Summon: How did the band get started?
Wesley: In 2008, Gabriel (guitar/keyboard) and Cody (drums) were working together separately, and by chance, met me and Levi (guitar 2008-2009). After talking things through and realizing we all were interested in collaborating, the unnamed project, later to become Immortal Guardian, began to unfold.
Summon: What kind of music do you play?
Wesley: We have been dubbed “Super Metal” by Chris Marchiel from the eOne/Koch Records artist, Powerglove.
Summon: How has the band response been?
Wesley: In general, our response is very positive and has definitely helped us to see how far we can realistically take this band.
Summon: Where did the band name come from?
Wesley: The name came from brainstorming sessions held at CiCi’s Pizza while enjoying the buffet. We basically had a pool of words that we would approve of having in our band name, and we came up with Immortal Guardian.
Summon: Introduce the band members
Wesley: Gabriel Guardian – Guitar/Keyboard
Cody Gilliland – Drums
Wesley McCool – Vocals
Foster Minor – Bass
Jyro Alejo – Guitar
Summon: Who writes the music? Lyrics?
Wesley: Every member has contributed to the musical writing process, however, most the of the music that can be heard now was written by Gabriel and Cody. The majority of the lyrics are done by me, but Gabriel and Foster have also contributed a couple of songs.
Summon: And where do the lyric ideas come from?
Wesley: Mostly faith, personal beliefs/situations, and dreams.
Summon: How many albums/Cd’s have you released?
Wesley: We have released several demos with different tracks, all mixed and mastered differently. Our first EP is set to release sometime in Summer 2011.
Summon: Tell me about some the songs on the latest CD?
Wesley: Our latest demo features “The Great Escape” and “Nevermore.” These songs will be featured on the upcoming EP. The music was written by Gabriel and Cody, and the lyrics were written by me.
Summon: Do you have any side projects?
Wesley: Not at the moment.
Summon: Who are some of your musical influences?
Wesley: Marco Minnemann, Billy Sheehan, Alexi Laiho, Yngwie Malmsteen, Mikael Akerfeldt.
Summon: Which current bands?
Wesley: Iron Maiden, Dream Theater, Symphony X, The Faceless, Between the Buried and Me, Opeth, but we also draw elements from rock, pop, jazz, blues, and classical.
Summon: What is the band like when you play live?
Wesley: Mind blowing, face melting, but we like to have a good time.
Summon: What was the best band you played with?
Wesley: We have played with many great bands, but Symphony X is by far the biggest.
Summon: Have you guys ever played in another country?
Wesley: No, but we are hoping to hit parts of Mexico and Canada within the near future, and possibly Europe when the funds and promotion are available.
Summon: How big of crowd shows up at shows usually?
Wesley: We have played in front of crowds with over 800 people, but also played a show in front of the sound guy. It really depends on the promotion – if it’s good, the turnout is usually nice.
Summon: How is the crowd response when you play?
Wesley: We have had some crowds that just seem to stand there as if they are trying to take it all in, but we’ve also had some pretty intense mosh pits.
Summon: What do you think of the US Metal scene?
Wesley: The U.S. metal scene seems to follow trends as opposed to raw musical talent, but there are a lot of amazing bands out there that the rest of the country doesn’t know about.
Summon: What do you think of the Overseas Metal scenes?
Wesley: Because we haven’t played any shows over there, I’d say my answer would be a bit biased, but it seems that some countries have a very strong connection to metal, as if it is a way of life.
Summon: What made you want to be in this band? And if you weren’t what would you being doing now?
Wesley: Passion for music led us to where we are today. I’m sure if we weren’t in this band, we’d be doing something else with music performance, most likely another project.
Summon: When do you guys plan on writing any new material?
Wesley: We try to follow a write, record, tour cycle, but sometimes the writing mood just comes about, so we are always writing new riffs, but it takes a while to put it together and structure it to become a final piece.
Summon: What does the future hold for the band??
Wesley: We’ll see – hopefully good things.
Contact them at:
http://immortalguardian.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/igmetal
https://myspace.com/immortalguardianmetal
https://www.reverbnation.com/immortalguardian
https://www.youtube.com/user/immortalguardianband
