Boston hardcore band SICK MINDS (members of RAT TRAP, Taxi Driver, Kimachi and Swept Away) have dropped their action packed 10-tracker “Too Dumb Too Die” in December via Bandcamp, and the album is now available on cassette on Ugly and Proud Records. Despite their experience and about 6 years of existence, SICK MINDS feels like a rising force of American heavy hardcore scene and with their violent-action-packed riffs are definitely one of the hottest East Coast bands to watch this year.
“We’ve been a band for about 5 years, and I think we can all agree that these are the best songs we’ve ever put out.” – says vocalist Travic LeSaffre. “We started writing these tracks before the pandemic started, and really honed them in during the lockdown.”
Speaking about the conept behind “Too Dumb Too Die“, Travis says that the idea behind the album was to try to make a record that exuded the frustration the group has felt in their personal lives, while really making sure they had “some dumb heavy riffs”.
“That’s sort of where the name “Too Dumb to Die” came in. We were lucky enough to get two amazing guests on the album. Bryan Harris of the legendary Death Before Dishonor did a feature in our track Victim. That guy was awesome and I’m amped to see them really hitting the road again. Everyone should be jamming them. Then our good homie Peter Noonan of Psychic Weight ripped it on Gaia is Bleeding.”
THE LYRICS
“The lyrics here are all pretty damn dark.” – comments vocalist Travis LeSaffre. “Personally, I suffer from some mental health issues and tried to use this album as a way to express it.”
“I remember a night when we were going over the songs as well as their lyrics, and I just pointed to the tracks on the practice space whiteboard saying: “This one’s about how I hate myself and I want to die. So this one… and that one… and that one. But these are different dudes, they’re about how I hate religion and also cops.” We had a bit of a laugh about that. I think our sense of humor is what sets us apart from other bands. We don’t take ourselves too seriously and have a lot of fun busting each other’s balls.”
“Too Dumb To Die” was recorded and mixed by Zach Weeks of God City and mastered by Brad Boatright of AUDIOSIEGE . Danny Clark of Hobo’s Tattoo Shop did the killer artwork, while Bryan from Death Before Dishonor and Pete of Psychic Weight contributed guest vocals.
RECORDING
“God City is an absolutely killer studio.” – says Travis. “I have never been so in awe of the setup of where we’re recording. It also helps that the neighborhood it is located in is tight as hell. Also, I can’t underline enough just how awesome it was to work with Zach Weeks. Not only was homeboy able to put up with our nonsense, but he also got us the exact sound we wanted.”
“Every time we wanted something to sound heavier or dumber, Zach was ready with a couple of ideas to make it so. I can not recommend working with him enough. Dude rips.”
THE RELEASE
Asked about the distrubution of the new record, Travis confirms that they are releasing the album on cassette tape via Ugly & Proud. “Eventually, we will have CDs for those who just crave physical media.”
“James Hanlon and Garrett Gordon wrote most of the riffs, with Zac Rosetto and Tommy Luzaitis helping to fill out some additional guitar riffs, drums, and structural ideas. All I do is write lyrics and try to vaguely describe riffs by saying “it should sound something like dun-dun bweeeee dun-dun” until they tell me to leave the room.” – he laughs.
TOURING
For now, SICK MINDS is planning a weekend run for the summer of 2022 and then a West Coast tour in January of 2023.
“It seems a bit risky to book tours for the next few months in case we see any more lockdowns.” – admits Travis. “In the mean time we’ll be playing some local shows and making a few music videos to keep promoting the album.”
THE COVID ERA
Asked about their take on the COVID era, Travis confirmed that the coronavirus absolutely obliterated their original recording plan, which was to enter the studio in December 2020.
“Our drummer tested positive the week before our recording date, causing us to have to delay recording until the summer of 2021.” – says Travis. “While it originally felt like a kick in the dink, the delay helped us finalize the songs and flesh out any doubts that we had. I can’t imagine we would have gotten the sound and quality we wanted without a few more months of fine-tuning.”
“The pandemic was horrendous in the death and financial ruin it caused, but I think it helped remind people that hardcore is an important part of their life. Local shows have definitely seen more attendance now that people realize just how damn quickly it can all go away.”
BOSTON HARDCORE
While the Boston area can sometimes have a clear divide in the scene, Travis admits that they are seeing some more crossover now that the pandemic is slowing down a little.
“The real MVPs of making hardcore come back heavier than ever are the promoters busting their asses to keep it alive. Top of the list is Gatekeeper Jam in Brockton. Those dudes absolutely rule and genuinely are putting that city back on the map as the mecca of hardcore.”
“There are so many great bands in the Boston area right now. I’d want to highlight a few” – recmmends Travis.
Street Power
Adrienne
Psychic Weight
Death Before Dishonor
Risk
Colin of Arabia
Fore more hardcore tips, SICK MINDS shared their list of bands they “do be fuckin’ with and what not.” Check it out below!
