Unteachers

A Human Comedy might just be the best album you haven’t heard…

The Unteachers album A Human Comedy made one of our Top 10 lists for last year, and funny enough it also made my list back in 2013. Stephen Mark Sorro (Tantrum of the Muse) is the man behind the band, and we were slated to do an interview a long time ago; fortunately, we finally got it done, but I wish that I had made it happen to coincide with the release of A Human Comedy. It is here now, and Stephen gives us the rundown on who is (and isn’t) in the band, how it came together, and thoughts about the future.

Steve Ruff: Can you give me the breakdown on who is in the band and who recorded on the album?

Steven Mark Sorro: Unteachers is me myself and I. Sadly, I am without a drummer and bassist. Unteachers is primarily my vision, but I don’t prefer to write everything myself and would much prefer to build off of the chemistry of a fantastic rhythm section, but I struggle with finding people who can play. I am actually trying to get Udrick (TOTM) to play for the next album/live. He is so busy though. Jim (TOTM) also agreed he would do bass, but he is literally on the other side of the country from me, so I am trying to avoid file passing type stuff. It’s a bummer. I am not your typical “impossible to work for control freak” and actually, within the realms of what makes Unteachers work, there is a ton of freedom for people to bring their own vision to the table, but the problem is where I am located, there is just no music scene. It’s very unfortunate. I’m open to audition anybody in or around Lancaster, PA, where I am currently located. Distance has played a major part in not having the band together. When we would get together, it felt like 1 step forward, 2 steps backward. It was just too much of a musical project to not dedicate more time to. Sad.

When I started making A Human Comedy back in 2010 (and honestly, I tried to make it in 2007 also) it was just me and my cousin Travis Turner, who played in Crutch, Solamors, and Aletheian, and he comes from a progressive metal side, which was perfect because I wanted to do something more progressive this time around. About a year into arranging the songs, we added Josh Kale to the mix. Josh is childhood friend of Travis’s, and I have known him for quite some time also. He had been playing bass for a bunch of projects locally, mostly with Travis. Once we had a power trio, we had the challenge of nailing down the songs as a live band, as well as find the time to get to the studio to record songs. We all lived 2 hours apart. The studio was far from most of us. It was brutal.

But despite the reality that Unteachers is a solo project of mine, the record is all real performances, microphones leaning on amps and drums. Travis, Josh and myself, and we poured our hearts out onto these songs and they are very personal to each of us.

How did you guys all meet, and what bands have you played in before?

People may know this but I had some short lived mild success in a touring band called Tantrum Of The Muse, which had a reputation for being confrontational, and angry. We wanted to make people uncomfortable, and that we did. Due to this reputation, the band seemed to have a lasting effect on many people, especially if you saw TOTM live. It was pretty intense stuff.

As I stated, Travis had been playing in mostly local bands that were not really going anywhere. I knew he was a complete power house of a drummer who just struggled to find the right band, and I pride myself in setting him up with the Crutch/Aletheian guys, who would go on to do some fantastic work together

Josh Kale was in a band called My Brother The Wood Maker, with Travis, and writes solo mostly. He was the only one who unfortunately did not tour or anything like that.

Give me the breakdown on how the album is available…

Because of the weird state that the “band” is in, Veritas Vinyl decided to pay for half, and I funded the other half, which is why it never came out last year, despite being turned in. So, I paid for half. The album is available through Veritas Vinyl. They are practically giving the album away, which is kind of a bittersweet thing I guess, but you can buy the album from them for like $12 or something crazy, on vinyl. 3 different colors.

It is also available through Veritas Vinyl as a digital download, and I will be selling the vinyl also, and will also offer some album themed shirts, through my own moniker The Tourist Trap, which is a podcast show I do. This really fun surreal tripped out musical show, which is now branching out into record label territory. Basically I plan to fund and publish all my own past, present and future music through The Tourist Trap. You can order the album both digitally/LP at www.veritasvinyl.net and definitely check out the podcast at www.thetouristtrap.net.

What was the writing process for the album?

