BlindOne of Seven
An interview with Richie Z by Tom Johns

Today I'm going to interview BlindSeven's front man Richie Z. BlindSeven is a prog/metal band that hails from Gilbert, Arizona.
Hey Richie, How's it going?

Awesome!

So first of all tell me a bit about your band BlindSeven.

TK (Guitarist) and I started the band in 2001 after our previous band broke up. We started it to basically just record some songs that we had written but it ended up becoming a full fledged band. We're more of a melodic/progressive metal but it seems like that keeps changing with the new material.

You guys play with some pretty well known bands like Dream Theater, Fates Warning etc.... How is that going?

Well we haven't actually played with them.. We've played their CD's and seen them live...ha-ha. We've been influenced by their music, though. We did shows with Flotsam and Jetsam, some of the guys in Anthrax, Motorhead, Type-O and other national acts.. It's always fun to play with national acts like that, we usually have someone after the show say "I noticed your singer never swears on stage".

That leads me to the next question. I know that you are a Christian, do you consider yourselves a Christian band or just a band with a Christian singer, and how do people respond when they hear you sing about Jesus Christ?

We don't label it a 'Christian band' but the members of the band are Christians. People respond positive in what we do. The lyrics and the sound are pretty straight forward and in your face. I figure, "This is what I believe, if you don't believe it or don't like it, don't listen". It's funny how the world wants people to accept everything, but as soon as you say you're a Christian, that becomes unacceptable and not deserving of the same consideration. I haven't run into any problems because I don't apologize for who I am or what I sing about. It is what it is and I think people respond to that. We are not perfect nor claim to be better than anyone else because we're Christians, we just do what we do because we feel that's what we're put here to do.

Cool, so have you had a chance to talk to any fans that you've reached through maybe your lyrics or lifestyle that blew you away?

Our old bassists brother was back slidden and after listening to the CD for awhile, decided it was time to get right with the Lord again. That was very cool to hear.

Very cool. Let's talk about the album "Incisions," it's a great album, how is it doing as far as getting noticed?

1st, Thanx for the compliment. It's funny, here in the US we get noticed here and there but over in Europe, it's been popular. I think because metal is still so big over there. It can be a slow process with an independent band like us but with interviews like this, E-zine reviews and airplay, the exposure is getting better.

What is the concept behind incisions, or what is the message you're trying to get across with this album?

The whole CD has an "End Times" feel to it. It starts out with 'Broke Down the Walls' which is the story of Joseph, from there the songs deal with a slow break down of society, 'Point of Blame' deals with taking God out of schools, "Vengeance is Mine" deals with terrorism and what's going on in the Middle East, "7 Yrs" is pretty self explanatory". I like to let people listen to the songs and let them decide what it's about. People interpret songs differently and I always love to hear the different views and what it means to them.

Right on, do you handle most of the song writing?

I write the lyrics, the music is written by the band usually, it's not like it's set it stone, it just happened to be that way. Any one of the guys could write lyrics for any of the songs if they wanted, though. Sometimes I'll come up with a riff or a guitar line and give it to them as an idea, that's just how we write. That's why we say songs written by "BlindSeven"..no one's really worried about individual credit..hehe.

So as the lyricist, obviously you get inspiration from reading God's Word, and probably life's experiences. What do you do when you hit a writers block? Some people go into isolation, or go to the mountains, or woods. What do you do?

I eat a lot of peanut butter. Actually. if I'm not 'feeling' it, I just wait until I am. I've found that trying to force it just doesn't work so I just put it away for another time. I know inspiration will hit eventually.

So do you like the crunchy peanut butter or the creamy?

Creamy...I can eat it faster.

Have you guys pursued any record deals?

We were actually signed to an independent label back in 2001 but it didn't pan out, they weren't very good, so we negotiated out of the contract after a year.

What would be your goal as a band and how are you trying to reach that goal?

Our goal is to just play everywhere and anywhere. If people walk away from a BlindSeven show and say "That was great" that's good but if they walk away saying "That was great, I wanna know more of what they're trying to say" that's even better. We try our best to promote thru the net, radio or anywhere else that will allow us to talk about the band. We're not a "Preacher" band either, like I said, it is what it is, we just want people to listen and decide for themselves. Since we don't have a manager at this time, we do all the promotion ourselves.

Your cd has been out for a while, any new work in progress?

Yes. We're working on new material for the next CD. We have about 4 new songs and 3 more in the works. I think people will be surprised with the new material. We have been playing some of the new songs live and have had a positive response to them so far.

What do you guys do for fun during your free time when waiting to go on stage?

We're usually making fun of Chris, the drummer, since he has to set up his 4 million piece set.

What other bands do you guys listen to?

I'm not sure about everyone else but I'm into a lot of the European metal coming out right now, bands like Soilwork, Mnemic, In Flames. I also like bands like Shadows Fall. I listen to a variety, though, I like Reggae, Classical and some Contemporary Christian. As far as some Christian bands, I still like Barren Cross and White Cross.

Great bands! We're you a church choir boy growing up, or where did you learn to sing?

I started singing at 6. Later on I trained for a few years and even took Opera. I still think the old Hymns are the best. My Dad was a preacher and my Mom played piano, my sisters all sang so I sang with them in church and did special songs sometimes in front of the congregation but never was in a choir. That might be why I'm a lead singer, I never got used to having to sing with a lot of people. Personally, I think it's a bad idea to sing in a choir if your goal is to be a lead singer. And before I get blasted with e-mails, I'm NOT discouraging singing in a choir, just saying if you're eventually going to sing on your own, it's best to start as early as possible.

Well Richie, you've been great! I really appreciate you taking time out of your busy schedule to allow me to interview you. I hope you guys are very successful and I can't wait to hear the new stuff! Any parting words?

Only that I think what you're doing is great, it not only helps bands but it's getting God out there. Kudos to you! If anyone sees us play, please feel free to come talk to us after the show, we love to interact.

Check out Richie's band BlindSeven:
www.blindseven.com
MORE INTERVIEWS