Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.

Devon Drusky: Vocals, Brian Clark: Guitars and Clean Vocals, Jordon Marich: Drums, Ricky Alkire: Bass

For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Ira Hill? How long has the band been around?

None of us have actually been in any other previous bands. We started this band under the name Ataxia in June of 2013 and have been active ever since.

What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?

Our previous name, Ataxia, was picked for no other reason than that is was a cool word. Our very first practice spot was in Akron off of Ira Hill and the name holds that personal meaning to us since it was our origin. 

Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?

Every member contributes to the song writing process as we believe that by looking at each song from many different angles, we get the best results. A central theme in most of our songs is perseverance and our experiences dealing with the many adversities to keep our band afloat the last few years. We have noticed that with no matter what we do, we can’t always succeed. But how we deal with those setbacks is what shapes our character and has proven to help in the long run. Our goal is to hopefully have that message of perseverance relayed onto anyone that listens to our music so that they can keep pushing for something they love whenever life gets harder because it will prove beneficial in the end.

 What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?

We don’t like to label ourselves to a particular genre but have always clung to music that is generally more energetic, fastpaced, and passionate and we feel our new music captures all of those qualities. On our new EP, no two songs sound the same. We all grew up listening to many types of music and decided we wanted to let all varieties influence us. Bands include Slipknot, Twenty One Pilots, Rise Against, Sum 41, and A Day to Remember.

Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?

Not in particular but rather our passion to create music and to be on the other side of the stage as we all went to many concerts locally growing up. 

What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …

As of recently, most of us got into weight lifting.  To keep our highenergy vibes going, we actually started taking preworkout drinks before our shows and even lift weights beforehand to help us get further into the mindset. Pushups, pullups, crunches, curls, you name it and we are probably doing it before we walk out on stage.

What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?

Up until recently, our biggest accomplishment was split between playing last year’s Cleveland date of the Vans Warped Tour and headlining the House of Blues. We actually were just invited to play the iMatter festival in Horseheads, NY in August and we are all extremely excited for that. Bands like Miss May I, Silverstein, and Red Jumpsuit Apparatus meant a lot to us growing up so we can’t wait to share the stage with all of them.

 If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?

A dream tour would be with bands like A Day to Remember, Bring Me the Horizon, Falling in Reverse, Rise Against, Slipknot, or even Linkin Park as they all set the bar for how to put on extraordinary performances and also expose us to new audiences.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

The metal scene is oversaturated nowadays and music is seemingly becoming more and more repetitive. We believe we stand out with our ability to not classify ourselves with one genre and every song brings something new to the table. We want this EP experience to be that compared to a “dynamic audio roller coaster” that ranges from absolute mayhem to soft, contemplative songs that tackle very serious issues. Our goal is to keep the listener on their toes as we feel unpredictability is lacking in today’s industry.

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