Per their Facebook page bio “Some roots never die, no matter how they are cut.”

There has never been a statement that rings so true. This band, Stardog Champion, features members from Breaking Benjamin, Lifer and The Drama Club. Comprised of Aaron Fink, Mark James, Josh Karis, and Nick Coyle, Stardog Champion are no strangers to this fickle music business. They’ve been here. They live it. They’ve been in the thick of it.

Now, they have regrouped and made a new band, by piecing together their cumulative years of talent to make Stardog Champion. Because of their perseverance, their drive and passion, regardless of their past, they are going to take it to the next level, all whilst boasting an independent status. Oh – and did I mention they rock?! They have therefore been nominated this week’s RockRevolt Indie Band of the Week.

We were fortunate to have been able to sit down and speak with Nick Coyle about where they came from, their newest EP Exhale, and his thoughts on where the music industry is shifting and progressing to.

Alice/RR: When I Google Stardog Champion I get a lot of Mother Love Bone. Is there any connection or coincidence?

Nick: Well, it’s a Mother Love Bone song. We were coming up with band names, and there are so many bands out there. Every band name we were coming up with was taken. We were going through books and song titles. That was a name that popped out. It came up on both Aaron and my list. It’s a cool name. We were all big fans of the 90s grunge era, if you will (like Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam). They were a heavy influence on our music, so it was kind of a nod to the band, as well as a cool name (and it wasn’t taken). It was a storm of different things.

Alice/RR: Is it like you were taking it and making it your own, as well as homage to Mother Love Bone?

Nick: I think it’s more of an homage to the whole scene in general. Some people said that it was a song title, and that we couldn’t use a song title. “Radiohead” is a Talking Head‘s song. “Rolling Stones” is a Muddy Waters song. “Godsmack” is an Alice in Chains song. There are some big bands that have used song titles as names. We thought we would be all right with it.

Alice/RR: Tell us how you came to be about. You all are new band, but you also and old band. Can you please clarify that for some of our readers?

Nick: As far as the whole Lifer for connection – Aaron, Mark, and I were in a band called Lifer, who was on Universal records in 2001.

It was produced by Alex Lifeson of the band Rush. We had some moderate success. We were on The Scorpion King soundtrack in 2002. We all got a Golden Record for that. It did very well. From there Mark and Aaron went on to do Breaking Benjamin. After their public firing, as recent, we kind of rekindled the flame, so to speak. We’ve always remained friends over the last eight years or so. We started kicking around the idea of getting together and doing an album and see where it leads. There was still some chemistry there, so we started writing some songs, which led up to Stardog Champion.

Alice/RR: How long did the EP take to get out?

Nick: It’s actually a slow process, especially because of this lawsuit that they (Mark and Aaron) had going on. We haven’t been able to do anything publicly. We’ve just been writing and honing in on our sound over the past year and a half. This is just the first taste of what we have. We have about 25 songs, but we only did five songs due to monetary constraints.

Alice/RR: Can you give us a quick overview of Exhale, the EP?

Alice/RR: How does this EP differentiate itself from the music you’ve made in your respective previous bands?

Nick: A lot of the stuff that we’ve done in the past has been a little bit more polished and had a little bit more production studio shine to it. Basically, we were going for a little bit more rock and a little bit more raw, and not so perfect.

Alice/RR: A little unfiltered?

Nick: Yes. In today’s music, especially in the rock scene, everything is over processed. Everything is autotuned. All the drums sounds are replaced, and there are a million overdubs. We just wanted something a little bit more organic and something a little bit more sounding like a band.

Alice/RR: Let’s talk about the name of your EP.  What does the name exhale tell us or help us understand the music for the sentiments expressed within it?

Nick: I think the name Exhale relates to Mark and Aaron’s situation and what’s been going on over the last year and half. It’s not just their situation. We’ve all been going through this. Now that it has started to blow over, it’s been like we’ve been holding our breath for the last year and a half. Now we’re just exhaling. That’s where the name came from.

Alice/RR: Even though there are only five songs on the EP, I feel that there are various themes portrayed within it. What were your mindsets when you went into writing these?

