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Saints of Valory craft dramatic, sweeping, arena-ready rock filled with elegant pop hooks, shimmering guitars, and emotionally genuine lyrics. GroundSounds caught up with the band as they gear up for the release of Into The Deep, their debut album for F Stop/Atlantic Records.
GS: How did you meet and form the band?
SOV: All our paths crossed at some point in Rio. Gavin and I [Godfrey] were childhood friends in Brazil and grew up playing guitar together. Stephen went to Rio for vacation and ended up staying for 4 years where he also met Gavin. Years later I got back in touch with Gavin and we talked about taking the music thing more seriously. So we went back to Rio, went to the beach, ate some Churrasco and made some music. When we played together it felt right and things clicked pretty much right away.
Where did the name Saints of Valory come from?
The initial inspiration came from our drummer’s mother’s name, Valerie. It took a lot of courage to drop everything like we did to start this band so we put a spin on the spelling of Valory to sort of suggest that.
With your different geographical backgrounds, how did you arrive in Austin?
In 2010 we went to check out SXSW in Austin, TX. We all instantly loved the music scene and the feel of the city. So we decided to up root from where we were living and launch the band from Austin. We figured that since there were so many bands in Austin we’d know pretty quickly if we were any good.
Austin is known for its thriving music scene. Where is your favorite place there to play or see a show?
We played a lot of memorable shows at Stubbs right when we were just starting out so I think that place will always be a favorite spot for us.
Tell us about the Possibilities EP. What inspired the sound and direction of these songs?
A lot of the songs on our EP and full length “Into The Deep”, [set to come out in the spring] are some of the first songs we ever wrote. I think the songs capture the ups and downs of being a new band, a lot struggles and disappointments along the way but we approached that in a positive way I think. We’re the kind of band that puts a lot of importance on our live show and hate the disconnect between a bands recordings and what they sound like live. So going into the studio we were really set on making sure we captured the energy and heat of our live show. We tracked playing all together “live off the floor” as they say and only overdubbed what was really crucial to replay.
Is there a track that stands out as a favorite for you?
Our producer left us alone in the studio for a week or so and one night we stayed up late working on an idea for a new song. It came together so effortlessly and was tons of fun just sitting back and letting it come together. It’s like we couldn’t hit record fast enough. We used the very first vocal take Gavin sang, it had that fragility you just can’t reproduce. When our producer came back he heard it & loved it, he said, “Don’t touch it”. The song will close our LP “Into The Deep’.
Your song “Neon Eyes (Into The Deep)” is a particularly addicting track. What’s the story behind this song?
The initial idea was born early morning at a friends house we were crashing at, after playing a show in their town the night before. We immediately recorded a demo of it in our guitarists bedroom and a lot of what’s on the final version is from that original bedroom session.
Do you have a release date for your full-length yet? What was it like working with Joe Chicarelli?
No specific date for the release just yet, but it should come out sometime in the spring next year. Working with Joe was such a great learning experience, he’s got so much to give and some crazy recording stories to tell.
How did you get connected with Atlantic Records? How has that experience been so far?
Atlantic caught wind of some of our songs about a year. Teaming up with them has been really great so far. Everyone there is so passionate about the music and are really helping spread the word.
How was your experience touring with Fitz & The Tantrums? What do you learn as a band from being on a tour like that?
Those guys are a riot, we love’m. Their energy and flow is so good, we definitely picked up some pointers.
Do you have any pre-show or post-show rituals while on tour?
Nothing crazy ha, we normally just pump ourselves up before jumping on stage and try to have a good time.
Who are your favorite bands/musicians making music right now?
There are some great UK bands putting out some great records this year like The 1975, The Editors, Arctic Monkeys to name a few.
What’s on tap for the rest of 2013?
We’ll be traveling to Brazil this week to play Rock in Rio. It’s our first show in Brazil and we play right before Muse, so we have our work cut out for us. After that we’ll go on a national college tour with Grouplove which should be a blast.
Where is the best place to stay updated with you online?
Follow us on Facebook, twitter, Instagram & our website has all the information you’ll need as well.
Saints of Valory – Possibilities EP
