AN INTERVIEW WITH EYESOFSORROW

1. Thanks for agreeing to do this interview! Would you please introduce yourself, what you do in the band, and just give some general context about the band’s formation?

Lex: Hi, I’m Lex, I do vocals. The band was definitely something that was a long time coming for us, it was talked about for a while before we really sat down together and started to write/discuss what we wanted to lean into. I had originally posted in the Twin Cities Hardcore Discord about wanting to start a band and Connor was the one to reach out there. After that, it was just discussion between friends in the scene here about doing something in the future and then it rolled into motion the summer/fall of 2024.

Connor: Hello, I’m Connor, I play guitar. I was excited when I saw Lex’s post about wanting to form this band. I had played bass in three bands by that time, but wanted to finally be a guitarist in a band.

Landon: Hey thanks for asking us, this is cool! I’m Landon I play guitar.

Magz: Hey thank you for interviewing us! My name is Magz and I play bass.

2. How did you get into heavy music in the first place and what drove you to want to play it?

Connor: My dad likes heavy music, and I think that his taste in music has been foundational in my own taste. In 2008, he went to see his favorite band, Dream Theater, and two of the other bands on the bill were Opeth and Between The Buried And Me. These three bands are some of my favorites now. When I first started finding music that I liked on my own, I heard “Fade To Black” by Metallica, and that really got me interested in playing guitar.

Lex: I would say my introduction to heavier music was similar to Connor’s. I grew up with AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Metallica, Beastie Boys, Social Distortion on the radio in the car with my granddad or aunts. After that it really stuck with me. Warped Tour was like wonderland for me at 12, seeing all these crazy bands I only listened to on YouTube and downloaded from Limewire.

3. Who would you say are the band’s primary influences?

Connor: I would say that what influences me does not align with what the other members are influenced by. When I am trying to write a song for us, I actively avoid listening to any metalcore, as I think if I were to write metalcore based on metalcore, the result would sound too diluted. I am inspired broadly by metal, and most frequently find myself getting inspired by melodic music. At the foundation, Lex described a style that they were hoping the band would go towards; a couple bands they pointed to were xELEGYx and Disembodied.

4. So you’ve got two releases under your belt at this point. Talk to us about the first one, the March 2025 EP Deep Graves for Shallow Hearts. What themes do you explore, and what was the writing and recording process like?

Landon: Yeah that was a really fun process. As soon as we started practicing together, we started writing and we were very much learning how to work as a band throughout the writing process and I think it shows how we grew throughout. “Lamb” was the first song we wrote together and the title track was the final song we wrote before recording. I think it shows how we figured out what kind of music we wanted to make throughout that first almost year of practicing before we started recording. The recording process for that first EP was awesome. Shout out Max Myrvik who helped us record, we tracked guitars and vocals in his apartment and drums in his practice space and he made it a very fun and relaxed process. I’m glad we got to work with him.

Lex: A lot of the emotion and experiences I pull from are things I never got to get off my chest or fully feel, life keeps going the world keeps spinning kind of deal. I’ve been sober and in recovery for a little over 6 years now, but before that it ran my life, and still runs the lives of people closest to me, who were supposed to be there for me. After we recorded everything and I listened to the project all the way through I think I came to the conclusion that it was about a child needing that guidance and not knowing where to look, and finding their way despite it all, finding what they don’t want and overcoming the parts of themselves that would drag them down.

5. In January, Divine Convergence dropped, a three-way split with Khopesh. and xMERCYx. How did that come about?

Lex: Ever since we met Khopesh we had talked about doing something together, and then we played OKC for Khopesh’s release last year in March. xMERCYx played that show as well, and immediately we both messed with each other’s sound. A few people threw the idea out there and then we worked together to set it up. It took a little longer than we expected to finally get everything lined up, but it was definitely worth it to coordinate and make it happen for all of us. It’s something we’re proud of everyone on there of.

