Interviews

Interviews: Five Pointe 0

Smother: How have things changed now that you can devote 110% to the band, since it is now your full-time career? Is it strange to find yourself thrust into the limelight, or to walk into a record store and see your own album for sale?

Daniel: ITS ALL KINDA WEIRD. ITS LIKE EVERYTHING HAPPENED SO SLOWLY THAT WE NEVER FELT THE SHOCK WE EXPECTED FROM THE WHOLE SITUATION. BUT, I CAN SAY IT MAKES ME PROUD TO SEE OUR RECORD IN STORES...

Smother: How did you decide on signing with Roadrunner Records, and what spurred the decision?

Daniel: THEY WERE INTERESTED IN US FOR AWHILE, AND THE FINAL DECISION WAS BASICALLY BASED ON THE FACT THAT ALL OUR LIVES WE WERE FANS OF ROADRUNNER BANDS AND WE WANTED TO BE PART OF THAT.

Smother: Prior to the release of Untitled, FPO were a rather successful indie act in the Illinois area, you even sold over 2000+ copies of your first EP. That's impressive for an underground group. What do you think instantly attracted such a large fanbase, was it that at the time you all were in your mid-to-late teens and could identify with the fans?

Daniel: I AM DEFINITELY SURE THAT OUR SUCCESS LOCALLY WAS DUE TO THE WAY WE PROMOTED OURSELVES. WE WERE ALWAYS HANDING STUFF OUT.

Smother: How did you come to decide on "King of the Hill" and "Purity 01" to re-record for the new album? Can longtime FPO supporters expect any other past songs to surface on future releases? Personally I'd love to see "Waiting to Fall" or "Christ" given a chance.

Daniel: THOSE TWO WERE JUST THE SONGS WE GOT AROUND TO WORKING ON. WE WEREN'T SATISFIED WITH THE WAY ANY OF THE SONGS WERE ON THE DEMOS AND THOSE WERE THE ONLY TWO WE FELT WERE UP TO PAR WITH THE NEWER MATERIAL.

Smother: Was the progression from your older, more artsy side to the current form a directional change you wanted to make, or did it come through natural evolution?

Daniel: I FEEL IT ALL CAME NATURALLY. I STILL THINK WE HAVE QUITE A BIT MORE EVOLVING TO DO BEFORE WE SEE OUR TRUE POTENTIAL.

Smother: Being one of the youngest groups in the underground metal scene, did you ever suffer from the age difference between FPO and the other bands you played with? Do you think the age difference was helpful, or held you back at the time?

Daniel: I DON REALLY FEEL LIKE IT HAD AN EFFECT. OTHER BANDS ALWAYS RESPECTED US BECAUSE OF OUR MUSIC, NOT BECAUSE WE WERE "GOOD FOR OUR AGE".

Smother: I came across an old fact sheet of FPO's that listed such various influences as Tori Amos, Type O Negative, and Front 242. Do you feel it helped to have such a wide assortment of musical influences, and have you consciously tried to mesh those styles together? Your music certainly has it's own distinct flavor, unlike much else around right now.

Daniel: YEAH, I THINK IT HELPED ALOT, BUT WE DIDN'T CONSCIOUSLY MESH THEM TOGETHER. WE JUST PLAY IT THE WAY WE FEEL IT, AND TAKE IT HOW IT COMES FOR THE MOST PART.

Smother: Guitarist Sharon Grzelinski has the distinction of being one of the few female musicians in your genre, as well as being the only female presence in an otherwise all male group. How has this affected FPO over the years, and have you met any resistance along the way as a result?

Daniel: BELIEVE IT OR NOT, ITS NEVER AN ISSUE. I NEVER HEAR PEOPLE THAT COME TO OUR SHOWS EVEN PAY ANY MIND. I THINK THAT'S GOOD. WE'D RATHER BE RECOGNIZED OF BEING GOOD THAN BEING THE BAND WITH A GIRL IN IT.

Smother: How did you come to decide to enhance the FPO sound by adding Casey as the keyboardist? Few American metal bands choose to use keyboards, and it seems like it is much more common in the European metal scene. What do you think Casey adds to the group?

