Where
is the band from?
The
band is primarily based out of Northwest Indiana and The Illinois/Indiana
border. Spanning from Michigan City, IN
to Riverdale, IL.
Who
are the band members?
Arson
Wills: Vocals
Mike
Phernetton: Guitar
Metalbear
Bradshaw: Guitar
Rob
Scluicz: Drums
Andres
Morales: Bass (In studio)
How
long has the band been together?
Technically,
the band started in February of 2013; however we didn’t play our first show
until June of 2014. Leading up to that
we had a couple member changes. All in
all, we actually named ourselves, Designing the Flaw in January of 2014.
Did
any members of the band work in other musical projects before this?
Every
member has worked in previous bands…To be honest; the list goes on and on. 4 out of 5 of us have done some sort of
touring, and all of us have been in bands that tried to play the cards right.
Are
any of the members of the band currently in any side projects?
Andres
Morales is a studio musician for several groups as well as a participant in the
Columbia College jazz band on bass. Rob
Sulicz does fill in drums for some touring for Mine Enemies Fall. Mike Phernetton does fill in guitar for
touring with Her Eyes Glazed Over, now in a tribute band not yet announced and engineer
and producer for privately owned, P-Town Studios.
Where
was the album made? Who produced the album?
The
album was self-recorded and self-produced by Mike Phernetton of Designing the
Flaw at P-Town Studios. The vocals were
mixed by Mike Phernetton; music mixed by Jonathan Clardy of Progression
Productions. Entire EP mastered by
Jonathan Clardy.
Who
does the songwriting?
The
EP that was recently released is mainly written by Mike Phernetton, Metalbear
Bradshaw and Rob Sulicz. The new album
currently being written is a collaboration of the entire band as a whole.
Who
are your musical influences?
Our
musical influences are quite large. Everything
from older Metallica to Killswitch Engage to Black Dahlia Murder. The drummer stems from more of a classic
rock/80s metal background, but not limited to such. Both guitar players stem from classic rock
and 90’s -200s metal. Bassist has such a
wide variety of music, I can’t even begin to list. He’s very diverse. Our singer comes from all sorts of
backgrounds from soft rock, to hard rock, to metal and then some. WE like to think it comes from everywhere.
What
was the message or goal of this album?
The
message is talking about the struggles in life, designing your own flaw, not
counting on others, struggles with suicide and coping and then some. The goal of this self-titled album is build a
platform for our band to grow. It’s only
the first of many releases that will all evolve with time. Grow as we do. But this allows us a solid start in our venture
out into one of the hardest genres of music to break into. Metal.
Do
you plan on touring to promote this album?
As
for extensive tours, some of our members remain limited due to full time
jobs. Extensive is too demanding for
such a new band. However, we want to
start with the Midwest. We have plans to
do a few 3 o44 day run this summer, starting the fall with a 1 week run. Besides that, we live right in the middle of
some golden states for music: Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, and Wisconsin and of
course, there’s Indiana. We will do our
best to start there, try our luck a little south and east on some short runs
and give it our all.
What
are your goals for the future?
Our
goals are to improve our music, style performance, gain a dedicated fan base,
create a name for ourselves in the Midwest and just take our time. The overall goal would always be to get on a
label…however, we feel like that’s the same as winning the lottery. Rather than owing a label or anyone for that
mtter, we do everything ourselves. Literally
everything. There is a lot of hard work,
research and extensive computer work to make this happen. It’s all worth it in the end.
Where
can people buy your music?
Our
entire EP is available online at Bandcamp . There are a couple of songs for free download at Reverbnation. We just released an official music video also
recorded, produced and edited by Mike Phernetton as well as a still video with
just music on Youtube. Search “Designing
the Flaw” for all those.
CD Review:
Favorite Songs: Edge of Madness, Hourglass
This self-titled EP by Designing the Flaw is
flawless. (I’m sure they’ve NEVER heard
that one before.. lol.) While metal is
not my favorite genre, I must say that I enjoyed this EP very much. The mix was excellent and the vocals were
perfect. I liked them a lot because I
could actually understand what was being sung about. There are so many metal bands whose use of
“cookie monster” vocals does the band a disservice because the lyrics cannot be
understood. I am as vocally oriented an individual
as I am musically, so a good combination of both really gets me interested, no
matter the genre. And, I know that the
point of really hard metal such as this is not necessarily for the vocals to be
understood, but why wouldn’t a band want their fans to really get to know their
songs through their vocals! The lyrics perfectly reflect the message that Designing the Flaw is all about. Making your own way through this life and not counting on anyone!
There are many bands who I am reminded of when
listening to Designing the Flaw. That
may or may not be a good thing depending on your point of view, but it was a
hard-hitting, in-your-face romp that will leave you wanting more. The guitar solos on this album are very
good. And I always admire and appreciate
a drummer who can keep themselves together while playing more difficult
pieces. Did I mention that this album is REALLY good?
I recommend this album to anyone who enjoys really
heavy metal. For those who have been following
the show and have listened to Odin Sun, or Idol Smasher, this band will be for
you! Go listen… right now!
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