WITHIN CATCHES UP WITH MARTIN BRODA ON
WITHIN PUNK ZINE
MARTIN BRODA
INTERVIEW WITH
MARTIN BRODA BY PHONE
SEPTEMBER 18 ,2015 COURTESY OF
ERIN CAROLL /AB Co. / PR Up and coming rock group Curses announce their debut EP The Bridge on October 16th. The Toronto based four-piece have quickly gained momentum with their recent singles “Until My Heart Stops” and “Back To Your Love,” and are excited to share even more new music in the coming weeks. Formed less than a year ago, Curses is led by Martin Broda, best known as singer/bassist of the electro-metalcore group Abandon All Ships, and includes Michael Farina, Daniel Ennis, and Michael Ferreira. The upcoming 5-track EP showcases their high energy and ever so fun personalities. States drummer Michael Farnia, “There’s quite a bit of diversity to it while maintaining a common thread. We weren’t afraid to push ourselves outside of whatever predetermined parameters we set for ourselves from the inception of the band. This EP is going to be a fair representation of who we are and where we’re going musically.” The latest single “Until My Heart Stops” showcases a catchy hook and is the perfect summer romance anthem. This single is just a preview of what fans can expect from the group. In support of the upcoming EP, the band will embark on a North
American tour alongside Jesse Lawson that will kick off with an EP Release show October 9th at Adelaide Hall in Toronto. This will follow an appearance at Kitchener’s KOI Music Festival, where Curses will play alongside August Burns Red, Hawthorne Heights, and more, from September 25th27th. See below for the full list of dates. J.B: Hey brothers and sisters I am sitting here talking with Martin Broda and we are talking about his new project “Curses” and they are releasing their first E.P titled “The Bridge”. How’s it going my friend? MARTIN: Ah it’s going really great actually we just got the final masters back a couple of days ago I believe and will be pressing the E.P within the next couple of days so we’re getting ready for the tour that’s coming up in the fall in October. It’s going really well we took it in two parts we basically recorded the first two songs about four or five months ago or maybe less. And from there we decided we wanted to release an E.P so we wrote three more songs and headed back into the studio about two months ago and finished those up and here we are today. J.B: And the working title “The Bridge” Martin: Yeah exactly J.B: What’s the meaning to the title? MARTIN: Ah “The Bridge” we were actually contemplating on a names for quite a while and I don’t know it just sparked me one night and I was thinking about the symbols behind the bridge. You know we are all kind of trying to build these bridges and in our life to make sure to get where we to get to. And I think we can all relate to “The Bridge” and every member in the band because we all want to succeed in this project and we all want to get to that successful place in this band and hopefully we get there. J.B: It is also a different project that what you guys came out of (Abandon All Ships) and what you were used to? MARTIN: Exactly! And it all ties into that also we all come from heavi-
er style music backgrounds and we are sort of well not over and done with it but we kind of want to pursue a different kind of music. We all kind of like that mainstream kind of pop/rock-ish kind of sounding vibe but nobody’s ever followed through with it and now they are so we are definitely going to take advantage of it as much as we can. J.B: So “The Bridge” releases officially on October 16th coming up but your release party is slated in Toronto for October 9th? MARTIN: Yeah exactly we are releasing on October 16th but we will be giving away a copy to everyone that attends our release show which is a good deal, so anyone that buys a ticket pre show gets an E.P at the door which is a pretty good deal for ten bucks you can’t go wrong. J.B: Are you pressing vinyl for the E.P also? MARTIN: We will be yes maybe not for the release but maybe for the next month after maybe towards Christmas. I have never personally done vinyl and I’ve always wanted to do it and I’m pretty stoked I’ve actually got a record player and I’m starting up my collection as we speak you know. So to see my project on vinyl is super surreal. J.B: Anything special on it perhaps maybe some weird color or artwork for those collectors out there? MARTIN: Yeah I was thinking about maybe putting a special bonus track on it, or just make it just super weird and limited run so it’s special you know maybe like only press about a hundred. Or maybe that extra song or maybe a poster and just something different you know to give that something extra back.