Daniel: CASEY REALLY WASN'T A DECISION TO ENHANCE ANYTHING. HE JUST HAS ALWAYS BEEN THERE. WE ARE ALL FANS OF ELECTRONIC MUSIC AND WANTED THAT ELEMENT. BUT I THINK IN MANY WAYS THAT IS A HUGE PART THAT SEPARATES US FROM THE NORM.

Smother: The new material seems shows a departure from past material in the simple fact that the rappy elements have all but vanished from your vocals. I noticed this especially on King of the Hill, which used to have a whole hip-hop style verse, yet has been streamlined for a more dramatic texturing on Untitled. Did you purposely wish to distance yourself from the lagging "rap/metal" genre?

Daniel: WE AREN'T TRYING TO FORCE ANYTHING OR DISTANCE OURSELVES FROM ANYTHING. I STILL FEEL LIKE I HAVE SOME OF THOSE ELEMENTS IN OTHER SONGS BUT WE FELT KING OF THE HILL NEEDED A CHANGE. I FEEL IT MAKES THE SONG FEEL 100% MORE NATURAL.

Smother: Who does the bulk of the song writing, is it a whole group effort? The lyrics seem to be extremely emotional, yet they have intelligence that is honestly uncommon with a lot of the newer groups to appear on the scene in the past 5 years. Was it something that FPO wanted to accomplish, to move the listener to think even as they feel the emotion of the music?

Daniel: AS FAR AS THE MUSIC GOES, IT IS AN EQUAL PARTNERSHIP, BUT I WRITE ALL THE LYRICS ASIDE FROM ERIC'S PARTS. I JUST WRITE WHAT I FEEL, AND I FEEL ALOT OF THINGS. NOT JUST ANGER OR DEPRESSION. SOMEONE HAS TO BREAK AWAY FROM THE FAKE ANGST SHIT.

Smother: How was working in the studio different this time around as opposed to past recordings?

Daniel: IT WAS JUST ALOT MORE REAL AND PROFESSIONAL. IN THE PAST WE HAD 8 HOURS TO RECORD AND MIX EVERYTHING. WE HAD IT MUCH BETTER THIS TIME AROUND.

Smother: Do you think Colin Richardson helped motivate the band to look deeper within yourselves, and would you like to work with him again in the future?

Daniel: FOR SURE, HE SAID HE DIDN'T WANT TO CHANGE US, JUST CAPTURE OUR TRUE SOUND AND HE DID JUST THAT. I WOULD BE DOWN TO WORK WITH HIM AGAIN IN A SECOND.

Smother: Are their other producers you'd like to work with in particular?

Daniel: TERRY DATE, DEVIN TOWNSEND, FREDERICK NORDSTROM, THE LIST GOES ON...

Smother: You have been out on the road with Mushroomhead, Lamb of God, and 18 Visions as of late. Have there been any shows that really stand out as being some of the best moments on the tour?

Daniel: WELL, OF COURSE CHICAGO IS THE BEST...

Smother: What are your plans for the summer, and how long are you looking at touring in support of Untitled now that it's out?

Daniel: WE ARE GOING OUT WITH COAL CHAMBER AND AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE, BUT AS FAR AS FOR HOW LONG WE WILL BE TOURING, ONLY TIME WILL TELL...

Smother: What kind of feeling did you have returning to IL and playing sold out shows at the Metro, a venue many consider to be the ultimate achievement for local bands to play in.?

Daniel: IT'S AWESOME!!! IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER.

Smother: Going back a little, your 1999 bio states "the goals of Five Point 0 are simple: Create destructive and emotional mayhem, feed off of each other's energy, and make the most of the unique opportunity they have been given..." Reflecting back on the past few years, do you feel these goals have been achieved, and what are new goals you have set for yourself?

Daniel: I THINK THAT WE'VE DONE EXACTLY THAT, AND THEN SOME. NOW WE ARE JUST TRYING TO TAKE THINGS ONE STEP AT A TIME, SO WE ARE JUST CONCENTRATING ON ROCKING THE LIVE SHOW.

Smother: Here's a math question to stump you: All combined, how many toes does Five Pointe 0 have?

Daniel: 60 !!! THAT WAS EASY.

Smother: Any final comments before we wrap this up?

Daniel: ALL THE FANS, JUST KEEP UP THE SUPPORT!!! THANK YOU, AND WE WILL SEE YOU..