Scorched Mind Went Full Scorched Earth on Their Debut LP
The other day a friend asked me how I find new music each week. Most of the time it's just from relentless digging. On Reddit, on Apple Music (use Apple Music you turds, the sound is 1000x better), and YouTube. But I've noticed the best music I find typically comes from someone I trust or respect sharing something they've been listening to. So when I saw Matt Guglielmo of The Acacia Strain post about a new album he produced, I jumped on it right away. That album would turn out to be Embracing the Dying Sun by Scorched Mind.
It's 30 minutes of pulverizing, grind influenced metalcore. If you're a fan of bands like END and Full of Hell then you'll love Embracing the Dying Sun. Find out more about the band below and follow them here.
- First off, you guys sound like a veteran band. The sound is developed and you’re motivated to make yourselves known. Give us a quick rundown of how and when Scorched Mind started.
Scorched Mind came together in late 2023 when I [Mike] was in between jobs and my former project [Mind Power] was on its way out due members having serious jobs, families, loss of interest. I was playing a lot of guitar and writing a lot of cool riffs, which became songs, which then became the rough preproduction for our 2024 S/T EP. I was super stoked on what was happening so I took the initiative to scout out some members. I had always seen James [Slattery] doing cool Nails, Full Of Hell, and Converge drums covers on his YT and i was familiar with his bands [Sleepsculptor & Toothless], so i hit him up and was like “Yo, I know we know each other through mutual friends and going to shows, but haven’t actually met in person, but would you want to get together and jam some heavy hm2-style stuff?” he instantly hit me back and was like “I’m game.” The first jam was super fun, showed him what I was working on, he was instantly sold on it. I think on our second or third jam he brought up how the guitar player of his band Sleepsculptor, Jake [Moyer], was super intrigued by what we were doing and had always wanted to give being a vocalist a shot. He came through like the second or third jam after that, hung out, checked out the preproduction tracks and was down for it. We cleaned up the tracks and booked some studio time with Eric Novroski [former bassist of Toothless], at his studio [Novro Studios] in Swoyersville, PA, and got to work immediately. We were there, I think a total of like 10 days. Once the EP was mixed and mastered, we put it out without hesitation, while simultaneously looking for a bassist. We posted a bunch on our IG and Facebook, then out of the blue a mutual local friend of mine messaged me and told me Jim [Conlon] was looking to play bass in something pretty much exactly like what he heard we were doing. I got Jim’s number, sent him a text, we tried him out shortly after, then immediately asked if he wanted the gig, he was game, the rest is history!
- Sonically, what is it that you hope to accomplish with Scorched Mind? And who are some bands that influence your sound?
We wanted to go for the big, heavy, loud amps thing, utilizing lots of feedback to create a blend of sludgy beatdown, HM2 hardcore, and some death metal sprinkled in. We're trying to bridge the gaps that each respective genre might miss out on. As for bands that influence us, collectively, Nails, Full Of Hell, Harm’s Way, Vein, END, and Converge would be at the top of the list.
- Embracing the Dying Sun is phenomenal. Talk to me about how it came together and what your vision was with this album.
After the EP came out and we were actively playing shows, I didn't waste any time jumping back into writing and recording ideas in my spare time. This time though, instead of just writing parts, I aimed at being more cohesive and structurally sound with what I was trying to convey. Once I had a handful of tracks to show the guys we met up regularly and went back and forth on parts, riffs, lyrical content, and everything in between. Everyone as a whole was contributing this time around and it was definitely a different vibe than the EP, it felt like a more mature SM was coming into play. I think our vision was ideally to upgrade what we did on the EP, but make it slightly more extreme, while also appealing to a wider audience in the long run.
- Tell me about your experience working with Matt Guglielmo on this record.
Working with Matt was top tier for me personally, as I’ve never recorded in a studio like his. Jake & James recorded with Matt previously, in Sleepsculptor, so they were the ones that initially brought up going to him. It was really cool to see his workflow and how he approached different aspects in the process. He not only engineered the LP [as well as mixed and mastered it], but he also produced it. He had such cool ideas on song structure and lyrical phrasing, as well as what kind of gear we should use in order to achieve the sound we were aiming for. We spent a total of 2 weeks there, each day we would wake up, have something to eat, then literally grind all day. We would typically start around noon and go until midnight, sometimes later, rinse, repeat. Matt is an absolute pro at everything he does, whether it's in a band or in the studio, we have nothing but great things to say about him and thank him endlessly for helping us create this record.
- What do you hope to accomplish over the next year with Scorched Mind?
We are definitely trying to tour the country as soon as possible, maybe other countries?? Playing some festivals would also be in the cards. We will probably get back into the studio with a follow-up EP, maybe another LP??
