Hailing from Omaha, Screaming For Silence is clawing its way to the top of the hard rock industry. With their hard-hitting sounds and energetic stage presence, these fellas are a band to be reckoned with. Having been on the road nonstop, they’re a bit hard to nail down, but I got a few moments to catch up with the S4S guys and chat a little about their favorite venues, how their creative process works, and their obsession with ink. Check it out!
Okay, so first things first, go ahead and introduce yourself to our fans—who is Screaming For Silence, how did you guys get together?
My name is Zeb and I do the singing and screaming for Screaming For Silence. We have been touring nationally for about 5 years and have been together a few more years than that. We actually met at a small college in Nebraska. We started playing bar gigs and it was kind of a snowball effect from there. We then moved to Omaha and started gaining a lot of local support and have kept it rolling since then!
I see you guys are from Omaha—are you all originally from there or are you transplants?
We all met in the Omaha area but our guitarist Danny is from Scottsdale, AZ and our bassist is from Wisconsin. We still claim Omaha as home though. That city has been so great to us!
Tell us a little about your music and the creative process behind it. Are you all involved or is there a point runner when it comes to the conception of new music?
When we get together we all have equal input in the music we make. That’s the best part about being in a band is getting to be creative and artistic. I don’t think I would have too much fun in a band where I was told what to play or be playing someone else’s parts. When we are writing we just want to make music that people can relate to. Growing up I would relate with so much music and I remember how good that felt. We try to do that for our team now as well.
Your Facebook page states you have played over 400 live shows from coast to coast. Is there a place that stands out for you as a favorite (whether due to the venue, people, or actual location)? Is there a location which you have wanted to play live, but haven’t been able to?
One place we haven’t been is up in Seattle. We will get up there sometime soon!! As far as venues go it was really cool to play the Whisky a Go Go in LA. That place has so much history you can just feel it when you walk in. It’s also just nice to see so many cities around the country. That’s my favorite part about being in a band for sure.
Okay, let’s talk dream team for a second. If you were able to create your idea of the perfect concert (with you playing, of course), who would you hand-select for your lineup? Alive, dead, different genre—whoever you want. The sky’s the limit.
Haha this question is so tough. It would have to be a three-day festival. But here are a few that I would put on there along with us.
George Thorogood and The Destroyers, The Beatles, Slipknot, Sublime, Metallica, Underoath, Trivium, Nirvana
When it comes to being “off work”, what do you guys do for fun?
We’re actually all into sports so you can find us on a basketball court or catching a game somewhere. Obviously, you can also find us in a tattoo chair getting fresh ink done. Also just catching up on sleep and relaxing.
Obviously, I have to ask… can you talk a little about your ink? Do you guys have specific styles you follow (independently)? Do any of you have matching ink? Are they collected from different artists or do you guys have one you stick with?
We all have a little different style of tattoos. We do have an artist that we all go to. Pete Whitlow at Strategic Tattoo in Gretna, NE. He does amazing work and has been with us from day one. That means a lot to us to have someone that always has our back. The Majority of my tattoos are family oriented and have such special meaning to me. When I get homesick on the road it’s awesome to have them with me.
Who has the most ink of the group?
Actually, I think Colin our bassist has the most but the rest of us aren’t too far behind.
Did you guys start getting your ink before or after deciding on music as a career? Do you feel if you had chosen another career path that you may not have been so heavily inked?
I think it’s mostly about being artistic just like music and I think we are all artistic people so I think we would have had just as much ink if we weren’t doing the band thing. It’s been so long since we started that I can’t remember what it was like not having any tattoos haha.
What can fans expect to see from S4S this year? Any upcoming releases, tours, or projects we should know about?
Lots of shows!! Our new EP “House of Glass’ comes out July 28th and once it hits the streets we will be out to see as many people as possible. Come catch a show sometime and scope it all out!!
