Being a local band is hard enough as it is but when fans of the headliner think you suck before they even hear you it’s worse. Overwatch from Sacramento, CA is just that band to change your mind. This fast rising hard rock act has opened for many national acts and has garnered fans at every stop and with the soon to be released second record they will be on their way. I recently convened with the band in the parking lot of Dimple Records where they were more than happy to give you future fans their thoughts on being the local band.
An interview with Overwatch.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: I know there have been a few membership changes but how did this band come together originally?
Glen Barnes: At first it started with Tucker (Holstein) and I when we were in the same school together, Rock Inc. I wasn’t in a band at the time so I got his number and asked him to jam with me. We picked up a bass player from Rock Inc who also suggested Zach MacLachlan to be our vocalist.
Metal Exiles: Zach, verything I read or hear harps about your age. Does it really matter how old you are?
Zach MacLachlan: I think when people see us in photos or go on stage they want to say they are too young, they may not expect us to be as good as we are and they generally like us after they see us play. It’s not about the age, it is about the music and the show we put on.
Metal Exiles: I know when people think about a young age in the music business they think pop band and then they hear Overwatch?
Zach: I would think so. Most of the younger artists are usually pop artists.
Metal Exiles: What is the vision for Overwatch? You are just getting started with one album out and working on the second one.
Zach: Right now we are finishing our second album which should be out in a few months and play as much as we can.
Glen: We want this to be our job, this is how we want to pay our bills, go out and play with big bands, just make music for a living. We do not want this to be a short term thing, we want to have five or six albums out, win a Grammy. We want to make this band the best thing it can be but also make this our living. I do not want to work at some retail store to pay my way through college, I want to be rocking out on stage and having fun. If I can play my guitar, make music and make some money, fine with me.
Metal Exiles: You helped start this band, has it lived up to what you thought it would?
Tucker Holstein: So far, yes. The band has done really well in over the year it has been together. We already have record labels looking at us, good vibes as well as feedback from people so I see no end.
Metal Exiles: Overwatch has a new bass player with the addition of Kyle Bolla. How did you get involved with Overwatch?
Kyle Bolla: I saw an add in Guitar Center: Bass Player Wanted, fav bands Deftones and Chevelle and that was good enough for me. I gave them a call and it worked out. We have similar tastes in music and that counts for a lot.
Metal Exiles: As far as the songs are concerned, tracks like Band Aid, Darkest Days and Wishing You Well do not sound like they are coming from a young band. They sound mature, dark and heavy. Where did this material come from?
Zach: It just came from our tastes mixed together. We also have our producer, Zak Deibels, who we also write with. It is just the perfect match of musicians, it just folds together that way. We have developed our sound early on which is hard for bands to do.
Metal Exiles: The track the local stations have been playing is Band Aid. Where did that track come from?
Zach: It is about drug use amongst people I know, how it has affected them and what they should do to fix it. We wrote that in a day and it came out the way we wanted it to.
Metal Exiles: Where do you fit in with the writing?
Glen: As the guitar player I am the one that comes up with the riff that matches Zach’s melodies and then we present it to Tucker to create a beat for the song. It goes through the band to try and expand the song and make the best of it.
Metal Exiles: On the first album, what were you using?
Glen: I was using a Les Paul Studio and our producer has a series of Strats and Telecasters that we used as well. For the amps we used Guitar Rig on the whole record and it sounded amazing.
Metal Exiles: Your sound harkens back to the dark sounds of the early 90’s, especially with your stage presence. How do you guys relate that stuff in your sound?
Zach: We all love stuff from that era, Pearl Jam, Nirvana ect as well as early Deftones. It is just something that we liked and want to incorporate into our sound.
Glen: Not to hate on any bands it just seems like there is just to many screamo and metal core bands, nobody just wants to do rock music anymore. Straight forward Rock Music just has not been around, its not experimental, its just rock. I think its just a breath of fresh air for listeners.
Metal Exiles: You guys have built up a good following of local fans. How hard has it been to do that considering that music fans have so much out there to get their attention?
Glen: It has been hard because attention spans with music are either you get them quickly or you don’t. You have to be creative with how you get your music out there.
Metal Exiles: As far as the new album, what direction is it headed in?
Zach: We all agree that it is a lot better than the first album and we have also had a lot more time to spend with this one. I have also spent more time on the lyrics and I feel that this is the best that we have got. We would love to get picked up by a label and this album should be the one to do that.
Metal Exiles: Where I the lyrical content going for this record?
Zach: I just wrote about teenage problems, things that are on your mind and that are a big deal at the age of 16. I think a lot of our fans will be able to relate to that.
Metal Exiles: How hard is it to be a working band in Sacramento?
Glen: I was told that can be a drag being in a rock band sometimes so you better have fun while doing it. As far as booking shows, we have pretty good luck with that around here as far as getting the good ones but there are some we have to turn down because we have to sell a certain amount of tickets and we don’t want to screw the venue over if we can’t sell them.
Metal Exiles: What do you see for the immediate future of Overwatch?
Glen: We will be dropping the new record very shortly, playing a lot of shows out of town to spread the word and take over the world.
