Interview with John Ferris of A Stāte øf Mīnd by Dave Wolff

Interview with John Ferris of A Stāte øf Mīnd by Dave Wolff

Discuss why you wanted to play classic heavy metal in the vein of bands like Dio, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Queensryche a decade after they broke aboveground? Black Sabbath are also cited as an influence; which of their characteristics inspired you?

The classic heavy metal bands made music that spoke to you. They were full of emotion and artistry. All of us having been influenced by the greats, I guess there was no chosen reason to play that style. We just created what we felt. Those were the bands that had the most influence on us besides many more. The live performances were filled with power and energy, tangible to the innermost depths of your soul. There's no better feeling. We are proud to be labeled New Classic Metal.

Black Sabbath’s music and lyrical presentation was awesome. It inspired me to write. Ozzy Osbourne's stage presence and audience interaction inspired me the most.

Has A Stāte øf Mīnd had the same lineup from the beginning, or did band members leave and enter during your tenure as a band?

Forming in 1994, we have gone through lineup changes from time to time. The founders of A Stāte øf Mīnd are: Scott Peters (RIP) (drums), Robbie Grossheim (guitars), Mike Wright (bass), John Ferris (lyricist, vocalist, lead guitar). We eventually brought in Doug Hayes to take over lead guitar so I could concentrate solely on vocals. Our drummer quit and we brought in Steven Ritchey. That was the first year, and we recorded our first cassette in 1995. Then Doug quit, and we brought in Jeffrey Elliott (RIP) on lead guitar, and on bass when our bassist quit. There was a huge break, and we got back together in 2014 with myself John Ferris (vocals, lyrics), Robbie Grossheim (guitars), and Mike Wright (bass) with Doug Hayes (lead) and Barry Uptigrove (drums).In 2017 Robert Arena (drums), Brett James (RIP) (bass), John Cook (lead). We released our first EP in 2019 before Brett passed, which he never heard. Then we had Kye Campbell, Robert Culbreath, Anthony Martinez, Josh Smith (bass). The drummer quit, then drummers Barry Uptigrove, Mark Robbin. Now A Stāte øf Mīnd is I, Robbie Grossheim, John Cook, Kenny Thomas on bass and Kenny Starnes on drums. We've just recorded our second EP soon to be released through Earache Records Digital Distribution. Band members came and went and we lost some to addiction.

In relation to your music and lyrics, what is the name A Stāte øf Mīnd intend to mean? Are we talking about the state of mind of a musician or an enthusiast of metal or both?

A state of mind is where music comes from. Every decision made in life comes from your state of mind, be it positive or negative. Everything we've written, from music to lyrics, to performance comes from a state of mind. The subject matter from any state of mind could be dark or light, happy or sad, drug induced or alcohol driven. You could say any given state of mind fuels our music, and most music.

When you discovered heavy metal, how did it resonate with you personally?

Heavy Metal seemed to have more passion and fire. The artists were godlike in stature and commanded their audiences with mega stage shows and props, and audience interaction was off the chain.

Black Sabbath's use of the tritone, or devil's interval, had a profound influence on everything from classic metal to death and black metal. What makes it resonate with so many, and what kind of inspiration did it have on A Stāte øf Mīnd?

I think the tritone has a dark feel and people can relate it to their own darkness. Being able to write out of darkness makes the music real to the point that it actually brings light to the darkness of the listener.

By Sabbath's lyrical presentation, did you mean the structure of the lyrics or their personal nature or both? What effect did it have on the lyrics you write?

As a vocalist, lyrical presentation is the lyrical story, how the vocal melody rides on the music and the emotion and soul conveyed by the vocalist. Seeing that a song could be written about dark subject matter or ominous tones with light lyrics opened the door to my imagination and helped me write better lyrics.

With the myriad of changes that have occurred in the music industry, how has the band managed to maintain the passion you mentioned?

It's just something we love to do. Robbie Grossheim, (composer) and I (lyricist, vocalist) can always write a song. It's been that way from day one. It's easy to maintain passion when you do what you love, and see that it does speak to people and shine a light into their darkness. And now days the ability to reach the masses across the globe with some work and dedication helps fuel that passion.

Why do you think bands continue to be enthusiastic about metal past their twenties as a result of this passion? What makes them stick with it for so long rather than view it as a passing phase?

I don’t know if this is the case in general, but from my first day (audition/practice) in 1994 when writing our song “Wardance” we got the enthusiasm to continue to write. With ten original songs and an audition at the Landing Bar and Grill, the house was packed. We played our songs and the owner asked us if we could keep playing. He said to play them again and paid us all a hundred. Our success fueled our passion and our love of music keeps our passion driving to this day.

How successful was your first recording, before your second EP, in terms of establishing the band as a whole?

Our 1995 six song cassette was our first release. In 2019 we released our first six song EP. It was pretty successful I believe. We accomplished a lot because of it. Fans, air play, interviews, awards, reviews, videos. After having to find a new bassist and drummer and finally writing new material with them, we established A Stāte øf Mīnd as a whole. The release of our second six song EP is on the horizon.

