EMQ’s With Accursed
EMQ’s With Accursed
What is your name, what do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
My name is Dave Lee, and depending on the day, I’m the guitarist, band dad, booking agent, manager, accountant, financier, therapist, occasional roadie, and the guy who gets blamed when anything goes wrong. Somewhere in there, I also write riffs.
Accursed started after I moved back to Connecticut from Arizona, where I’d spent years playing in different bands. I had taken a pretty long break from music due to an injury, and eventually, after moving home to Connecticut, the urge to start creating again won out.
I’d say like most bands, the early years involved a lot of lineup changes, questionable practice spaces, and trying to figure out exactly what we wanted to be. Things really started to come together around the time Chris joined on bass, and Will came in on vocals.
How did you come up with your band name?
That’s actually not a very exciting story, which probably makes it more honest than most band name stories.
Back when we were getting ready for our first show, we still didn’t have a name. We were throwing some ideas around, rejecting most of them immediately, but at some point, someone kicked out “Accursed” and it just kind of stuck.
To be completely honest, I wasn’t sold on it at first. There have been a lot of bands called Accursed over the years, and I wasn’t thrilled about that. But the more we sat with it, the more it seemed to fit the music and the themes we gravitated toward. At a certain point, the name became less important than what we were building under it.
Now, after years of writing, recording, and playing shows, I can’t really imagine the band being called anything else. Sometimes the name you fight the hardest ends up being the one that fits best.
What Country / Region are you from and what is the Metal / Rock scene like there?
We’re based out of Connecticut in the New England area of the United States, and honestly, the metal scene here is alive and well. Like anywhere, some markets are stronger than others, and you learn pretty quickly which cities are worth making the drive for and which ones are going to be a character-building exercise.
One of the cool things about New England is that everything is relatively close together. Within a few hours, you can be playing Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Maine, New York, or New Jersey, so there’s a lot of opportunity to get out and build relationships in different scenes. We’ve made a conscious effort to focus on the stronger regional markets and continue expanding.
The scene itself is healthy. There are many great bands, dedicated promoters, festivals, and venues keeping heavy music alive. It can be competitive at times, but for the most part, we’ve found that the bands that are willing to work hard, support each other, and actually show up tend to do better than most. Plus, metalheads in the Northeast have a reputation for being brutally honest. If they like your music, you’ll know it. If they don’t, you’ll know that too. That’s not necessarily a bad thing.
What is your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
Our latest release is our single “Sever the Horizon.” It’s a song that had been part of our live set for a little while now before we finally recorded and released it, so there was already a lot of anticipation around it from people who had seen us play. It quickly became one of those songs where I line-check with the sample from it, and I see people start nodding excitedly because they know what’s coming.
The song deals with mental health and was inspired by the story of Richard “Bebo” Russell or Sky King. It’s one of the more emotionally heavy tracks we’ve written, but it still has all the aggression, melody, and energy people have come to expect from us.
As for what’s next, we’re currently wrapping up the writing process for our first full-length album. Which is exciting because apparently releasing singles wasn’t expensive enough, so we decided to record an entire album instead. But seriously, we’re really proud of the material and can’t wait to get it into the studio and out into the world.
Who have been your greatest influences?
As an old-school hip-hop guy, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Wu-Tang Clan here. Good songwriting is good songwriting, whether it’s a death metal record or a rap album, plus the way they built an empire is something that inspires me on a whole other level.
Honestly, though, the influences are all over the place. If we’re talking about the foundation, a lot of the obvious metal influences are there: bands like At the Gates, Children of Bodom, The Black Dahlia Murder, and a ton of other melodeath, thrash, and death metal that helped shape the way I think about songwriting.
What first got you into music?
My dad, without a doubt. He played guitar, so there was always music around when I was growing up, albeit a very different kind of music. Some of my earliest memories are of hearing him play with his friends, who would come over and jam out on Grateful Dead songs. I also had a weird obsession with Elvis Presley until I was about 12.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
There are so many, but if I had to choose one, it would be Brendon Small.
The guy is an incredible guitarist, songwriter, comedian, and somehow managed to create one of the most recognizable metal bands in the world without it technically being a band at first. That’s a pretty awesome accomplishment when you think about it.
One of the things I admire the most is that he understands metal and metal culture, and he also understands how absurd it can be at times and has never been afraid to lean into both sides of that with Dethklok or Metalocalypse, which is something I try to keep in mind when creating for Accursed… Plus I have a few riffs I have filed away under “Thunderhorse 2” already, so if there’s any chance he’s reading this, Brendon, let’s give the world the part 2 that nobody asked for!
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
Wacken, it’s been a dream of mine for about twenty years now. I remember watching Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey and seeing the footage from Wacken Open Air and thinking, “Yep, that’s it. That’s where I want to play.”