Zach: We want to be the next big band out of Sacramento. We want to be the next Papa Roach, Deftones, we want it to happen.
Overwatch is the band to watch, they will make huge waves.
Official Overwatch Facebook Page
An interview with Overwatch.
By Jeffrey Easton
Metal Exiles: I know there have been a few membership changes but how did this band come together originally?
Glen Barnes: At first it started with Tucker (Holstein) and I when we were in the same school together, Rock Inc. I wasn’t in a band at the time so I got his number and asked him to jam with me. We picked up a bass player from Rock Inc who also suggested Zach MacLachlan to be our vocalist.
Metal Exiles: Zach, verything I read or hear harps about your age. Does it really matter how old you are?
Zach MacLachlan: I think when people see us in photos or go on stage they want to say they are too young, they may not expect us to be as good as we are and they generally like us after they see us play. It’s not about the age, it is about the music and the show we put on.
Metal Exiles: I know when people think about a young age in the music business they think pop band and then they hear Overwatch?
Zach: I would think so. Most of the younger artists are usually pop artists.
Metal Exiles: What is the vision for Overwatch? You are just getting started with one album out and working on the second one.
Zach: Right now we are finishing our second album which should be out in a few months and play as much as we can.
Glen: We want this to be our job, this is how we want to pay our bills, go out and play with big bands, just make music for a living. We do not want this to be a short term thing, we want to have five or six albums out, win a Grammy. We want to make this band the best thing it can be but also make this our living. I do not want to work at some retail store to pay my way through college, I want to be rocking out on stage and having fun. If I can play my guitar, make music and make some money, fine with me.
Metal Exiles: You helped start this band, has it lived up to what you thought it would?
Tucker Holstein: So far, yes. The band has done really well in over the year it has been together. We already have record labels looking at us, good vibes as well as feedback from people so I see no end.
Metal Exiles: Overwatch has a new bass player with the addition of Kyle Bolla. How did you get involved with Overwatch?
Kyle Bolla: I saw an add in Guitar Center: Bass Player Wanted, fav bands Deftones and Chevelle and that was good enough for me. I gave them a call and it worked out. We have similar tastes in music and that counts for a lot.
Metal Exiles: As far as the songs are concerned, tracks like Band Aid, Darkest Days and Wishing You Well do not sound like they are coming from a young band. They sound mature, dark and heavy. Where did this material come from?
Zach: It just came from our tastes mixed together. We also have our producer, Zak Deibels, who we also write with. It is just the perfect match of musicians, it just folds together that way. We have developed our sound early on which is hard for bands to do.
Metal Exiles: The track the local stations have been playing is Band Aid. Where did that track come from?
Zach: It is about drug use amongst people I know, how it has affected them and what they should do to fix it. We wrote that in a day and it came out the way we wanted it to.
Metal Exiles: Where do you fit in with the writing?
Glen: As the guitar player I am the one that comes up with the riff that matches Zach’s melodies and then we present it to Tucker to create a beat for the song. It goes through the band to try and expand the song and make the best of it.
Metal Exiles: On the first album, what were you using?
Glen: I was using a Les Paul Studio and our producer has a series of Strats and Telecasters that we used as well. For the amps we used Guitar Rig on the whole record and it sounded amazing.
Metal Exiles: Your sound harkens back to the dark sounds of the early 90’s, especially with your stage presence. How do you guys relate that stuff in your sound?
Zach: We all love stuff from that era, Pearl Jam, Nirvana ect as well as early Deftones. It is just something that we liked and want to incorporate into our sound.
Glen: Not to hate on any bands it just seems like there is just to many screamo and metal core bands, nobody just wants to do rock music anymore. Straight forward Rock Music just has not been around, its not experimental, its just rock. I think its just a breath of fresh air for listeners.
Metal Exiles: You guys have built up a good following of local fans. How hard has it been to do that considering that music fans have so much out there to get their attention?
Glen: It has been hard because attention spans with music are either you get them quickly or you don’t. You have to be creative with how you get your music out there.
Metal Exiles: As far as the new album, what direction is it headed in?
Zach: We all agree that it is a lot better than the first album and we have also had a lot more time to spend with this one. I have also spent more time on the lyrics and I feel that this is the best that we have got. We would love to get picked up by a label and this album should be the one to do that.
Metal Exiles: Where I the lyrical content going for this record?
Zach: I just wrote about teenage problems, things that are on your mind and that are a big deal at the age of 16. I think a lot of our fans will be able to relate to that.
Metal Exiles: How hard is it to be a working band in Sacramento?
Glen: I was told that can be a drag being in a rock band sometimes so you better have fun while doing it. As far as booking shows, we have pretty good luck with that around here as far as getting the good ones but there are some we have to turn down because we have to sell a certain amount of tickets and we don’t want to screw the venue over if we can’t sell them.
Metal Exiles: What do you see for the immediate future of Overwatch?
Glen: We will be dropping the new record very shortly, playing a lot of shows out of town to spread the word and take over the world.
Zach: We want to be the next big band out of Sacramento. We want to be the next Papa Roach, Deftones, we want it to happen.
Overwatch is the band to watch, they will make huge waves.
Official Overwatch Facebook Page
