Formed in 2007, St Louis, Missouri hailing Fivefold has earned a strong reputation for their melody thick and emotionally rousing rock ‘n’ roll. Taking in a quartet of albums and a host of shared stages with the likes of The Offspring, Buckcherry, Redlight King, 10 Years, Switchfoot, Sick Puppies, Greek Fire, The Urge, Shamans Harvest, Broadway, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Memphis May Fire, Jamies Elsewhere, HURT, Cavo, among many others, the quintet is one of the fresh breaths on the current music scene. We talk to the band to get a feel of their passion and invention…
Can you introduce the band and tell us to how it all started; what brought you all together?
Ryan Cheney – vocals
Matt Amelung – guitar, vocals
Matt Benne – guitar, vocals
Coco – bass
Derrick Huskey – drums
Derrick (drums) and Matt Benne (guitar) met through our late guitar player Jesse. Derrick met Ryan (vocals) at a church camp they were both attending. After a few line-up changes, Derrick, Matt Benne and Ryan met Coco (bass) from playing shows with his Hold On.
Have you been/are involved in other bands before? If so has that had any impact on what you are doing now?
Most of us have played in local St. Louis bands before Fivefold. I think we’ve each taken elements from previous projects and applied them to what we do in Fivefold.
What inspired the band name?
At first we did what every other band does…we looked through dictionaries. Haha! But really, we decided on Fivefold because it essentially means five different units/things that come together to accomplish one goal.
Was there any specific idea behind the forming of the band and also in what you wanted it and your sound to offer?
We just wanted to be “good”…and to promote positivity.
How would you say your sound has evolved over time?
We’ve tried to push ourselves to continually refine our sound. In our case, I think that has meant approaching our music with more pop sensibility.
Has it been more of an organic movement of sound you deliberately setting out to try new things?
A blend of both.
Presumably across the band there is a wide range of inspirations; are there any in particular which have impacted on the band’s music and your personal approach to creating and playing music?
I don’t think anything one element impacts itself into our music. Rather, all of our inspirations impact our music.
Is there a process to the songwriting which generally guides the writing of songs?
Most of the time we just start jamming on a riff and take it from there.
Where do you, find inspirations to the lyrical side of your songs?
Honestly, our lyrics have no bounds. They are about anything and everything, whether it’s something one of us has been through personally or something greater than all of us.
Can you give us some background to your latest release?
Our latest release is Open Letter. We released it in December of last year and it’s the first batch of songs written with Matt Amelung on guitar.
What about its themes and premise.
Open Letter is our response/interpretation of the world around us.
Do you go into the studio with songs pretty much in their final state or have looser ideas to develop as you record?
We’ve done both over the course of our 4 albums. Both have their strengths and weaknesses.
Tell us about the live side to the band, presumably the favourite aspect of the band?
I think it’s definitely our favorite aspect. We like to make every show bigger and better than the last.
It is not easy for any new band to make an impact regionally let alone nationally and further afield. How have you found it your neck of the woods?
To be honest, we don’t know the answer. We just continue to work extremely hard and push ourselves and our band.
How has the internet and social media impacted on the band to date?
The internet has enabled us to delve deeper into the life of Bruce Willis.
Find out more about Fivefold @ https://www.facebook.com/FivefoldOfficial and http://www.fivefoldband.com/
https://twitter.com/fivefoldrock
Pete RingMaster
The RingMaster Review 19/08/2016
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
The track is a fiery and eventful encounter with a nice line in unpredictability, not a trait which every song exploits as well but when they do as in the following Push Me Away, the imagination cannot help but get involved. The second track swings in on a lure of tenacious rock ‘n roll, calming down again as vocals join the bubbling affair before rising up with energy into an emotive snarl. Great backing roars and keen spirals of sonic endeavour add to the contagious tempting and presence of the song; it as its predecessor offering plenty of textures and twists to be forcibly enticed by.
does with a rugged and unpredictable savaging of the senses. The song carries on twisting between charmed melodic temptation and jaundiced belligerence, all driven by violent creativity. It is enthralling and pleases with ease if again not quite finding that final spark to ignite the passions.
the fiery screams of Laura Russell and the clean melodic tones of Ant Jones, Dead Winter take little time in gripping attention with EP opener Bribe For The Ferryman. A strong blaze of guitar and rolling rhythms enclose the ears initially before the rhythmic tempting strengthens its grip for the appearance of the throat raw squalls of Russell. It all combines for a dramatic and intriguing enticement which only deepens its bait with breaking muscular stabs of riffery and carnivorous aggression. Into its stride the now in place blend of clean and voracious vocals make a potent and alluring draw within a well-crafted and imaginative tempest of sound. The previously mentioned comparisons do come to mind as the song twists and ripples with inventive spite and enterprise but equally there is an individualistic essence to the provocation setting the band aside of other similar like-minded and sounding bands.
designed by the guitars to launch a savage and riveting exploitation of the band’s craft and maliciousness. The track is a carnivore, riffs and rhythms a ravaging creative spite cloaked in a sonic seduction which scorches as it tempts. The technical enticement is equally as predacious and addictive, the band coaxing out a rapturous hunger for its towering and erosive presence whilst the vocals of Smith squall with as much animosity as that provided by the rhythms. It is a hypnotic fury completed with twisted grooves which swing with a compelling swagger from within the inventive and exciting maelstrom. The outstanding track never relinquishes being the finest moment on the release though it is constantly challenged by the remaining trio of songs.
track which seizes its moment and savagely chews on the senses with djent pilfered strikes and voracious rhythmic antagonism whilst melodic atmospheres weave a fire within the intensive engagement. The strong dual vocal attack of John Dudley and Mitch Richards with their corrosive and clean deliveries, though from the promo it is unclear who provides which aspect, makes a potent focal point within the abrasive tempest and as mentioned though the track does not startle against other bands there is an underlying, whispering persuasion that leaves a long term and tempting touch.
keys and guitars gently place their narrative on the table as the mellow tones of Holman tenderly make their embrace. It is not long though before his tones turn to a rapacious squall within the still smouldering invitation, beats and bass adding melancholic resonance around him. Turning up their intensive heat the band unleash sinewy textures to provoke further emotion before simmering again into a magnetic melodic seduction. It is a strong start which it is hard to say if a full track or introduction; truly it is neither but a compelling beckoning somewhere in between.