Dead Harrison’s latest album, None for All, marks a pivotal moment in their musical journey, blending metal, gothic, psychedelic rock, and punk into a sound that’s distinctly their own. Inspired by the theme of perseverance and the human spirit’s quest for meaning, the album serves as a creative response to their previous EP, All for None. While the EP explored artistic futility, None for All transforms emptiness into a source of artistic power. With lyrics and music designed to transport listeners to another realm, the album invites personal interpretation and reflection. As they navigate the evolving music landscape, Dead Harrison remains committed to inspiring positivity, with plans for more live shows and a possible relocation from New England to seek new horizons. Dive into our interview with the band to uncover the stories behind their latest work and their vision for the future.
ATN: Could you tell us more about the inspiration behind None for All and how it fits into Dead Harrison’s musical evolution?
DH: To show the world that giving up is not always the answer. It’s the perseverance of the human spirit when you know there is more meaning to life beyond your own. Inspiration came through many facets. Seeing the way the world evolves. Some in good ways, some in bad ways. Then, how to pull that all together and create your own story. One that can relate to that spirit of perseverance. The ability to take those challenges the universe hands you, and turn them into great little stories.
ATN: With the EP being called All for None and the new album being called None for All, is there a connection between the two?
DH: There is, and it wittles its way in as that juxtaposition. All for None came about by wanting to create a name for some singles we put out. There was a thought that kicked me back to Type O Negative’s “The Dream is Dead”. We cover the song as tribute, never recorded, but there is a line in it that always struck me. “All for one and none for all”. Then it made me think of how often, we as artists, put out creations. Sometimes they hit, sometimes they never do what you’d like them to. This was the thought process that gave us the first half. We do all this work in creating something we think is grand, but then it falls on deaf ears or it just doesn’t have the success you wanted it to. Then all your work seems like it was for nothing. Now, moving forward three years, there has to be the second part. We take all that nothingness we felt about ourselves and honed it into a tool. We took that feeling of nothingness and wrote more. Our perception of ourselves felt like we had nothing the world wanted. So, it’s like handing to the world our empty bowl. There’s no expectation, no delusions of grandeur, no ego. It’s our nothingness. None for All is turning out to be something for everyone.
ATN: Can you share any insights into the creative process behind None for All?
DH: It was just time to let the band members shine. Most of the songs were brought to the table by the guitarist and the bass player this time. All this was being written during our great plague. So, my brother Shawn (guitar), took some inspiration from some traveling and news articles. Real life things that happen, whether tragedy or curiosity or just making a surreal storyline. Then Jason (bass) came up with his own slew of songs. Ones that reached inside the self a little bit, to ones that were just about fitting a theme to a summertime activity gone wrong (or right), to hearing a train go by at a doom show. All the pieces culminated together creating some weird dystopian landscape.
ATN: “Terror Grinder” and “Beach Zombies” are jams! What sparked their creation?
DH: “Terror Grinder” was just one of those great sci-fi scenarios where, once again, the human race is targeted for destruction. Kind of taken from the feeling of AI coming in and destroying our own creativity. We got used to being complacent. Technology took over everything, and now we’re struggling to find our own creative processes again. Just another monster in that strange world.
“Beach Zombies” however, culminated for a one-off summer show with a beach theme where there was no beach at all. It was a spoof song to make a summer sounding song for the beach, except the zombies were really the ones having fun. It was just happenstance. Jason pulled through with some fun lyrics one day. It was never intended to be what it became, yet here we are.
ATN: Dead Harrison‘s sound is described as an apocalyptic doom mixture of metal, gothic, psychedelic rock, and punk influences. How do these diverse influences come together to shape the band’s distinctive sound?
DH: I suppose it just comes down to honing our composition skills. To take so many influences and find that magical way of blending them together. We have a sound. We like it beefy and gritty. Now take that and start blending it with design, familiarity, and the craftsmanship that we’ve learned throughout the years. A fine blend of herbs and spices that tickle the senses just right, except it’s for your earholes and not your mouth hole.
ATN: With the debut album, The Story of the Mortuus Ortus in 2014 followed by the EP All for None, how has Dead Harrison‘s music evolved since then until now?
DH: Better writing. Changing up the dynamics helped a bit too. When we started writing these songs, we were just taking Axile (drums) in. Drae (I) was behind the kit and lead vocalist. It was time to take things a step further and give us a front man. It was a good move, now it put that face up front and also gave way to having a second guitar filling up more space in the sound. It also helped create more driving rhythms and opened up more leads for Shawn. Make it spicy and make some of it danceable. Nothing like dancing in the fires of the world burning around you.
ATN: What do you hope listeners will take away from the experience of listening to None for All?
DH: That you’re going to be pulled into another world in your mind’s eye. Lyrically, the songs create a landscape and a nice little story in each one. Our only hope is that the listeners will take those stories and make them theirs. They’re symbolic/ metaphorical in their own ways. That’s what creates the magic. Each person may have their own interpretation of what the song might mean. We have our own interpretations, but I love how different “context” can make something have a completely different interpretation to an individual. It’s how we make a song “ours” as a listener.
ATN: Dead Harrison has emphasized the importance of being a positive influence in a world filled with negativity. How does this philosophy influence your songwriting and the themes explored in your music?
DH: Maybe because we take those things associated with the negativity and make them into something a little more palpable.Life definitely come with its own barrage of things that try to keep us down. We push through, we find new meanings to things we didn’t understand. Don’t give up, the human condition is both a blessing and a curse. Sometimes it feels like the darkness will win, but then we see that little ray of light. Without darkness, that light would never shine. Inspire people. Show them that we are also you, we just present ourselves in our own unique way. Life is a story. Tell it like it’s a legend.
ATN: The physical CD release of the album has artwork and lyrics. How important is visual storytelling to the overall experience of None for All, what are you most excited for fans to see?
DH: Well, we know what we like to see or get when we get an album. Visually, it’s just a representation of the songs. Knowing that someone hand painted artwork just makes it so much better in today’s mundane world filled with having some program to do it for you. We think it’s good to blend our audible world with a good visual representation as another type of artist also. It’s not the easiest thing to do, but it’s so worth it in the end. Creators creating more creations that will create more creators. Just “gods making gods”, I suppose.
ATN: What are Dead Harrison’s plan for the rest of 2024?
DH: Get or asses out of New England and play more shows! The music scene is evolving yet again. So many venues are shutting down, so many musicians are still being taken advantage of. It’s tough out there. We’ve definitely had to strategize a little better. There’s going to be a shift out there. We’re just trying to find that place in it. We would like to hear from people where we should go. We will surely be doing a lot more traveling this year, Summer will soon be upon us, time to spread those wings. Be on the look out!
SAME 3 QUESTIONS WE ALWAYS ASK
ATN: Artist / band that you feel is the most underrated and why?
DH: Type O Negative. Seems they only only grabbed a small handful of us comparatively. Those guys just really put on a great show and the music was so well composed.
ATN: Artist / band that you would like to collaborate with and why?
DH: Poppy. Why? Because it would be such an off the wall collab, that people would just be in wonder of how such a collaboration would happen.
ATN: Artist / band that you would like to tour with and why?
DH: Corrosion of Conformity. As they have also been big influencers of ours, it would just be way too good to say no to.