Nick: I think it’s just through the different experiences that we’ve been going through over the last years or so. I

guess a theme that kind of runs through is perseverance, struggle and has that “light at the end of the tunnel” kind of vibe.

Alice/RR: Okay. How does a song like “Aphrodite” convey that?

Nick: “Aphrodite” doesn’t really have that perseverance or struggle to it. It’s more of a twisted love/seduction song.

Alice/RR: I did get that, and I was curious how that fell into place.

Nick: Lyrically and musically, it doesn’t fit with the theme. All of us have contributed to the lyrics on this record. Personally, I don’t really sit down and have a preplan. Things just kind of come out, and more times than not, I figure out what the song is about a year down the road. It’s more like a streaming consciousness of lyrics. “Aphrodite” is about falling for someone who is untouchable.

Alice/RR: Does somebody in the band have a personal “Aphrodite”?

Nick: I think we’ve all had one. We’ve all been in that situation.

Alice/RR: I think you’re completely right. Even though you say everybody in the band has been in that situation, I think anybody listening to the song will be able to relate to that as well. There’s always that untouchable person that they can’t quite get to.

Nick: We’ve all kind of had that. It means something a little different to everybody in the band, and listeners as well.

Alice/RR: “When we Fall”, depending on how you are interpreting it, can have a very political/social aspect to it, but you can also look at it from a physical/sexual attraction standpoint. From which direction did you take that long?

Nick: Again, it’s just one of those things that is up to the listener. I try to write things ambiguously enough where it’s not so specific. We try not to box it into one thing.

Watch “When We Fall”

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Alice/RR: Tell me about the video about “When we Fall.”  It has a lot of interesting imagery:  puppeteering, writhing generic women wearing masks, images of the Madonna, and so forth. Did you all have a hand in that?

Nick: We met with the editor and the director and we just kind of rustled some ideas around. The idea was basically a performance video and we wanted to have some chicks with masks (laughs). We had the idea of projections. The editor came up with the idea of what to project. We wanted to put up the distractions in our lives, whether it be religion, television…

Alice/RR: There was a sign for porn.

Nick: Yeah. So, we wanted to hit on the distractions in life without getting too heavy. He just ran with that idea and came back and said, “I know this choreographer.” She rounded up 26 girls. They all came down and we shot them for a whole day. It started out as a performance video with some weirdness in it. (laughs)

Alice/RR: (laughs) Yep. You accomplished that! Is there a song on the EP that you feel you relate to the most?

Nick: I think they each hold different meaning for me. I can’t just pick one.

Alice/RR: When will we expect to see a full album subsequent to this EP?

Nick: Now we are working on getting an agent, and trying to get out there and play some shows this summer. We will join Pointfest in St. Louis the 12^th. We are just

ready to go out and play some shows. If a full-length isn’t in store, we will do another EP. We have about 25 songs. It seems like the music industry is kind of shifting towards this EP mindset. Our attention spans are getting shorter these days. I don’t know how many people would actually sit through 12 songs these days. Unfortunately, that is just the way it is. It might be better to release EPs more often rather than the traditional way. It might take two or three years for a band to do a full-length, but they might put out an EP every year. I think it’s a good way for bands to get newer music to the fans sooner than making them wait. For a band like Tool, they waited seven years to do a record. (laughs)

Alice/RR: (laughs) They needed time.

Nick: Yeah. It’s great when it comes out, but I think for your hard core fans, or even your casual listener, I think that they would rather have newer stuff sooner.

Alice/RR: Yeah. Seven years, that is almost a generation gap.

Nick: Yeah. For a band like Tool, it works to do what they do. I think for a band like us, it works better to release more music faster.

Alice/RR: Or two EPs a year? One at the beginning and one towards the middle?

Nick: Then you are constantly creating music, which is something that we love to do. Getting out of the mindset of “Now we have these 12 songs, let’s go tour them,” and play the same 12 songs over and over again.

Alice/RR: It would probably keep you current. As things happen throughout the year, you could draw inspiration from that, and move forward quicker.

Nick: Yeah. I think it would help you band evolve musically, faster.

Alice/RR: I think it’s a good idea. I think you are on to something.

Nick: (laughs) We’re gonna run with it.

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