Rise the Phoenix is a five-piece rock band from Mobile, Alabama established in May 2019 by founding members Jesse Sawyer (lead vocalist/guitar) and Brandon Rogers (guitar/backup vocals).
They formed the band with the idea of not only making a career out of something they loved but to create and play music that is relatable to everyone regardless of gender ,race , age , political affiliation or religious beliefs. After many trials with various band members the band finally gained the current line-up bringing in Kevin Joslin (guitar/backup vocals) , Joseph Carter (bass) and Trebor Genry (percussion) which the band feels is stronger creatively and more united than it’s ever been.
After recent successes with their previous singles and hitting the touring scene, supporting bands such as Sevendust , Plush , Artifas , Sons On Fire and The Lonely Ones. Rise the Phoenix came storming into spring with another powerful, relatable single 'INTO THE STORM' accompanied by an official music video produced by Chaz Singleton with Astro Clown productions. After listening to the track and watching the video I got a sense of the lyrical content and was torn between the actual meaning behind it. I had a discussion with Sawyer and he states 'INTO THE STORM can take on several meanings, "Individually we go through 'STORMS' in life and depending on how you look at it, it really depends on what you get out of it."
The music video starts with a visual quote, "When the storm rips you to pieces, you get to decide how to put yourself back together again." (Bryan H. McGill). This is what I was getting the feel for from the lyrics along with, if you don't manage things as life throws them at you then you will end up 'INTO THE STORM'. During the interaction with Sawyer he goes on to say, "We chose to put the quote at the beginning off the video to help viewers understand in which direction we wanted to go with the lyrical insight."
The video opens with what looks like a cut scene from a gangster movie and I like this concept as it gets you intrigued and hooked into what's going from the get-go. Then the track starts with a subtle simple guitar riff accompanied by some light percussion and the video panning across to the band. The song then starts to build with a lot more depth being brought in and progressively getting heavier until Sawyer comes in with the opening line, "Black clouds are rolling in, the countdown has begun this is the final warning you get , your best choice is to run." This is such a powerful opening line with this accompanied with scenes portraying how making bad decisions can put you in rough spots really depicts what the band are trying to do with relating their music to everyday life.
The guys have really showcased what they are trying to achieve as a band listening back through the previous singles you definitely get a feel that they are telling a story in every one and the fans can bond in so many ways to the lyrics. This mixed with some tasty riffs , bass slaps and beating of skins with some hard vocals thrown in makes 'INTO THE STORM' a great record that you can not only enjoy great musical talent, but can sympathize with its meaning.
There is a lot more to come and they are on the rise in the industry, they have some tour dates coming up so make sure you go check them out, full details of dates and locations can be found on their Facebook page.
<Matt James>