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Soulidium
Interview with Michael McKnight of SOULIDIUM
By: John Eschler
Date: February, 2010

I hear a lot fans say that Soulidium has a unique sound that is all it's own, but in an effort to make a comparison I would say that today's Soulidium has elements of bands like Godsmack, Staind, Alice in Chains, Tool, Disturbed, and Breaking Benjamin. Since the time that we released Children of Chaos, we have really grown up in a lot of ways. That was our starting place on our journey, but we are definitely 1,000,000 miles away from where we started.

My life was not a true reflection of who I was in 2005. I have always been person who yearned for music but my family was against it. I spent my childhood with my best friends being a tape recorder and a radio. I was always only truly happy when I was listening to or writing music. My real father who I did not meet, (or know of his existence), until later on in life is a very gifted musician. Apparently, my mother and him had a very bad split when I was a newborn, and I think it tainted her and my whole family on musicians from early on. They discouraged me from pursing it, and I was foolish enough try other things in an effort to "find a respectable career". That combined with an unhealthy relationship with a jealous girl kept me from pursuing my dream. The most shameful thing of all however, was that I allowed them to. I was sick of living someone else's life when I knew damn well inside that I was born for art.

One day I woke up, looked in the mirror, and just stood there for hours looking myself in the eye. Who could I be if I had the courage to reinvent myself and pursue my heart? I decided to change my life drastically. I left behind everyone who was a negative influence in my life in a single day, changed my number, my email, left everything to my ex, and walked out with only a bag, my computer, and a few sheets of paper with songs ideas I had scratched down. I wiped the slate clean and made sure there was no going back. Why? because I feared waking up one day and realizing that I wasted my life on shit.

I sat down in my new place and started writing band names and came up with the name "Soulidium". When my eyes settled on it I knew that was it. My new life. I was going to make Soulidium a reality or die trying. My heart yearned for hands reaching out and the screams of fans who could feel the contents of my creative heart. Have you ever wanted to be remembered? To leave behind a legacy? To know that 50 or 100 years after your death, people still might know your music and that you were once here? That was just too awesome to pass up. Leaving everything behind on that dark rainy day in 2005 was one of the best decisions I had ever made up until that point.

Some yes. Some no. You know, a band is a lot like a marriage. We have had to part ways with some members for different reasons but they have all had a profound impact on us as a band. It's like any other relationship really. You have good relationships, terrible relationships that drain you, but in the end they all teach you a little more about what it is you truly want and don't want. This band has grown and evolved like a child into the adult that it is today- Good times, bad times, but they all become part of the story and the final equation.

The band is close. Sure we have our problems, bad days, ect.. but, we are brothers. We spend our time laughing, creating & joking, and we are happy. When shit goes down, we have each other and the large family of band friends that surround us. That kind of vibe creates amazing music, laughter, endorphins, respect, and good times. These are things that make a great creative marriage. Negativity, drama and bad vibes creates a poison within that destroys if you leave it unchecked.

In the end, right or wrong, our only goal has been to maintain a happy vibe that is right for everyone on a creative, professional, and personal level. Music is pure, and we just want to enjoy the journey ahead. We wish nothing but the best for the former members and their projects. There is enough room in the world for all of us to make our music.

During the breakup of the original band was about the same time that we were shooting the music video for the Saw IV movie soundtrack. I met special FX artist Chris Polidoro on the set. I was shooting a scene with him where I had to open his abdomen up with a scalpel to retrieve a key. It turned out he played guitar so we got together to test the creative waters. After starting to work with Chris a bit, he introduced me to Shadow and then I met the rest of the guys here at home in Tampa over time.

While many people around the world love what we're doing, we are no doubt in mid-climb. There is a lot of work yet to be done before we can claim success. When we released Children of Chaos in mid 2007, we thought we were going to explode onto the scene overnight. Even though our song "The Light" was climbing the Mediabase charts to #62, and while we were off to a good start, we met and entrusted the wrong music industry people to take Soulidium and this cd, and give it a proper coming out. We thought they cared about the music, but it was the quick money they were out for in the end.

