The five-piece group starts a new chapter with the personal albums that put a modern spin on the band’s sound.
If you thought you knew the alternative rock group Conquer Divide—the members are lead vocalist Kiarley Taylor, bassist and vocalist Janel Duarte, guitarist Isabel Johnson, drummer Samatha Landa, and guitarist Kristen Sturg— think again. As the lyrics in the single “Atonement” state, the group are not the same ensemble they started out as, unafraid of tackling difficult subjects like climate change and bullying while exploring new musical territory on the new record Slow Burn, being released on September 8 via Mascot Records.
Zooming from her hotel room in Boston, vocalist and screamer Janel Duarte is eager to explain the band’s change in style and the excitement of taking a new direction. “We took that long hiatus and regrouped and changed a couple of lineup things and then boom. I feel like this isn’t just a comeback, but a whole new chapter.”
Formed in 2013 in Michigan, the international five-piece band hail from the United States, the U.K., and Canada, giving them a global lens on political and social issues that has been the backbone of Slow Burn and previous records. The band’s self-titled debut album garnered 30 million streams, driven by the powerful track “At War,” which earned a nomination for Best from Kerrang! Magazine. After a hiatus, the band returned with the aggressive tune “Chemicals” in 2020 which earned acclaim from Alternative Press Magazine and followed that up with “Messy” the following year. Defined by the breathtaking refinement and internal personal storytelling, the 13-track album brings new levels of catharsis, artistry, and reflection to the band’s sound. Brimming with both frustration and hope, Slow Burn is stacked with personal reflections and intimate tunes written with a confessional tone.
Having something for everyone, Slow Burn welcomes a new chapter for the group, one that both old and new fans will appreciate. “As for the music, it’s been updated since the last album. Each song is different from one another. There are those ballads for people who love ballads, there are empowering anthems, and then there’s that heavy stuff like ‘Afterthought’ that’s there for those heavy people. It’s a contrast from our last album which was that classic metalcore. We went more experimental with the sound.”
“Afterthought” is one of the first tracks written for the album: “The lyrics are very in-your-face. It’s about religious people who have been bullies and it’s an anthem against that kind of person. I honestly cannot wait to play that one live. Probably half the band would say that their favorite track is ‘Afterthought.’ Lead single Atonement harkens back to the band’s roots while pushing its way into new territory. It sets the tone from the start. We are not the same band.”
Ushering in a new era for the group, the emotional, heavy album contains multiple layers of emotion and vulnerability that tug at the hearts of listeners and see Conquer Divide step up their lyrical acumen. The single titled “The Invisible” tackles bullying and mines the personal experiences of band members and others to craft a tune that is universal in its understanding of the isolation that bullying can bring. Duarte adds that both Taylor and Sturg have experienced “crappy” bullying previously and wanted to touch on the long-term effects of that treatment.
“That stuff lingers and hurts, no matter how old you are. It was a release of emotions for them there. We all have experienced bullying and have been the target of some stupid comments online. That song is very much (saying) ‘Don’t let that bother you, keep going.’ You’re seen by the people who don’t feel seen (either.) We see each other.”
This album sees the band diving into the issue of environmental justice and global warming with the heavy track “Welcome To Paradise,” imploring people to take care of our planet. Bringing up political issues in the rock world is not new, but Conquer Divide frankly discusses the subject in the song, specifically referring to the pipeline near the Great Lakes in Michigan and the ramifications of not fixing it, something that Duarte says fans of the song reacted well towards.
“We’ve mostly gotten, ‘Huh, what a cool song topic’ as a reaction. It’s happening and we see it. It’s hot in Austin, TX, where I’m from for no reason. There are wildfires in Maui It’s happening around us whether we write a song about it or not. We thought that since it’s so apparent since we have that waterpipe in Michigan, I don’t think any of the government wants to fix or update it. If it explodes, 90% of our clean water in the Great Lakes is wasted. We thought we could spread some awareness about this and then maybe someone in the government can do something about it.”
For Duarte, being part of an all-female band means suffering bullying and having to push past perceptions, even in 2023. “We still get the ‘ Wow, you’re all so good for girls’ every time we play. They almost try to invalidate our talent because we’re women. If Conquer Divide was [made up of] all guys, we’d still be where we were at, but we’d be a bit farther than we are now.” Duarte adds that the band always gets pushback from men when they are performing at a show.
“You can feel it. It’s almost like they’re saying ‘Who are they? What are they going to do?’ Every time, like clockwork, when we get offstage, those guys say, ‘ Oh my god! That was so good! You ladies killed it.’ And they turn into fans. It’s wild that they’re so judgemental in the beginning before we even have a chance to prove ourselves, instead of being treated with respect.”
“‘Gatekeeper’ is a track that pushes against this, one that serves as a giant F U to all the industry gatekeepers who minimize women’s participation in rock and metal spaces,” the group says in a press release. “Keep your damn gate. We’ll take the throne.’
Ultimately, Slow Burn sees the group really spread their wings vocally, creating that encapsulated feel when a song is able to get its hooks in you. Music made by the hands of alternative kids, who, like most of us, formed and found themselves as “the others” or “outcasts,” this album speaks to everyone. As their new album suggests, they are here to upend expectations and blow up notions of what rock can sound like and who should create it.
Photo courtesy of Conquer Divide