There’s something legendary about it. Tens of thousands of metalheads from all over the world gathering in a field to celebrate heavy music for a few days sounds perfect. Playing Wacken feels like you’ve become part of metal history in some way.
Also, after spending years loading gear through snow, rain, questionable parking lots, and venues with staircases clearly designed by people who hate musicians, the idea of standing on stage at Wacken would make all of that seem worth it.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
I’ve actually never received a gift from a fan, which at this point I’m not sure is a blessing or a sign we need to step up our game in the “fan interaction economy”.
The funny thing is, we actually do the opposite pretty regularly. We’re usually the ones handing out weird stuff at shows- bags of dirt, questionable trinkets, things that probably shouldn’t travel through TSA without explanation. Maybe we’ve just created a situation where people assume that’s normal behavior for us and have decided not to escalate further.
Either way, I can’t complain. If you’re showing up, supporting the band, and dealing with whatever chaos we’re handing out that night, that’s more than enough for me. But I do feel like at some point the universe is going to balance it out and someone’s going to hand me something truly unhinged, and honestly I’m kind of looking forward to it.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
I would say thank you!
I know that’s a simple answer, but it’s the truth. Every person who streams a song, buys a shirt, comes to a show, tells a friend about the band, or takes the time to send us a message is helping make this thing possible. People see the finished product, but they don’t always see the years of work, the money, the late nights, the long drives, and all the sacrifices that go into keeping a band moving forward. None of it means much if nobody connects with it.
So my message is really just thank you for giving us your time. Out of all the bands, songs, and distractions competing for your attention, the fact that you’ve chosen to spend some of that time with us means more than you probably realize. We appreciate it more than we can put into words.
Now go buy a shirt so I can afford more guitar strings!
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Fuck… that’s a dangerous question. It feels like no matter who I pick, I’m insulting a hundred other musicians who deserve to be on the list.
Before I answer, I need to know the rules. What condition are they in when they come back? Because if we’re talking full resurrection? Healthy? Coherent? Able to play music? Then that’s one thing. If we’re talking about raising some undead drooling, shuffling, caveman noise-making idiot, then I’m going to pass. The genre already has enough of those.
On further thought, nope, I can’t do it; the list is way too long, and no matter who I pick, I’d spend the next week thinking about all the other musicians I left out. There are just too many artists who have shaped the music we listen to and the way we approach writing our own songs.
Truthfully, I don’t think I’d bring anyone back. As much as I’d love to hear one more album from some of my heroes, I think we owe it to the musicians we’ve lost to carry their influence forward instead. They already gave us everything they had. The best thing we can do is take what we learned from them, build on it, and create something new. So as tempting as it is to resurrect somebody for one more tour or one more record, I’d rather spend that energy making sure their impact keeps living on through the bands they’re still inspiring today.
Plus, if I start naming names, we’ll be here all day. Metal fans love arguing enough as is. I’m not giving them any more ammunition.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
What I enjoy most is creating music, and I don’t think there’s really anything else that scratches that itch the same way. Taking an idea that exists only as noise in your head and turning it into something everlasting is still kind of magical to me. As akin as true creativity is to mental illness, I apparently need it to function (I’ve got plenty of the latter, just ask my wife). If I go too long without writing something or playing guitar, I start getting restless and annoying to be around.
What I hate? Honestly, very little of it has to do with the music aspect.
I hate loading gear in and out of the venue, but hate it more after a show. I hate realizing I’ve carried a 4×12 cabinet up two flights of stairs only to discover there’s an elevator nobody bothered to mention. I hate that every venue also seems to have at least one NPC whose sole purpose is to stand in a doorway while you’re carrying something heavy.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
I’d love to see an industry where artists are compensated fairly enough that they can spend more time creating and less time trying to convince an app that they exist.
Also, while we’re fixing things, I’d like to formally outlaw vertical video. I don’t have a practical reason for that. I just don’t like it.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
I had to think about this one for literally a week; this is almost as bad as the “bring one musician back” question.
But I would have to say Highest Beauty by In Thy Dreams. I was introduced to them in the early 2000’s, and it was love at first listen, even though they’re still one of those bands a lot of seasoned metalheads seem to have missed entirely.
That record takes the Gothenburg sound and pushes it to a new level. It’s melodic and aggressive and has this really distinct atmosphere that always stood out to me. You can probably hear bits of it in my own writing if you’re paying attention.
It’s an album I go back to regularly. Some records you move on from over time; this one never really left the rotation.
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?
Although I’m fond of them because they were the intermediate format between vinyl and CDs, cassettes are more of a merch thing these days, something physical and nostalgic, and cool to have on a table at a show. Vinyl is similar in a lot of ways. People love it as a physical artifact, even if a lot of buyers don’t necessarily have a setup to play it. It’s more about the experience and the connection to the music in a tangible form.
