Page 9 - Black Velvet Rock Magazine Issue 103

BV103 pg08-11 Saint Asonia interview_BV103 pg09 24/12/2019 03:10 Page 2

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Changing Times
Changing Times

In 2017, things went much quieter as the band
took a 'much needed' break. Adam admits that
after 20 years of songwriting and making music, it
wasn’t really all that difficult for him to step away
from it for a couple of years. “You know, there
were a couple of different things that happened in
2017 and we needed to take a break. It was nice
to sort of step away and look after what we
needed to take care of, you know, family things;
family’s always a lot more important than the
music.”
Time off has allowed the band to re-energise
and re-focus. Saint Asonia are now back with not
only a new album - ‘Flawed Design’, but also a
new line-up. Mike’s former Staind bandmate Sal
Giancarelli has replaced Rich on drums, who left
to pursue other endeavours, while Art Of Dying’s
Cale Gontier replaces Corey, after the bass gui-
tarist joined Seether full-time. “I think things tend
to happen for a reason,” says Adam, talking about
the break. “When we came back I had more of a
vision. I knew what I wanted to do; I knew what I
wanted to write about and it made that process
quite a bit easier.”
Many of the songs on ‘Flawed Design’ relate
to personal struggles and dealing with life issues.
Becoming a father is something Adam has openly
acknowledged in helping him change his perspec-
tive on life; this is reflected on the album. It is an
album that has been described as a vulnerable
look into the last few years of Adam’s life - the
good, the bad, the ugly. “The entire process over
the last few years has made me take a closer look
at myself,” the frontman admits. “I was learning dif-
ferent things about myself... I was learning how to
be a better person and how to take care of others
and not to just take care of myself. I was taking a
closer look at myself, trying to become the best
person I can be.”
The album’s title track - ‘Flawed Design’ - is
about realising that we are not perfect; we all have
our flaws. Expanding on the subject matter, Adam
tells us, “You know, a lot of times people tend to
want to be perfect in the eyes of others, I think,
especially with social media and that sort of thing;
I just see it a lot more now. I try to do my best and
recognise when I’m sort of buying into that and
when I’m trying to be somebody that I’m not, es-
pecially on social media platforms. If you’re able
to reach a certain point where you can realise that
your flaws aren’t necessarily a bad thing then
that’s a step forward.”
We mention to Adam about how in Japan,
they have made an art (Kintsugi) out of repairing
broken ceramics with a mix of powdered gold or
silver so that the repair stands out and is not dis-
guised. As a philosophy it treats the breakage and
repair as part of the object’s history; embracing
and illuminating its flaws and imperfections. The
cracks and imperfections can represent our story
of what we have been through and show how we
have rebuilt and redefined ourselves. As a person
Adam has always seemed open in sharing his
story. We ask whether putting his history on dis-
play, so to speak, allows him to have a stronger,
more meaningful connection with others.
“Over the last ten years or so I’ve always been
working on myself, especially more so over the

SAINT ASONIA