Unfortunately there are TONS of people in the music industry who pitch way better than they deliver. Lying, bragging, washed-up, name-dropping bastards, reminiscent of a dying age, trying to steal one last buck at the expense of some poor band before they are all rendered obsolete by a changing music industry. Making it in the music industry is a lot like swimming through an vast ocean of shark-infested waters. If you want to get to the other side, your gonna need a fast boat or a high pain tolerance if you choose to jump in and swim. Soulidium has, no doubt, swam the whole way and we're still swimming to get to the shore.. The good news is that for the first time, we can see land on the horizon. Luckily, there are still visionaries out there in this industry who see the whole picture and actually hear the music. I am glad that they have finally noticed us swimming in and I look forward to what we will accomplish this year together.

Regardless of the rip-offs and overall rocky start, we didn't fail. Simply by word of mouth, Soulidium started spreading everywhere on it's own at an impressive rate. We were blown away on how it moved and spread by it's own merit and not because of a staff of label people working it. Had we had a major label backing us I am sure it would have really taken off, but what we had was us and our own inventiveness. The power of a global internet defied those who said we could not pass and we started touring with some killer bands like Sevendust & Alter Bridge and really started understanding what it is we have. Soulidium's success and it's evolution has all been brought about by the will of our fans alone.

Soulidium has no doubt been a band that has been troubled by many challenges, but it just makes us want this more. Were not quitting for anyone. When shit goes down, we write songs about it. All of our songs are about our everyday lives which makes Soulidium a direct reflection of us. We never had big budgets. Everything you see from us came from our own hands. When you don't have a major label putting up a big budget to work with, you learn to do things on your own, (like websites, video, promotions, marketing, event planning, etc.). Many people are shocked to hear that we are a band who's done this all on our own from the start, but it's been a lot of fun being the whole label and creating every aspect of the band. Gone are the days where you had to have a label behind you to be heard at all. With the power of the internet, those who can think outside the box and who are willing to work very hard & give people what they want most are those who will define this new emerging music industry. Sometimes big labels can lose touch with the will of the people. Little guys like us, hungry to prove something, can often give them a run for their money.

My greatest struggle has been the uphill battle to keep Soulidium moving forward but despite the challenges, I look back on everything am glad things happened as they did. We were not ready before. We wanted to be, we yearned to be, but we had to embrace a metamorphosis first to grow up to a point where it was possible to evolve into the kind of band that sticks around for the long run.

Today's Soulidium is finally at a spiritual level where we are creating our best stuff. When you grow and become one with your art, as well as your brothers around you, it is a feeling beyond words to create music together. Many of the songs we write just happen on the spot. Lyrical melodies, music, and all. From the first time we play them, they emerge as if they were meant to be born. That can only happen when a whole band is united from the spirit. Those friends who have partied with us, (We play a lot of on improvisational stuff at our parties), or who have watched us rehearse know what I am speaking of. Writing good songs that people like or putting on entertaining shows has never been our challenge, that's the easy and fun part.

I remember the first time I saw Sevendust was when we went out with them. I had never seen them before. They started sound-checking with "Enemy" and I was blown the fuck away.. totally lifted out of myself. We all stood there with our jaws open - what a powerful band. I saw a vision of what Soulidium had to aim for. Sevendust made us lift the bar way higher and realize how much work we had yet to do. We would like to thank Lajon, Vinny, Morgan, John, and Clint for the inspiration they have instilled in us. Once while hanging out over drinks, Lajon told me a long story about how hard they themselves got screwed over while trying to climb the ladder in this industry, and his story made me feel a lot better. If a stellar band like Sevendust could fall to deceit and rise up from the ashes, then so could we. Those 2 tours we did with them did us a lot of good and helped us to see our way forward rather than dwelling on the things in our past that tripped us up.

My greatest achievement, I think, has been bringing our live show to where it is, and our new upcoming CD. We've arrived at a place where we are creating some of the most killer stuff we have ever laid down. Those who have heard the new CDs demos, or heard us playing them live, concur. This is something that Soulidium fans are going to love and that will open up a whole new fanbase to Soulidium. Were really excited to record it in the next few months with our good friend & producer Toby Wright, (Metallica, Alice in Chains, Sevendust, In Flames, Kiss). We have some great things happening for us this year, and we're looking forward to seeing the reaction from fans when we go out to support the new cd on our 2010 tour.

All together I think it was 35 shows or so that we did with them. We became good friends, and it always seems we end up playing with them again somehow. The last show we played with them was for Guavaween on the 98 Rock stage, and before that we played with Clint & Morgan and Taproot for the Winter Acoustic Benefit. I am sure we will be out with them again soon at some point. Touring with Sevendust was no doubt one of the most impacting experiences on us as a band.

