Alan Tecchio talks about the new
album, DamNation, song-by-song :

1. Bloast. The name comes from a term my motorcycle riding friends and I use to describe going very fast. The song is about the joy and freedom of riding a motorcycle and the caution one must take when ripping around on the road. Originally it was rhymed with my hometown of Closter, NJ. If you rode around the town real fast, you were the “Bloaster from Closter”. When I first heard this song I could not get it out of my head, especially when I rode my bike. Driving along as it does, Bloast makes an awesome riding song. I knew I had to write lyrics to match the manic riffing and the  bike idea just felt natural.

2. Out The Window. This one’s about the fact that when heavy change comes into your life you can throw the way things were and the way you thought about what was, out the window. The old rules do not apply and you have to morph into a new life posture. These kinds of things like death, a career change, a partner change and so on are inescapable realities in life. How you deal with it makes all the difference.

3. DamNation. A critical one about U.S. politics. This song makes strong comparisons between Hollywood fame and Political notoriety. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between the two. When it comes down to votes, that can be a scary thing. Whoever has the better acting ability wins the election.

4. Absorbed. This song is about a topic I like to write about at least once on every record: Racism. I think it’s so stupid for racism to exist in this day and age, but I guess I was just born too early. The fact that there are people who profit greatly because of it is just another reason to hate it. On The Downside it was the lead off song “Ground Zero N.Y.C.”. On DamNation it’s Absorbed.

5. Force Quit. About a widower. Inspired by my father, this song tells the tale of how losing your partner in life can redirect you in some sad directions. Ultimately I’d like to think of this one as a lyric to warn others in that situation of the possible dire consequences. Realistically though, it’s more self help than anything.

6. Stressfest. This tune is all about being in Hades. At times we want to kill each other and cannot imagine continuing on. Then we realize that the sum of the parts is much greater than the individual parts themselves. It’s a lot of fun to still be making metal so many years since we began. I think we are very lucky to still be able to do it and I honestly believe that we are still getting better at it with each cd.

7. Biocaust. The new version of the TV series of The Outer Limits had an episode where a biocaust had wiped out the Earth’s humans. Androids of very high intelligence were left to create their own “society” and ways of doing things. Some of them felt a species of life that killed itself off did not deserve to be brought back. However other androids secretly experimented with human DNA and resurrected human life. I loved the whole concept and decided to write it.

8. This I Know. I tried to write about my own life experience with this one. It’s just my frame of mind concerning things like my job and my approach to life. It’s more of a “go out and grab it” attitude than the usual complacent and complaining one that many people I know have.

9. Momentary Clarity. About the monkey of drug addiction. Some people just cannot get their life together because of it and it is real sad. There comes a time for many of them where they see their life clearly and genuinely try to get back on track but they usually end up back on the pipe or whatever...

10. California Song. Jimmy wrote the music to this one in California, hence the name. I wrote about people I know who have gone out to Cali and done very well for themselves. Again, so much of life is just having the right attitude. These folks took the world by the balls and made something of themselves despite pressure to do other things with their lives. Figured I’d write one for the people who haven’t gone West yet, and might need something to sing along to on their way out!!

11. Stop And Go. Ah the reflections on life just keep coming! This tune has a “stop and go” feel to the main riff. That’s originally what I tagged the song at rehearsal. Later it came to bee that I liked the implication of the title with how life is. There are times when we live carefree and just sail along and there are times when we get stuck in the traffic or the mud. Also, some of the lines are written in frustration at how some very deluded and irresponsible people just keep getting breaks in life. Sure someday reality will crash down on them, but for now it seems they get all the breaks they truly don’t deserve.

12. Bad Vibrations. You know how a person can give off a “bad vibe”? Well, my advice is to just get the hell away from them. Those bad vibes have a way of affecting you eventually. I’ve seen it a million times and it’s always the same end result. That’s why I have no pity for people who don’t know well enough to walk away and wind up getting burned. Wake up already.