Theory of a Deadman Vocalist Tyler Connolly on ‘Say Nothing’ + the American Divide

2020-01-08

Theory of a Deadman – Story by Anne Erickson, photo by Jimmy Fontaine

Tyler Connolly of Theory of a Deadman speaks with Anne Erickson about the band’s new album, American politics and more in this in-depth interview

Theory of a Deadman is back with the band’s seventh studio album, “Say Nothing,” out Jan. 31, and the set sees Theory diving into some weighty topics, such as domestic violence and depression. The album’s lead single, “History of Violence,” is already inside the top five on the BDS mainstream rock radio chart, and climbing.

Theory of a Deadman frontman Tyler Connolly spoke with Anne Erickson from Audio Ink about “Say Nothing,” his thoughts on the state of politics in America today and why he never makes New Year’s resolutions. Read the full interview below, and listen via the podcast player. Find Theory of a Deadman online at TheoryOfficial.com.

Anne Erickson: Congratulations on the new album, “Say Nothing.” This album has some deep and significant themes, such as domestic violence, racism, anxiety and depression. Why did you feel it was important to write about these topics at this time?

Tyler Connolly: I think they’ve always been import, but I think until now, I’ve been a little fearful of digging into those tings. (Theory of a Deadman’s song) “Rx” really opened the door. before then, there weren’t songs that were that heavy. We had a song a few years ago called “We Remain” about PSD, but other than that, I think “Rx” opened the door and allowed me to dig into other topics that I was thinking about.

The music video for that song is really emotional and deals with domestic violence. What made you guys want to tackle that issue in this particular music video?

Yeah, I think maybe the chorus idea blossomed and made sense for this angry person who was destroying everything in her life, and it came into being about domestic violence. As far as it being the first single, that was a label pick. For us, we as a band always have our favorites, and if you asked me to pick singles, I would probably be terrible. Even when they picked “RX,” I was like, “I don’t know. Really, man?” They came to us with “History” as the first single, and we were like, “Okay!” We’re happy with it. It’s a great track and really fun to play live, and being able to sing about something so serious is a plus, as well.

Your next song off the album, “Strangers,” is about American politics and the divisiveness our country is facing right now. What are your thoughts on the current environment in the U.S. and how divide people are today because of politics? What do you think can bring the country together, with people on both sides coming together?

It’s tough, because it all depends on where we get our information from, and it’s biased. Unfortunately, in the past, the sad thing is that the only thing that really brought the country together was tragedy, which obviously nobody wants. I don’t know, but anything that can make the country fight together as one, even something as silly as the Olympics… but, it’s tough. The news is so polarized. I kind of look to them to be the starting point and raise the bar a little bit.

What are you most excited about when it comes to releasing “Say Nothing” and having your fans hear it?

It’s something we’ve worked really hard on, and I know all bands in our state feel this way– it’s something we created, and there’s such a buildup to the release, so we’re unveiling it like at a car show or something. So, it’s very exciting for us, and to be able to see which songs fans gravitate towards is also interesting to us, because we never know. It’s always exciting. This is our seventh record, and it never gets old. It feels like we have a second wind or something, and it’s exciting to see what happens in this next few years.

Do you have a favorite song off “Say Nothing?”

“World Keeps Spinning” is probably my favorite track. That song is about depression and all about me, so it’s a very personal track. It was quite hard to get that one right and perfect. Once the lyrics were done, it was like, “How do we make the music itself sound like it has some anxiety?” Then, our A&R guy said, “Why not add some distortion to the vocals?” So, it became this thing built in this perfect thing that took a lot of people to create. We’re very proud of that song and all the people worked on it.

Do you have a New Year’s resolution, or don’t you make those?

I don’t make New Year’s resolutions. I don’t know if it’s the type A personality, but I’m the kind of guy that if I’m going to do something, I’ll just do it. I don’t wait until January 1st. I know people say, “New year, new me,” but I’m like, why not start now? I’m kind of the anti-resolution guy. If I’m going to get something done, I just do it!

Anne Erickson
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Posted by Anne Erickson | Features, Interviews, Music, Rock

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