Interviews: Since The Fire

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Metalcore band, Since The Fire, from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. After more than fifteen years in the scene, what made Remains Embraced feel like the right title for this chapter of Since the Fire?

The title of the EP, Remains Embraced, felt appropriate on several levels. Bryan, our ex-guitarist, started recording these songs with us before deciding he could not be a part of the band anymore, and by the time I had finished recording vocals with Anthony Cranata, a friend we worked with on production of the EP, we also had to replace our bass player. So these songs are a collection of what we created together, following our full-length album. The title acknowledges that we still love what we created. By embracing it still, we can release it to the world, hoping that others will love these bits of audio art as we have and do. The name is also a statement of our intention to keep this project going as long as we possibly can. We bought the artwork from an art company online, and as a band, we agreed that the imagery suited the name well.

2. How does this album represent your growth as a band compared to your earlier releases?

Prior to losing two members, this EP indicated ways in which we were changing but also staying true to our original sound. It carries the aggression that we started off with, but also demonstrates ways in which our experimentation was evolving.

Since recruiting Jay (current Rhythm Guitar) and Logan (Bass), this EP is more of a transition from one chapter to the next. Even though we intend to record some music that Bryan and Mo wrote or contributed to, the future recordings will solidly mark the transition into our new lineup.

3. Northeastern Pennsylvania is not exactly known as a metalcore hotspot. How did that scene shape your sound and work ethic coming up?

It's true that northeastern PA is not extremely well known for metal bands. There have been plenty over the years that we have played with, or that preceded us, but the truth is, most of them never broke out into the music industry.

Rather than elaborate on the whys of that, I will comment on what we have seen in the local music scene. Often enough, we come across solid or even amazing local original metal bands. Even though there has not been a strong market for it for at least over a decade or more, most of us keep doing it because we love it. That drives us and keeps this project going, and playing with other bands that share that passion is evidence that it is real. Those are the main ways in which we're inspired by the scene, helping to keep our work ethic alive.

As for our sound, we have all had a lot of different inspirations in the metal world while growing up and becoming adults. Rather than trying to match any of those sub-genres of metal, we've incorporated whatever we think sounds good and we enjoy playing. The positive response we've received from many people in the local scene tells us that we're not the only ones who enjoy such a variety of metal. This has been further encouragement to keep doing what we're doing.

4. The album balances brutal aggression with melodic hooks. How intentional is that contrast when you are writing?

The contrast between brutality and melody is very intentional, and we fully intend to keep demonstrating more of that with recordings and performances to come.

5. What themes run through Remains Embraced lyrically? Is this more of a personal record, a social one, or a mix of both?

The lyrical themes are diverse. Noose and Whispers both are rather personal, containing ponderous trains of thought, expressed in sometimes poetic, sometimes direct ways. Cuntrol contains content of a more social nature, offering harsh opinions about certain kinds of people in power. Brutaful is a break from my normal tendencies, focusing entirely on humor and taking life a little less seriously sometimes.

6. You have been grinding it out for over a decade and a half. What keeps the fire burning when the industry, trends, and life itself keep changing?

We all stay inspired to keep this going because all of us have been tremendously influenced by the heavy music genre, but also other varieties of music as well. Our love for music pushed us to go beyond just watching it and being a part of it. It brought us to dedicating a part of our lives to carrying the torch and sharing that inspiration with more people.

7. How was the experience working with Jeremy Loveland and Bryan Kilcommons on production, and what did they push you to improve or rethink?

I had a lot more interaction with Bryan during the recording of our full-length album, since he recorded everything. His suggestions and opinions were pivotal in helping to develop some of my sound and style.

As for Jeremy, when Bryan decided to step down from the band, Jeremy took over, finalizing the bass recording with Mo to get that completed for the EP. After Mo completed the recording with Jeremy, Jeremy worked with Anthony to arrange the songs and start the mixing process. Inevitably, life got in the way, and we had to find another engineer to complete the mixing and mastering process. This is where we enlisted the help of Jesse Joseph, who did an amazing job finalizing everything and making the EP sound amazing. Jeremy and Jesse worked closely together to get to the finalized songs we have on the EP today.

