https://www.facebook.com/forsakenthroneband
From: Florida
Sounds like: Metal
1. How did you get started with music and how did you develop your sound?
CRAIG: I started playing drums at a really young age. I was surrounded by musicians growing up — my entire family plays — so music was just always there. A great uncle of mine actually gave my dad a drum kit and basically said, “Let him try.” So I did. I started out just banging away, and over time I worked on honing my craft, learning to play along with all my favorite bands as I grew up. For me it was always sports and drums — constantly — and that combination really shaped who I am as a player.
MATT: I’ve been listening to music since I was a young child, and honestly all different types. I still enjoy pretty much every genre, but I’ve always been drawn to the aggressiveness of metal guitar. To me, metal is the definition of peak intensity and aggression on the instrument. When I’m playing or writing in the metal genre, I’m always trying to reach that essence of intensity — that raw, aggressive core.
ROB: I’ve been a big fan of music since I was a young kid. I remember the first time I heard Iron Maiden — I was immediately sold. What always stood out to me was the bass; it was always right there in the forefront of my musical soundscape. I actually started out playing guitar, but over time I realized that bass was really my instrument. Years ago, I was in a band and we literally could not find a bass player anywhere. I had an old bass lying around, so I decided I’d just play bass in that band — and that’s how it all started. Over time, my musical tastes evolved. I started with classic metal like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, then moved into thrash metal. I grew up listening to Metallica, Slayer, and a lot of other old-school thrash bands. As time went on, I got into death metal, black metal, and eventually prog metal. When I started listening to prog metal, everything changed. Symphony X completely floored me the first time I heard them. They had a massive influence on me and really helped shape my sense of melody when it comes to songwriting. I honestly feel like I grew as a musician just by listening to bands of that caliber. I’ve played in several bands over the years, and I’m grateful for all of them — every one of those experiences led me to Forsaken Throne, which is the band I was ultimately meant to play in.
PETE: I’ve been playing and recording music since early childhood. I was always amazed by how powerful music is — how it can tell stories and evoke emotion without saying a single word. That realization created this need in me to learn that language, and the more I learned, the more I needed to keep learning. My influences come from all genres and span hundreds of years. What all of those influences have in common is their mastery and command of music’s emotional potential. After studying modern classical composition, I was finally able to make sense of everything I had absorbed over the years and bring all of those influences together. What came out on the other side is what I contribute to our very unique sound.
2. What do you want people to take away from your music?
CRAIG: We put real messages into our songs — things that can connect to everyone. A lot of it is about the trials and tribulations of life, our own journeys, and both individual and shared experiences that people can relate to and say, “Yeah, I get that.” We honestly have something for everyone. Musically, we pull from thrash, pop, heavy metal, doom metal, black metal — we can cross pretty much every metal genre into hard rock as well. What we really want people to feel is that sense of elation that comes from technical, beautiful chaos.
MATT: I want the music to connect with people and move them in some way. That’s really the power of music — it makes you feel things and stirs emotions. I want people to enjoy it, connect with it, and have it move them emotionally.
ROB: We really strive to make our music exciting, exhilarating, and interesting. Personally, I believe the perfect metal composition isn’t just heavy — it also needs a strong sense of melody. We want listeners to come away from our songs feeling fulfilled and satisfied with what they’ve heard, and we put everything we have into achieving that, from the music itself all the way down to the lyrics.
PETE: I can only hope that listeners hear the sincerity in our music. We always say that Forsaken Throne sounds like Forsaken Throne — it doesn’t really fit into any single defined metal genre. That’s because we write what we know, who we are, and what we feel without any point of reference or target. Our music tells the story of our lives as individuals and our life together as friends and as a band, and we’re happy to take people along for that ride with us.
3. How would you describe your sound to the average listener?
CRAIG: Unique — it’s just Forsaken Throne metal. We’re honestly the only metal band that all four of us can fully agree on as a group and call our favorite metal band. Like I said earlier, there’s something for everyone. Want to headbang? You’ve got it. Want to jump into a mosh pit? You’ve got it. Want to kick back, have a drink, and feel like you’re floating on a cloud? You’ve got that too. It’s epic, beautiful, heavy, aggressive, dark, and uplifting — all at the same time.
MATT: It’s a blend of all different types of metal that creates a unique sound — and really, it’s a blend of all types of music in general.
ROB: Forsaken Throne is heavy metal with strong progressive metal influences. Our sound is really a combination of all of our individual influences. All four of us are metalheads, but we’re into different subgenres. When we combine all of that, that’s when our sound is created — that’s when the magic happens, and it works really efficiently. You’ll hear thrash metal influences, death metal influences, prog metal influences, and even modern metalcore influences. When everything is said and done, we play modern metal that’s heavily influenced by all of those genres, and the result is music that can satisfy metal fans in general, not just fans of one specific style.
PETE: I’m open to suggestions! Is “nerd metal” a thing yet? These guys already took a pretty good stab at describing it. I eventually just gave up and started calling it our “punk band.”
4. Who are three bands you’d like to tour with?
CRAIG: Lamb of God, Ghost, and classic-era KISS.
MATT: Killswitch Engage, Metallica, and In Flames — especially because of how much they’ve influenced me.
ROB: This is a really tough one. There are so many bands I’d love to tour with, but if I had to narrow it down to three, I’d say Symphony X, Iron Maiden, and King Diamond. All of those bands had an enormous influence on me, and it would be an absolute honor to open for them.
PETE: Rush, Dream Theater, and Symphony X.