Well, after Tantrum Of The Muse broke up, I kind of intended to just keep that vision going through a new band with a new name. I didn’t want to just move on with TOTM without the guys I had in the band. There is no way to be TOTM without Jim and Udrick, but because I wrote most of those songs, at least the backbone of the songs, I was very confident in moving on and doing something else, something better. So after TOTM broke up I started to demo the songs that I intended to use for a 3rd TOTM. In some ways A Human Comedy is that record still, because while it did take on different forms throughout the years of making it, I purposely maintained an element of the sound TOTM had because I hated how TOTM ended, and that was very natural, too. Also, I have memories of thinking I wanted the follow up to TOTM’s last album to be more positive and not so depressing. So basically I started writing around 2004. I wrote a few songs, then stopped because things were not working out. Then in 2007, I started Unteachers as a live band in Baltimore, MD with some friends, and I had written “Cusp,” “Higher Horses,” and “Fear Of Silence” during that time. Things did not work out, pretty typical of post TOTM music for me.

Then in 2010, I started working with Travis, and by then I had the idea that I wanted the album to showcase my journey in finding the true gospel/Christianity for the very first time in my life. I was raised Christian, I believed Jesus was God, but I was broken. Too much weird charismatic insanity growing up. I left the church around 1997 and did not walk back into church with any intention of having a church community again until 2008/9. So its 2010, I’m committed to a great church, and I’m getting a lot of healing from my bitterness and the confusion. I’m learning about God’s grace, I had really discovered Jesus in a very real way, and this was inspiring to me, so i had decided i wanted to show a very real time line from being de-churched and broken, full of fear and anxiety, to finding peace in Jesus, and wanting to share that change, kind of a testimony, on the album. Its kind of like a backward “The Wall” by Pink Floyd. Heh.

But apart from writing the songs, when we had that brief moment as a 3 piece, I just demoed the songs and hummed the melodies as I was working out my lyrics, and the guys in the band took the parts and for the most part improved on them, and made it their own. Travis had some direction with what I was looking for in each song but he wrote his drum parts. He would do something too straight forward and aggressive over a part, and I would say to him “No man, do some Stewart Copeland over this riff” and he would immediately know what the feel should be. Josh took the riffs and added some things to what was already written and made things a little more colorful because he is a bassist. There are some bass lines on the album where the timing was already weird between bass/guitar and the drums, but then Josh would go off into some even weirder timing, and then all 3 of us were doing something totally clashing but it worked. “Swim With A knife,” in particular, is an example of this. And all 3 of us had some say over the other elements. Josh came up with the xylophone melody and played that. I did most of the keyboards and weird stuff you hear. The theramin you hear on the album is a 99 cent app from my smart phone I plugged straight into the mix. Our buddy Seth Luzier played some keys. Rick (TOTM) did some percussion. It was a very creative and inspired album to make. It took forever because of endless problems, and schedule conflicts, as well as being on a zero dollar budget, but we finally finished this thing.

Are there any bands in particular that have influenced your playing and writing?

Oh yes. For me personally, for this particular album, I’d say Rush. Jane’s Addiction. The Cure. King Crimson. Melvins. Peter Gabriel. Ministry. I was pulling from a lot of 90s stuff, a lot of prog stuff. Travis and Josh were into some of the same stuff, and a bunch of stuff I never really listened to. Everyone had a song bank of their own they were pulling from. We all dig on Kings X early stuff. The Police/Sting. We would sit around and listen to Soul Cages from Sting sometimes, ha-ha. Nobody would understand how this led to the kind of music we were making. But there is a ton of metal in there, a lot of 90s alternative music. We are all in our 30s so there were not a lot of new bands although some newer exciting bands played a part. Big Business is one of my favorites. They take the sludge doom sound and just turn it on its head and make it so exciting. Swans, Wovenhand. Torche, we like them too. But for me, I really wanted to mix things up with old school and modern stuff.

How did you end up with Veritas Vinyl?

