Fates Warning, notorious for being a band that shine in the studio and conquer distances with their connection, are still being impacted by the harsh reality of COVID, but luckily, they are no strangers to making the magic happen in the recording booth.
“I’ve done three studio records with the band, and our process has been pretty much the same,” explains drummer Bobby Jarzombek about the band’s latest record, Long Day Good Night, out now via Metal Blade. “Jim Matheos [guitar] writes most of the material, and then he sends the songs out. He’ll send them with drum tracks, and I’ll listen to the drum programming and see what parts I like, and he’ll mention what parts he really liked. We’ll send notes and files back and forth, and we usually work on a few songs at the same time.”
“The same as always really,” confirms drummer Ray Alder, vocalist, when asked about the recording process. “Jim and I have written remotely for the better part of 20 years, so we are very used to it. But being locked up during quarantine meant having less distractions, so we were able to write more songs.”
Admittedly, with this kind of process under their belt, the band are no strangers to having to work remotely.
“Today’s process isn’t like years ago when bands all played in the same room together,” Jarzombek adds. “You would work on a song together, and once it was kind of finalized, you’d go in the studio together and play. That’s the way it was done in the ’80s, but today, the way things are done, it’s pretty much sending files back and forth, a lot of emails, texts, and phone calls.”
The band are currently focusing on promoting this record and holding off on more moves until travel restrictions are clarified.
“No plans as of yet,” says Alder. “We’re still waiting for the world to re-open so that we can begin making plans, hopefully, for a tour in 2021. As for live streaming, it isn’t possible since we all live very far apart. The worst part is the travel restrictions. Not being able to tour is very frustrating. As I’m sure it is for most every band.”
Look out for more music coming from the prolific band, as well as future tour announcements.
Photo courtesy of Fates Warning
Pick up a copy of the album here.
