The combination of electronica and heavy music is one that’s hard to master; it either comes across as cheesy, over indulgent, boring or lacking balance in both elements of the sound. Finally, three albums in, I See Stars seem to have honed the craft, as displayed with new record ‘Digital Renegade’. With a set confirmed at this year’s Slam Dunk Festival, we spoke with lead singer Devin Oliver to see why we need to catch their performance, upcoming plans and more:
DP!: How are you guys looking forward to playing this year’s Slam Dunk Festival?
Devin: Honestly, it’s going to be the highlight of our European tour. We couldn’t be more excited.
DP!: This year has began catering towards more of a heavier audience with the line-up, do you think that’s going to affect the vibe of the festival?
Devin: Yes, absolutely, but not in a bad way. I think people that listen to heavier music tend to move around a lot more. So I think it will make for a more energetic vibe.
DP!: Your new album ‘Digital Renegade’ was released in March this year, just over a year since previous album ‘The End Of The World Party’. Howcome the release of a follow-up came about so quickly after?
Devin: The truth is we never stop writing music. A few months after ‘TEOTWP’ we already had half the new album written, and because we anticipated it to be heavier and ‘TEOTWP’ was a lot lighter we just wanted to make fast moves, so people didn’t get the idea that we were going lighter.
DP!: ‘Digital Renegade’ features guest vocal appearances from Danny Warsnop of Asking Alexandria and Cassadee Pope of Hey Monday. How did their contributions to the record come about?
Devin: Being label mates, we’ve been good friends with Danny for a while now. While recording the album we found the perfect part for him and he was down. Cassadee on the other hand I’d met on the Vans Warped Tour in 2010. I’ve always been a fan of her, so when we decided we wanted a girl on ‘Electric Forest’ she was our first choice.
DP!: There’s an awful lot of different bands on this year’s line-up. Why should people come and catch your set?
Devin: I think if people like our music then they should definitely make sure they catch our set. Unfortunately we don’t get to come that way as much as we would like to, so this is their chance. On the contrary, we are making it a point to visit more often. But, still, we just released a new album and are looking forward to showing it off live, haha.
DP!: Will you be letting yourself go at the after party once all the bands have finished up?
Devin: Of course!
DP!: What do you guys have planned after Slam Dunk is over?
Devin: We’re working on some collaborations with other artists as well as just touring all the time. Also, we will be working on the music videos.
SET TIME: 3:15-3:45 (North – Leeds) / 3:00-3:30 (South – Hatfield) – Honour Over Glory stage
RIYL: Woe, Is Me / Asking Alexandria / Enter Shikari
LISTEN TO: Filth Friends Unite / The End Of The World Party (below) / What This Means To Me
Tags: I See Stars, Slam Dunk Festival
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