Polaris' Jamie Hails on 'The Death Of Me'
Photo by Sandra Markovic
Australian metalcore up-and-comers Polaris are set to release their sophomore record The Death Of Me this Friday, February 21st through Sharptone Records. With tough competition as The Amity Affliction, The Word Alive, and others also releasing new albums this Friday, it could be tough to stand out. However, Polaris have earned quite the following since the release of 2017’s The Mortal Coil, and believe me when I say, The Death Of Me is a release you do not want to sleep on.
With only one full-length under their belt, Polaris have already made an impressive name for themselves in the scene. Touring with big acts, such as Parkway Drive, and headlining several Australian tours, this band is showing fans they’re in it for the long haul. We were able to speak with lead vocalist Jamie Hails about the new record, the future of the band, and more.
What was the mindset going into writing and recording this new album? The Mortal Coil was an impressive debut to say the least, so were you trying to outdo what you did or deliver more of the same given its success?
“I’d have to say a bit of both really. I feel every band will always want to top their previous release and with us, with how well ‘The Mortal Coil’ did, we definitely had a high standard to maintain and also beat.
Going into writing and recording ‘The Death Of Me’ was well stressful, we had such a full on touring schedule ahead of us and very little time off/spare to be able to write and also record the album, which put a lot of pressure to get the album written in time before we recorded the album which… didn’t happen.
We came out of the time we had allowed ourselves to record the album with just about half an album’s worth of songs written/recorded and we went straight on over to Europe/UK for some festival shows and few headline dates in Germany and the UK.
We pretty much had to force ourselves to write on the road, in greenrooms and our mini van, which we don’t really do too well as is, and the little amount of time we had home and in between tours we wrote and went down to Melbourne to record what we had to try get the record done.
We went down to Melbourne to Lance Prenc and Scotty Simpson’s houses to record on 2 separate occasions between tours, one time for about 4-5 days and the second time for 2 weeks, which is when we finished the record and the next day flew out to America to go start the Wage War tour we did.”
Opening this powerful record, “Pray For Rain” comes in with a strained vocal delivery over an eerie, ambient guitar tone that sets a level of anxiety in the listener. This aspect of tension, almost unsettling in nature, is retained throughout the entirety of the record, but keeps the listener on the edge of their seat. Jamie Hail’s signature screams then explode into that powerful metalcore sound this band has become synonymous with. Combining a similar melodic groove found on the lead single “Masochist” with a full, well-produced metalcore you can feel in your chest, “Pray For Rain” was a clear choice for the album opener.
Transitioning into the three singles released in anticipation of the record, “Hypermania”, “Masochist”, and “Landmine”, Polaris show they can perform more than just straight-forward metalcore. “Hypermania” retains that essence of anxiety “Pray For Rain” established, but brings new elements to their sound, such as an in-your-face guitar resonance one would find on the newest Knocked Loose album. “Masochist” was the single that diverged the most, with its melodramatic groove and one of the catchiest choruses of 2019. “Landmine” was the single that showed fans of The Mortal Coil that Polaris can still bring the fast-paced, riff-heavy metalcore and while that sound would diversify, it wasn’t going to fade away on The Death Of Me.
Listening to even the first song on the record you can tell the straight-edge metalcore is still present, but there are certainly new influences as well, can you speak to this?
“We all have such a wide variety of influences and musical tastes, which in a way blends together in our music. Me personally I definitely have the heaviest music taste in the band for sure, but also I listen to just about everything on top of just heavy music.
A lot of influences in this record would have to be a mention to Architects, Beartooth, and Fit For An Autopsy, just to name a handful.”
“Vagabond” leads with a glitchy, dissonance that transitions into the cleanest chorus on the entire record. The back and forth between Jamie Hails and Jake Steinhauser emphasizes the lyricism on this record, particularly on Jamie’s delivery of “Will you replenish the air in me?”. Although this track has an overall lighter tone, similar to “Masochist”, it still contains a pit-inducing breakdown.
“Creatures Of Habit” and “Above My Head” continues this balance of new and old influences. When “Creatures Of Habit” kicks in, you think you’re going to hear a straight-forward metalcore track, but the ambience under the lead guitar adds a level of complex emotionality to the performance of guitarists Ryan Siew and Rick Schneider. While “Above My Head” contains an extremely powerful chorus, the band gets a little away from themselves in the instrumentation, delivering a somewhat confusing half-breakdown and a short interlude-like groove section. However, the redeeming feature of this song comes near the end with Jamie’s bone-rattling delivery of “some things never change.”
Having experienced a Polaris live set, I was completely blown away by the stage presence and crowd control, where does this stem from or is it completely natural?
“Thank you very much.
For me, it’s just how the music makes me feel. I used to play guitar in a band years ago and I would throw my guitar around and run around on stage and now my body is my instrument, so I still run around and everything, and involving the crowd getting everyone to move to do whatever is part and parcel of that. I guess I just love to have a great time when we play and I want everyone in the crowd to have the best time also.”
Truly a divergent exploration in sound, “Martyr (Waves)” is a clear standout track on the album. This song really “comes in waves”, as drummer Daniel Furnari switches abruptly back and forth between slow pop-punk-style instrumentation and explosive bursts of emotion. Reminding me of “In Somnus Veritas” off The Mortal Coil – in the way it slowly builds to explosive screams – “Martyr (Waves)” is a powerful ballad of sorts, exemplified in Jamie’s delivery of “I’m giving up on the fairy tale”, that is sure to turn some heads come Friday.
Rounding out the album are “All Of This Is Fleeting” and “The Descent”. Keeping in line with the overall tone of the album, “All Of This Is Fleeting” brings emotionality and rage-filled metalcore at its finest, and without a doubt contains the strongest breakdown on the entire record. Seriously, get ready for this!
Going into the final track on the album, I was expecting “The Descent” to be an emotional, peeled back look into a softer side of Polaris, but I could not have anticipated the powerhouse that is this conclusion. Polaris know what they do well, and they execute it to perfection here. At the 3:30 mark or so, the song pulls back just enough to let that anxiety set back in. As it slowly builds intensity, Jamie Hails comes in stronger and more fierce than ever before, as the band collides for the ultimately heavy finale that is The Death Of Me. It’s intense, powerful, and leaves you wanting more.
You've had quite the impressive career - even with only one full-length under your belt - touring with acts such as Parkway Drive and headlining several Australian tours, but what is next for the band in terms of spreading the word about Polaris?
“Next for us is ideally to solidify ourselves more as an band internationally. We’re about to do our first official headline tour in Europe/UK in a few months, which is incredible, and I would love to headline in America as well.”
The Death Of Me is an onslaught of melodic metalcore, with a flurry of sound experimentation mixed throughout. With that said, it can feel like there is “more of the same” at times, which makes some of the tracks blend together. This was also a downfall of The Mortal Coil, but don’t confuse this minor criticism with the overwhelmingly positive criticism I have for this record.
There’s no doubt that Polaris set the bar high with their debut record The Mortal Coil, but they have improved 10-fold on The Death Of Me. Jamie Hails has never sounded so powerful, and the rest of the band bring their own unique passion to their respective instrumentation.
Polaris will be kicking off release day with the first show of ‘The Death Of Me Australian Tour’, which is set to run from February 21st through the 29th and will see support from Wage War, Crystal Lake, and Alpha Wolf. They will then jump over to tour Europe and the UK from May 1st through the 24th on ‘The Death Of Me EU/UK Tour’, which will be supported by Currents, Alpha Wolf, and Varials.
Check out their latest single “Landmine” below, and be sure to pick up The Death Of Me this Friday!