Genre: Groove Metal
- How did you come up with the band Name?
Roly: “AVAT” is an acronym for A Victim A Target, which was the former name of the band. The name came about from some of the original members love for the Misery Signals song “A Victim, A Target” off of their album, “Of Malice and the Magnum Heart” featuring Devin Townsend.
- Tell us about Where you com from and how that reflects in your music?
Roly: There’s a lot to say here, on where I was born, New Orleans didn’t leave it’s mark on me as many would likely think as I moved away at age 9 to come live in Miami, where the melting pot of culture and vanity were certainly in place to blemish any soul. Through friends and the crowds I hung with in Highschool definitely straight-lined me into Rock and Metal. Later on, Miami’s metal community became the catalyst that led me into joining bands and starting to write music.
I would like to say that it has definitely shown in my music as I continue to evolve and try to become a better singer and writer. With the band at my side I know we’re closer than ever and really try to leave it all out on the table when we’re creating. We hope to continue the tradition of South Florida favorites Nonpoint, Marilyn Manson, and Poison the Well.
Dimitri:
I’ve been born and raised in Miami my entire life. On the surface that doesn’t reflect much at all, considering how much pop, rap, hip-hop, and Latin music dominate here in south Florida. but thankfully we have such large and strong local music scene that I was quickly able to become heavily influenced by local bands in my early years.
Johnathan: I was born in Miami Florida, surrounded by Latin culture. The groove and feel from latín music definitely influences everything I write.
- Tell us about the song-writing process, how do you create your music?
Roly: Usually the riff will come first although we have had ideas materialize into music and then always follow up with lyrics. Lately, we’re trying to write our choruses first and work around them to fulfill a story or message.
Dimitri: So as far as song writing goes, our best work has been done when we just let a good idea take charge and work around that. Doesn’t have to be anything in specific. Could be a riff, groove, melody, lyrics, whatever came first and really caught our attention to begin with.
Johnathan: Normally I’ll try to write an awesome riff or a great chorus and we write and fit things around, but lately we have been trying to expand our writing style and see what songs based on lyrics and melodies we can come up with. It’s a different process that’s a little out of our comfort zone, which makes it so exciting!
- Who has influenced you the most?
Roly: I always get this question in some shape or form and it’s always expanding, I see the hard work of those like Paul Meany from MUTEMATH and it’s astounding. The juggernaut that is Jacoby Shaddix from Papa Roach, the evolution of Matt Heafy from Trivium, and even M Shadows from Avenged Sevenfold have shown what it truly means to evolve and lead their music to guide a generation. There are always others, but these are the examples I try to look up to in an effort to better myself inspire those who may listen to AVAT.
Dimitri:
From my early years, it was bands like Disturbed, Rammstein, Breaking Benjamin, Slipknot, Linkin Park, System of A Down, the staple heavy rock bands of the early 2000’s. My taste quickly expanded and now my influences are a bit different, but I most definitely credit those bands for inspiring me enough to pick up a guitar and start playing.
Johnathan:
Musically, I always think back to the bands I was listening to when I first started learning how to play like Metallica and Trivium. But I think overall in my life, I would have to say my parents have always been the biggest source of inspiration to chase my dreams.
- What was the first song you or your band ever wrote? Tell us if you performed it, trashed it, etc.….
Roly: We toyed around with a song early on called “Arcadia,” it was about the struggle of what a person goes through to find and realize their dreams. We ended up trashing it after a while since the direction it was taking never materialized what we wanted the band to portray and never played it live.
Dimitri: The first song that I learned when joining AVAT was Brenna, there were some tricky licks in that song but nothing out of this world. I had already been rehearsing a full set with the rest of the guys for a couple of months before I played my first show with them, so needless to say we killed it, and every other song on the set. I’m thankful to be with such a talented and committed band that actually takes rehearsal seriously, so I never need to worry so long as I keep up.
Johnathan: Wow, okay the first song I ever wrote was this super thrashy metalcore song that I wrote with my first band in high school. We recorded it on video, uploaded to YouTube, and proceeded to never listen to that thing ever again haha. It was pretty bad!
- What song are you most connected to or proud of ?
Roly: I think that would have to be “Together We Fall” I feel it has a lot of different elements of what makes AVAT unique. It’s garnered over a million plays on VEVO and was received well by our fans and community. A HUGE thank you to all of our listeners and newcomers!
Dimitri: I would probably say our last single Dead or Alive is the one I feel the most connected to. Even though i wasn’t the one who wrote the lyrics, I was going through it at the time and it ended up being a pretty accurate representation of how I was feeling. Song I’m the proudest of though so far is together we fall. Whenever we hit that groove section after the main chorus, it reminds me why it’s my favorite song to play every time.
Johnathan: I really love “Dead or Alive”, I think it’s by far one of our best songs to date. It’s tight and fast hitting and awesome to jam out to.
- Do you enjoy playing live and what do you enjoy about it?
Roly: To say I enjoy playing live would be an understatement, it’s a privilege, and nothing has ever stated that more seriously than the pandemic. The community and camaraderie one feels in enjoying their favorite music next to other people really goes to show the common thread we all share in humanity. Every time I get up on stage I leave it all out on the stage for the audience, the performance is never the same one and you can rest assured I will be giving my all every time.
Dimitri: Playing live is the reason why I became a musician. It’s one of the ultimate thrill seeking experiences. Once you hit the stage, you become a different version of yourself. Confident, bold, anxious but prepared. When people resonate with your music in a live setting, it creates an atmosphere larger than life, and it’s a feeling that I want to chase for the rest of my life.
Johnathan: There’s a rush to playing live that’s like nothing else on this world. It’s an amazing feeling to get in front of people and connect with them and feed off their energy. It’s definitely my favorite thing about playing music.
- What is next for the band?
Roly: We’ve got some more singles slated for release this fall and winter, we’re so excited to share it with all of you and can’t wait to get back out there and play for everyone. We’ve received a ton of support from all of the US, South America, and Europe thus far. It’s surreal, I’m so thankful to even know that there are these next steps we’ve been planning. We can’t wait to see you all, so make sure you take care of one another in the meantime!
Johnathan: We are constantly writing new material so we definitely are coming out with new music! We can’t wait to get back on stage and play these songs live, so hopefully when things are safe again, we can hit as many stages as we can.
- Any additional thoughts or Comments you would like to add?
Roly: I know that we’re on the precipice of something big, we keep unearthing more and more to our dynamic. Maybe someday we’ll be releasing an album with a centralized idea, so make sure to let us know by following, commenting, and sharing our music to those around you!
Dimitri: Thank you New Groove magazine for sending this interview my way, hope you, your team, and the readers are healthy and happy. Keep an eye out for us on Spotify, YouTube, and all other streaming services for when we drop new hotness. Please follow us on Instagram
Johnathan: Thank you to everyone who has listened to our music or/and followed us on social media! Stay positive!