I Am Alpha And Omega | Tangles And Triumphs
Am Alpha and Omega is the real deal, a brotherhood of believers on their way to reaching many more. Through a tumultuous summer of touring, festivals, a near label deal and ultimately, a disaster, IAAAO have successfully made it through to the other side to finally give us their full length record The Roar and The Whisper. The record is a ferocious and endearing work with nothing but passion at its roots. The concept of the title refers to how sometimes life’s messages sneak into your ears gently and how other times they are blatantly screamed into your conscious. No one has more harshly learned that lesson this year than IAAAO. Vocalist Donny Hardy, and brother Peach are two of the most stand-up guys we’ve ever had the pleasure of chatting with. The brothers spoke with us earlier this summer before the record label tangles ensued and once again just days ago to catch us up on their band’s endurance as well as what we the fans have to look forward to now.
Firstly, its no secret that there has been some controversy surrounding IAAAO regarding your album being released ahead of schedule. What was the issue and what is happening with it now?
Donny Hardy: Basically, we were talking to to several labels about releasing the record. The talks were initially extremely positive, leading us to making the decision to hold back the release. One label we weren’t able to come to an agreement with, and they actually released the record early without a contract. The other label we had great talks with and are still on great terms, they just aren’t able to sign anyone at the moment. We wanted to get this record out to those who have supported us and patiently waited. We are proud to release this with Come and Live! Our supporters are so incredible, through it all, they never doubted us.
So for now, IAAAO is done with the label search?
DH: For now, we want to focus on playing the record out and making the right decisions. When the time comes for new music, we will see what happens.
I know this isn’t the ideal way to have your album come out but is there just a sense of relief that the music is finally going to be out there and given to so many who have been waiting awhile?
DH: There is, in a huge way. The worst part about the whole thing was feeling terrible for making people wait. We’re just glad we can get it to everyone. The label mess up and album leak really were upsetting, but we know we have to trust in Lord and move forward.
You went out with Greeley Estates and Oh Sleeper earlier this summer. How was your new stuff received by kids who may have never heard you?
Peach Hardy: That’s the one thing, we’ve had great crowd response on this tour. As far as on a professional level, Greeley and Sleeper have loved it so much they mention it to their labels even. they just want to see us succeed after becoming great friends with them. we’re up over 250 pre orders for the new record now, God’s blessings are just amazing right now. We kind of went into this with little expectations because you go in with your plan and then God just kind of takes over and blows your mind so its been amazing.
What did you want to accomplish with this new record musically, spiritually and lyrically?
PH: Musically, I think Donny and the guitars make the record. On this record I feel like God was really calling me to scale back on my drum stuff. I just think that its still good but on a musical level-you do your best and its hard to critique your own music but I think people will enjoy it and feel the intensity and passion that the Lord instilled in us. I was definitely going through a lot of changes in my walk with the Lord and just feeling His spirit every morning was such a blessing. I just kind of stepped back away from the band at a business level and guys had sensed that. It just gave me time to really be intimate with the Lord and i think you’ll feel that in the drums and the music. I think we were all just going through this awesome transition with the Lord so I think that our music and our spirit really connect on the record. Donny’s lyrics were dead on, he put in a lot of thought and prayer, he has a very unique way of doing that. Lyrically…that is more of a question for Donny but I know that he goes and prays and it definitely comes from the spirit and we want to make sure that those lyrics stand out as a form of worship.
DH: Lyrically, it was an interesting time for me because when the bus broke down last year I got really bitter. I just felt like God wasn’t there. I used it for a period of about 7 or 8 months as a vehicle to question my faith. I didn’t know if God was really there because there I was doing ministry work and it felt like He didn’t care about me. I couldn’t understand how or why He would do that. long story short, through that period was when we were writing the record and I had to wake up every day kind of fighting for my faith and beliefs and I felt lost and abandoned and trying to regain the ground spiritually. I just feel like God used that time to fuel the record. The vein of worship that runs through this record is kind of me crying out to God as a lost child. There is a track called “Wolves” that I wrote at about 7 in the morning at the studio. It really just kind of encompasses how I feel. Lyrically, it was just kind of me in one of the darkest spiritual times of my life just kind of grasping at straws just kind of looking for the Lord again and trying to reconnect with him. I think he explicitly used that dark time in my walk to fuel the record.
How did the title come about?
the record.”
PH: Donny came up with it and I loved it. Our bus broke down on June 1st about a year ago in Florida and we are currently broken down again in Florida. That was such a miserable time for us but we thought it was kind of a time of God roaring in our lives and connecting. Now that I look back on it, it was kind of Him putting me in check and saying I want you to be spiritually sound and intimate with me and I love you and I’m a jealous God. That is kind of what I got from it. I had a lot of bitterness toward the Lord at that time just because our bus was broken down, I thought our whole touring year was shot. But we just thought of how God whispers in your life too. It really just hit us all that there are two dimensions of the Lord and they are amazing. That was a heavy experience we had at the time so we wanted to dedicate the record toward that.
In a video on your page, you talk about just heavily feeling God’s presence while recording, tell us about this feeling and a bit about how recording went?
PH: I was definitely going through a time of transition with the Lord and He was just showing me new personalities of Him, it was kind of a spiritual milk like Paul talks about in Hebrews about it signifying spiritual maturity. I was really overwhelmed by the spirit in a big way. All throughout the studio I was just so sensitive, my ears, my thought process, were just so sensitive to the spirit so any time I felt it I would just start breaking down, I couldn’t help it. I think there are seasons where we are really tuned in to the spirit and love of God. My brother having the gift the just being so loving toward people, I really felt the spirit of the Lord in that realm. So when he would scream and put his passion and love and gifts into his vocals it was just amazing. I just remember seeing Donny step up to the mic and I was in the other room and I just said wow. That was happening hourly. I would get up and pray over the rooms every morning and the whole studio. We just kicked the devil out and made sure it was the Lord. He just blessed us so much in that time with his spirit. In the word it talks about how the spirit comes and goes like wind but I think He stuck around awhile for sure.
The record comes out on September 5th and you’re having your release party at Revelation Generation in New Jersey. For those out there not attending, where will be the album be available after the release day?
DH: Absolutely, physical copies will be available through our online merch store, as well as digital copies on itunes,amazon and a number of other online outlets. 