Well, I am friends with Greg Dimick from Crux/Empty Tomb. He probably thinks I forgot this but he is fully responsible with passing us over to Jesse Jeremiah from VV. Originally the idea was to do a split 7″ with Crux, but they canceled for some weird reason. I think their singer was unable to do it. So anyway, we had originally planned to record half of the songs for an EP and then we were going to raise some support with that EP to make the 2nd half of the songs. A Human Comedy was always, to me, seen as a 2 part thing. When you flip over the record, you will feel a different vibe on that 2nd half. It aligns musically, with the lyrics. It’s a weird thing, but anyway, so we were already well into our 1st attempt to record this album, originally just half of it, when Jesse called me. He offered to make a full length and wanted to help us out and we greatly appreciated it, and we were really excited. From there, we basically just went back into the practice room and hashed out the 2nd half of songs, and then we started over in the studio afterwards. I gotta say, there is just nothing like VV out there. A cool dude, who works really hard, and wants to release records to enjoy the format, and to help Christians who make music and to help them to pursue the music… it’s just totally unheard of.

That’s what is so frustrating about the lack of VV sales. He keeps his prices so dirt cheap. He isn’t making money off of the bands. He literally just helps bands out, and he loves vinyl and that’s the format he works with. I get file sharing and downloading. I don’t personally subscribe to the idea that it’s killing off music, or music business. But to not support labels like this when you do buy physical music, is just silly and stupid to me. There are all kinds of fantastic releases on CD, MP3, and LP from VV and people need to really check it out, because it would be a damn shame for something like VV to go away. I think he is putting out some cool stuff as of late. Easter Teeth, Slaves BC, Place Of Skulls/In-Graved, The Crucified, Government Hate Mail, which features members of The Clergy and Crux, Grace And Thieves… it’s a lot of cool high quality stuff. And now our record, and there is nothing like A Human Comedy coming out anywhere else, so it’s just really exciting to be a part of something that has integrity.

When I listen to Unteachers I get a completely different style than when listening to TOTM, how do you classify UT? It sounds like a healthy mix of hardcore and traditional elements of metal and heavy rock.

Well, it’s no surprise that as I get older, I am less interested in screaming or destroying my body and vocal chords. I discovered early on that I can sing well, and actually, I can sing much better than I even do on my albums. TOTM was our attempt at doing something like Today Is The Day in terms of heaviness or power trio freak out type of music. Temple Of The Morning Star was a massive influence, and then when we went through their back catalog, to records like Willpower, Supernova, Self-titled, we were just floored by that stuff. We also pulled a lot from Shudder To Think, a fantastic art rock band from DC, used to be on Dischord Records. They have some amazing music. Mr. Bungle was also a huge influence. Disco Volante was on constant rotation. We tried to really be this super charged heavy band that would constantly change genres of music within minutes. It was important, then, to do death metal, indie rock, and industrial all within 2 minutes. HAHA. But the songs weren’t as fleshed out and mature. They were just a reflection of the personal chaos in our lives and the lack of maturity or professional playing of the band. What made TOTM so unique and special was that we somehow got lucky and pulled all of the sounds off and had one of the craziest live shows. Again I say, if you saw TOTM live, you understood what we were about. The CD’s were not the place to try and make sense of TOTM. Way too many influences old and new at the time.

Unteachers, as I stated, began as a natural progression from TOTM. I still maintain that it is a better recorded, better written, better performed band, and the songs are better songs. It’s not as magical to people who saw TOTM because we don’t play out in Unteachers, and when TOTM was playing shows the scene was different and it was still possible for people to be blown away by live music. It was still exciting to not have everything at the click of a button, or spoil every surprise. It was still possible to show up at a venue, and not know what is going to happen and be completely floored by some band you didn’t see coming. So, all of this plays a factor.

Unteachers is a better musical experience, but people will always want to compare it to TOTM. It’s fine by me at least with A Human Comedy, because of the origins of the band and those songs. But the new music I write has nothing to do with TOTM. I cared a lot about the TOTM fans and what they were going to think, and that is just poison. It’s toxic to creating art when you care what people think. I don’t care what people think about the new music, but I am thrilled if they connect with it and want to follow along and enjoy the purity of natural progression, and inspiration. The new direction is going to be a real shift. Musically these days I am way more interested in the kinds of music that creates atmosphere, and takes its time to get to where it is going, and eventually crushes your mind and spirit in the process. If i can listen to a song and then it stays with me for long periods of time, creating wonder and causing me to try to understand it, than that will definitely inspire me and cause me to want to aspire to that kind of thinking and writing.

