Tempting Fate own Cory Beecher (vocals).
Interview conducted on Feb. 14, 2018
by Dan Locke
Tempting Fate has set out to deliver a unique blend of music, with a style all their own. Their music can be described as heavy grooving, melodic, and fast metal focused on catchy choruses and harmonized guitar solos.The band was formed in 2010 by brothers Cory Beecher (Vocals) and Shane Beecher (Guitar), with the recent addition of Matt Campbell (Bass). Tempting Fate has built a strong following over the past five years, playing countless shows across the coast, including the Sunset Music Festival
Band Members
Cory Beecher: Vocals
Shane Beecher: Guitar/Vocals
Matt Campbell: Bass
Alex Rivas: Drums
Dan Locke: Tell me about the development of the band?
Cory Beecher: The band was founded by my brother Shane and I back in 2010. We shared an apartment in Studio City, CA while Shane was attending Musician’s Institute in Hollywood, CA. One day he was recording vocals for a few songs he had written when I heard from the other room and barged in asking if I could try recording vocals on them. He liked what he heard and we began working on recording some songs. Once we had about 4 songs recorded we started looking for a Bassist and Drummer so we could rehearse the songs and started playing gigs around Los Angeles.
How did you pick your name?
At that time we were traveling back and forth a lot between Los Angeles and our hometown of Woodside, CA. We both had girlfriends in the SF Bay Area and we’re super close with our family so we were pretty much making the drive every other weekend and sometimes more. We both grew up racing dirt bikes from a very young age so neither one of us are very mellow drivers. After many close calls and near-death experiences, I turned to Shane during the drive and said: “What about ‘Tempting Fate’ for the band name?” We both really liked it and it was so fitting to the way we live our lives. It instantly stuck and we immediately trademarked the name.
Tell me about your backgrounds?
Shane and I were born in Redwood City, CA. We moved to a nearby town called Woodside when we were 4 and 5 years old. We grew up as sort of rancher city boys because we were so close to San Francisco but Woodside is sort of an old western town with lots of open lands. We had horses, a couple of sheep, a goat, a potbelly pig, and tons of chickens but then one day our dad bought us dirt bikes and that just spiraled out of control. We had a lot of land behind our house so we would ride dirt bikes every day after school and race on the weekends all over Northern California. We did that for about 10 years until we got into high school when girls and partying took precedence. Shane started playing guitar at about 12 years old and developed an obsession. I tried but it just wasn’t my thing. After high school, we both moved down to LA. Shane was all wrapped up in playing guitar so he went to Musician’s Institute and I just went with the flow attending Cal State LA to satisfy my parents.
You are living in Woodside, California. Can you tell me about the music scene there? And what your favorite club to watch bands to play in Woodside and why is it?
There isn’t one haha. There are a couple of little bars that have live music sometimes but nothing to brag about. The sound is shitty and talent just isn’t there. If you want to see good live music you have to go to either San Francisco or San Jose.
What is great about Woodside, California?
Woodside is awesome because it’s such a small town but it’s not like everyone knows each other. People sort of keep to themselves. There’s lots of open land, the weather is usually pretty nice. It’s definitely not for everyone but I’m sorta country bumpkin so I love it!
How do you describe your music?
I would describe our music as Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. It’s very in your face but super relatable at the same time and sort of the mainstream for as “main stream” as metal can be. Music-wise, more metal; Vocal wise, more rock.
How did you come up with the name Tempting Fate?
At that time we were traveling back and forth a lot between Los Angeles and our hometown of Woodside, CA. We both had girlfriends in the SF Bay Area and we’re super close with our family so we were pretty much making the drive every other weekend and sometimes more. We both grew up racing dirt bikes from a very young age so neither one of us are very mellow drivers. After many close calls and near-death experiences I turned to Shane during the drive and said: “What about ‘Tempting Fate’ for the band name?” We both really liked it and it was so fitting to the way we live our lives. It instantly stuck and we immediately trademarked the name.