CDs are the physical format that’s closest to my heart. I caught the tail end of vinyl, and the era of cassettes before CDs took over, they were the dominant format in my formative years when so much of the music that shaped my tastes came out. There’s still something so satisfying about having a physical disc, a booklet, artwork you can actually hold, and lyrics you can read. I actually probably still owe Columbia House some money, but that’s another story.
But Downloads are something different, I mean, where we’re at with the industry right now, most independent smaller bands are not making a living off of streaming. It’s a promotion tool, full stop, and one that feels like they’re finding new ways of making it more exclusive every week to limit the reach of smaller bands. So in all honesty (and fuck Lars), I would rather our music be downloaded and shared for free to reach more people who will truly appreciate it than to be a slave to the algorithm and have to grind it out on the major DSPs in this current climate.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
That’s a tough one because there are a few that stand out for different reasons, but the most memorable one for me was definitely when we played with Undeath.
There was a really strong energy in the room that night. Everything felt locked in. It was one of those shows where you’re not thinking about anything technical or stressful; you’re just in it, and the set flies by way too fast.
We’ve had a few of those moments over the years, but that one stands out because it felt like everything we’d been working toward up to that point actually clicked in real time. That’s the best kind of gig, not necessarily the biggest one, but the one where it feels like the connection between the band and the crowd is undeniable.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
Honestly, probably still something music-adjacent in one way or another. Once you spend enough years in it, it kind of rewires your brain.
Outside of that, though, I already kind of do the things I’d naturally gravitate toward: I build boutique guitar pedals, and I’m always expanding my home studio setup. So, if I wasn’t playing in a band, I’d probably just sink more time into that side of things. Designing tones, tweaking circuits, messing around with gear, and chasing that “perfect sound” that never actually exists.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
I’d keep this one deliberately chaotic because there’s really no version of this dinner that goes smoothly.
First, Hunter S. Thompson, because I feel like he’d show up already three conversations ahead of everyone and somehow document the entire night in a way that makes no legal or grammatical sense.
Channing Tatum, because you need at least one person at the table who’s thinking, “I was told this was a normal dinner”, while quietly trying to decide if he should leave through a window.
A 17th-century blacksmith, who would immediately decide that everything in the house is either impressively advanced or deeply cursed, with no in-between, and probably try to start hammering something out of my furniture.
Nicholas Cage, I don’t think I need to justify this one. He either brings chaos or somehow becomes the most normal person there, which is arguably more terrifying.
And Dave Brockie, who would spend the entire night making everyone laugh and turning the dinner table into something halfway between a comedy show and a ritual summoning.
Honestly, I think that combination doesn’t result in a dinner so much as it results in a contained event that historians would later describe as inadvisable yet strangely well attended.
What’s next for the band?
Right now, we’re finishing up the last tiny bit of writing for our first full-length LP. We’ve been putting a lot of time into making sure the material is exactly where we want it before we start tracking, and the plan is to begin recording over the summer, which is pretty much in a few weeks here. I’m not having an existential crisis; you are.
Aside from that, we’re actively booking regional shows throughout New England for the summer and fall, and we’re looking forward to playing the 10th annual RPM Fest in Montague, MA, this upcoming Labor Day weekend (September 4th – September 6th).
What Social Media / Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
The best place to find everything is our website, accursed.band. You’ll find links to our music, merch, socials, and merch store all in one place. We’re also active on all the major social media platforms, so those are great places to keep up with new releases, videos, and whatever trouble we’re getting ourselves into next.
We’re really pushing for people to sign up for our email list through our website. Social media is great when the algorithms decide people are allowed to see your posts, but the mailing list lets us communicate directly with the people who actually want to hear from us. We’re putting a bigger focus on that moving forward with exclusive offers, early access opportunities, special announcements, and other things that our subscribers will get before anyone else.
https://accured.band
https://facebook.com/accursedct
https://instagram.com/accursedct
https://youtube.com/@accursedct
Time for a very British question now. As an alternative to the humble sandwich, is the correct name for a round piece of bread common in the UK either a Bap, a Barm (or Barm Cake), a Batch, a Bun a Cob, a Muffin, a Roll or a Tea Cake
With such famous exports as Poppycock and Spotted Dick, this list of options seems relatively tame… I feel like most of these are probably a form of bread, depending on where in the UK you currently reside. Reading well too far into the tone of the question, I’m going to go out on a limb and say a Barm??? I’m surprised there aren’t any crazier names in the running, but then I honestly wouldn’t be able to tell if you were taking the piss or not (to keep it very British) lol.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Just to say THANK YOU! For the opportunity to prattle on about my band and many other various opinions. I really appreciate the opportunity. I’ll leave you with an anecdote: I had a friend in Arizona who started calling me “Ese”, and given the geographic location, I never once questioned the etymology of the word, until one day he explained that it’s because when I talk, I have an introduction, three body paragraphs, and a conclusion… It was at that moment I realized he was calling me “Essay”… For obvious reasons. \m/
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