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"Twelve Year Silence"
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New Day. but Dark?
By: Emmy Boyce
Dark new Day is a fortunate coming
together of seasoned industry veterans (Clint Lowery (lead guitar),
Corey Lowery (bass), Will Hunt (drums), Troy McLawhorn (guitars), and
Bret Hestla (vocals)), ranging in experience from Sevendust to Stereomud
to Creed to Tommy Lee to doubleDrive, and then some. Having pretty much
grown up together to boot, these 5 hot musicians finally came together
to form Dark new Day.
April 14th, 2005, marked the dawning of a new day as Dark new Day's
debut album made its release, but talk to lead guitarist Clint Lowery
(of Sevendust fame), and the last thing he'll make it sound like is
dark. That's what happened the afternoon before the band's debut release
and show as Lowery set the record straight about his departure from
Sevendust, life as a rock star, and the aim of Dark new Day.
Alternative Addiction: When you thought about forming this new band was
there a sound that you already had in mind, or did you want to see how
it all began to materialize?
Clint: We kind of had an idea of what it was going to be like. We just
knew that it was going to be. Because everyone in the band could write,
and everyone could sing, and everyone could do a lot, we knew that we
were going to have a deep pool of talent to work out of. I think that we
just had the idea that it was going to be an easy and a fun process to
write, and record, and to play live, and just live together. We knew it
was going to be a fairly easy thing to do and a fun thing to do. I think
the sound, we kind of just started it being what it is, which is a lot
of the singing, a lot of instrumentation, and just good songs.
AA: How has this band affected your departure from Sevendust? Did they
see this coming?
C: I don't think anyone really saw it coming. To be honest with you, at
the beginning of it I didn't realize that thing was going to snowball
the way it did. I was working on the Sevendust record - the new one
that's coming out - with them before I left. This thing sort of happened
and started forming, and the scope of it started becoming clear, and I
realized that I couldn't do both. I was going to try to do both. The
Sevendust schedule just wasn't going to allow me to do it. There wasn't
going to be a big enough hole in the timeline for me to actually step
out and do a side thing. So, I had to make a decision. Sevendust had to
make a decision. I think both parties involved - both bands - we deserve
someone who's going to be there one hundred and ten per cent all the
time. It just couldn't allow us the time to do both. I don't think
either one of us saw it coming, but I think when you're in a band like
this - Sevendust - for that amount of time, I think they're kind of
sympathetic to it's my brother, and these are the guys I've known for a
long time. So, I think people will understand it. I don't have any to
hide. There's no animosity between me and any of these guys. We always
got along great. I love them. I still love them. They're supportive to
what we're doing now and what their future is going to be. I'll always
be the biggest Sevendust fan out there.
AA: It's just kind of the way the chips fell.
C: Yeah.
AA: I'm not talking about if the band has been around long enough to be
established rock stars. I'm talking about a persona that you embody
regardless of a band. Is Dark new Day rock stars?
C: (laughs) I think that we definitely know what a rock star is. I think
we definitely have our take on what rock stardom and that whole persona
is. I think we kind of try to, I don't know, reenact some of the things
we've seen some of our idols and musicians that have influenced us, and
the way they carried themselves and the way they treated their fans, I
think that's what we like to be. As far as the definition of a rock
star, meaning someone that's very egotistical, I think that every band
can have a little bit of ego within their music and within their stage
performance, but I think that should end after the show's over. I think
that just being a very humble group of guys, we just fit how we are, and
it's kind of hard for us to. Anytime there's the rock star treatment, or
we're in a situation where we feel like, "Oh, we're being rock stars,"
we just laugh about it. I think that we're rock stars when we need to
be, and that's on stage. We try to do that. Growing up, I was a fan of
music. I was the kid, I was the fan, I was the one out there wanting
autographs, doing all those things. When those people would come and
sign my stuff, and do all that, I look at them as this incredible. I
looked at them as more of a rock star; as a very cool person as well. I
don't know, I wouldn't say we're rock stars. We're just a very good
band. I wouldn't go the rock star route.
AA: Your CD release is tomorrow. Are you a little unnerved about your
show being elsewhere and not in hometown Atlanta?
C: Oh, yeah. As far as the release, I'm not really nervous. Obviously,
on the day your record comes out you want to be around people that
you're familiar with, whatever, the hometown, but I think it's going to
be kind of cool because Minneapolis is a great place, and there's a lot
of support up there, and I think it's going to be great wherever we are.
We're just so excited about this thing coming out. We're going to have
time to go back and be in Atlanta. We're kind of a spread out band as
far as where our homebase is anyway, so there's not really a true
homebase for this band. There's a few different spots that we have a lot
of local support, just a hometown crowd kind of vibe. We have a few
places like that will be just like home, but it's going to be great
wherever we're at. It doesn't matter.
AA: I do think that it will be a great show. So, how do you feel about
you're opening band? I hear it's SKYWYND.
C: Oh, man! See, I have a lot of history with those guys because when I
was in Sevendust I got a chance to meet those guys, and we really fell
in love with them. I got a CD of theirs. It's been a few years now. I've
always wondered what was going on with them and when I found out they
were going to be on the bill it just was incredible. They've got a lot
of support there in the hometown and I think that's going to be great
for our show. They're actually going to help us a lot more than we're
going to help them as far as fans. I know they've got a lot of support
there. It's great. I can't wait to see what their new sound is like and
see them again and see what's been new with them, what's going on.
AA: Have all of the previous musical ventures of you and your band
members been an aid to getting label support, or did labels say, "Yeah,
it's nice that you all did that stuff, but this is a new, unheard of
band, and we're going to treat it that way"?
C: Going into it, just as far as management and connections and a
reputation, those are all things that we brought in with this band that
I don't think could be ignored. I wouldn't want to think that the music
I made with Sevendust, that I wasn't followed by it with this new band.
The same goes with the rest of the guys. We were talking to Warner Bros
when this thing started to develop. It was definitely the home we wanted
to be at. We wanted to be with Warner Bros. It was one of those things
we kind of went for. I think that they. they don't want to downplay what
we've done in the past, but they do want - and we as well - want our
merit to be judged on whatever show you see us at, or our new record
coming out. We want that to be the basis on why you want to come to see
this band. If Sevendust fans come to the shows, that's even better. I
don't want to count on that, though. I'd rather count on our reputation
now, what we're doing now, how dedicated we are, and all those things. I
really want this thing to have its own legs and stand on its own and be
its own animal. I think the only way to do that is just to be out there
and show people what we're talking about; show them why we did this, and
why we created this band.
Visit Dark new Day to learn more and listen to tracks from the debut
album and Warner Bros. release "12 Year Silence" at
http://www.darknewday.com!
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Special thanks to Clint Lowery, Michael Lannier, James Decoursey, and
Penny Palmer.
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