J.B: Yeah like ashes! I’ve heard you can press people’s ashes into vinyl on their favorite tracks now! MARTIN: What! Ashes? Really? Wow that’s I don’t know but Wow! I don’t know how I feel about that but that’s kind of cool. J.B: The tour you are on is with with Jesse Lawson? MARTIN: Yeah exactly we are on tour with Jesse Lawson on October 9th through till October to the 29th I do believe. It’s basically a Southern Ontario tour and little a bit into Quebec in Quebec City and then goes down the East Coast into the states. So we are not hitting the West Coast on this run unfortunately but hopefully maybe on a future tour maybe if it comes into play. Super stoked that we launched this E.P and we are already on this North American tour and couldn’t have been happier. Jesse is an old friend of mine and he used to play in “Sleeping with Sirens” and I randomly shot this idea to him of the tour over text to him and was like “Hey what are the chances you want to go on tour in the fall”? And he was like that would be a great idea. And literally within the hour we got our management talking back and forth and setting it up and everything is going well. J.B: So KOI MUSIC FEST that’s pretty exciting? MARTIN: Ah this will be our first festival that we’ve ever played so we are super excited we are playing only like four shows up until KOI FEST which is actually kind of weird before a big show, but we are super fortunate to be playing it so. We are playing at 8.45 at Bobby O’ Brien’s in Kitchener so I’m really excited to be playing that because there are a lot of great acts playing. A couple of friends of mine ”August Burns Red” and “I see Stars” definitely going to say hi to them and it’s coming up so we definitely need to start practicing and getting ready for that and getting the stuff together. J.B: Coming back to the E.P you guys had your first single “Back to your Love” and most recently your latest video “Until My Heart Stops”? MARTIN: Yeah! They are both on the E.P it will be the only two singles that are released before the E.P and we have had a lot of great feedback being in a band I was expecting negative feedback and I’m not used to the positive feedback on it that we have been getting. You know it’s always 50/50 if people are going to like you or not and I’m super stoked its going over really well. J.B: Your awesome bearded drummer is looking like he’s definitely throwing heart into the drum through on “Back to your love”? MARTIN: (Laughing) we have the Moustache! And the Bearded Guy! J.B: For a moment there he had to take a little breather!
MARTIN: (Laughing) He’s a funny guy for sure! J.B: So was it recorded at a Home Studio? MARTIN: We recorded with Anton DeLost at Lost Recordings he’s a local producer out of Ontario and he’s done a couple good projects and Joe our manager connected us up with him and I checked it out and I loved it so. Honestly from day one it’s been super natural and it’s no stress he knows what to do and if you do a bad take he will tell it your face and he will be blunt and then ask can you do it better? And he defi-
“You know we are all kind of trying to build these bridges and in our life to make sure to get where we to get to”
nitely achieves perfection and I like that because I’m a perfectionist so we will definitely work with him in the future on that. When you hear the E.P you will definitely hear it and like what he does and that’s for sure he’s awesome at it. J.B: So after the E.P it’s usually a sophomore Studio and plans in the future on that? MARTIN: Yeah after the E.P and the tour and maybe in a year we were talking about maybe a full album. We are still developing our music and our writing, I don’t know if you can tell from the songs we did release it’s not a certain sound we write what we want to and go from there and whatever comes out. And that’s the cool thing we just let it out and go with it and whatever comes out is cool even if it was like a hip hop record or whatever we are just getting it out and going with it and if it’s heavier than that’s cool too. Hopefully when the full length album comes out people will like it and I’m excited for this process. J.B: Hopeful tour mates in the future? MARTIN: Actually one of the bands we are friends with that is upcoming is “Pears” and those guys are amazing. I don’t know if you‘ve heard
of them but they are awesome and they do our shirts for us so that is great also. J.B: What do you think of the scene now? MARTIN: I think it’s great now I think the kids are being more open minded to music now and are not expecting that certain sound or formula you know or following this sort of style, back in the day it used to be this and that and now they are appreciating it for what is and that is the way it should be. I really got to get back out there and start connecting again and what I loved when I was on tour was just talking to fans you know and get to know them and what they like you know. J.B: We always end with a famous quote or a famous book - anything come to mind? MARTIN: Ah man that’s a good question? (Laughing) J.B: Yeah that’s my hallmark I always catch people off guard on that! (Laughing) MARTIN: I’m stealing this joke from a friend who’s a girl and I have to use this one “You win some, you get some”! J.B: Last words? MARTIN: Yeah KOI FEST/Kitchener September 26, o n the Bobby O’ Brien stage and the Tour starts October 9th to the October 29th and the E.P dropping October 16th make sure to check those dates.
TOUR DATES Sep. 25-27 @ KOI Music Festival, KITCHENER, ON Oct. 09 @ Adelaide Hall, TORONTO, ON (EP Release Show) Oct. 10 @ Dominion House, WINDSOR, ON Oct. 11 @ Burns Howff, CAMBRIDGE, ON Oct. 13 @ TBA, OSHAWA, ON Oct. 14 @ Le Sous-Sol Du Circle, QUEBEC CITY, QC Oct. 15 @ Cafe Dekcuf, OTTAWA, ON Oct. 16 @ Overtime, KINGSTON, ON Oct. 17 @ Doors Pub, HAMILTON, ON Oct. 18 @ Detour Music Hall, SAINT CATHARINE’S, ON Oct. 20 @ Mohawk’s Place, BUFFALO, NY Oct. 21 @ Simons, PROVIDENCE, RI Oct. 22 @ Nihil Gallery, NEW YORK, NY Oct. 23 @ Planet Trog, ALLENTOWN. PA Oct. 24 @ Greene St. Club, GREENSBORO, NC Oct. 25 @ Cloud Springs Deli, RINGGOLD, GA Oct. 27 @ Rockstar Pro Arena, DAYTON, OH Oct. 28 @ The Outpost, KENT, OH Oct. 29 @ The Wire, CHICAGO, IL
AVAILABLE ON OCTOBER 16,2015
PLAYING @ KOI 2015 SEPTEMBER 26,2015