8. What did Anthony Caranata and Jesse Joseph bring to the mix that helped define the final sound of the album?

Aside from recording all of the vocals, Anthony did a lot of minor mixing, such as arranging and blending tracks together, which made Jesse Joseph’s job of the final mix and master easier to attain. He did a lot of cross-fades for splicing edits and offered various suggestions as well. He has a well-developed ear for music, with a variety of music that he enjoys, beyond just the punk and metal scene. He directly influenced some of the vocals on the album, particularly offering suggestions that appeared at the end of Whispers which I loved, and provided suggestions in all three of the other songs that I also ended up enjoying, appreciating, and then incorporating.

He was very much a joy to work with, very laid back and easy to get along with. He did a little instrument editing as well, but his main contribution was helping with the mixing and recording the vocals.

It was his first experience with mixing a metal band that was anything like us. Though he was learning a lot and making a lot of progress, in the end, his personal life and his work didn't leave enough room for him to continue mixing our project.

Jesse was the final master mind behind the full mixing and mastering of everything Anthony had previously laid out. Jesse brought our EP to the next level, where everything just fell into place in the mix. Working with Jesse was a great experience, and he worked hard getting us updates and new versions to test. His response time and communication were amazing. We could tell Jesse loves this process and loves making metal music pop within his mixes. Without him, this EP wouldn’t sound as amazing as it does, and we look forward to going directly to him for further recordings in the future.

9. Was there a particular track on Remains Embraced that pushed you the hardest, either technically or emotionally?

Instrumentally, both Whispers and Noose provided the greatest challenges. Whispers was especially a new endeavor instrumentally. We never wrote a song over 8 minutes long, not to mention with so many changes throughout it, but it came out amazing, so we have no complaints there, other than initially writing such an extensive track.

Vocally, Cuntrol took the most time and effort, particularly to get the layers of vocals to a spot I was happy with. I didn't want it to sound too pretty, and I think my intention of a creepy and strange, but tasteful sound, came through.

Anthony helped a lot with that, introducing different layers and a couple of harmonies that I didn't think of previously.

10. Fans of August Burns Red, The Black Dahlia Murder, and Lamb of God are pointed toward this record. Which of those influences shows up the most in your own writing, and in what way?

I would say all three of them have some form of influence on these songs. We all grew up listening to these bands from their initial inception, and we still frequent their shows when they tour near us. The metalcore scene became big in the early 2000’s, and that was when many of us started in bands. We emulated and practiced much of this music throughout our careers, covering some of their songs along the way. I like to think I take pages from all of the music I listen to, and sometimes our writing style will slightly change based on what our current tastes in music are. It’s nice not being stuck in one specific style or one specific genre of music; we all just write our riffs and let them take us where the music seems to want to go. If it’s a metalcore sound, thrash, or low djenty sound, so be it. We love to explore and experiment with riffs, and when it works, the ear will let you know.

11. How do you balance staying true to classic metalcore roots while still sounding modern and relevant in 2026?

Instinctively, almost letting the music write itself. We write riffs and decide which ones are worthy of being in a song, and let the riffs take us where they need to. Many times, a song will have a few pieces, and then we find another riff entirely different from the song that actually fits well. So we let the music take us where it wants during the writing process, and we then get a better song from it. Forcing things to fit a mold holds a band back from really letting their music speak for itself. We all have a lot of Metalcore roots, but we also come from a lot of older school rock, and even love new school sounds with very down-tuned guitars. We play 6-string and 7-string guitars in our different songs, so we let the riffs lead us to the sound that the song will have. We don’t intend to always fit in any specific mold, even though the industry wants you labeled. We figure metalcore is the best genre we could roughly fit in.

12. After playing the tri-state circuit for so many years, what do you think separates a forgettable band from one that actually builds a lasting following?

Most importantly, longevity. So many bands come and go within a year or two, and a lot of that has everything to do with chemistry. If the members don't get along, they won't stay together.

A close second and third are talent and creativity. Sure, everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, but talent does not come without a lot of practice. Creativity, in my opinion, is mostly dependent upon life experience and influences, and the willingness to express those things freely.

The fourth most influential factor, in my opinion, is charisma. This is entirely a band effort. Any oversized egos in the band will ruin it for the rest, and at that point, the only way for the band to make it is supply and demand. If the public demands the sound they're putting out, the project can continue, but it's no longer a passion project; it's now fully a job. Furthermore, any good or bad attitudes will make or break the networking of any project. If bands, promoters, and venues recall having a bad experience with a band, they will not be invited back.