I would say the music and the strength of the shows mixed with the impact of the internet, and our fans who always bringing more of their friends with them.

We are always amazed at how many fans come to us by word of mouth alone, or from seeing our music videos. When we noticed that pattern in our fans, we came up with our branding phrase "Join the Addiction". Fans come out to our shows bearing new Soulidium tattoo's, (Tattoo photo album on our Myspace.com/Soulidium), send us paintings of us, explain how our songs impacted their lives, and tell us that they cant get enough of Soulidium which always blows us away. We almost want to look over our shoulder to see if they are talking to somebody else. We are not "rockstars" with big heads. We are really humbled and are thankful to have a chance to do what we do. Watching people sing your lyrics back to you in a crowd of faces, and hearing all of the great things they tell us after a show are our biggest reward without a doubt. Nothing rocks more than fans who love what you do. I think just aiming for excellence and dismissing any kind of mediocrity has helped us a lot with all we do.

So far, we have written about 14 songs for the new CD, and we are continuing the writing process. While we've laid down most of the tracks already, we are aiming at getting the actual production done and released in the next several months. A lot of attention has finally come our way from those who think Soulidium has what it takes to be a strong international band, and we are currently working on making that a reality. We don't want to just be on a label. We want to be on the right label who is going to give us the proper support. Lots of bands think signing a recording contract is the ultimate goal, but I say that the majority of them are worth shit unless the right support and intent is in place.

Nothing on the new cd is related to the old one, and the current lineup is definitely at their own helm. When I think of the last cd, I see it as the place where we started. The depth of what were doing now is apples and oranges in comparison to the last one. We finally found that spiritual place I spoke of before when describing Sevendust, and it shows in the strength of the songs. It still sounds like Soulidium, but the musicianship, lyrical structures, skill and approach is way stronger. If you loved the Children of Chaos cd, your gonna scream out a four letter word when you hear the new one. That's a promise.

I directed and filmed our last music video "Live Forever" as well as "The Light" and produced & edited our new DVD "Dark of Night". Live Forever was inspired by our love for vampires since childhood. My wife Angelina and I chose to get permanent fang implants because we loved the brutality of them. Vampires are known for the elements that we ourselves love about them. Their elegance, their power, timeless beauty, romantic appeal, they fascinate us all. Like our tattoos and piercings, they are a representation of us as people. We shot it in Ybor city here in Tampa and at our friend Brian's house in North Tampa where we often throw some killer parties. Our friends and the Vicious Angelz models came out to take part and I have to say it was no doubt my favorite video production to date. It was a blast to film.

The Light was made during the time of the former band, which we had a lot of fun doing. We rehearsed in a huge warehouse filled with gothic art and some of the strangest shit you would have ever seen. We loved it there. It had so many interesting things that I knew we had to shoot a video there. We gave the video a dark edge as I decided to do my singing from an autopsy table while my wife Angelina, (Founder of ViciousAngelz.com), played the mortician. That warehouse held a lot of good memories, and the video was my first crack at directing and film making. I remember that we were so broke at that time, that we had to return the video camera we used back to Circuit City when we were done with the video. Haha. Looking back though, I'm glad that we did it. It captured an era of our lives that left a deep impact on us, and it gave us a great excuse to delve into our art which we love in all of it's forms.

As for "Trapped" from the Saw IV movie soundtrack, that was directed and filmed by Horror Director Marcus Koch who remains one of the most talented FX artists I have ever met. I learned a lot working with him and his artistry was an inspiration. We had gotten on the SAW IV Motion Picture Soundtrack along with Avenged Sevenfold, Drowning Pool, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Ministry, etc, and I decided that we had to have a video. An opportunity to work with Marcus presented itself and we set a date to shoot the video. No real script.. We just got creative with the camera and set out to create a "Mini SAW" thriller based on the textures and feel of the original work. We later won a "Best Music Video of the Year" award from the Florida film community for it, and I think Marcus did a great job. We definitely had a lot of fun in the creepy old abandoned warehouse where we shot it.

"Drama" which was our first music video, was directed by Dale Resteghni, (Trivium, Mudvayne). We had them come in from New York, and in a single day we shot the video. We put out a call to friends to bring out some cool people and aimed to put together a club like element. In retrospect, it was missing the artistic approach that we later found on our own. Sometimes those kind of shoots, where everything is scripted out and run on a tight crew schedule with a screaming director, causes you to miss an opportunity to improvise with the camera and play around with things. I like using interesting, different approaches & angles. While structure is needed in any working situation, I like to leave myself the freedom to come up with things on the spot when we feel the inspiration to.

