we have power and need to stand up

Would you please give our readers a brief bio of the band and list the current members?

Tenth Amendment started as a side project for me (OCD Adam).  I was drumming in a few other bands at the time, but none were the style I was looking for, so I started writing and recording on my own.  After completing the first album, Joe Damage and Logan Romanowicz joined the band.  Due to other commitments, our previous vocalist, Cory, left the band and our current vocalist, Bobby, joined and recorded the vocals for our upcoming album, Conviction, thus completing our current lineup.

Bobby Cathers – Vocals
Logan Romanowicz – Guitar
Joe Damage – Guitar
OCD Adam – Drums

Self Evident, your first album, seems to be very political lyrically in nature.  Can you tell us why this is?

Self-Evident is definitely a political album, and Conviction takes the message of the band to the next level.  One of the things we want to accomplish with our music is to communicate a message about what is going on in the world and get people thinking about these large issues that are often ignored.  A lot of the songs, and the band name itself, serve to remind people that we have power and need to stand up for what we think is right.

The band is labeled as Industrial metal. Do you agree with this? Also do you feel genre labeling is a good thing for a band or not?

I think it fits in a general way.  Our music features a lot of industrial elements.  Labeling can be tough because it doesn’t always capture a band perfectly.  Sometimes, an inaccurate label can turn listeners off from a band they might otherwise like.  However, labeling does give people a general idea of the style of a band.

The reason I asked the previous question is that I hear bits of punk, groove and heavy metal and Metalcore in your songs.Do you feel this is an accurate description of your music and if so is this due to your musical influences?

I think your description of our influences is accurate.  Each of us in the band has our own influences and we bring that all to the songs we write.  There’s definitely elements from each of these genres in our music.

I know you have a new album out.  Are you the sole writer, or are the other members involved?

The new album was collaborative.  I think listeners will notice a lot of new elements in Conviction.  At our core, it’s still Tenth Amendment, but Joe and Logan brought the guitar work to the next level on this album with more complex rhythms, melodies, and solos.  I had to step out of my comfort zone and experiment with the drums to match the riffs Joe and Logan were producing.  Bobby did a great job varying his style, while still maintaining the aggressive sound.  The production of the album is also more polished, as we took more time in crafting the tones, layering electronics and samples, and mixing it.

What are your plans for 2016? Any tours or new projects in the works?

The new album will be available later this month, so we’ll be playing a lot of shows to support that.

Is there anything you’d like our readers to know about the band that I may not have covered?

Check us out at www.TenthAmendmentMetal.com.  We have a ton of music and videos available to stream and download as well as our tour dates.

My final question I’d like to ask is what is the metal scene like where you are from? Are there a lot of fans and venues to play at? Also do you get radio play?

We’re from Philadelphia, and the local metal scene has a lot of awesome bands that we love performing with.  There’s a lot of talent in the area.  There’s also a few great venues in the area that have been very supportive of metal.  Radio, however, is not too favorable to metal in Philly.  There are only a few terrestrial radio stations that play rock, but none that play metal.  We’ve been fortunate to have the support of a lot of internet radio stations that play our music.  I think internet radio is a great resource for both bands and listeners looking for new music.