The Eyes Of A Traitor are a British band from Herfordshire who have already released one widely acclaimed album (‘A clear perception’) and are now set to return with their second, devastating disc.
With ‘Breathless’, TEOAT have created an album which is wide in scope and quite astonishingly ferocious in places. A hard-working and hard-touring band, TEOAT have toured with acts such as the ground-breaking Gojira and now, signed to Listenable records, it’s time that TEOAT get the recognition that they deserve as a major force in metal.
We were lucky enough to get an interview with Steve, the guitarist from the band who talks about the band’s history, the writing process for ‘Breathless’ and much more. ‘Breathless’ is out July 12th
- Breathless is your second outing as a band, how would you say you have developed as a band and as songwriters?
- Hey, it’s Steve answering the questions here. I think Breathless is definitely a big step for us in terms of actual song-writing structurally. We’ve tried to make it so these songs have verses, choruses; so they are structured like proper songs. That’s what I think let A Clear Perception down; it was just a load of riffs all shoved in together in one song, there wasn’t any space for it to breathe, and I think sometimes, it didn’t suit.
- You seem to have received good reviews for your first album, did that give you greater confidence this time round?
- Well, we always get our share of the bad reviews… usually from the super death metal webzines, thanks guys..! But definitely overall, it was a positive reaction to the album, much more so than I was expecting. I wouldn’t say it gave us more confidence, as at the end of the day it is just one person’s opinion of the album, who happens to exert certain influence. I had to view it like that, ‘cause I took some of the criticism quite personally. If they like it, that’s great, but there’s not much you can do if they don’t! It stood us in good stead to write another album though.
- Having had the experience of a well-received debut album, how did you approach the song-writing on ‘Breathless)
- We approached it with a different perspective – it was a much more organic record, with it being written together, as opposed to on the computer, and sent round the entire band. It also meant that things got done a lot faster, compared to the previous album.
- You toured with Gojira in 2009, did that have an influence upon your song-writing?
- I would say yeah, in a certain way. They are quite a simple band riff wise, but it sounds awesome. I think we were more influenced by them organisation wise. They were a finely tuned machine when they toured; they had so much crew but everyone knew exactly what they were doing, and it all ran perfectly every night.
- Your records and merchandise feature fantastic artwork – is that something that is important to you as a band and who creates the visuals for you?
- Thanks! It’s a variety of artists – a shout out goes to Ash Jordan Design, who consistently provides us with great art. Our first CD was done by our friend at SUFFOCA; it’s an amazing piece of art and I really dig it. I do think that appearance is definitely important.
- There was a lot of trouble surrounding the release of your first record when Pinnacle collapsed – that must have been a nerve-racking period for you?
- Not so much nerve wracking, more disappointing. It was just the feeling of seeing all this press come in, but not having the album out for another month or so after it all hit. It was just depressing, but we got it out there in the end which was great.
- Eventually Warner salvaged the situation – what benefits did you get from a major label becoming involved?
- You tell me, I haven’t seen any difference to be honest! Haha.
- As a band do you enjoy the process of recording or do you prefer being on stage in front of the fans?
- I’d say I enjoy them in equal amounts usually. It’s nice being creative and being able to write music. However, there is nothing better than the feeling of playing an awesome show… it’s just a buzz.
- How did TEOAT initially form?
- We are all quite young, so we initially formed by meeting each other at secondary school. We then shacked up in our drummers shed for a few months straight, and wrote a set. Then we just never looked back to be honest!
- What do you feel you have to offer the metal scene?
- I dunno. I don’t want to jump up and do the whole cliché of ‘we can offer something different’. I think that we offer something cool with our music; not necessarily groundbreaking. It spans a wide variety of the metal genres, so I think it’s hard to get bored when listening to us. But then again, how could I tell! Haha.
- How did you end up with Listenable?
- It was quite simple. We had a small independent deal with TDON Records. Listenable approached us and said they were into the band. We just negotiated our terms and ended up with a deal. We then signed! We’ve got another album after this.
- You have Breathless out on July 12th; you’ll be promoting that release for the foreseeable future presumably?
- Yeah definitely, we’ve got A LOT of touring to do on this album, so don’t expect a new album anytime soon from us! Just expect to see us in your town. And we expect to see you there.
- Any final words from the band?
- Make sure you check out the album when it’s out, if not buying it! We’re proud of it and we hope you enjoy it! Thanks dudes!
- ‘Breathless’ is out July 12th
