Interview with Adakain vocalist Travis Buck

Check out the song: “Distant Eyes”

The Texas based rock and roll outfit Adakain has a quite an eventful year; they added new vocalist Travis Buck and released their latest offering, Silhouette Of Lies. Not a group to rest on their laurels, Adakain have been touring incessantly (as is the norm for them) sharing the stage with artists such as Crossfade, Bobaflex, Taproot and many more. I was able to speak with Travis Buck about their new release and his transition into the band. Here’s how the conversation went.

The name of the band, Adakain, is interesting to say the least and sounds as if there’s a story behind it. Where did the name come from and what is the story?
Travis: Well I joined the band after it had been decided, but the name Adakain came from a drunken night at Jason’s house (our bass player). He apparently said in an extremely intoxicated voice “I just wanna write music as addicting as cocaine” thus the name was created. For me it resembles four guys willing to do what it takes to achieve what we set out to do. A lot of blood, sweat, and tears have been put into this band and we’re determined to make it work.

What can fans expect when they pick up a copy of your new record, Silhouette Of Lies? Diversity?
Travis: Every song is different in its own way. It’s completely different from our last album. We really focused on melodies and song structure.

Are you happy with the way the record turned out?
Travis: Absolutely. We went to Knoxville, TN to record with Travis Wyrick (10 Years, P.O.D.). He really brought out the very best in each one of us. He pushed me harder than I’ve ever been pushed in the studio and I have to say I learned so much. Having a producer that clicks with you makes a world of difference.

You are fairly new to the band. Did you have any trouble adjusting or did you just jump right into the mix?
Travis: Well I was in a sort of melodic metal band if you will, which was significantly heavier than Adakain before I joined and at first it was a little weird because I had been with this other band for several years, but Adakain always felt right so it didn’t take too long to adjust.

Very often when a new vocalist joins a band there are negative repercussions from the fans. What has been your experience? Have the fans been receptive?
Travis: The fans have been amazing. I haven’t had much negative feedback. Of course there are always those diehard fans of the old singer, but to be honest when I joined we started gaining fans left and right. We seem to be the perfect storm I guess.

How do you keep your vocals so strong?
Travis: I warm-up before every show always! I’m not comfortable if I don’t. I also try on down time, like when we’re not on tour, to sing here and there so I can keep my voice up to par.

If you had not become a musician what other career path would you have liked to attempt?
Travis: I would probably have given some sort of sales job a shot I guess. I haven’t put a lot of thought into a different career.

Check out the song: “Sky Is Falling”

What kind of touring plans do you have in support of the record?
Travis: Later this month we will be going out with Crossfade and Emphatic for several weeks to the west coast. We’ve toured with these guys through the spring and part of the summer. Crossfade has been a great bunch of guys to us and it’s always a blast on the road with them. Were also working on a November tour to keep us busy throughout the year.

Do you have any special rules or rituals that you follow while you’re out on the road?
Travis: We do have a motto “Ride or Die” which basically means no matter what, make it happen whatever it may be. Some of our techs get a little butt hurt sometimes on the road so we tell ’em ride or die son! I’ve had to sing sick several times, but the show must go on.

What is next for Adakain?
Travis: Hopefully nothing but great things. I honestly can’t tell you what’s next, but it seems that we always have something crazy going on and hopefully the hard work and sacrifices will pay off in the near future. Just look us up on Facebook to see what madness we have up our sleeve.