Letâs talk about your new single. video, âIâd Rather Burn.â The new song was produced by the renowned, Drew Fulk (Cane Hill, Miss May I). How did you start working with him?
Well, they say in the entertainment industry “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know” and that couldn’t be truer! Shane and I are really good friends with a girl named Monica who works for his management label and she got us in touch with him. He’s a super talented dude and very busy. We actually tried to work with him before and got turned down just because he was so booked up but we were persistent and Monica pulled some strings. We knew we wanted to work with him so when an opening finally arose due to a cancellation we jumped on the opportunity.
Who comes up with the concept of the video? How did you find the fire-breather?
We were just kind of going to do a live performance video for that song but the Producer/Director we worked with, Brian Cox, came up with the idea to get a fire-breather to use for the shoot. We both wanted to add a visual aspect to the song that sort of represented what the song is about without doing a whole storyline and it was only fitting to add fire to the mix. Brian took care of finding the fire-breather and we were on a super tight time schedule because he was flying out the following week to film the upcoming Hollywood Undead tour overseas.
Tell me about Eminence? It means fame, is there any hidden meaning?
There’s not really a hidden meaning. It was sort of just a release for us and a way to get out how we were feeling inside. Whether famous or not, people don’t really realize how much musicians give up just to pursue their dream. It’s such a hard profession to stay focused on and keep at full steam ahead because there isn’t always immediate feedback. You could work for months or even years on an album and although it may sound good to you, the world may hate it. You have to stay focused and committed and follow your heart all the while not knowing if people are going to even like it or love it or hate it for that matter. We’ve given up so much time with family, missed important events, and lost countless hours of sleep to pursue a dream that we believe in our hearts is worth it while never knowing if it’s really ever going to work out. It’s sort of like digging a hole to reach the bottom while not knowing if a bottom really exists. You’ve just gotta have faith and believe in yourself!
It looks like you have a budget for videos. I love the video Carousel. It seems that you like to sing to yourself. Where did you find that location?
That video was the lowest budget film we ever did! We worked with a videographer in The SF Bay Area who had shot some other footage out there. He sent us material he had filmed and we fell in love with the location. It’s crazy out there! It’s an old abandoned town that basically sunk into the mud because it was built on marshland and everyone was forced to evacuate. The houses out there have literally sunk about 5 feet into the mud. We had to hike 2 and a half miles along the train tracks and over several trestles just to get to the location. You’re technically not allowed back there but it’s so hard for any law enforcement agency to get to it that it’s not really enforced. But I’m not actually singing to myself haha. Shane and I look very similar and a lot of people think we’re twins. He did a lot of vocals on our last album ‘Catharsis’. So that’s actually both of us yelling at each other in the video.
What type of music did you listen to growing up?
Growing up as a little kid, I’d say I listened to a lot of pop, country, and oldies. Then I started listening to punk/pop bands like Blink 182, Simple Plan, Newfound Glory, Pennywise, NOFX, Agnostic Front, etc. Our older brother introduced us to Avenged Sevenfold when we were about 12 years old and that’s what got us both into heavier music with a lot of screaming vocals. A7X led to Atreyu, Unearth, Darkest Hour, and Underoath. I’ve also always had a soft spot in my heart for outlaw country as well like Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and David Allen Coe. I just always liked the music in general, if it sounds good to my ears I can get down to it!
Who influences you and why?
I’d say the two biggest influences for me have been Avenged Sevenfold (older A7X) and Underoath. I’ve always been a big fan of the super heavy screaming verses broken up by the more poppy melodic choruses.
You have started your tour. Tell me about it. And what is next after the tour.
The tour starts on February 28th and the last date is April 8th. We’re super excited to hit the road with We Came As Romans, The Plot in You, Oceans Ate Alaska, and Currents. We’re playing 33 shows in 39 days so it’s going to be crazy, to say the least! Definitely going to be a great tour, all of the bands on the bill are badass, it’s really an awesome lineup and the WCAR guys are super chill! Once we get back, we’ll take about a two-month break to work on some new material and film a couple of music videos for the new songs. We’re currently working on some different tour options for June/July that we will be announcing in the next months to come.
