The Devil Wears Prada
by Chris Fox
February 2010
The Devil Wears Prada
They’ve never read the book or seen the movie, but THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA will show you what it means to stick to your guns and play heavy music. Still touring on their third release, “With Roots Above and Branches Below,” this sextet will be rolling through Wisconsin later in February, and they plan to bring their abrasive sound with them. As Mike Hranica (vocals) explains, “we are metalcore, but not in the traditional sense. That just happens to be the closest to what we sound like. We are not screamo, but rather a post hardcore mix.” There is a development over their three albums that progressively gets angrier. “Simply, it’s maturity,” over three albums, explains Hranica, “it was easy to get better cause we started out so bad.” As they come into their own with their music they are learning about their sound, “doing what we do there really isn’t much of a change. We are just getting stronger with what we do.”
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA has created a devoted following FROM tours with All That Remains, The Warped Tour, and coming up with Killswitch Engage. “Immediately I want to say we are a live band, but we are developing a presence in both the studio and on stage.” Their Midwestern roots admittedly show up in their music, but they “pick up trends in music and in different demographics.” Hranica explains the development from album to album, “we work through other bands. I ride on a band in streaks and that draws the inspiration for our albums.” Being influenced by like minded musicians, Hranica stands by the fact that “the Midwest always finds its way in.” The precision that is required in their records is important in the recording process, but Hranica explains, “we give it as much energy as possible. The records are processed whereas live is much more raw.”
In this day and age the internet plays a huge part in a bands development and popularity. THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA was at the brink of this metalcore, myspace revolution. Hranica explains, “with the internet age it is easy to put a band together. Basically, if you have something to put on a myspace you are a band. Now it is so saturated, and so many people lose track of the fact that this is a form of expression.”
Though they can credit much of their success to these venues the band feels that they have more than transgressed out of the internet musical wonderland. Hranica digresses about their movement through the music scene, “the older I get the more negative I get. I hear young bands, and a lot of it is just really bad. We are playing this way for a reason, but kids come up sounding too much like us and they’re doing it for the wrong reasons.” Staying true to their roots THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA continues to change their sound and pushing music as expression. “It is more in terms of emotion than money. I can only encourage kids to keep everything in perspective.”
THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA will be hitting the road with Killswitch Engage and hitting the Rave on February 19. They plan to continue touring constantly and they have a concept album in the works that “our fans will be really excited about.” Hranica hopes that the EP will be out sometime in April in between their tours. “We are still hard at work, and will continue to be.”
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CD: With Roots Above And Branches Below Record Label: Ferret Records
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