Three Sixes stormed back onto the scene with their blistering new release ‘Welcome To The New World Order’ which was released last month. The electrifying track serves as a rebellious anthem fusing thrash and industrial metal tackling the rising tensions of political unrest, economic instability, and social division. Time for us to introduce the band to you through some poignant questions!
Hi! Could you introduce yourself, your genre, and who inspires your music?
Damien (vocals): At this point, I’d consider us industrial thrash. We all have different influences, but share common ground on many bands. For me, Black Sabbath and Slayer are huge, but I also love the energy from the New York hardcore scene as well as kickass rock like AC/DC along with many others.
Kill: I handle the riffs and recorded the bass for the new album. Along with Blake on drums/programming, we make up the other 66.6% of the band. Too many influences to name, for sure. Anything and everything from Pantera, Stuck Mojo, Machine Head and into more radio friendly pop/punk. The late 90s / early 2000s made such an impact musically, it’s hard to deny the influence from so many great bands of that era.
How long have you been in a band and what or who started your musical journey?
Blake: I’ve been playing in bands for almost 20 years since early high school. I grew up around musicians and have always had a liking for drums, so I was encouraged from a young age to pursue it. The bands I grew up with included Oingo Boingo, Slayer, Pantera, Megadeth, and many others, and in my teenage years I found my own liking for more progressive bands like Dream Theater, and later orchestral metal bands like SepticFlesh.
Damien: I’ve been playing for close to 30 years. I was drawn towards the energy that thrash brought. I’d go to the shows, be in the pits, crowd surfed and stage-dived. It was fun. I wanted to be a part of creating that energy and part of the reason that other people would want to do the same. I took guitar lessons for about a year until a friend talked me into singing and the rest is history.
Kill: I put the brakes on my relationship with baseball once I saw Pantera live. Opened up my eyes, for sure. I grew up in the Atlanta area, and Rich Ward from Stuck Mojo was a massive influence on my playing, and as I was still a high school kid, it really made an impact knowing how cool of a guy and supportive of the music scene he was (and continues to be). One of the last shows of the first band I played in, before I moved from Atlanta to Las Vegas, was sharing the stage with the guys who would become Sevendust. I can’t remember if they were Rumblefish, Crawlspace or another name, but it was a memorable experience for me. I’ve been in and out of bands, done random solo crap, etc since I was in my late teenage years. I’m pretty sure I’ve flown under the radar.
Which achievements that you’ve achieved within your musical career are you most proud of?
Damien: I’ve been a part of several records that I’m very proud of, and worked with some really amazing people. We opened for some killer bands that we’d been fans of. Too many to list, but lots of great, unforgettable times.
Blake: The most accolades I’ve gotten was from the high school drumline, I was fortunate enough to work with a group where we won the state and world championships all 4 years I was involved. Through that, we were asked to play an intermission at a Keith Urban concert at the Staples Center, and that was a very quick but very surreal experience. It took a lot of work to reach the level we performed at, but it was an important lesson in discipline and growth that I continue to try and expand on.
Kill: I’ll say I’m honoured we’ve shared the stage, whether it be headlining or in a supporting role, with any and all of the bands we have had the pleasure of doing so. I’m not sure what “accolades” come to mind…I feel our evolution in song writing and structure make me most proud.
Who would you like to work with and where would you like to perform in the next three years?
Damien: Considering we just finished this record, I’m not thinking of working with anyone else at the moment. I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes before writing any more tunes. We put a lot of work into this and I think we’re all excited to see the reception of it. In the next three years, I’d love to play out of the country. Hopefully South America or even Europe. We’ll see what happens.
Kill: I agree…UK/Europe and South America top the list for me, as well.
What do you enjoy most about being in a band and releasing music?
Blake: I enjoy the experience of putting songs together in a way that exceeds the vision I had for it. It’s a fulfilling experience, and once I’m able to share that creation with others, it’s cool to see who connects with it.
Damien: I’ll double down on what Blake said. This record in particular, definitely exceeded my expectations and they were set pretty high.
Your latest is a rebellious anthem, do you think rebelliousness, politics, and music are connected or would you rather steer away from politics?
Damien: In the past, I have gone out of my way to avoid politics by mainly focusing on history, horror, war, murder, the hypocrisy of religion, etc. This time around I feel the world is at a breaking point. For better or worse, history is unfolding before our eyes. We are living in some of the craziest times in human history. It was affecting the way I thought and how I approached the lyrics. Lyrically, it’s the most current/timely record I’ve ever done. I talked to Kill and Blake before writing my parts on all of the songs. Luckily, we were all on the same page and the result is the new record. I’m really proud of what we made.
Blake: Politics has always found its way into music. There’s plenty of people who don’t appreciate it and that’s fine, but there’s also others who enjoy the introspection of the artist’s views and different perspectives. It’s just a matter of what message you want to tie to the energy of the song. Although, I personally prefer messaging that can lend itself to multiple interpretations.
Your album is coming next year, what has been the process of writing and recording the album; where and how as well as with who did you write your music and how did you find the right people to work with?
Blake: The album was written by the three of us, with a few ideas that Johnny had left us. Overall, Kill wrote a majority of the guitar parts and arrangements. Once we had that set, I would write drum parts to determine what energy I could bring, and then Damien took that and created the lyrics and messaging. We worked out the song order, and then I was able to put together some backing tracks and samples that tied all the songs together.
Damien: Again, I’m gonna agree with Blake. He and Kill found a good formula together. By the time the songs got to me, I just had to confirm the arrangements. The songs were really clean. I basically had nothing I wanted to re-arrange or change. They just worked “as is” and writing the lyrics on these outstanding foundations was really cool. The additional programming Blake added really put it over the top.
What can people expect from your album and why should they listen to it?
Damien: I think people can expect an energy level that we’ve never had before. They can expect a great flow overall. Blake had mentioned that he wanted us to create “an album experience” for the listener and I think it was achieved. They should listen to it because it’s a great, unapologetic, honest and aggressive record.
Blake: If people are frustrated with the state of politics and feeling like their voice is being drowned out, hopefully this album can provide some solace. The attitude of this album is very much an outlet for those frustrations.
Kill: First and foremost, the progression of Three Sixes and of us as individual songwriters and musicians. The album is exceptional, and we are very proud of what we have created. I’d agree with my bandmates here, and for fans and new listeners alike to join us on this journey through chaos and frustrations for the current state of the World.
Anything else you’d like to mention that is coming up, or do you hope will happen soon, any goals and or dreams you’d like to call into existence?
Damien: While we only write music that we love, it’s always great when it’s well received. Even more so, when it’s done on our own terms. It adds another level of gratification. I’d really like to play in Europe, as I’ve never been there before, but I try to not look too far ahead. Right now, I’m just really glad we finished this record and I’m going to enjoy the process of watching what it will do.
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