6. For listeners who haven’t heard it yet, what can they expect?

Magz: I think it’s truly all three bands’ best work yet. Every single band on the split has upgraded their sound tremendously from the demo eras and it is incredibly well put together and cohesive songs. 6 songs of straight capital M metalcore. We definitely took a more “in your face” approach for the songs on the split and it was great to feel like we upgraded our sound from our first EP. Khopesh & xMERCYx blew us away with their tracks on the split from the first time we ever got to listen to them. There is truly something for everyone on this project. Fast songs, triumphant riffs, heavy mosh, everything that makes you want to dance.

7. You’ve already been out on the road this year. How did that go?

Magz: Going on tour with Khopesh and xMERCYx was some of the most fun I think we’ve had yet. It was waking up every day and hanging out with our friends, rocking out, and just doing anything we want with the coolest people. Touring with two other bands was such a fun experience and it always gave us something to look forward to every day. I hope we can do it again sometime, maybe even this summer.

8. What else have you got on the docket for this year?

Landon: Coming up in just a week (at the time I’m saying this) we have our first solo tour. We’ll just be doing a week through the Midwest and I’m excited to play a lot of places we haven’t been as a band yet. After that we got a home show with some out of town friends and then it’s back to the writing process. Always trying to write for whatever future releases we may have… might have something later this year even?

Connor: I would like to tour to some places we haven’t been yet, and I would like for us to write more songs. But that stuff is too hard, so we’ll just break up, and then play a few reunion shows throughout the year.

9. Curious to get your thoughts on this. I don’t feel like metalcore is so much at a crossroads as it’s kind of just splintered into a couple of different dominant sub-types (revivalcore, Linkin Park-core, etc.). It’s a massive tent genre-wise, and I actually think that’s a good thing, even if, say, the bands still trying to do Sempiternal aren’t necessarily your bag. Reason being, like all genres, there will be plenty of copy-paste acts, but if it’s being pulled in multiple directions, I would argue the exchange of influences and ideas can result in some really cool and innovative music. If things ossify, the genre withers and dies. Metalcore currently feels like it’s in the same place death metal was in when black metal was spawned as a reaction to what was perceived as the excessive polish of many of the premier acts of the era. I don’t know that it ultimately creates totally separate genres, but certainly the reaction against the MacBook metalcore has resulted in a number of excellent bands getting back to the spirit of the genre and not just recapturing that more organic feel but also finding there’s a lot more territory to explore there. Sorry for the essay, ha! I just feel like the genre is in an interesting and ultimately consequential place for its future!

Connor: When early waves of thrash metal, and even some death metal bands arose, they just referred to themselves as metal bands. Later, as the styles they contributed to forming became more established, the style was given a more specific term. I think it will be interesting to see in the coming years whether we see any new terms applied to the varying sounds that fit under the umbrella term of Metalcore. I agree that the genre is at an interesting point. I think the hardcore scene may be the best it’s ever been, although it’s difficult to make that claim when I’ve only been a part of the scene for a few years. Because the scene is thriving, there seems to be a constant stream of new metalcore releases to listen to, so much so that I think the genre is almost oversaturated. More music is never a real problem, but I think that the high concentration of metalcore may grow tiring to fans. As trends change, more people will move on to some other genre, then the cycle will repeat after a few years, with a few exciting bands starting another influx into metalcore.

10. Last question, a fun one I often like to close with: if you were stranded on a desert island by yourself and could only have five albums with you to listen to, what would they be?

Connor: Among The Living by Anthrax, Polygondwanaland by King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard, The Great Misdirect by Between The Buried And Me, Check Your Head by Beastie Boys, and Mr. Bungle by Mr. Bungle

Lex: If God Only Knew The Rest Were Dead by Disembodied, In Concert Pt. 1 (live) by Joan Baez, Prayers Upon Deaf Ears by Arkangel, Brand New Eyes by Paramore, From Under The Cork Tree by Fall Out Boy

Magz: The Rain In Endless Fall by Prayer for Cleansing, 2 Alivë by Yeat, Mob Justice by The Rival Mob, New Jazz by Lunchbox and With Devils Amongst Us All by Walls of Jericho

PHOTO CREDIT: AUBRIE SUTHERLAND (@foundlastphoto)