The Casting Out interview

I don't know what it was like for you guys but it was a sad day over at PunkRockTheory HQ when BoySetsFire called it a day. Luckily vocalist Nathan is back with a new band called The Casting Out and released a debut album called "Go Crazy! Throw Fireworks!". It's different from what he did before but then again not too different but it's amazing just the same. Here's an email interview we did with the man himself.

PRT: Congratulations with the album… sounds great! It seems like having fun is the keyword now. Is that something you lost sight of before starting The Casting Out?
Nathan: thanks..yeah, to an extent. i definitely had fun, but now it's nice to loosen up, and show it through the music.

PRT: The first songs I heard were a lot more mellow than the ones that made the full-length. How come things became louder and that keyboards didn’t fit into the band’s sound anymore?
Nathan: the more mellow stuff might as well have been my solo project. i actually still intend to pursue that sound later down the road when i have time, but right now we just want to play exciting,fun, and danceable, punk rock music.

PRT: The lyrics seem to be a lot more personal than they used to be in the past. I’m assuming you still have the same beliefs as before but you simply don’t feel the need to talk about them in your songs anymore?
Nathan: exactly..i have not lost any of my more political and social beliefs. just have not felt the need to talk about them yet.

PRT: It seems a political band gets stigmatized just like a Christian band. Was that one of the main reasons you called it a day with BoySetsFire?
Nathan: that is true, although its not why we ended it. we stopped, because it had been 13 years of doing the same thing. also, i personally felt that "the misery index", was a perfect album to go out on. i think christian bands get stigmatized because they tend to say really dumb shit :-)...i saw an interview in fuze with the devil wears prada, and the singer was giving his views on how he believed gay people shouldn't be allowed to marry, and how abortion should be illegal. sorry, but that type of shit makes you an asshole in my eyes. it's unfortunate for religious people with half a brain, that its always the stupid ones, that are the most outspoken.

PRT: There is of course the risk of The Casting Out being pigeonholed as that new band with the singer from BoySetsFire. Have you already gotten a lot of that?
Nathan: of course, and as i've said in other interviews, we are fine with it for now...but after the next album comes out, i won't be responding to boy sets fire questions anymore. it has to end at some point...right?

PRT: The new album is out on Fail Safe Records in the States and Revolver in Europe. How did you end up with them and how are they working out for you?
Nathan: mostly ended up with them because they are friends of ours, and like our music..it's going great with both labels. great people, that do an amazing job.

PRT: The name of the album is “Go Crazy! Throw Fireworks!”. Can you give me three good reasons why people should spend their money on it while we are experiencing an economic crisis?
Nathan: 1. music is probably the only thing that can take anyones mind off of how shitty the world is.
2. it's basically charity work..the more cds you buy, the less we have to worry about the economy. think of all that as good karma :-)
3. i honestly cant think of a third reason.

PRT: I’ve thrown quite some fireworks in my younger days but what’s one of the craziest things you’ve ever done?
Nathan: i couldn't possibly put into print the craziest thing i ever did..but you can bet, it had nothing to do with fireworks.

PRT: I read that “Quixote’s Last Ride” was inspired by the movie “Man Of La Mancha”… are movies a frequent source of inspiration for you? Or what does it take for you to get inspired to write a song?
Nathan: movies in general? no..it's actually quite rare that a movie would inspire me to write a song..i just happen to really like the story and the metaphors involved in that one. mostly i gather inspiration from real life, then i twist it around till its barely noticeable, and there you have it: my lyrics.

PRT: Suppose The Casting Out gets a major label offer anytime soon… would you go for it again after having been on Wind-Up? If so, are there any things you would do differently this time around?
Nathan: hard to say. wind up wasn't technically a major, it was just a stupid move on our part...except for in europe, cause actually sony (an actual major) took very good care of us. we were not so lucky in the states. there are a lot of things i would do differently, and am doing differently. over the many many years of doing music, i have aquired an amazing amount of fuck ups to my resume...fortunately, i have learned from at least a few of them.

PRT: You recently finished your first European tour… how was the overall response?
Nathan: it was great. it's very cool to see our own progression. it started with people coming out, to see "the new bsf band", but now it seems that we are finally finding our own path, and people are starting to appreciate us for us.

PRT: Any last words for our readers?
Nathan: dont start a band :-)