Italian Hardcore/Screamo band, Hopes Die Last recently released their second album “Trust No One” through Standby Records. The album release follows their recent UK tour supporting US metalcore heavyweights Attack! Attack!
With an album filled with heavy, pummeling tracks like “Unleash Hell” and “Never Trust the Hazel Eyed,” the Rome-based quintet combine thick riffs with clean, melodic vocals. On top of that, “Trust No One" sees the band collaborating with electronic/dubstep artist Nekso, as well as covering Katy Perry’s "Fireworks.”
Already Heard caught up with the band to talk about a number of topics from singing with Standby Records to covering Katy Perry and more.
Already Heard: Can you tell us your name and role in Hopes Die Last?
Hopes Die Last: Sure! I’m Daniele Tofani and I’m the singer of Hopes Die Last.
AH: Being a band from Italy, how did you join up with a US label like Standby Records?
Hopes Die Last: They got in touch with us through our Myspace profile many years ago (when Myspace was still useful and functional for bands) and from that moment a long-lasting working relationship is born, and still it continues through the years.
AH: You’ve just released your new album ‘Trust No One.’ What should people know about it if they haven’t heard it?
Hopes Die Last: In "Trust No One" we decided not to place any kind of limitations in terms of composition and we tried to experiment as much as possible (although being post-hardcore, it might sound difficult to think), going beyond those walls that are created automatically during the composition, using and experimenting with sounds and arrangements.
Everything was on the go since a couple of years, but for bureaucratic reasons we’ve had to postpone its release. But this break, preceding the release, allowed us to revise and make useful changes.
AH: On the record you recorded a cover of Katy Perry’s ‘Fireworks.’ What decision behind recording that track?
Hopes Die Last: It started as a joke. When we first heard of that song on the radio we thought that if we would have tried to make it in Hopes Die Last style, we could expect some cool result. So we did. We re-arranged and recorded. And I am still very proud of the way it came out. But as I’ve said before, it was just a game for us, I think our experience with covers is over. We have much more interesting material and ideas to give, fruit of our minds and hands. We don’t need to get more stuff from the others.
AH: What has the feedback for the cover been like?
Hopes Die Last: There was already a fairly positive feedback about the cover, although for us it was just a game. The views on Youtube and sales on iTunes speak for themselves.
AH: Are there any other pop songs you would like to cover?
Hopes Die Last: No I don’t think so.
AH: You also collaborated with an electronic artist called Nekso. Can you tell us more about Nekso and how the collaboration happen?
Hopes Die Last: Nekso is a big friend of ours, and what we’ve done with him so far has been incredibly inspiring, and we want to continue this collaboration because whenever we sit down and work together, something incredibly insane comes out. So expect more sick stuff in the future!
AH: The resulting track is called ‘Here Comes Nero.’ What can you tell us about it?
Hopes Die Last: ‘Here comes Nero’ was the first experiment with Neksø, the result is a heavy-influenced dubstep song. Some of our fans will not like it but we were very proud of that, and we thought it could’ve been a good product to release.
AH: Late last year you toured the UK and Europe with Attack! Attack!. How did these shows go?
Hopes Die Last: It was insane! Attack! Attack! are really nice guys and we had a good time with them and Bury Tomorrow too! It was absolutely one of the coolest tour we have ever done.
AH: Has there been more interest in Hopes Die Last since that tour?
Hopes Die Last: Absolutely! We’ve had the chance to play in front of 1000 people every night, our fan base in UK is definitely growing.
AH: What can we expect from Hopes Die Last for the rest of 2012?
Hopes Die Last: We will be promoting the record and touring all over the world, so keep checking our Facebook page or updates.
AH: What up and coming bands from Italy would you recommend checking out?
Hopes Die Last: Everyone should go and listen to Fear The Sirens, Ready Set Fall, Astrid Hotel, Swanshore and Avenue of Heroes.
AH: Is there anything else you’d like to say or should know about Hopes Die Last?
Hopes Die Last: Thanks so much for the space you’ve given us, and go and check out “Trust No One.”
“Trust No One” by Hopes Die Last is available now on Standby Records (Available on iTunes).
Hopes Die Last links: Facebook|Twitter
Words by Sean Reid
