called Asherah before and was always into playing with him again. When Matt (guitar) got the itch to start a new band, he remembered Brandon, and since Matt and I have played music together before as well, I was asked. Thomas was the icing on the cake, a friend that we knew and loved who was down to play bass, despite having many other creative endeavors competing for his time.
You recently released your demo. Can you tell me about writing and recording it?
Writing the demo came very naturally. Since we didn’t all have ONE sound in mind, there wasn’t any template to follow. Instead, we played with some parts and ideas that Thomas and Matt would bring to practice, slowly building up the songs. I’m not sure I’ve ever told him this, but watching Brandon’s head nod while listening to us work out the parts has sometimes served as a way for me to find the feel. When he’s into it, I know we have something.
The recording we made was our second attempt. We’d previously tried to knock it all out in 3 hours, which is certainly doable for 9 minutes of music, but the recording sounded rushed before Brandon got to add vocals. Worth it for the learning experience. The second time, we spent the day on it with our friend Alex Altgilbers, really taking our time. Both sessions were in the practice spaces of some generous friends.
I really like “Bloom”. How far along in the demo process was that song written?
This one’s my favorite. Originally, we went from that intro straight into the fast part, like a more traditional hardcore song. Brandon asked that we leave some space for him to sing before the fast part, so that’s why everything rings out for a moment before his vocals come in. A little change that ended up being my favorite part!
You draw a lot of influence from mid-90s to early 2000s hardcore and metalcore. What are some of your favorite albums from that era?
Big records for me from that era are Canciones Para Liberar Nuestras Fronterras by Los Crudos, No Man’s Slave by Infest, Thirteen Songs by Total Fury, Background Music by American Nightmare, and Songs of Separation by 108, which is to say my tastes are mostly in the straight ahead hardcore realm.
We’ve been seeing and hearing more bands draw from that era of heavy music. What do you think has made those albums and bands continue to be relevant and influential?
This is probably because enough time has passed to allow for more generic later bands to be forgotten. Every scene has the OGs that create a new thing, and then eventually, the bands that reduce that thing to a formula or fashion or whatever. The great bands of that era took various influences and synthesized them into something new, so it makes sense that they themselves would be mined like that in the present.
You signed with Bitter Melody Records for this release. How did it work out for you to sign with them and how has the experience been so far?
Grant from Bitter Melody has worked with some of us in the past, and he always did a great job. We love his label, so when he asked, we said yes with quickness!
They released it on cassette. How important is having physical media to your band?
Physical media will always have its place in our underground music scenes. Even though you could spend the day finding out about new and old bands online, there’s nothing like finding a great release out in the wild.
What’s coming up next for the band?
We’re going to keep up writing, practicing, and hopefully playing some out-of-town shows soon.
Thanks for taking the time to answer the questions. Do you have anything else that you would like to add?
No, thank you! We knew that we liked what we were doing, and Grant liked it, but to start meeting new friends that are into the band has been wonderful.
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