Atreyu: Song Is King

Over the past few records that Orange County metalcore stalwarts ATREYU have released, there’s been a lot of talk. There’s talk in YouTube and Facebook comments, and even in some mainstream metal outlets about how the band is focused on nothing more than pop-rock radio songs designed for the lowest common denominator, and how their melodies are nothing but autotune drenched pieces of plastic. But new lead vocalist and front man Brandon Saller has a message for all of that talk: the days of asking what they think people want to hear are over.

“Throughout the years, we’ve become less concerned with the questions of ‘Is it heavy enough’ or ‘Is it metal? Is it this, is it that,” explains Saller. “We only ask, is it a great song, because as our producer John Feldmann taught us, song is king, and it’s the truth.” Indeed, ATREYU have never released a record as catchy or song centric as their newest, Baptize, in which no individual song goes over four minutes, and melodic hooks are at the forefront like never before. And Saller iterates that this is the product of the most authentic songwriting the band has ever done.

“On this record, we wrote all the songs day of,” he says. “We’d come in the studio and say ‘What are you feeling right now?’ Then we’d make that song right then and there. It was very much like creating a timestamp of our brains, and it’s the only way we can be 100 percent authentic, because there’s no time to question the what ifs or whys.”

These last few years have been contentious for Atreyu, to say the least. On top of all those YouTube comments and disparaging remarks, the band had the sudden, and at times less than amiable, departure of their harsh vocalist and former front man Alex Varkatzas, to deal with. After reuniting in 2014 after a multi-year hiatus, the band released an album most would consider a back to basics lesson in heaviness with Long Live, but for Saller and the rest of the band, it turned out that the following record, In Our Wake, and the upcoming Baptize were the records that really felt the most freeing and positive to make.

“We love Long Live, but that albums is a product of five dudes who haven’t made aggressive music in almost five years, but it was also a product of us thinking, ‘What do we think people want from us?’ At the end of the day, we were wrong about what people want. People don’t care about that, they just want us to make an ATREYU record, and our fans ride that roller coaster with us.”

And it turns out, Saller, is a master of creating incredibly sticky pop hooks over some pretty aggressive music, YouTube trolls be damned. Anthem is a word that will come up again and again when describing the songs on Baptize, and Saller went on to explain that unless a hook doesn’t stick in his head, it’s not worth putting on an album. “The thing I want out of a song are those big memorable moments, and it takes so much restraint for me to make a song that isn’t in your face with a giant hook,” he explains. “That’s what sets ATREYU apart: it’s aggressive, hard music that slaps you in the face with a pop chorus; a sense of grandiosity to the melody.”

And that is the stuff that the best and most enduring anthems are made of. The runtime of the songs evolved naturally, and Saller wanted to call to mind the grooves and moments on those rock and metal anthems of years past that go off like a bomb in a live setting. With a shakeup in the lineup and Saller stepping to the front to lead the band for the first time, making sure this new record plays well live was a priority. “We focused on those elements of songs where you think ‘This is going to fucking destroy live,” he says. “We’ve given listeners the guide book for the live show in terms of specific moments on certain songs on this record. I want to play a lot of these songs live and we give ourselves reasons to know they’ll connect live.”

Stepping into a front man role for a band isn’t a new game for Saller. He’s been the guitarist and leading man for his hard rock side project HELL OR HIGHWATER for about ten years running, but leading a band with the legacy and fanbase of ATREYU is an entirely different beast all together. It really hit him hardest after getting a trial run after Varkatzas couldn’t travel on a European tour in 2019. “Being in HELL OR HIGHWATER, you would think ‘oh you’re a singer in that band, go be a singer.’ But the energy is completely different, and the music is ten times gnarlier. The vibe on stage is different. But the biggest blessing and challenge for me is wanting to make sure that I’m prepared; that I’m not gassed on stage and to be the healthiest version of myself for my wife, kids, and people coming to see us.”

Going hand in hand with his newfound role is the creative collaboration of Saller and his bandmates on the new record in light of Varkatzas’ departure. He states that each band member is more visible on Baptize than on any other record, and the immediate and authentic songwriting process, greater focus on hooks, and song-centric mindset is all part of the band’s long enduring plan to consistently expand their audience and join their peers on bigger and bigger stages. The band are close friends with their Orange County brethren in AVENGED SEVENFOLD, and when asked if he sees parallels between their careers and whether ATREYU, as Saller states on the album is “underrated” in comparison to their peers, he certainly does recognize the similarities. “They signed to a major label a year and a half before we did, so their ascension started before ours and we also went on hiatus for four years,” he says. “We came back and went ‘All these bands are fucking huge now,’ but it was because they had been doing it for the five years we were away. But that level is all we’ve ever wanted to get to. Every step we take is just to keep growing.:

Saller, like many rock and metal musicians in the current age, is very savvy when it comes to not only embracing the musical tactics that can grab new ears, but also in the marketing and visual methods to connect with fans on a level never seen before. Twitch has become a mainstay of rock and metal artists like Matt Heafy of TRIVIUM, Ronnie Radke of FALLING IN REVERSE, and many others, including Saller. Whether chatting with fans or playing acoustic renditions of ATREYU or HELL OR HIGHWATER songs, the new channel of fan connection and interaction reinforces Saller‘s dedication to fostering and growing the band’s fanbase.

“I think connection and interaction are key,” Saller says. “The days of mystery in music are numbered, and everybody’s on Instagram. Twitch is such a great vehicle for that fan interaction, and it’s also a great thing to have when tour is back in full swing, so we can stream shows for fans who we won’t be able to visit across the world. It’s just another exchange between us and the fans; a little extra bonus.”

It’s admirable listening to how confident Saller is in the path forward for ATREYU. Despite the chatter and talk from online “fans,” he knows that the melodic focus and tight songwriting the band have begun to attack in full force is not something to be berated and lamented. This is an old and outdated way of thinking, and Saller knows better than anyone that hatred of hooks, melody, and pop sensibility in a metal band is backward looking, and that his band is focused on looking forward and blocking out the noise. If his instincts are right, ATREYU may yet reach a whole new level of popularity as COVID begins to taper.

“There’s so much left to accomplish. Persistence is key,” he says. “We’re twenty plus years into this band and it’s just getting rolling.”

Baptize is out now via Spinefarm Records.

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