Fall River
By Cosmo Lee

Fall River - behind this deceptively calm name lie skull-crushing breakdowns, angular dissonance (think Botch and Coalesce), and some heavy, bluesy swing. On top of all this are singer Ali's paint-peeling vocals and thought-provoking lyrics. She is amazingly articulate, having written two must-read articles on xSisterhoodx.com about feminism and hardcore. With a hot new album, "Lights Out," and appearances on the Warped Tour and the soundtrack to the "Masters of Horror" TV series, Fall River is a name you'll be hearing much more of soon.

What is your name, what are your band duties, and if your house were on fire, what's the one thing you would save?
Ali. Vocals. This is going to sound so not tough, but if my house were on fire I think I’d save this stuffed bunny I have. My uncle gave her to me before I was a year old and she’s kind of good luck.

The band bio says it's from southeastern Pennsylvania - where exactly, and what's the scene there like?
We’re from Green Lane. It’s about 40 min. north of Philadelphia. The scene is pretty hit or miss. It’s hard to keep venues open long because of fights and other drama. A lot of kids come out to shows though and that is always great. It was a great area to grow up in because Philly is so close too. I saw some great shows in Philly before I was even 15.

What do the band members do outside of Fall River?
Jon John is a manager at Guitar Center. Kev rocks all day long. Matt runs his own record label, Emerald Moon Records. I work as a teacher for a local domestic violence agency.

How did you hook up with Thorp Records?
We hooked up with Thorp last spring when we sent them demos for some of the songs that ended up on “Lights Out”. We have friends who work or have worked with them and heard good things. They were into us and offered us a deal. We were really excited to finally be able to do a full length.

What's the "Chronicles" EP like, and how does the new album compare to it?
“Chronicles” is a re-release of our early material. It’s our first demo plus the EP “2448724” (originally on Teishu Records) combined with new art and a bonus track. We released it on Emerald Moon last winter. It’s pretty different than our new material but not drastically so. We still play a few songs off of it live. “Lights Out” is more of what I always envisioned for us. It’s a little techy, but it has some rock and groove to it. I’m really proud of how it turned out.

Matt Bayles (Minus the Bear, Isis, Pearl Jam) mixed the new album. What was working with him like, and can you describe the mixing process?
Matt is amazing. We are all HUGE fans of his work, especially Botch. To have him mix our record was an honor. Not to mention he mixed it in way less time than anyone should have to mix a record in and still made it sound amazing. The process was basically we flew out there with the raw audio files and he worked his magic. Mixing takes a recording that is just parts and makes it whole and cohesive. If your record is mixed badly, it won’t sound good - bottom line. We were so happy that we got to work with someone as experienced and talented as Matt.

How did you hook up with Sons of Nero (Dillinger Escape Plan, Every Time I Die, ZAO) for the album artwork, and can you talk more about the cover concept?
I’m pretty sure we just asked them to do it. We’ve always liked their stuff so it seemed like a logical choice. Aaron Marsh did “Lights Out” and I love it. The art is all hospital themed, but I love the way he gave it a dark kind of haunted feel. I think it works perfectly with the title and my lyrics.

Is "The Boards" about Internet smack talkers? If so, you're the third hardcore band (the others being Bane and Donnybrook) I know to have written a song about that!
I am guilty of yet another song about Internet smack talking! Although I honestly don’t really listen to Bane or Donnybrook, I think it’s been interesting to see how the Internet can be used to discredit people in the scene. I mean there have been posts about me that you wouldn’t believe. One said I told kids that “school is worthless” or something like that, which is hilarious because I have a college degree and I’m a teacher. It’s a lot of little men who want to feel big and the Internet is a convenient and gutless way to do that. The people who I wrote that song for know exactly who they are.

I'm hearing some Pantera or Southern-fried influences in "Dead Ends and U-Turns." Is this accurate?
People say that a lot, but we are not big Pantera fans - just not a band that any of us were ever that into. Kev is a huge rock fan though, so it’d be safe to say to we have some Zeppelin and Sabbath influence in our songs.