I know you’re a big fan of the Swans, favorite Swans album and why?

Wow. Yes, I am a big fan of Swans, and picking a favorite is really hard because it depends on my mood. When I need to let go of some emotional or physical energy, I will usually listen very loudly to Filth, or Cop, or something from the 80s. I really love the song “Your Property” from Cop. But if pressed, I would have to say the mid-section of their body of work is probably my favorite. The really loud stuff that is really musical, like White Light From The Mouth Of Infinity. There is a beautiful song on there called “Failure” that really brings to mind a lot of what I struggle with from day to day. Their new stuff is great, but some of it is really too long. I get overwhelmed with 2+ hour long albums. It’s just so much to absorb. I’m a busy man. You know it’s funny, one of the greatest albums from Swans is a live album they released a few years back called We Rose From Your Bed With The Sun In Our Heads. it’s so amazing. It sounds so good, and the versions of songs like “Beautiful Child” are downright terrifying. I advise fans to find that album and blare it into your ear holes. It’s so intense and exhausting emotionally. I really love “Burning World” too, but I guess Gira hates it, hahaha. He’s nuts. It’s fantastic.

What are some of your most recent favorite albums and by who?

Well I have really been enjoying the new record by Mew, called +- (plus minus) It’s not my favorite of theirs. For that, you’d have to check out And The Glass Handed Kites which is one of the most creatively constructed albums I’ve heard in the last 20 years. It’s magic stuff. Their last 3 albums have been amazing.

I really am enjoying that new Wovenhand album, Refractory Obdurate. Such a heavy sound. That’s probably my favorite album from them. Just love it.

I got into KENmode recently, and they are unrelentingly heavy. Their latest that is coming out is recorded by Steve Albini, and it has this really awesome non-metal touch to it. Really brings out their noise rock side more. I’m really excited for that album.

You may laugh but I gotta say that latest album by Ryan Adams hit that sweet spot with me also. Beautiful songs. Killer guitar stuff. Really great music to drive to, or just be outside while listening to it.

The album has been out for a while now, how do you feel the response has been?

I keep referring to the album as “The greatest album of 2014 that nobody heard”. I cannot blame anybody but myself I guess. No shows. No real presence. I’m terrible at networking. I use Facebook and Twitter, but i really have no idea what I am doing to reach the masses without playing all the time. We plan to do some select shows in the future, but it’s just so hard to do it at a serious level when you cannot commit to constant working and playing. I hate that the album took so much out of me, and I worked so hard on it, and it came out and fell on deaf ears. Those who did buy it, or listen to it raved about how completely floored they were by it. Every single review I read, and I am not exaggerating, said in exact words “It. Blew. Me. Away”!!! It sits on my shelf, waiting to be heard by somebody.

People complain all the time about music production, and bands not doing music like the old days. I present our album to them and say “buy this, it’s exactly what you want” but if even a 3rd of the people who liked our Facebook page bought the album, we’d be sitting pretty good financially to make our next one. I don’t understand any of it, and I guess I have to go play some shows for people to give a crap.

How difficult has it been to get the word out about the album, and from an artist perspective how can listeners help spread the word?

Anybody who has the album currently and knows people who would be blessed in some way by what it says, or how it plays out, devote some time to stopping them, telling them to look up and away from their damn phone for just 2 minutes so you can talk to them, look them straight in the eyes and say “Hello, remember music? Remember bands writing original songs, and recording them without fake computer software? Remember when mics were used to make albums? Remember when bands played and let the humanity breathe in a performance? Yeah, there is a new album in 2015 that you can buy now for dirt cheap and its fun and you will enjoy it”

Another way to spread the word is just let us know who we should talk to. I know young bands know where to promote their stuff, I’m not good at those things. Let me know who should hear it. Come to me and say “Stephen, this is where people will dig your record” and we will get it to them.

Spread the word any way you can. This is how DIY rock and roll survives!!!

