INTERVIEW: Drew Hamley – I Fight Bears

Having come onto the scene with a big sound (check out our Introducing article), and an even bigger presence, I FIGHT BEARS are set to become a real name in the scene. Having just released their debut, self-titled album, we talked with Drew Hamley (bass & vocals), bass and vocals, who took some time to dissect and give an insight into the ins and out’s of one of the most promising new Welsh bands.

The album has a great intensity, a constant growing power from song to song. How did you find the balance between the tracks?

Drew: We developed each track from a large number of demos we’d put together. We found that playing these demos live gave us a new insight into audience reception and reaction, and made some changes during the production stages that really helped us to craft what the I FIGHT BEAR‘s sound now is. We eventually managed to whittle this down to 10 tracks, and after some outside opinions on track arrangement, settled on the final order we have today.

From the singles people have heard, which is your favourite and why?

Drew: Each single has a special place in my heart for different reasons but the one track I like to listen to would have to be Hammers. It’s very much our calling card as a band and manages to embody what each of us brings to the table within the band.

In terms of writing, did you want to create an album with flow, or a solid bunch of tracks that tackle independent messages?

Drew: For us, we weren’t seeking a conceptual approach but a message and intent on a track by track basis. So each track can work well as part of an album but also can stand on its own as a single.

The album comes out February 16, how are you feeling about people being able to hear the complete album?

Drew: Incredibly excited. The response we’ve had from press, reviews and our live performances so far has been overwhelming. It invigorates us and helps us to feel that we’re doing something right that should continue.

You’ve noted that you have found inspiration from bands like KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and LAMB OF GOD, but obviously you’ve taken that metalcore sound to a new level. How do you think the genre has evolved between bands like LAMB OF GOD coming out, and yourselves?

Drew: We’ve had many comparisons to the original heavy weights of metalcore and that leaves us feeling content because these are bands we love. Our mission statement as a band was to create something we would be happy to own and listen to in our record collections. A lot of bands feel the path to success is to create music they feel others would want to listen to. I disagree. Make something you want to make first and foremost.

How was it to pretty much totally self-record this album? Was it hard work or quite liberating?

Drew: It had it’s good and bad moments in equal measure. The good part was having the time and creative freedom to form and sculpt our own brand of music the way that we wanted it. The only negative aspect I feel is that we took longer to reach our goal because we weren’t under pressure to finish production. That’s not so much a bad thing as it gave us more thinking time to correct anything we felt wasn’t working.

South Wales seems to have a reputation for producing some great bands. What do you think it is that inspires you all?

Drew: I think it’s largely written into the Welsh spirit ha ha. I can’t speak for every Welsh person out there but my passion for writing and performing music came from listening to my brothers album collection when I was a youngster. He had loads of great vinyls like IRON MAIDEN, METALLICA, ANTHRAX, MEGADETH. And those records got into my head and gave me the bug to write and play music.

You also worked a little with Micheal Paget and Gav Burrough, can you talk a little about having those guys to work with?

Drew: The music community in Bridgend is very strong and supportive of each other. We’re friends with Gav and other members of FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND and he really liked what we were coming up with in our early days of being a band. He was setting up his recording studio Tidy Studios at the time so we came in the studio with him and recorded and produced our first two singles. Michael Paget of BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE is a personal friend of mine who I’ve worked on a number of studio projects with. We help each other out where we can and he’s a big supporter of I FIGHT BEARS. It was a no brainer to bring him in on the final stages of our debut record. His many years of success in the music industry as a musician and a producer was that necessary outside influence we needed to oversee the final stages of our record.

In terms of playing live, what do you like to achieve most from a live show?

Drew: We all love to play and have fun but ultimately we work hard to play the best shows that we can at the time and engage the audience as best we can. Shows are over in such a short time so you want to leave a lasting impression with potential fans so they keep coming back for more. If people walk away excited by what we do then we’ve done our jobs.

What is the plan for I FIGHT BEARS for the rest of 2018?

Drew: Our plan is promote the hell out of this record and play as much as we can to support that. We’re also going to lock in some time to begin work on our follow up record. There’s already a load of potential songs in the works. Watch this space!

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