Does "If We Knew Then What We Know How" caution against rushing into relationships?
Not really. It’s more about the things we have to learn in life that can only be learned by experience. You wish you would have known how badly something would hurt in the end, but you never know till you try it. I guess it’s kind of about accepting that life is often about taking risks and being hurt. The positive is you survive and are wiser for the lessons learned.

Your vocals are extremely aggressive. What do you do to maintain your vocal health?
My voice is really good to me. I’m a big tea drinker and when I’m sick I try not to scream, but other than that I don’t do anything special.

Fall River has a song on the soundtrack to the "Masters of Horror" TV series, alongside heavies like Shadows Fall, Mastodon, and Every Time I Die. How did this come about, and do you know how/when your music will be used in conjunction with the episodes?
Shawn from the Artery Foundation manages us and he hooked us up with it. We were so happy to be on a CD with bands like ETID, Bear Vs. Shark, Mastodon, the list goes on. As of now we don’t know when and where our song will be used, but I am a big horror movie geek so my fingers are crossed. I love so many of the directors involved in the project, so anywhere we end up will be amazing to me.

Evidently you guys like dance parties. Who are the best and worst dancers in the band?
We are all amazing dancers. I challenge anyone to take us on in a dance-off. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

The hardcore scene prides itself on high ideals and a sense of community. Why, then, is the scene so male-dominated even after two decades of existence?
That’s a great question and I wish I had an answer. Personally, I think that females just need to know that they belong in the scene and they can do whatever guys in the scene are doing. I think there is this false idea that only guys are good at aggressive music, which is just not true. I understand that it is really intimidating for females though. Most of the shows we play I am the only female member in any of the bands and that is intimidating sometimes. I know that I have something to say and that motivates me to just get up there and do it. I’ve really stopped caring what people think about me being a female in a “male” scene. If they don’t like what we do, they don’t need to listen. The people who like it and are supportive though, they keep me going. The girls who come up to me at say they want to start a band because of Fall River - that tells me I am making some kind of difference.

You've said that sites like Burning Angel and Suicide Angels merely perpetuate society's objectification of women. Given that these women are meant to be looked at, is objectification avoidable when looking at them?
I’m assuming you’re referring to my article for xSisterhoodx? If so, I think you may have misread what I was saying. My point was not that these sites objectify women; all porn objectifies both women and men, but that these sites claim to be revolutionary and punk rock when really they are just making porn. Personally, I have no problem with porn. I’m for freedom of expression. Do I think it belongs in hardcore? Not really. I just wanted it to be recognized that the impact that those sites have on women and girls in the scene is generally NOT revolutionary or even very positive. My point was, don’t sell me the “advancing women” agenda when really you’re just selling porn to a new market - hardcore kids.

You've worked with sexual health education and domestic violence issues. How did you get into this field, and do you ever have problems with "taking work home"? Does any of your work make it into your lyrics?
I got into these fields because I wanted to help people. I’m really lucky that I’ve been able to earn money working for agencies I believe in. The work feels really important to me. It’s hard to not let your work impact your view of the world, especially because of the things I see at work. My lyrics are definitely influenced by the work I do.

What's it like being the only female in the band? Does that ever translate into any difficulties on the road?
It’s hard to say because I’m used to being the only female. It’s kind of just what I know. Plus my band is like family to me. They have my back no matter what and they believe in me as a part of this band. I feel lucky to be in a band with them!

Fall River played on the Warped Tour this year. What was that like, and what are your thoughts on playing on the Shira Girl Stage?
It was really fun. So many people and so many bands. Shira Girl Stage was great but I kept thinking why are there so few females on Warped Tour that we need our own stage. That sucks if you think about it. Hopefully, that will change in the future. Fall River would love to be a part of Warped Tour for the whole tour.

The band wins the lottery, yet is forced to go on tour. With an unlimited budget and willing record labels, what bands (dead or alive) would you tour with?
Personally, I’d tour with Queen, The Blood Brothers, and Coalesce. I know, what a weird bill. If it were as a band, we’d probably go with Zeppelin and Botch.

Any final words or shout outs?
Hi to Shawn and the Artery Foundation, our once and still family at Emerald Moon Records (we love you guys!) and everyone who supports what we do.