Diné metal band ready to release 1st album
(Special to the Times - Krista Allen)
The members of Salvation's Lost include, left to right, Jerydd Tadytin (bassist), Donavan Whiterock (rhythm guitarist), Wilaniel Whitehair (drummer), Jarrod Tsinnijinnie (lead guitarist), and Akee Maize (vocalist).
By Krista Allen
Special to the Times
KAIBETO, Ariz., Nov. 17, 2011
With a bold expression, vocalist Akee Maize is sitting and observing like a superior.
Drummer Wilaniel "Willy" Whitehair and lead guitarist Jarrod Tsinnijinnie are discussing the beats of their playing while rhythm guitarist Donavan "Donny" Whiterock is tuning his guitar.
Tadytin, who plays the bass, is adapting his guitar's pitch as he paces the living room that had been turned into a small studio.
Outside the neighborhood is quiet, but not for long.
The sofa vibrated from the heavy onslaught sounds as the band played their music. And their immense melodic chords created an intense atmosphere of head banging.
These five adroit musicians are an unparalleled metal band known as Salvation's Lost, and they'll release their first studio extended play album on New Year's Eve.
Nonetheless, they have a lot to reflect upon - especially back in the days of learning music.
"I was self-taught," Tsinnijinnie said. "I just went by hearing and feeling what sounded good to me."
"Mine was mixed," Whiterock said. "I learned to play drums and guitar. I got hand-me-down guitars from my uncles, but I learned from there."
"For me, I always wanted a drum set," Whitehair said.
"He'd (Whitehair) come over to our house and he'd use the pillows to play along with the music," Tadytin said. "So actually, he learned to play the drums before he even got a drum set."
Whitehair's first drum set during preschool consisted of shiny vessels that inspired his metallic edge. In fact, he remembers going home from school one day while his bus driver listened to "Wild Thing" by The Troggs.
"We were on a dirt road when I heard that song," Whitehair said. "It was cool, so I got home and made my drum set out of pots and pans."
As for the resonant bassist, Tadytin said he was taught the classical guitar at the London Music School.
However a voice doesn't come naturally for most singers, but it did for Maize. He said his voice just came to him when he took the front man position sometime after their second show in Tuba City.
They idolized bands like As I Lay Dying, Cannibal Corpse, The Black Dahlia Murder, and "whatever sounded heavy." And they dreamed of performing on stage, which they eventually did.
"It's so humbling to know that we were at that point where we looked up to those bands," Tadytin said. "They've made a big impact on us, and we're doing the same thing now."
Several of their songs on the social network MySpace depict anger and relationships.
"It was just high school stuff with drama," Whiterock said. "They were our first songs, and we didn't know much."
"But we've matured," Tsinnijinnie said.
Salvation's Lost is just beginning. Even so, the band isn't about redemption or deliverance from evil.
"It means everything that you love, cherish, or hope for," Tsinnijinnie said. "It's (madness), and a tendency to use that as your salvation or your home - Salvation's Lost."
The band originated three years ago when Tsinnijinnie and Whitehair wrote their first song.
"We had a friend in Tonalea," Tsinnijinnie said. "We hung out with him, and he started playing the same songs we knew.
"And I told them, 'Let's try to make up some songs,'" Whitehair said. "And that night, we came up with a song."
"It was kind of an experimental song," Tsinnijinnie added. "It wasn't really done."
Today, the quintet is oscillating the Four Corners region with a mesmerizing stage presence and a sound like no other.
Their "Doomsday" album is inspired by aliens, comic books, UFOs, and zombies.
"It has a sound of its own," Tadytin said. "It has some of the metal core qualities and some of the melodies."
Salvation's Lost thank their fans, promoters, and all the bands they've played with.
Information: Jerydd Tadytin, jeryddtadytin@yahoo.com or myspace.com/salvationslost.