When we heard there might not be a Guavaween 2009 parade, We put together a plan and approached the Guavaween & booking people with it. They loved it and gave us the production of the parade. We shot television commercials for 98 Rock and Guavaween, (On our www.Youtube.com/Soulidium), helped form the lineup for the 98 Rock stage by adding in our friends from Psykill and Future Leaders of the World to the already existing lineup of Sevendust, Soulidium & Nopoint, and worked it from the ground up. Overall we had a fucking blast doing it. I would say Guavaween has been the biggest challenge for Soulidium to date, but with the help of the Vicious Angelz, (www.ViciousAngelz.com), and all of our good Tampa friends we pulled it off in style, and hopefully next year we will be doing it again bigger and better than before. Planning an event like Guavaween taught us a lot. It's amazing when you see just how much work and coordination is required to pull off an event like this.

There has been a turnout decline for Guavaween over the years and our goal was to give the event to the talented artists of Tampa to help it come back. Sometimes too much "corporate" kills things. We had fire-breathers, freak show performers, monsters, an army of the dead, sexy gothic & vampire models, WWE wrestlers, horse drawn carriages, and a ton of cool shit. The rough news was that we only had a month to do it all in, (we met them in September), and pulled 60-70+ hours a week for all of October to make it happen.

Chris Polidoro, who was the FX Director for Guavaween, was the pure definition of what a great FX artist should be. Our Army of the Dead that Chris used his magic on blew everyone away. Nothing is cooler than working with true artists that create from the soul. Chris is no doubt one of the most talented people that I know and is a great representation of the kind of killer artists that Tampa has to bring to the table. 98 Rock & Doubledown were very supportive and we had alot of fun killing Jesse and Lauren from the Kage Kult Show with zombies and vampires at the 98 Rock studio! We went walking thru the studio with a camera and zombies moaning and limping, freaking out unsuspecting employees of Clear Channel Radio who didn't know we were invited there to do that.. haha. It was awesome.

We have fun together and go lots of places together. As of the date of this interview we have a Dean Guitars DOA party we will be going to this week, and we have a lot of fun no matter what we do. Not only are we in a band together, but we are friends as well. Soulidium has a real family feel to it. Even when we rehearse, friends come over and we make a fun event of it. We believe in living life while you have it. There are no dicks in Soulidium and no "rockstars" trying to be cooler than everyone else. We're those people you love to party with, and our Tampa friends are some insane fucking awesome people that we love to hang out with. Laughing, playing shows, writing new music and hanging out with good friends is what you will find us doing on a daily basis.

Wow. That would be a very long list. I listen to a lot of diverse stuff. You might hear me listening to my favorite bands like Slipknot, Tool, Godsmack or Alice in Chains, Pantera, Godsmack, NIN, Flyleaf, Pink Floyd, the Beatles, Korn, Metallica.. sometimes Chopin, Mozart, Hans Zimmer, Soundtrack Music, Jazz, Punk, and so on. My heart belongs to rock & metal, but I listen to everything. Except hip-hop and country that is.. Sorry! You might find Shadow listening to Acid Bath, Pantera, Cannibal Corpse, Vader, Black Sabbath, Tool, Rage Against the Machine, Slayer, Type O Negative, Down, Crowbar and Soundgarden, Danny listens to Deftones, Mudvayne, Buddy Rich, Korn, Godsmack, Marching band compositions, Lamb of God, In Flames, Sevendust, Creed, Nirvana, and as far as the rest of the band you will find carries the same diverse taste. I am glad we listen to so much because when we are creating new music we're not scared to go different places with it. A lot of bands have assigned themselves parameters to stay within, but I think we are happiest without the walls. The view is way better when they are down.

Soon! We are currently planning a big event for our first show since Guavaween. A lot of people are probably wondering why we have disappeared, but the truth is that we are just getting ready for 2010 and focusing on this new cd and all things attached to it. We are stoked about this year and want to do things right. Our goal is to take Soulidium to the map and all things are finally lining up for us. This year I would say is without a doubt the most important year thus far in Soulidium's history as a band. We will be playing the new songs out at our shows along with all the songs that fans have grown to love so much.

A bag o' budz and a triple shot of rum :) Thanks for having us guys! Horns Up! -M