Memphis May Fire| A Mile In My Shoes
Written By: Jeremy Seick

Like that waterhole you and your friends become more and more fond of Memphis May Fire’s frontman, Matty Mullins, jumps straight into your shoes and takes off  running. Not often can someone empathise with an experience that was never theirs, but Mullins coulda’ fooled me with the lyrics to The Hollow. Actually, he did fool me. And rightly so, with all the well-polished fury that accompanies them. Mullins disclosed to us that the latest Memphis album feeds from the experiences of others. Which only further proves that this Rise Records band, after much hard work, is ready to take their top spot. And if the following doesn’t convince you of just that then I guarantee The Hollow’s track one will.

You guys had a pretty tumultuous last few years label wise. How does it feel to have this solid home at Rise and what are some of the major pros of being on this label?

Matty Mullins: We are so stoked to be a part of the Rise Records family! Rise is a well oiled machine & their success relates directly to the amazing staff. We couldn’t be happier!

I’m curious about the track“The Burden.” Curious and very intrigued. The content seems to be that of a frustrated teen arguing? Dissect this track for us and how it ties into the album as a whole…

MM: The voices in “The Burden” are a couple that are arguing, but you’re hearing it from a child’s perspective, having to listen to his parents argue through the walls nightly. We know this is something most anyone can relate to.

The lyrics to this album seem searching and desperate, but each in their own way. Do you find your writing therapeutic or is some of this stuff hard to disclose? I’m thinking of tracks like “The Sinner” and “The Abandoned.”

MM: The lyrics on the The Hollow are different than anything I’ve ever written before. I’ve always written the majority of my lyrics about my own life, views and beliefs. The songs on the The Hollow are stories told from the perspective of friends and family that went through things I haven’t been through. I really hope the songs are therapeutic for the listeners who can relate to them.

To be honest with you, I was sitting in my office listening through your album for about the third time and as I came to the end of the album I thought to myself, “Wow, this album is beautifully composed”, which is not something I would typically say about a metal album. How much time and thought did you put into the track ordering and production of the album, etc.? And how much of it was your vision for it from the beginning?

MM: We did the actual tracking for the album 24 hours a day. We would work with our producer Cameron from 9-5 every day and would continue tracking all night. This allowed us more time to focus on the overall production towards the end of our time at the studio. We had a vague vision for the album before we started but it all came together like a puzzle close to the end of the recording process. We really hope our listeners pay attention to the amount of thought and production that went into each song because it was very time consuming. “…I really hope the songs are therapeutic for the listeners who can relate to them.”

So now it is out and in the hands of old, and hopefully many new, fans. What are you hoping they are pulling from it? Or what do you hope it is doing for them?

MM: The response to The Hollow has been so amazing. Our longtime fans are loving it and our fan base is growing faster than ever before. We’ve heard from so many fans that have been touched by the record already and that is what it’s all about for us. Seeing our music make an impact on the scene in such a positive way is a dream come true!

Talk to us about your summer touring plans!

MM: We are currently headlining The Rise Records Tour and will be until June 19th! After this we are on The Allstars Tour in July and August! After that we will be overseas for a month and then back home for another full U.S. run which we can’t announce yet. There will definitely be an opportunity for all of our fans to catch at least one show over the next few months!