Can you give a brief history of the band up to this point? When did you guys form and how you got the band name. Any previous bands members were in?
We all grew up going to shows together and some of us playing in bands together before this one. The band started in early 2008. We all live in different towns around northern,CA but we are based in Sacramento. Did a demo shortly after we started with 4 songs, and then the Ghost Town 7 inch pretty soon after that. We were originally called "Desperation" but then found out that a band from Illinois had the same name so we made a minor change that made sense. Bands before this......hmm... well Dan was in Harms Reach and Deathbox, Jared does Give Me Back from time to time, Ryan and Joey have Internal Conflict, and I was in a band called Trash Talk and Drugs of Youth.
What can we be expecting from your upcoming record? How does it differ from Ghost Town, America EP?The new record I think sounds way better than the Ghost Town record. More time went into it, more thought, and suprisingly less money. But the sound quality is great still. Lyrically its a bit darker. Musically its heavier and has some slower stuff. Its a good progression from the last one.
What label is going to release it and do you have any title yet?
Heart In Hand Records from Los Angeles is going to be releasing this record. William is great and has helped us a lot so far. According to the cover it doesn't have a title, but its called "The Floods".
How would you describe the sound of In Desperation? What bands have influenced your music?
We are a hardcore punk band. We all have different influences but mainly bands like From Ashes Rise, Modern Life is War, Tragedy, Born Against, Left For Dead, etc..
Who or what has had some influence or impact on your lyrics? Where do you find inspiration?
Everyone around me influences me all the time, positive or negative. Recently Ive been reading about hauntings and possessions. Some new songs are about that.
Tell a little about each of the releases you have out? I know only about the Ghost Town, America 7”. Do you have anything else out?
Well we did a demo. Then we did the Ghost Town 7 inch. Next up is "The Floods" 7 inch. We were supposed to be on a couple different compilations but those never came out. We are writing new songs now too for a full length sometime in 2010 hopefully.
What part of California you’re from? What’s the hardcore/punk scene over there?We are generally from Sacramento,CA. Its in the north. Where are you from anyways? The scene here is pretty good. Its different for sure, bands come through and don't know what to expect when they see punks, skinheads(not the bad kind) and hardcore kids all together, but everyone usually gets along. Fights rarely happen and if they do its usually against nazis, which is cool with me. All ages venues here don't usually last more than a year or so, but right now we have a great house that we do shows at. We also have a coffee shop that treats the bands really well too.
Do you remember the first time you heard hardcore music? What were your feelings then and how did the way you look at it changed since then?
Through skateboarding I had a lot of older friends, and they got me into some of the first hardcore bands I had heard. I already was familiar with Minor Threat, Black Flag, Negative Approach and some others, but they were listening to The Trouble, Blood For Blood, and Buried Alive and that was the stuff that got me really interested. My first hardcore show was First Blood and Terror in San Francisco in 2003 and that was craziest show I have ever seen. My feelings about it haven't really changed much. I'm actually interested now more than ever. I guess the only change would be not really understanding the fashion, although I'm not sure if I ever did. I think getting older tests your beliefs in it for sure, and I feel like I need it now more than ever.
What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you?
Hah.. I feel like this is one of those first day of school orientation questions. Guns are a hobby of mine, I'm sure that's sort of surprising.
The hardcore scene is constantly changing. What trends - either in music or not- that you guys really respect and are following?
I could probably go on more about trends I don't like than ones I follow. That new trend where guys move like crabs on stage looks funny. I'll be interested to see where that one goes.
What’s your take on metal influences in hardcore?
Well if you mean the bands that have cyclops hair and play grind riffs followed by pop melodies......I think we all collectively cant stand that it. But, bands like Integrity, Ringworm, and Converge I think are great.
What are the future plans for In Desperation?We start a west coast tour in 2 weeks with our friends Hell and Reason. That should be a lot of fun for sure. The new 7 inch is coming out sometime in the next month or two. After that just more writing music and hopefully touring. We have no plans of stopping anytime soon. Thanks for the interview, and I hope to see everyone on the west coast soon.
