In This Moment, Living the Dream

If this is the first time you have ever heard of metal outfit In This Moment please take a second to raise your dominant hand, bring it level with your jaw line, and swing it soundly across your face.  Now that you’ve regained consciousness, it would be good for you to know that you can avoid future self-inflicted injuries by becoming familiar with the North Hollywood five-piece’s sophomore album The Dream. After its release in September of last year, In This Moment set forth to tour their asses off and win over new fans with their unique brand of rock. Lead singer (and now MagX cover girl) Maria Brink’s distinctive vocal stylings switch between her forceful yet haunting melodies and the brutality of her primal growls.  Before they circled back to the US from playing venues overseas, Brink sat at a computer for what was undoubtedly the most incredible email interview of her career and gave us fifteen questions worth of her down time.  How would you describe the evolution of music between Beautiful Tragedy and The Dream?

MB: We believe it was a natural process. We wrote what we felt like writing, and that is how Beautiful Tragedy and The Dream happened.

Did you feel any pressure to do on The Dream what had already worked on Beautiful Tragedy?

MB: No, there was no pressure. We didn’t want to make the same album twice.

What inspired the lyrics of “Forever”?

MB: The song is about missing the ones you love when you are on the road.

What music were you listening to while writing/recording The Dream?

MB: The boys were listening to a lot of eighties metal like Def Leppard, White Snake, and Van Halen. I purposely pulled myself away from music I tried to listen to obscure and random music.

What is your favorite part of creating
music?

VMB: Listening to the finished product, and feeling proud of what we created.
How does the band feel about the wide range genres they’ve been categorized by in the past? Labeling us in all the genres is a compliment because it means that we appeal to a wide audience.

What do you think it is about the members that creates a chemistry that works for In This Moment?

MB: We all come from such different backgrounds, and that’s what is unique about us. We all brought different things to the table.

What are three things fans wouldn’t know about the band just by listening to the music?

MB: We pray before we go onstage, everyone in the band likes Star Wars except Jeff, and I was a ballerina for six years.

How do you feel about being added to Warped Tour?

MB: We are very excited, and it is going to be a great new opportunity to be in front of new crowds that don’t know who we are.
While spending months on road, what do you do to fill the time you’re not on stage?

MB: Watching movies, and playing card games, and exploring the cities we are in. I paint in the back lounge.

How important is it to have a sense of humor when writing together or while on tour?

MB: So important. All we do is rag on each other, so you have to have a sense of humor. It’s a necessity.

Will you be performing your cover of “Run to the Hills” live?

MB: You never know…

Are you fans of the bands you tour with?
Of course.

MB: Even if we weren’t fans before, we grow to love the music because we hear it every night.

If you could jam with any musician (dead or alive), who would it be and why?

MB: I would jam with Chino Moreno from the Deftones. He has the voice of an angel and it is my dream to do a song with him.

What are your favorite breakfast cereals?

MB: Flax Plus and Frosted Mini Wheats.