By Darren Young
Protest the Hero has been captured by vampires—on film! The Canadian progressive metal band recently shot a video for the song “Divine Suicide of K” in which a group of lesbian vampires kidnap members of the band and force them to play the song, while the ladies sit around and make out.
Of course, this is a rather strange premise on which to build a music video, but it definitely suits the band, whose sense of humour almost always supersedes the urge to take themselves seriously. Nonetheless, even vocalist Rody Walker concedes he wasn’t a particularly big fan of the idea to begin with.
“To tell you the truth, I am not that enthused regarding the concept [of the video],” says Walker. “I did, however, get to see it after we finished filming and visually, it’s very appealing.”
The band’s manager conceived the plan for the video after he and Walker watched Blade: Trinity together. Walker describes it as a joke taken to the limit, but is quick to point out his own comic nature. A prime example of comedy à la Rody Walker can be located on his Purevolume page, which contains a collection of songs mostly about his friend Chris Wynne.
“[Wynne] is an absolute maniac,” explains Walker. “He gets really drunk and shits his pants regularly. I’m trying to make him infamous. He actually does love the publicity, you’d be surprised!”
This attitude also carries on in Walker’s stage persona. A loud and confident presence in the spotlight, he is known to pepper the band’s sets with a few off-colour remarks.
“Some people are offended by things I say,” says Walker. “I typically try to pick out people in the audience who associate themselves with a specific genre of music and proceed to pick on them. They draw Xs on their hands and I’m like ‘you’re going to have a beer when you’re 18 and you’re going to like it a lot.’”
Amidst all of their tomfoolery, Protest the Hero plays music occasionally. The band recently finished writing their new album and will return to the studio towards the middle of June to lay it all down. Walker does not claim the album will be a huge departure from the Protest the Hero projects of the past.
“It’s different—it is—but I think anyone who enjoyed Kezia will enjoy this record,” says Walker. “It’s heavier, more technical and I guess more metal. I hate saying that, but I guess it’s true.”
Whatever the shape the new album will take, it’s certain to be exactly what the band wants it to be. They may not be the most business-savvy rockers, but they don’t let themselves get swallowed up by record labels.
“We don’t care about the industry whatsoever,” comments Walker. “They would love us to write a radio hit, or just a song they could play on the radio. We absolutely refuse to do it.”
Protest the Hero simply writes the music they want and will not be influenced to sell out or water their music down. Walker jokingly says that they are trying to alienate their fan base. The truth of the matter is that they are in the business to have a good time playing good music they are satisfied with, and if that involves a little lesbian vampire action on the side then that is a concession they are willing to make.