Pure metal: title track of their debut album "Fog of War"
Fog of War is excellent thrash, fresh and nimble on its feet. I was first introduced to the band through the link listed above. I actually decided to check out the band because I thought the album cover was (awesomely) crazy. I could tell immediately from the swelling crescendo of hammer ons and pull offs that Fog of War had their shit together.
And now...the interview with Mosh Branum, vocalist and lead guitarist for Fog of War:
SoB: First off, thank you very much for doing the interview!
Josh: Any time man! Thanks for giving us the opportunity to be interviewed!
What are you guys currently up to? Getting ready for a tour? Working on a new album?
We've been spending all of our time down in "the lab" writing towards our new album. We haven't been this excited about our music... ever, really! We've almost finished all the writing and will be hitting the studio real soon. We're hoping we can get some touring in to support the record once we release it.
Can you fill us in on the Fog of War's history?
Fog of War started back in 2004, the early years are an alcohol blurred haze, but once we got our act together, we started playing an obscene amount of shows. At the time, there were only a handful of thrash bands to speak of, so we spent a lot of time performing in bars or comedy clubs for a bunch of drunks. When the recent thrash explosion hit, it gave us a much needed medium to reach our target audience of people with good taste in music. The internet has helped with that as well, obviously. Eventually we released our self titled album, which is essentially the life force of a bunch of drunk teenage thrash maniacs captured on CD. It got pretty good reviews, and we've had a ton of support from the fans over the years. All in all, the record still holds up pretty well I think. We went through some band drama about a year ago, and when the dust settled, we had 3 lead guitarists, so we began writing music to fit that set up a little more effectively, leaning towards a power/thrash kinda vibe. The songs on our upcoming record are exactly what we set out to write, and there won't be a single, solitary second of fluff or filler on the album. The new material is hard to describe, but the words "crushing," "epic" or even "life-changing" aren't out of the question, haha!
I read that Fog of War had a more black metal vocal approach and a slightly different sound, instrumentally, in the early days. What prompted you to pursue a different sound and develop your current style?
Well, initially, I (Mosh) couldn't sing a note to save my life. That hasn't changed, I still can't, but I used to try to hide that fact by doing goofy BM style growling over the songs. I adapted a different style because I figured "Hey, this isn't what I want to sound like, and since I don't really care what anyone else thinks, I'll just shout in my normal voice." Keeping the growls may have been more likely to garner industry "success," but none the less, I continue to torture the masses with my high pitched, nasally carrying on.
I really like how your recordings have an organic sound and feel. How does Fog of War approach recording?
First off, we have an absolutely amazing recording guy, Sam Zuerner, he could take a recording of chimps farting and turn it into something that would make J.S. Bach's corpse re-animate out of appreciation. So, Sam rules, most definitely. And we don't actually use studios for recording, we've always decided to record in our rehearsal space, currently my basement. Another reason the songs have such a lively, organic feel is because they're all mixed with a different approach for each track. The songs aren't all the same, so why approach them with a unilateral mixing strategy? If you like how our recordings sound, then you might be surprised to know that they were all done with about half of the equipment considered "standard" by most authorities in recording.
Is there a main song writer in the band, or do you approach composition as a group?
I used to write just about everything back in the day, but we've taken on a much more cooperative approach for this record, and it's paying off extremely well. The input that everyone gives is invaluable, and given the fact that we were all friends before band mates, we all work incredibly well together.
Those are some great, tasty solos. Where do you draw your inspiration for the leads?
That depends who's soloing, haha. Myself, I just pretend my guitar is an assault rifle and try to kill the listener with my solos. Jon and Wink both have more respect for others than I do and write insanely well thought out leads that are soaked in melody and style. I couldn't ask for better co-shredders. The new record contains a lot of harmonized shredding, so make sure to listen for that!
The bass sounds fantastic ( as does everything else ). Was it a conscious decision to make the bass so prevalent in the mix?
Most definitely, we always hated how most metal bands pushed the bass to the back like some unwanted step-child who's trying to talk over the adults at Christmas. The bass-forward approach was there from day-one. Our former bassist (featured on the first record and the Confessions EP) Joe Orterry had a real cool approach to bass playing. He's really influenced by funk and jazz, and if you listen for it, you'll definitely hear it.
How did you guys get hooked up with StormSpell Records?
We were looking for a label to re-release and carry our first record, and we liked their style. Simple as that. Oh, and they have a wizard for a mascot, fuck yeah.
Have you guys done any heavy touring?
We've traveled far from home to do shows, but unfortunately, no heavy touring yet. We hope to change this very, very soon. We've picked up fans from all over, and would really like to play live for them at least once.
Thus far into the Fog of War adventure, what has been your favorite/most memorable gig?
We've had some pretty awesome gigs, and shared the stage with legends like Metal Church, Death Angel, Forbidden, and we'll be playing with EvilDead this spring. I can't speak for everyone, but I'd say my favorite show was back in '06 (I think). We played in San Francisco with just about every prevalent California thrash band. Dekapitator headlined, which was a dream come true for us, we got to go from performers to hysterical fans in the same night. Those dudes tore the building down at every show they played.
I'm sure you've had some good times along your journeys. Any good "metal tour" anecdotes?
Too many to describe in great detail, so we'll do it shorthand, sound good?
- Wink puked into a shot glass (he either pukes 2 ounces or 2 gallons) and some drunk chick drank it thinking it was Jager. Truly epic.
- Wink puked into a shot glass (he either pukes 2 ounces or 2 gallons) and some drunk chick drank it thinking it was Jager. Truly epic.
- Myself breaking into a very well known headliner's dressing room and stealing the beer from their private bar was pretty out there. I wasn't home that night if you get my drift.
- Way back in the day we played a show in our home town of Benicia, which is extremely small and sleepy. The crowd erupted into a moshing frenzy, and we almost got arrested for "inciting a riot."
There's tons more, but I supposed I'll save them for the "Behind the Music" episode.
I'll be sure to keep a watchful eye on my shots of Jager. Any plans to hit up the East Coast?
We're really shooting for that, we've had nothing but support from some really great people out that way. It's only fair we subject the East Coast fans to our Californian accent, what with our "hella fuckin' tight dude" way of speaking and all.
What are you guys currently listening to? Any recommendations?
We all listen to an extremely wide range of music, from metal (and all its sub-genres) to funk, prog., jazz, and classical. We're all music addicts, so if I actually went into listing individual bands, your readers would all be in adult diapers or dead by the time they finished reading this interview. Guess that means I'd be dead or incontinent as well... Hmm. Yeah, best to stay general.
What can we expect from Fog of War in the future?
Music with messages and stories that will make you do one or all of the following:
-Think/grow a second brain
-Expand your musical horizons
-Sharpen your imagination
-Headbang yourself into an early onset of Alzheimer's
-Want to come to our shows and witness the insanity for yourselfThanks for taking the time to chat with Steel on Bone, it is very much appreciated and keep raging!
Again, any time man! We're thankful for any chance we get to spout our inane mumbo jumbo on a public medium! Stay heavy!
Fog of War is:
Mosh Branum - Vocals, Lead Guitar
Jon Fryman - Lead Guitar
Alex Winkley - Lead Guitar
Matt O'Connell - Drums
Nick Mamere - Bass
Jon Fryman - Lead Guitar
Alex Winkley - Lead Guitar
Matt O'Connell - Drums
Nick Mamere - Bass
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