Red Skies Dawning bursts onto the scene with ‘Shipwrecked,’ a fierce reimagining of their sound—transforming personal pain into powerful modern rock while signaling a bold new chapter for the band.
1.
“Shipwrecked” is your debut single as Red Skies Dawning. Why did you choose
this particular track to introduce the band’s new identity?
We felt
that is the most passionate hard hitting song, even though I'm my own fan of a
couple off the album. This song hit me hard during the time I wrote it as
pop... this gives a whole new spin on the song.
2. The
song deals with themes of loss, resilience, and rebirth. Was this drawn from
personal experience, or more of a universal metaphor for the band’s journey?
It was from
personal experience, when you invest so much time with someone and one day, you
mean absolutely nothing to them and yet they won't leave you be either. Playing
with someone's emotions is very damaging.
3. Red
Skies Dawning grew out of Red Skies Mourning. How would you describe the
biggest differences in sound, energy, and intent between the two projects?
They are polar opposites. That's why I named this one Dawning. More aggressive, more fierce, the Mourning side is just that. A lot of the music I write is shaped around the music I grew up with in the Prog Rock, Synth, Metal, Rock Scenes. One writer who I always looked up to was Chris Cornell. He's music was very diverse and eclectic.
4. You
worked closely with Chris Dawson and Jimmie Beatie to reimagine “Shipwrecked.”
What was it like collaborating with them, and how did they influence the final
sound?
If you listen to "Ship Wrecked" by Red Skies Mourning and then this version. It's so different yet close but again, the deliver is more fierce. As Chris and Jimmie were in the shop, he mentioned to me that he sped up Shipwrecked. And at first I was like... hmm. how can you do that? haha. Well, they did and it worked. I would have thought they'd pick another song to speed up but this song was originally written a lot slower and mellow.
5. The
track began as an alt-pop song but became a hard-hitting modern rock anthem.
What challenges did you face in transforming the original version?
The way I
sing it, there are a few different techniques I had to relearn singing with
more energy, more compression but there are subtle times as well. I really like
the overall Dynamics of the song from the drums, guitar, synth to the vocals.
I'm really happy with how it all turned out.
6. Your
lineup—Laulis, Trujillo, and Carpenter—brings a full-band energy. How did these
members come together, and what do they each add to the dynamic?
For the pop
side, I couldn't find ANY musician that would want to join. The Rock/Metal side
is the scene down where I live and luckily I had some friends that believed in
me and this music. I'm really fortunate to have good friends join me in this
project, Trujillo, Laulis and Wyatt. I really appreciate them and it's fun.
7.
Chris, your roots go back to hardcore and grunge in the early 2000s. Do you
feel those influences still shape your songwriting today, even in this modern
rock direction?
They still
do, I just don't do the growls anymore, I could do them and I do them live
sometimes but I definitely like the more edgy clean take. I may sprinkle some
more growls in on the next songs, we'll see!
8.
Recording vocals in a home studio rather than a traditional setup gave the
track a raw edge. Do you think this DIY element is part of what makes Red Skies
Dawning’s sound unique?
Yes and no,
we probably could record in the studio but with the new tools, it's really easy
to do it from home. I have a full Vocal Chain set up at my house. Though I will
say that the vocals were recorded at Jimmie's house except for the Simple Minds
Cover(my house). What's missing from a home studio, is that other person,
outside looking in, that can give you their feedback. Jimmie was really good
with that, because delivering Pop vocals to this song, didn't work out. I had
to push back to my more aggressive side and add in more vocal compression to
get that angst feel.
9. What
message or feeling do you hope listeners take away after hearing “Shipwrecked”
for the first time?
I hope you
enjoy it, we have a bunch more off the upcoming album that's just like this.
Hope it helps as well, music for the alt metal soul.
10. With
no live performances announced yet, are you planning to build momentum with
more singles before hitting the stage, or is touring already on the horizon?
We've
played a few gigs, opened up for Any Given Sin and played a festival in
Baltimore with Sponge and others. We are all season veterans, it's just nailing
down the songs live as we did in the studio.
11. If
you could share one line or lyric from “Shipwrecked” that best represents the
spirit of Red Skies Dawning, which would it be and why?
"Moving
through the rough tides with no one in sight
All I see
is dark skies covering my eyes
I'm doing
it blind, on my own tonight"
There are
so many one liners in there and These songs are the stories of my life. I give
so much and support others but in the end, I feel and I've seen it, it's never
reciprocal.
12.
Looking ahead, what can fans expect from the next chapter of Red Skies
Dawning—will the upcoming releases continue in this heavy, cinematic rock
style?
We have two
FAST single drops before the album. I was just going to release the album, but
wanted to see how releasing singles to the album will effect the streaming
algorithms. Our two next up before the Nov 14th album release is Simple Minds
Cover then on Halloween the song, Paralyzed. That song was about when I was
younger having REM paralysis and seeing demons awake while not being able to
move. I don't have it anymore, I did when I was really wrong, it was scary as
shit.
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