In a normal day, we don’t tend to listen to much metal here at Kettle Mag. To try and change that, we recently interviewed Alex Olivetti, guitarist for Threatpoint.
Threatpoint are a groove metal band from Scranton, Pennsylvania, in the US. Aside from Alex, the band includes Chris James (vocals), CJ Krukowski (drums), Mike White (guitar) and Eric Ross (bass).
What made you first become interested in music?
My father had guitars around the house when I was younger and both he and my mother always had music playing, so it kind of spiralled from there.
How did Threatpoint start?
A mutual friend actually got the ball rolling. CJ and I played in a band with our singer Chris’ old band, so we already knew each other. We had a couple line-up changes and currently have Mike and Eric, who came from a band Threatpoint played with numerous times.
Who are your musical influences?
A lot of newer American metal bands – Lamb of God, Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Shadows Fall, Tremonti, etc. I also love some old-school metal like Metallica, Pantera and Testament. In terms of lead playing, Paul Gilbert is my favourite guitar player. I used to play for hours and hours a day with his instructional videos.
What’s your favourite song?
That’s a tough one. Probably Suffocate by the band Sevendust. It’s got a heavy groove to it with great lyrics.
What music are you listening to currently?
A little bit of everything, from Michael Buble, to Cannibal Corpse, to Elvis.
What’s your favourite lyric?
From another Sevendust tune called Confessions – “You know the world doesn’t always love you, but you never let that define you”. That’s a powerful line that always picks me up when I’m down.
Why did you choose your name?
CJ and Chris were tossing around ideas. The words “Threat” and “Point” were somewhere in the mix so we just combined them. I think the name is a good description for our music as well – aggressive and in your face.
Which of your songs is your favourite?
Man, that’s a tough one. I love playing a lot of our songs but my favourite would have to be a toss-up between ‘The Beast Within’ and ‘Collapse’. ‘The Beast Within’ is heavy with a melodic edge and ‘Collapse’ is non-stop energy.
What are your most and least favourite things about being in a band?
I love being able to write and create music with like-minded people, it’s the best feeling in the world. Playing shows is always fun, recording and hanging out in the studio and overall just getting along with the guys, we see each other even when we’re not doing anything band related. It’s a brotherhood that helps keep us moving. As for the least favourite, the travelling can get boring and tiring. We’re all very energetic on stage so my body hurts after every show. Having a bad show experience is never fun either.
What are your interests outside of music?
I like movies, sports (football and soccer), video games and just hanging out with friends.
What’s the best moment of your career so far?
We’ve had some amazing shows over the past two years and got to meet Tim “Ripper” Owens. But the best moments would have to be fans/friends coming up to us and telling us that our music helped them through a tough time in life or even inspired them. Knowing that our music can have such an impact on people is humbling beyond words.
What’s happening in the near future?
We’re currently in the writing process for our third album. So far we have 10 songs written and a couple more ideas floating around.
How can our readers find out more about you?
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Are you a fan of Threatpoint? Let us know in the comments below!
