Vayden is a local band from Phoenix, AZ that is destined for great things. With the most solid rock album (Children of Our Mistakes) I’ve heard this year along with the support of label Silent Majority Group, the band is on the verge of being a nationally desired act. Twice now I’ve had the opportunity to watch Vayden’s electrifying live show: once when they opened for Sick Puppies and again at their sold-out Phoenix send-off show. On both occasions, I realized why they have become such a highly followed band in the area. I was lucky enough to catch singer Curtis Casey, guitarist Armin Peterson, bassist Jason Salomone, and drummer Bruce Weitz backstage before their final Phoenix performance of the summer.

How did Vayden get started?

Curtis: Vayden got started when Armin Peterson woke up one morning with a dream and then he called up his friend Jason (Salomone)…no, no, we started out of a basement in Mesa, AZ and Milano’s Music Store and it was basically that me and Bruce (Weitz) wanted to start a band. So we went about doing that and picked up Jason to play bass and Armin’s the prodigy student of our guitarist Rob Robbins who will be playing later on tonight, too.

I saw that you were originally named Simplify and then changed to Vayden.

Curtis: Yeah, we changed the name to Vayden because that was the name of Bruce’s son who died in a car accident. We loved the name and were actually gonna name the band that before Simplify but we decided against it. Then, after the accident, we decided to go ahead and change the name to Vayden to honor Bruce’s son.

The name definitely stands out because now it seems that everything you can come up with has been taken at one time or another. Vayden is unique and sets you apart from the crowd. Describe your sound for those who may not have heard you before.

Jason: I’d say that as far as our sound goes, I mean, we probably can be brought back to a lot of different influences. Everybody in the band has a lot of different influences, whether it be classic rock or hip-hop, metal, jazz. There are so many different things that everybody likes. I hesitate to compare us to another band but just a lot of different influences and hopefully that makes us unique when all is said and done. We just try to continue to grow and have fun with what we’re doing.

Well that leads me into who are some of your specific influences?

Curtis: Well I’m very influenced by R&B. I was raised listening to Sam Cooke, Al Green, stuff like that so that really is a big influence on me as a singer.

I knew there was R&B in your background because you can hear that influence on “Karma Is A Professional Wrestler.” When the vocals come in, there is a definite hip-hop vibe.

Curtis: You know, you are the first person to ever mention that. I can tell you are an appreciator of music.

Armin: My number one influence is actually this mime I saw on the street one day. I don’t know his name.

Jason: I like Tool, Mr. Bungle, Pantera, Disturbed, some earlier Sevendust stuff and I listen to a lot of jazz

I like hearing someone mention Mr. Bungle. They are rarely acknowledged.

Jason: Well that’s number two. They definitely come after Tool.

What is your favorite track off the album?

Curtis: My favorite track is “Welcome,” track 11 I think. It’s just my favorite one to sing and perform, and I was in a really good space when I wrote that tune.

Jason: “Children of Our Mistakes.”

Armin: Fuck you!

Jason: Try to come up with your own, alright?!

Armin: “Karma” dude.

What do you mean by “Children of Our Mistakes?”

Curtis: Basically it’s kind of a warning to be mindful of all that you do because everything you do spawns a child of sorts. So when you make a mistake it does come back and bite you. It spawns something that’s going to grow up and ultimately you will have to watch out for what you try to do with your life. It’s meant to bring a little awareness.

Are there any music videos in your future?

Curtis: Yeah, we’re gonna do some live stuff and throw them up on YouTube because I think that’s where our strength is really: performing live. We’re not trying to be cheeseballs in front of the camera, you know what I’m saying? Eventually, we’ll do a video. It’s just about getting the right concept and the right people together to do it. Just because we all of a sudden have a budget to do one doesn’t mean that we just want to jump in and do one.

How did you celebrate getting signed to Silent Majority?

Curtis: I think we went out to eat at a Chinese restaurant.

You know what? You are like the third band that has told me they celebrated by going to eat Chinese.

Curtis: That’s really funny.

Armin: I actually ended up in the bathroom puking that night.

Curtis: Yeah he did!

I don’t know what it is but bands seem to really like Chinese after getting signed to a label. So tell me about the upcoming tour.

Curtis: We start with Tantric in North Carolina (on June 11th) and we’re gonna be with them until July. After that we’ll probably jump on tour with fellow labelmates Candlebox and we might slip in some Sick Puppies dates as well.

Armin: I’m just hoping we don’t end up in bedlam and squalor.

Jason: You know, if we’re playing music, we’re happy. If I have to eat a fuckin’ ham sandwich every day for three months I’m pretty cool with that as long as we keep getting to play gigs and keep playing for a lot of people that like the music.

What’s the craziest thing that’s happened at a show.

Curtis: Oh man, there was this stalker chick who would crochet us shit and make us presents. Well then what happened is it got so freaky that we actually had to tell her we couldn’t accept her gifts anymore. So she took all of the gifts and made a bonfire out in the parking lot of the club we were playing in. The club owner came in and was like, “Someone started a bonfire in my parking lot!” and it was that chick burning all of the gifts we had turned down. She had brought these bags of stuff and was like “Fuck you guys.” It was pretty funny.

Does she still come to any shows?

Curtis: No, no, no. Eventually my sister had to kick her out and she said, “I better not see you at a show again or else.” It got that crazy, man.

That’s insane! So what would you be doing if not making music?

Curtis: Porn.

Armin: Drugs.

Jason: I probably would just do a lot of coke and overdose on heroin

Curtis: You know that anti-drug commercial that’s like “Playing guitar is my anti-drug”? Well, it’s true! If Armin wasn’t playing guitar, then he would be out there doing meth with all the other kids out there in Anthem. But really, to me there is no not making music. If I wasn’t in a band, I would be somewhere that I would be making music, writing commercial jingles or something like that.

And finally do you have any advice for aspiring musicians?

Jason: Don’t give up no matter what. If you want to do it, you just gotta keep on playing. Persistence may not get you anything eventually but it sure is a good start.

Armin: Cover your stump before you hump.

Curtis: Ah! Very nice. Cover your pecker before you deck her.

Bruce: Deck her? I hardly know her!

Curtis: Honestly, though, besides what Jason is talking about, I would say…I’m gonna grab this microphone from you here…this is a big thing for all musicians: don’t make five songs and then start running around flyering up the town. It’s not about how many flyers you make or how many friends you have, it’s all about the music. Just stay in, make as much music as you can, and let everything fall into place. When you focus on the music, then you’ll be surprised how everything else unfolds right in front of you. That’s my biggest piece of advice: just focus on the music. Don’t focus on anything else because nothing else matters.

Jason: I want to add to that. You’ve got to try and do what you like because if you’re letting yourself be guided by your influences then it’s almost like your struggling to sound like something in particular and it becomes a trend. That trend will be over by the time you get your album out anyway so you might as well be yourself. If people catch on to it, that’s cool but if not, you like the music and you’re playing it.

Purchase Vayden’s single “Anthem of the Used” on iTunes or pre-order the full album Children of Our Mistakes from Silent Majority Group.