Things haven’t exactly been easy for Energy. Forming over ten years ago in Boston, MA, the band enjoyed moderate success, spots on high profile tours, and were part of an exciting new wave of melodic hardcore bands. As time progressed, Energy became disillusioned. They eventually faded, leaving founding member Jason Tankerley to carry the torch for the band.
“My goal was, and still is, to make Energy the biggest band that we can possibly be, and to keep it going for as long as I possibly can,” explains Tankerley, looking back on the last decade. “There have been times, even since the first few months of the band’s existence, where I considered changing the name due to lineup changes. Then we released ‘Invasions Of The Mind’ as Energy, then ‘Walk Into The Fire’, and so forth. It became clear to me over time that I should keep the band name regardless of whatever direction I wanted to take my voice and lyrics, as long as it felt like Energy to me.”
The passion Tankerley harbours for Energy rings true in their new album, ‘Apparition Sound’, which is getting an official release in February. It is an album that he is particularly proud of. “My vision was to make a record that not only proved that I could keep Energy going on my own, but that the end result would be the best thing we had ever done,” he beams. “Whether I accomplished that is of course entirely subjective, but I personally feel it’s our strongest work.”
It was on ‘Apparition Sound’ that he was able to shine as a musician and a songwriter. Tankerley took the sole creative reigns for the first time, an experience that he has, in the past, described as ‘terrifying’. He grabbed the bull by the horns and ran with it.
“When I was left as the sole songwriter in the band, I had no choice,” recalls Tankerley, explaining the his drive to keep Energy alive. “I know that part of my dream in life is to continue creating music for as long as I live, so when it came down to “do or die” as they say, I knew that I had to forge ahead regardless of how scary it was for me. Whether it turned out better because of it is difficult to say. It’s always tricky when it comes to the “what ifs” of any situation, but I do feel that it wouldn’t have been the record it became had I not been 100% in charge of songwriting.”
When asked if the album carries a theme, Tankerley says that he “feels as if this record stands alone as it’s own thing,” and that each song was written without any of the others in mind. “Lyrically, each song stands on alone,” he continues. “There are songs about religion, nostalgia, surrealism, depression, alienation, love, loss, etc. I would also say that because we worked with producer Chris Curran, it could be closely compared to [2008 album] ‘Invasions Of The Mind’, but to me, ‘Apparition Sound’ sounds nothing like that record.”
Despite how proud Tankerley is of where Energy are today, he is a very humble individual. There is no arrogance here, just a modest sense of accomplishment. He explains that ‘Apparition Sound’ is “a body of work that’s been gestating for a long, long time,” and expresses his excitement for everyone to finally be able to hear it. “I think that ‘Apparition Sound’ is just the tip of the iceberg, and that everything we had done before was just building the groundwork and foundation for what the future holds for us.”