Do you have any endorsements?
Shane is endorsed by ESP guitars and Alex Rivas has a DDRUM endorsement. And we’re also working on a Cheesecake Factory endorsement for myself. I’ve got a bit of a sweet tooth. đ
What year, made and model of bands instruments?
Cory- 1988 American vocal cords
Shane- ESP E-II TE-7
Alex Rivas- DDRUM Reflex Powerhouse
Matt Campbell- ESP E-II AP-5
What are some of the bands you have open for?
We’ve played a lot of random shows in Hollywood where we opened up for Faster Pussycat, Powerman 5000, and Stitched Up Heart. We have also played the Sunset Music Festival with well-known artists like Marilyn Manson and The Offspring.
What type of clubs have you played in (size)?
We gigged around Hollywood where we played at The Whisky A Go-Go, The Roxy, The Viper Room, House of Blues, The Key Club, The Joint in Las Vegas, and The Fox Theatre in Redwood City. All of which hold about 50,000 really small people.
What music fests would you like to play in?
Well, Warped Tour is all but dead now, that would have been a cool one. But we’d love to play at Aftershock, Knotfest, and Rock on the Range, Mayhem Festival, and Download Festival to name a few.
Have you ever performed at SXSW?
No, we have not.
What is your feeling of Van Warped Tour since 2018, is the last year for it?
It really sucks because we’ve always dreamt of playing Warped Tour. I’m sure they will bring it back. I think people stopped attending it like they used to. Take it away for a couple of years then bring it back and people will go again, it’s a good strategy.
Have you looked at Rock on The Range yet?
Yeah, we’d definitely love to play that festival!
How would you explain your live performance?
I’d say our live performances are full of energy and very intense but also fun. We like to have a lot of fun up there. I make jokes sometimes in between songs. The banter is usually my favorite part. But overall it’s just very high energy and in your face.
If someone was listening to you for the first time, what 3 videos or songs would you tell them to look/listen to and why?
I’d tell them to listen to “I’d Rather Burn”, “99” and “Eminence”. They all showcase some differences in our style, plus we have music videos on Youtube for those three. People like visuals. A lot of times I like a song way more when I get to see the music video for it. There’s something about putting faces to the music that gets me hooked more than I would have if I just listened to the song with no visuals.
How do you see your band in the next 5 years?
Huge! I see the band growing and developing a ton, both musically and with our performance. We have been putting in a lot of hard work lately and we’re more determined than ever to grow this band to where we feel it should be!
Any guilty pleasures your fans would be surprised you listen to?
I definitely love me some Lady Gaga. Also, Britney Spears “You Better Work Bitch” and Gigi Agostino “I’ll Fly With You” — those are some bangers, probably won’t catch me blasting them with my windows down at a stoplight but you never know.
What is on your bucket list?
I really want to skydive. I’m kind of surprised I haven’t yet. It’s just that I’m not a fucking bird so the idea of flying doesn’t seem all that natural to me but I really want to try. I also want to get my pilot’s license which is ironic because I hate flying in airplanes but I think it’s just a control thing for me. If I was the one flying the plane I think I would love it. Also, I’d love to see all the continents. I haven’t traveled all that much out of the U.S.
What is on your phone for music now?
Haha, mostly Tempting Fate. I don’t keep a lot of music on my phone. The stuff I do have is super random like AFI, Alan Jackson, Bleeding Through, Eric Clapton, Frank Sinatra, Lil Wayne, and Michael Jackson. I mostly just listen to Pandora; either I Prevail Radio, A Day To Remember radio or Ludwig van Beethoven radio. I’m super random!
Anything in closing you would like to say?
Be sure to keep an eye out for brand new music from Tempting Fate in the next couple months. We’ve got a lot of tricks up our sleeves coming your way very soon. And make sure to catch us on tour with We Came As Romans! Thanks for the interview!
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