I know I had jokingly covered these guys before, but I really did enjoy the music that Across The Sun was making and was pleasantly surprised when Josh from Dusks Embrace let me know that he was friends with the guys and would get a hold of them for me. Sam Hafer, whom is the band’s guitarist and also does back up vocals was gracious enough to deal with my smart-ass questions and gave The Number Of The Blog an interview while they were out on their most recent tour, the ‘Lochness MonsTour’.

What is your name? What instrument do you play? How long have you been playing?

My name is Sam Hafer, I play guitar in Across the Sun as well as cover back up harmonies. I have been playing guitar since I was 12 but have played piano and drums as well.

What was the genesis of Across The Sun? How did you guys form?

Across The Sun was formed in 2004 with members that aren’t currently in the lineup, the only original member being Shane, our keyboard player. He was added later. I joined Across The Sun about a year and half ago after they had a falling out with their former guitar player.

You guys are on tour right now, how’s the road been treating you? How have the crowds been? Any interesting stories?

The road’s been great! we have been fortunate enough to find people willing to let us crash at their places in quite a few cities as well as hanging out with the other touring band No Bragging Rights. The crowds have been really awesome, we have sold merch every night and walk away with at least a few new fans every show. Texas and Florida treated us very well!

Keyboards seem to play a major role in the group, was this always the case or was there a time where you guys decided that they needed to be added?

Keys were added around a year after Across The Sun formed, and have been a crucial part of our development not only in the writing process as well as the capability to play a more diverse and dynamic metal than is typically heard today.

You guys have released three EPs now, the most recent being Pestilence And Rapture, do you guys have any plans for a full release?

We are currently on tour and I have been writing as much as I can on the road, we plan on releasing a full length next. Its going to consist of more intensity, more melody, more variation in theme and feel, as well as just plain catchy parts.

Pestilence And Rapture sounds incredibly well produced, did you guys go to a local studio or do you guys have a set up built somewhere?

We went down to Stephen Hawkes at Interlace Audio for our recording down in Portland.

What’s the songwriting process like for you guys? Do you each have separate parts or do you prefer to get together and just shout at each other until you have a song?

Most of the time we all write in our spare time, we tend to bring our best stuff to practice and either say yes or no, and go from there. I spend a lot of time writing things out on Guitar Pro, an amazing computer program, to sort of organize my ideas and present them to the band. We tend to bring a song that is 25-50% complete in to rehearsal and have Alan, our drummer, start working transitions, repetitions and general song structure. I tend to think of each member of ATS as a filter, and by the time a song is done it has gone through 5 different filters and the end product is a pure portrayal of what Across The Sun is.

Where did the idea for the speaking part at the end of ‘Angelic Deception’ come from?

Our singer, Brandon, wrote that song about the former guitar player of Across The Sun, I assume it has to do with the inner workings of their relationship in the band as well as after he and the band parted ways.

Back to touring, you guys have some big shows coming up, such as the Jamboree (Whitechapel, Devil Wears Prada..etc) and the New England Metal And Hardcore festival, how’d you guys land these gigs? You excited for them?

Our manager, Mark Bubb, talked to people in charge of booking those festivals to get us on those shows, so we decided to tour around the festivals after we get back off the LochNess MonsTour.

Where are you guys drawing your inspiration from these days? Do you guys find yourselves listening to a lot of different music now?

If you were to look through our iPods you would find no rock unturned (except country) between all of us there is so much musical influence it’s really hard to see exactly where our primary influence is unless you were to hear the music we write.

If you had to compare your band to one item off of the Taco Bell menu, what would you guys be?

I would say that we would be the 7 layer burrito… just because there are people in the band that are vegetarian, AND there is a lot of variety to that item without it losing its roots. We as a band strive to show as much diversity as possible while retaining the feel that is the fuel behind Across The Sun.

What do you guys consider your local scene to be like? Did you like it or is it relatively quiet? Any bands we should keep an eye on?

Our local scene I feel is a very hard scene to get into… But once you’re in, there are some really awesome people out there that will be there for you forever. When we play Portland it makes us feel like rock stars and its because we have so many loyal fans that are there belting out our songs and throwing down. Almost Is Nothing is a local thrash metal band that has a high level of technicality and some pretty awesome guitar work as well. They work very hard and we have watched them get better and better!

What’s the worst state to drive through been so far? My vote goes to Oregon and its slow goddamned speed limit.

In my experience, driving in Wyoming was the worst… there is literally nothing out there and it is just all hills or desert. If you don’t plan your gas station stops right you can get stranded really easily too. It’s just barren and brutal out there.

Is there anything you would like to add? You guys part of any competitions or something that our users could vote for, etc…

We are in the Ernie Ball Battle of the Bands competition, hit this link once, register, and come back every day you can and vote for us to get on Warped Tour this year! www.battleofthebands.com/acrossthesun

Also, hit us up on Facebook or MySpace and follow us on Twitter!!

Thanks for the interview!

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