13. What does a perfect Since the Fire live set look like now compared to ten years ago?

Having all five of our members present, of course. Also, no dramatic bad endings to the set! Some of us in the band have done this for a long time, so nerves aren’t even a factor at this point. We like to be as well-oiled as a machine as we can be on stage with each song and transition. We have fun playing live, and I think that boils over into the crowd. If they can see we’re having fun and enjoying our time playing for them, they enjoy moving and listening to our set. As a band, we feed off the crowd as well, so having fun during a set is number 1. All of our energies feed off of each other.

14. Have your goals as a band changed over time, or is the mission still the same as when you first started?

Our goals have certainly changed over the years, more or less for each individual.

I think, as a band, the first goal is enjoying our time together, making music for everyone who enjoys our music. We love connecting with new people who see us or hear us for the first time and love our songs. We are always pushing forward as a band, and our biggest goal as of late has been getting this EP out. Everyone, including the newer members, wanted to make sure this EP came to light after our many setbacks, and here we are doing exactly that. We are putting out new recorded music that was many years in the making.

There is always a goal of breaking out and becoming a bigger metal band in the scene, but we all have dialed in expectations to keep enjoying the process, and if things happen where the band becomes much bigger, we’ll enjoy that too. Making music and enjoying what we do is the biggest goal. When you enjoy the process, so will everyone else who listens to your music or comes out to see you play.

15. What do you want longtime fans to hear in Remains Embraced that tells them you are still hungry?

I think the fact that we're finally releasing this EP is a statement enough that we are still going.

Barring any serious issues, hopefully our next release can come much faster! We have an amazing engineer to work with now in Jesse Joseph, so we plan to be utilizing him on our upcoming releases and keep pushing ahead with new recorded music much faster in the future.

We will also continue to find show openings and get on any shows we can to promote our releases. If we find the right shows to open for national acts, we will definitely be pursuing that as well this year!

16. For new listeners discovering Since the Fire for the first time, which track from the album would you point them to and why?

If talking about our debut album, Dying to Live. Some of the songs on the album were written by either Jeremy or Bryan. This one was written by both of them and has a variety of sounds that, I think, demonstrate our versatility pretty well.

For the EP, Cuntrol does much the same thing, as well as Noose. In the end, each person will find a track or a few tracks that fit their taste in music. We don’t fit a specific mold, so we always say, when you come see Since the Fire, you’ll always find some songs you will enjoy. Everybody finds a different song that becomes their favorite.

17. What is the biggest challenge you face today as a heavy band trying to cut through the noise online and in the live scene?

I think the biggest challenge with being a part of a local heavy metal band is getting people to want to come out to live shows. Though there are some live music fans who make it out to plenty of shows, there are many people who find it preferable and much easier to just stay home and enjoy the vast selection of at-home entertainment that we have access to these days.

Another thing would be online presence, and of course, now the inception of AI music. The saturation in every genre of music is intense. Every local band has an online presence now; some have more than others, but still, there is a lot going on constantly online, and promotion is heavy. We know this as we are gearing up to release our EP. Two bands we frequently play with and are friends with in our area just released and are releasing EPs soon of their own. So, as we want to support them as friends on their releases, we also have to promote and put forth our own effort on our own EP release. Consistent online presence and consistently promoting shows and playing live shows is what you have to do, while enjoying doing it along the way.

18. Looking back on your journey, what is one hard lesson you had to learn the hard way?

Probably learning when to let go, cut losses, and move forward. Maintaining friendships in the process is an added bonus when possible. Members are going to leave or have to be relieved of their position in the band. It sadly feels inevitable because that is human nature. The core needs to keep moving forward. We’ve seen this with many other local bands we are friends with. You have to know when it’s time to make a decision you may not want to make, but in the end, it is for the betterment of the band. Sometimes the lesson is cutting ties with a member sooner, the next time when the signs are there that their drive or motivation to be in the band is failing. The band has to come first before someone’s feelings sometimes, but it is for the best.

19. If you could describe the emotional core of Remains Embraced in one sentence, what would it be?

Janson: (My opinion, musically and lyrically)

The emotional core of Remains Embraced:

Strong, honest, curious, and confident but not arrogant, aggressive and a touch chaotic, with a measure of sensitivity and hope.

20. Is there anything else you would like to share with Breathing The Core readers about the album, the band, or what comes next?

Following an undetermined amount of time promoting this EP, playing shows, and networking with more bands in the scene, we are very much looking forward to getting back to recording more! We have a handful of songs mostly ready to go with pre-production (One that's actually mostly done, in fact), and we are very much looking forward to writing some new material with our latest recruits, Jay and Logan!

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