What are your thoughts on file sharing and people passing around independent music for free?

If file sharing my music allows for a bunch of people to hear my music and buy my album on vinyl, because let’s face it, nobody who wants our album is only going to want mp3s anyway, than do it. Torrent the hell out of it. I don’t care. I think the argument about “pirating music is not a victim-less crime” is dumb. If I take a CD off of your merch booth and its 1 less physical copy you made, its stealing. If I take your CD, but it’s still there in its place as if I did not take it, who cares?! Because the problem is that people want to be paid for selling their music, but they don’t make if affordable or on a format people care about. And certainly there will be the digital only crowd who will get your files and never support you. Who cares? The ones who will buy your album, will spend $20, then come to your show and buy a $20 shirt, and if a band is popular enough to do a Kickstarter, the fans will spend hundreds to fund something they believe in.

The war against digital downloading is lost. People torrent my albums. I always tell them, “if you are going to spread my files across the internet, make sure they are high quality and in fact, full album, with the artwork included” I don’t want you to hack my work, just share the love.

A practical answer also would be, I have been curious about an album, or gotten sick of the CD getting scratched and downloaded something so I didn’t have to buy it for the 3rd, 4th time, many times. I have downloaded stuff just to hear it and to see if I was into it enough to buy the album on vinyl. If anybody came to my house and saw my record/CD/cassette collection I would never be considered a thief, because I paid for a lot of physical music. Who cares if I wanted to fill my iPod also and got the mp3s, I still buy from the bands.

My buddy of mine from the band Inhale Exhale once told me “we went from a touring band that sells merch to being a traveling store that plays music” and I think that is what sums up where the real money is made in music. Touring, playing shows, selling merchandise, and letting your music be heard however it’s going to be heard in the internet age. That’s my take on it really. If i was playing shows, I would have stuff there for people to buy to support me that they cannot get for free via a file on the internet.

What format do you favor: vinyl, CD or download?

Vinyl all the way. If I buy a CD it’s only because I can’t get it any other way. I rip it to iTunes and then it sits on my shelf for me to point at and go “check that out.” My favorite way to buy music is to buy an album on vinyl for no more than $20 and get a digital download included. If you sell a record without the digital download, I think that’s a huge mistake and encourages more pirating. Most people who sell records care about that stuff. While on the subject, this new wave of reissued vinyl is absurdly priced and they should be ashamed of selling an album for $50. That takes advantage of the last bit of humanity that is left who will support physical media. The few and proud still come to you and you piss on them with your prices. So terrible!!!! Vinyl records can fluctuate depending on packaging and that’s OK, but if you sell me a Nirvana reissue for $40 you are drunk! I’ve had that album on cassette, and CD 10 times already. Enough is enough!!!

What future plans do you have for UT, and will there ever be the possibility of live shows?

Yes, live shows. In talking with the band, we agreed we would want to play out but only at fun places where we would have a good time. We realize we will never have the kind of musical life where we can travel a lot and tour every other month, so we just want to enjoy ourselves. Get on the right gigs. Play for fun. Make it awesome and exclusive to the folks who get out and see it. I don’t want to overexpose or underexpose it.

I’m writing a new album. No title as of yet, but I do have some great song ideas lined up. Really excited about this new sound. Really looking forward to releasing something totally fresh and far removed from A Human Comedy. That was closure. That was letting the world know that I can still bang my head and sing my ass off. Now I just want to delve a bit deeper into some of the weirder territory I find myself in when I listen to music. More of the musical influences that never get a say on past releases. We hope to get into a studio of some format in the next year. It will be a while. We will most likely totally fund our own album this time around, unless somebody wants to put it out. It will be a vinyl release. I’d also like to get a small run of CD’s pressed of A Human Comedy but that will only happen once we get more demand than we have had so far.

Top 3 torture methods for sh*tty people who are late on stuff that really matters…like doing an interview:)

HAHAHA. Kill them with kindness. Over and over again. I get a sense that you are joking here about yourself, and I too have taken far too long to get back to you. Thanks for the opportunity to speak out about what’s happening. I really appreciate Down The Line, and I wish you guys well. Blessings man!!!

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