What is the complete list of songs that appear on your 1995 cassette? At the time you composed those tracks, how much potential did they have for growth?

Our 1995 release is: “Wardance”, “Caught in Time”, “Deadly Kiss Me Slowly”, “It’s Too Late”, “Reigning Death” and “Sail Across the Ocean”. We really were unsure how they would be received, or grow at that point. Most bands at that time played covers with an original or two. Our all-original approach went very well. And I believe there was huge potential for growth outside of our hometown.

What was the reason for the long interval between your six songs cassette and your debut EP? Considering the cassette was released in the 90s, how did people respond to it?

The space between the cassette in 1995 and the EP in 2019 was due to A Stāte øf Mīnd disbanding. Robbie and I stayed together in another band called Styltskyn. People responded well to the cassette; I believe we sold them all but a sacred few.

What was the response to your debut EP now that A Stāte øf Mīnd had already started making a name for themselves? In what ways has the band's sound and professionalism improved?

The response to our first EP was overwhelming and gratifying. The more people it reached the more fans we gained. A lot of good things came from it. Airplay, interviews, awards, videos, friends and.... fans!!! Our sound and professionalism improved with the induction of new members with the right attitude to continue our growth as professional artists. Our attention to detail in writing new music has taken our sound to the next level with a familiar feel with new energy.

Before A Stāte øf Mīnd reformed, how long were you and Robbie active in Styltskyn? Did they follow a similar path to A Stāte øf Mīnd or take a different direction? When you worked with them, did you release any EPs or full-length albums?

Robbie and I were active in Styltskyn for two or three years, maybe. As far as playing and performing originals we did follow that, with a whole new set of originals. So we did A Stāte øf Mīnd originals and Styltskyn originals (which were completely written by someone else) Unfortunately we didn't record any music.

Tell us about the songs you recorded for your 2019 EP, and how they reflect the band's mindset at the time the music and lyrics were written.

The songs on the 2019 EP are about life. The demons we all have, reflection, addiction, loss and resolve we all go through it (and a vampire movie). I write lyrics a lot so I already had lyrics with no music. Robbie would start playing around with something and I'd have something that is right. Our mindset was to put out great music that was relatable and could bring someone some light in their darkness.

Was it more of an uphill journey to re-establish the band after so many years, or did you capitalize on the attention you had gained before?

Starting A Stāte øf Mīnd again after fifteen years and establishing us was easy. After the 2019 release we released a single called “Shattered” in 2022 with a video. Our drummer had differences so he quit. Re-establishing A Stāte øf Mīnd was more difficult after that, having to find a bassist and a drummer that fit our sound and creative aspirations. We did capitalize somewhat from the cassette as we brought “Wardance” and “Too Late” from the cassette and re-recorded them. The next EP coming out is more raw and live sounding. We opted for a live off the floor recording. We wanted the human quality to remain for that live performance feel.

Discuss the process of writing and recording “Shattered”, and how the band had eased back into those processes after fifteen years apart. What is the subject matter of the song, and how does it show improvement from your previous EP?

I wrote the lyrics in 2001. It was originally written as a rap type flow calling out my ex and her bullshit. A bit more explicit lyrically As the normal process goes, Robbie played something and I went through my lyrics and ran across “Shattered”. Then the rest of the band added their flavor. “Shattered” only uses the first paragraph of the entire content. And Robbie gave me the idea for the chorus. I believe we improved in making commercial sounding music. “Shattered” was actually supposed to be the first release off our second EP.

What characteristics of “Shattered” did you wish to convey in the promotional video you made? Did you produce it independently or work with professional videographers and producers?

When we shot the video I wanted to convey a shattered life. The outtakes of me at the table looking at pictures in a dark place. Hanging with the guys, playing cards, and music. That was my life then. In the video, that's actually a pic of my ex that I set on fire. The video was professionally produced, and took about nine hours or so to record all the footage.

What are the improvements you have made to your re-recordings of “Wardance” and “Too Late”? Did you maintain the feel of the originals or did you take liberties with reworking them?

I believe we maintained the original feel in those two songs. There's not much different in our re-recording of “Wardance”. Some vocalizations have been added to intensify the emotional angst of the song. “It's Too Late” was changed quite a bit vocally. By suggestion by our producer and to see how it would sound, I sang it in a lower voice. The band didn't know this until they heard it. I thought it gave the song a deeper feel. So it stayed.

If the sound of your new EP is expected to present a more live and raw feel than before, in what way do you anticipate it to do so? How do you hope listeners will respond to it?

A lot of our fans have only heard the first EP and the two released singles. This is great, however they’re lacking that human feel that you only get live. We wanted to present our fans with something that's as authentic as seeing us live. With all the human hiccups that happen in live shows. To me that's where the emotion is. We're hoping that our fans and listeners will hear and feel the heart and soul of this EP and want to come see the performance that goes along with it.

-Dave Wolff