IN HEARTS WAKE – Welcome to the Jungle
Pictured: Ben Nairne, Eaven Dall, Jake Taylor, Conor Ward + Kyle Erich - IN HEARTS WAKE
Photo by: Sally Patti @sallypatti
Man vs. Wild with Jake Taylor
Written by: Tom Wilson – Sense Music Media | Sunday 02 January 2022
Frontman for Sydney metalcore titans IN HEART’S WAKE, Jake Taylor is a conscientious dude. Between recording an entirely carbon-neutral album and running around the woods smeared in mud like something out of Predator, he strikes me as two things; a guy who cares deeply about the perilous state of the global climate, and a handy guy to have by your side if you find yourself lost in the forest. He spoke to SENSE ahead of their tour with FULL TILT.
Pictured: Kaliyuga artwork, Jake disappearing into the bush, Green is the New Black premiere
Photos courtesy of @jakegtaylor
The Interview
Highlights
Jake and Tom wax lyrical about Disney’s Frozen
Jake explains his home made crossbow
The age-old question is answered. Do dogs make the best people?
Kaliyuga’s opening, Crisis – by itself, there’s a single right there. It’s awesome. The drum and bass loops in it reminded me of ATARI TEENAGE RIOT. Am I showing my age here?
No, you’re not. It was intentional to tap back into the 90s – just that riding energy that used to be so … I don’t know. It feels like it was more prevalent back then – just setting it off, whether it be RAGE, PRODIGY, as you said, ATARI, it’s just tapping into that angsty energy that all is not OK, and it needs to be in a fury of drum and bass.
So, a carbon-neutral album. Wow.
Yeah, it was a good learning process, hey? Just to think, what produces more carbon – flying versus a shitload of driving? Actually, a small plane is way worse than a shitload of driving, even still, and the flying took up, I think it was 60%, 70% of the entire record was just in the flying to America and back, even though we drove for like thousands and thousands of miles. It beat it by so much. I knew it was going to be more, but not that much. So it was a good process to undergo and build a bit of awareness and accountability in our creation.
Going off to the side of this, you also directed a film called Green is the New Black. What can you tell me about this?
Yeah, it premiered on the weekend – a soft premiere, a soft launch just to our little cinema here in Byron, but it’s part of a film festival, and it’s going to another film festival in January, and we only finished the export of it on Friday, so we got it into these festival based on a trailer, because they were so pumped to have it. I don’t know what kind of life it’s going to take on, or how people are going to see it, but I know that in 2022 there will be a way that it will be seen, and it’s just a big, juicy story of what we went through around the record, because it’s not just about the album itself, but the human things that went down as well, before and after, as well as what the world went through. It’s been a big journey of not touring and having to take on these new ways of learning.
I’ve been stalking your Instagram for most of the afternoon. I’ve noticed you’ve got a pretty profound connection to the wilderness and whatnot. What does it bring to your mental health?
What does it do for me? Aside from bringing complete balance … You know what? … There’s so much going on in nature. To look at a forest that’s really quiet and still and say, “Oh, it’s so peaceful” … I mean, it is, but there is actually so much going on, it’s just that it’s moving at a different rhythm. I can find myself in my silence within all of that, and when I can access that silence, I can access my own power. I find my power in silence. So, for me, moving through those landscapes and feeling empowered when I can also make, “I can make fire out of that. That could be a shelter. There’s food there, there’s water there.” I feel an abundance, and I feel really held, and there’s less noise [waves his phone about] kind of fracturing my field … I’m sensitive to that sort of stuff, but I’ve also got an ability to switch it on and off, and the forest just enables me to sync back into where I’m actually at.
Making a carbon-neutral album, making fire from rubbing sticks together, and crafting your own longbow … I have to ask – are you preparing for the apocalypse? And if so, can I come stay with you?
Aren’t we already in the apocalypse? [Laughs] Nah, we’re not in the apocalypse, and I’m not preparing for it … The bow is made out of spotted gum, the fire is made out of materials out there … it’s just developing a deeper relationship with the bush, so it’s not so alien anymore, and I’m starting to feel more and more at home with it. That’s more the practice, than preparing for an event that may never happen, but if the event should ever happen – we’re not under the illusion that it will never happen – then sure. Come hang out, and we’ll do our best! [Laughs]
You’re kicking off 2022 with FULL TILT – who are you most looking forward to seeing?
I want to see all of my friends, full stop. You know what? For me, it’s actually ALPHA WOLF … It was two years ago, we did the Never Say Die Tour, and they were in the middle of the lineup, and they were doing really well, but they were still in that … it felt like they were just about to step into their form. They hadn’t released their record yet. Now that the record’s out, I can feel this pent-up … it’s their time … I reckon there’s going to be a bit of unleashing there that I want to see, where they’re fully stepping into their full form. So I’m going to go with ALPHA WOLF.
IN THE INTERVIEW: We talk about the creation of latest single Dogma, and Jake fawns over the Frozen music. Seriously. Check it out!
Pictured: Ben Nairne, Eaven Dall, Jake Taylor, Conor Ward + Kyle Erich - IN HEARTS WAKE
Photo by: Sally Patti @sallypatti