The yearly NAMM venture in Anaheim always gives the chance of meeting many talented and aspiring bands and musicians. Four years ago gave the opportunity of meeting Giancarlo Floridia of Faithsedge. At that time he and his band were working on the album, Answer of Insanity. A year later after the release, Floridia sat down with us to discuss the current album and what was going on in the life of Faithsedge.
2017 rolls around and already one quarter of the year has passed. Once again, we have the favorable circumstances of a chat with the Faithsedge lead singer. "2016 was a great year of musical highs for me and my band! The album we put out was amazing! Can we top it? I think so,” smiles Floridia. “Time does go by fast so I think it's always good to spend it on productive things. That's why you'll see me frequently trying new thing, sounds or ideas, etc. I keep my focus mainly on writing the best songs I can. I try to get them out there for people to enjoy and, of course, I work on keeping my voice strong so I'm always ready to sing. My main goal has always been to be in music since I was a kid, so I guess it comes naturally after all these years to stay focused on that.
Even though it has been almost a year since the release of their latest album, Restoration, they are still raking in reviews and interviews from around the world. When asked what was the difference between the last two albums, Floridia is ready with his reply. “Restoration was a complete 180 degree turn from Answer of Insanity. The first was dark, heavy and nasty where the other was more melodic and polished. I started the band as a melodic rock style and on the second record, the producer and I thought it would be cool to do something different. It’s real and stripped down. Honestly, it was a bit of a risk. Looking back, I’m glad I did it! I'm much happier with the results and response of Restoration. It was better received by our fans and the press too,” states Floridia. “It was like getting back to my roots and the real reason I started this band. I think I'll stick to what I do best in the future, which is play melodic music with an edge and not go too overboard,” he laughs.
When a group comes together from all areas of the country or world, it can be very interesting what will take place in the months to come. “We recorded our own contributions to the album in different places all over the world. My guitars and drums were done in here in Los Angeles; bass tracks were done in Nashville, while the lead guitars, keyboard and production was done in Italy. I do have to say that it was pretty cool to be able to record the album the way we did and fortunately, we all had great chemistry, which made the process even better. It's myself (Giancarlo Floridia) on lead vocals and guitar, Alex De Rosso (Dokken) on lead guitar , Tim Gaines (Stryper) bass , Matt Starr (Ace Frehley/Mr.Big) drums, and Alessandro Del Vecchio (Hardline) keyboards and producer. The entire process went really smooth and came together nicely. It’s definitely my favorite album we've done so far,” says Floridia. “As for the music business itself, you never know what's going to happen. I would hope the lineup would remain, but if anything ever changes, I hope, at least, that everyone will remain friends. I started this band on my own and I have to push forward no matter what. So yes, it's my hope we will always be brothers,” he smiles.
As we continue our chat about Restoration, our question of the day was why do you think this album was so well received on the other side of the world, yet the same type of music can be hard to push into mainstream America and how Faithsedge decided to sign with Scarlet Records in Italy. "That's a really good question because I'm planning a new album and my main focus at this point is Europe and Japan. They really love this kind of music and stick by it. They are also very respectful and breathe this kind of music the same way I do. The US is the same as always. They change with whatever is trendy at the moment. America seems to go with what ever is trending which is really lame. Fortunately, there is a good underground metal scene that I also do my thing with here in the states. Either way I'm just happy that people have taken the time to listen,” Floridia exclaims. "When we were finished with the first album, Enzo Mazzeo, at the record label, was visiting my producers studio; at the time my producer was Fabrizio Grossi. Word on the street is Fabrizio showed Enzo some bands; Enzo liked what he heard and wanted to sign us. That's how it started and it has only gotten better. Since then I’ve also signed with Spiritual Beast in Japan which has been unbelievable as well. They dig our music and we just took it from there!”
Faithsedge are currently in the planning stages for their next album and are looking to top the last one! “We definitely have the new album as the next thing on our list. If all goes as planned, it will be really amazing! My goal is to top Restoration, which is going to be tough, but I feel with hard work and the right outlook we can take it to that level”. We look forward to the next album and more news from Giancarlo and his bandmates.
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