Four piece Corby based Acoda are set to join Hawthorne Heights on their 10th Anniverary Tour for ‘The Silence In Black And White’ this month. The band are set to tour in support of their own debut full length album ‘Yours To Defend’ which was produced by Dan Lancaster (Lower Than Atlantis, Don Broco, Mallory Knox). The band are ready to release a brand new single next month so it’s all go.
Singer/Guitarist Damon Tang said “We’re honoured to be supporting Hawthorne Heights on their upcoming UK tour. It’s the tenth anniversary of this classic album, that I bought as a teenager and still enjoy today! I can’t wait to hear it every night. We’re looking forward to sharing the stage with these guys!”
HTF had a chat with Damon Tang and Stephen Crook ahead of the Hawthorne Heights tour. Check out what happened here.
HTF: Hey guys. For those people out there who haven’t heard of Acoda how would you describe your sound?
Stephen: Heavy as fuck rock with a punk spirit.
HTF: Your about to go out supporting Hawthorne Heights on their tenth anniversary tour of ‘Silence In Black And White’. Does the album have any significance to you guys as a band?
Damon: I heard ‘Ohio Is For Lovers’ when it first done the rounds and bought the album straight away in HMV. It was an introduction to the notion of screaming in music for me and it was partially responsible for getting me into heavier music than pop punk! I got into bands like Underoath and Alexisonfire around the same time, so in those terms, the album does have some significance to our band. I’m really interested to meet people at the shows on this tour and find out how their musical palate has developed since this album was released!
HTF: How are you preparing for the tour?
D: We’ve been rehearsing a hell of a lot. I think we’ve rehearsed more in these first months of 2014 than we did in the past two years put together! The set we’ve put together for this tour is a great mix-tape of songs from ‘Yours To Defend’ and our new single “‘Round The Sun”, so we’re confident that we’ll be adding our own touch to what’s set to be a really special tour.
S: We’re aiming to have people fit to riot by the time Hawthorne Heights come on the stage!
HTF: Your debut album ‘Yours To Defend’ was produced by Dan Lancaster. How was it working with him?
S: Dan is the boss. Every time we’ve worked with him has definitely been an experience. He’s got a great character about him that keeps things in the studio very exciting, and he really, really (like, seriously) knows his shit when it comes to making sounds, sound sound!
D: Still no word on a Proceed reunion though which is pretty shady..
HTF: The album came out last year, does it still feel fresh when you play it live or have you started writing new music?
D: It’s interesting you should say that! ‘Yours To Defend’ was recorded a couple years back now.
S: Hell yeah the songs still feel fresh! Built to last (laughs)…
D: (laughs) But yes, we have written and recorded new music and we’re really excited to see what we can do with it. In fact, we’ll be playing a new song, ” ‘Round The Sun ” on the Hawthorne Heights dates!
HTF: You had a bit of a band reshuffle when Shaun left the band. Does everything seem to fit in Acoda with his departure and Jay’s entrance in the band?
S: Shaun’s departure was unexpected, but the way he dealt with things made it a really easy transition for everyone involved. He basically said to us; “if I can’t do this anymore, you should definitely speak to Jay!” and it all went from there. Jay has fit in to this band so well that it’s actually scaring me a little bit (laughs) But in all seriousness, he turned up to the first rehearsal and we pretty much ran through everything straight away, and we’ve had a real electricity between the four of us from then on. Jake returning to guitar duties feels like a homecoming too. It feels like all the pieces have fallen into place.
HTF: Acoda are from Corby. How did you find the local music scene when you were first starting out?
D: I think we (the band) were all quite lucky. When we were growing up there seemed to be a whole lot of gigs going on. Specifically for young people and young bands. So it was great for us to have that musical outlet, although it seemed to die off for a short while.
S: When this band first started out, we had to do a lot of learning. We would put on our own shows and get bands in from other towns to keep people excited about live music! Five years on and we’re very lucky to be a part of this awesome community of people and musicians and artists and music lovers. It’s just really… err. Real! It’s not a throwaway or disposable ‘scene’. It’s people coming together for whatever reason and we wouldn’t change a thing. Our hometown support has always been unwavering and that’s something that we’ll never take for granted.
HTF: After the Hawthorne Heights tour what does the rest of 2014 have instore for Acoda?
D: We went into the studio last weekend to record ” ‘Round The Sun ” and we have a few other tracks that we’re really excited to be sharing soon! The single will be out in May with a surprising B-side. After the HH tour we’ll be writing the follow-up to ‘Yours To Defend’ and doing a UK tour in late May/early June.
S: I’m expecting us to make a long overdue return to mainland Europe before the year is out! That would be cool! Also, some surprising stirring on our Facebook page over the next couple weeks. Check it out…
Interview by: Rhian Westbury