5. What's your thoughts on AI generated music?
CRAIG: Unfortunately, AI is everywhere now. While I don’t agree that music should be fully AI-generated, it can definitely be useful — and impressive — but also dangerous. We’re already seeing it shape movies, TV shows, video games, everything. A lot of artists have been talking about this over the past couple of years. We use AI for fun stuff — images, jokes, just having fun as friends — but AI can’t create a true point of view. It can’t write from consequence, and it can’t feel love, rage, regret, or nostalgia.
MATT: I don’t like AI-generated music at all. It has no soul. Music is human expression and emotion, and AI just doesn’t have that — it’s not fueled by human experience.
ROB: Aside from using AI as a tool to enhance your own writing, I’m completely against it. It takes away the human aspect of the creative process, and honestly, I think it deceives fans. True musicians study music for many years, and nothing can replace that.
PETE: The problem with AI in general is that it can’t actually create or look forward — it only rearranges and recycles what’s already been done and presents it as something new. AI music can be impressive and sometimes even good, but we have no use for it creatively. That said, I’ll admit we spend an unhealthy amount of time using AI to create pictures of the band eating sandwiches and pasta.
6. What’s your take on the current state of Rock/Metal?
CRAIG: Personally, I don’t love a lot of what’s out there. Rock is alive and well, and metal is too, but I find myself struggling to get through full albums. I’ll hear one or two great songs, but a lot of it feels cookie-cutter or just hard to sit through. At this stage of my life, I appreciate the talent and musicianship, but a lot of it doesn’t feel like rock or metal to me — and maybe it shouldn’t even be labeled that way. We’re a metal band, but our music pulls from fifteen different subgenres of metal, rock, and classical. We go from Vivaldi to Gojira in the same song structures.
MATT: I think like all genres of music, it’s constantly evolving.
ROB: I’m definitely an old-school metalhead. I miss the metal of the ’80s and ’90s — that’s still what I listen to the most. I’m not saying modern metal is bad, but for me, that era was the pinnacle of heavy metal.
PETE: I think we’re mostly all in the same place here. I’m blown away by some of the players on YouTube — insane chops, flawless technique, and some of them are just kids. Rob mentioned melody and emotion earlier, and that’s something we really value, and I feel like I’m missing that a bit in a lot of modern metal. I still admire it, though, and I spend time learning modern techniques, both on guitar and in the studio.
7. What’s the current music scene like there in Florida?
CRAIG: Florida is a massive hotspot for festivals, rock, metal — really all types of music. From Jacksonville to Miami, there’s always something going on. I’m based in Naples, which doesn’t have a huge rock and metal scene, but Fort Myers definitely does.
MATT: It’s pretty diverse. Orlando has some great venues — the Kia Center, Hard Rock, House of Blues.
ROB: From what I see, the scene is flourishing. Florida has always been the metal capital of the U.S., especially when it comes to death metal. There are tons of venues, and new bands are emerging constantly. Over the years, a lot of metal bands have relocated to Florida because of that scene, and I think that’s still true today.
PETE: There’s always a lot happening here. We’re pretty lucky — most touring bands stop somewhere near all of us, so it never feels like we’re missing out.
8. What’s your take on the royalties that streaming services pay out to artists?
CRAIG: For the amount of work real musicians, artists, and writers put in, there should be more of a return. You’re investing time, effort, blood, and sweat. Streaming barely pays, and a lot of bands can’t afford to tour or even cover social media and PR costs. If royalties increased, it would be huge for musicians across every genre.
MATT: They’re very low — but it is what it is.
ROB: Back in the day, artists could make a good living from record sales, and that’s just not the case anymore. It’s not a great situation, and I really hope something changes. Until then, musicians have to find creative ways to survive — merch, social media, all of that. And yes, we sell Forsaken Throne baby bibs.
PETE: It’s not pretty, but you could argue it’s always been hard to break through. In the past, you either got signed or spent your career playing high school dances. Now anyone can release music worldwide instantly, which is amazing — but the financial return is tiny until you reach a certain level, even with some success. The system definitely needs attention, but at least there aren’t gatekeepers deciding whose music is worth hearing anymore.
9. What’s next for Forsaken Throne?
CRAIG: We’re currently in the studio working on new ideas and projects — some real surprises for fans. Stuff that makes people say, “Wow… that’s them?” We’ll dive into FT3 at some point, but for now we’re continuing to push Bloodline and build on the success it’s already had. We’re open to all possibilities when it comes to expanding our reach, presentation, branding, socials — everything.
MATT: We’re continuing to make music and getting ready to release our first video.
ROB: We’ve got a few things on the horizon — all fun, and definitely not what people will expect.
PETE: We’re still heavily focused on promoting Bloodline, but we can’t stay out of the studio for long without getting hives. FT3 is inevitable, but we might throw out a little appetizer first just to clean out the tubes and have some fun.
10. Any shoutouts?
CRAIG: First and foremost, my brothers in the band. Our families and loved ones. Everyone who supports us. Our Bloodline — and the Bloodline that’s growing fast. Our heroes and influences: Buddy Rich, Neil Peart, Peter Criss, Cozy Powell. Musical influences ranging from Steve Morse, Manowar, Dream Theater, Killswitch Engage, KISS, The Beatles, Iron Maiden, and of course classical music and soaring soundtracks.
MATT: Thank you to our family, fans, and everyone who’s supported us. We love and appreciate you.
ROB: A sincere thank you to all of our loyal fans — we are nothing without you.
PETE: My Forsaken Throne family, my wife and daughters, and our fans. Love you all.
