Saving Grace | The New Zealand Powerhouse
Written By: Jeremy Seick

ometimes the lights in the U.S. are too bright to see the stars. But if you were to dim that light for a minute you would see that there are a galaxy of bands waiting in the wings for their chance to be noticed. In the small country of New Zealand hides a band that since 2005 has been diligently working to get their sound past these borders that mark our plots of land. This incredibly brutal band stands behind what they believe through ridicule and judgment while forking over thousands of dollars in cash to come and play in North and South America, hoping to spread their message. We have watched this band for a while and decided that they deserved some notice from these United States and hopefully our overseas readers will take notice too, though I feel that we may be the last ones in on this secret.

First things first, you guys are from New Zealand, educate us on what the music scene is like there.

Saving Grace: The scene in New Zealand is very different to the likes of the scenes in Europe or the United States in the sense that it is such a small country and there are basically only a handful of underground labels and promoters.  There is also a huge lack of touring opportunity here, because of the size of the country and also a lack of venues and interest in the type of music we play aside from a few major city centres. In New Zealand, a hardcore band playing between 8-12 shows is considered a massive tour. Major labels and mainstream music acts don’t really have that problem and there are a number of great artists who have gone on to become extremely successful and very well recognised worldwide.

What do you see as some of the biggest differences in the music scene down there in comparison to here?

SG: The main difference aside from the size of the country geographically and the size of the scene is definitely the fact that the Gospel is a taboo thing to speak about in the metal and hardcore circuit over here. In New Zealand, it is very difficult for a Christian band to be accepted, and for the first couple of years of our existence we were pretty much despised nationwide for being outspoken about our beliefs on stage. Things have changed in a big way for us in the past couple of years, but we are still the only heavy band that is doing it.

Aside from that, things are very similar in terms of fashion, trends and musical style… American hardcore and metal has always been a big influence on the bands over here.

Has it been a challenge breaking into the U.S. metal scene?

SG: Well, with the help of the Internet it was been extremely easy for us to gain recognition worldwide as soon as we got signed and put out our first album, this is one thing that a lot of bands need to be grateful for because a few years ago this would have been impossible. In this day and age if a band does well or is snapped up by a label, that label can pick up the costs of recording and a little bit of promo to get the CD out there and Myspace will take care of the rest… it’s crazy. There is also a great network of Christian zines, radio stations and clothing labels in the U.S. which are doing so much to help out bands in the scene, I think now more than ever before it has become accepted to be a spirit-filled metal or hardcore band and to have worship and evangelical messages at shows… However, as I mentioned earlier, back home this is entirely different.

We are looking forward to having a lot more to do with bands, promoters and labels in the U.S. over the next couple of years and God is already opening many doors for us… Hopefully we will have some exciting news for everyone in the next month or so!

What U.S. bands have you had the chance of touring with so far?

SG: At this point we have only toured the U.S. once and it was throughout October last year with our good friends in Wrench In The Works, Sovereign Strength and Man of Sorrows… For all of us this was a childhood dream come true! We did a couple of weeks from Texas to California after we got off tour in Mexico with Man of Sorrows and our pals in For Today.

For us it is extremely expensive to come to the US with flights alone costing around $10,000 USD but the things that we saw God do in our lives and hearts as well as the people around is priceless… We look forward to coming back early next year for a much lengthier run throughout North America and possibly Canada.

You guys are absolutely brutal. What influences have helped form the Saving Grace sound?

SG: Thank you! We all grew up on such a vast variety of music, mainly metal, hardcore and hip hop so there are many different elements flowing through our sound over the years, however our main influences include a lot of older Thrash and Death metal bands such as Slayer, Sepultura, Morbid Angel and Deicide as well as mid 90’s euro hardcore bands such as Arkangel, Reprisal and Maroon.

What drives the messages behind your music?

SG: First and foremost the good news of the resurrected Christ and the love of God! We have always maintained to touch on a variety of important topics that we feel strongly about. It is important for us to write music and lyrics that people from all walks of life can relate to, or be impacted by in some form or another, however we don’t have a problem with speaking about the truth no matter how confrontational or uncomfortable it may seem. If the Gospel is always delivered in an easily digestible format, then you have to start asking some questions.

The new album we are writing and recording now is lyrically the most honest material we have written yet. Nick, our vocalist and main lyricist pours his heart out on many tracks speaking on some very touchy and deep personal issues that he has had to battle with for years. I am excited in my spirit to see how the Lord will use us once again with the new record. It’s always a blessing and the biggest privilege to see and hear how your music has had an impact on somebody somewhere in the world, and for us to be chosen to plant seeds of the Kingdom in peoples hearts through a ministry such as Saving Grace is the biggest honor we could ever receive.

Thank you so much for the support and taking the time out for this interview.