Artists

Alpha Prevail is not a band, its a way of life. Based in Orange County, CA, Alpha Prevail is made up of four guys with lust for life and a passion for good, honest music. Built from the ashes of Deified Tonight, Alpha Prevail creates a colorful pallete of hard rock music in the vein of Linkin Park, Paramore, and Thrice. Their unique style is pulled from the minds of lead singer Daniel Mckim, guitarist Brandon Latino, drummer Andrew Gardikas, and bassist Steve Stelling.

Recent happenings:
Nominated in the Orange County Music Awards for Best Alternative Band
Nominated in the Malibu Music Awards for Best Alternative Band
Recently Eclipsed 1 million plays on MySpace (in under a year)
Debut Album – now available on itunes

Written by: Kristin Courtney

Alpha Prevail Interview:

Where did the name Alpha Prevail come from?

The name Alpha Prevail stems from a mindset that has been, and is, extremely instrumental to the success and stability of the band. It essentially outlines the confidence, enduring positivity and mental fortitude that we try to integrate into our music as well as our daily lives. Alpha Prevail has become a simple, yet powerful mantra that allows us to become part of something larger than four guys who write music, and in turn, invites listeners of all walks of life to join a community that champions a way of thinking that is free of the self doubt and insecurities plaguing the youth of our generation.

What is your musical backgrounds?

Considering the fact that we have dedicated our lives to music, our individual musical backgrounds are quite significant, although likely more so to us than to your readers… so we’ll save the long version for “Behind the Music”. Dan Mckim, lead vocals, began playing guitar around the tender age of ten, mainly just to attract the ladies. It worked.. As a side benefit, he found an passion and connection to the instrument which was purely coincidental. Around the same time, cousins Andy Gardikas, drums, and Steve Stelling bass were finding a love for their respective instruments and mastering the musical stylings of their idols. Brandon Latino started his musical exploration with the saxophone, but after being influenced by the bands of his teen years, wisely converted to the guitar. Meeting in high school, the better half of the group jammed and toyed with the idea of starting a band, but it wasn’t until lead vocalist Dan Mckim discovered an aptitude for songwriting and recording that things got serious. After a friendly nudge from guitarist Ryan Shuck, of the band Orgy, Dan decided to start singing, and the rest is as they say: history.

How would you describe your music?

How would we describe our music… have you ever watched the sunrise from a mountain top while contemplating the essence of the horizon? Neither have we, but our music has. Categorically speaking, we are an Alternative Hard Rock band and we’re illegal in 28 states. We’ve put so much of ourselves into this music, it’s hard to name any specific bands we sound like, but listeners of Linkin Park, Paramore, and Thrice should definitely enjoy Alpha Prevail.

How were you introduced to music?

I think we were exposed to music very much the way most people were… forced to listen to whatever was on the car radio as children. As we grew older, and were afforded certain rights, we all chose our own path musically. While each member has somewhat similar listening habits, we all definitely have our own unique opinions on what we’re hearing, which leads to each of us having our own identity during the songwriting process.

What made you decide to become an artist?

Being an artist grants certain liberties and opportunities. One of the reasons we have pursued a musical career is, of course, the ever present outlet of expression and personal connection that we are allowed. That being said, it’s only natural that four highly creative individuals who, by no accident of fate, were brought together would jump at the chance to do this for a living.

Who have you shared the stage with?

As a young band who just finished their debut album, the list of well known artists we’ve shared the stage with is relatively humble. Most recently we opened for Epitaphs’ “I Am Ghost”, which was a blast. Other great fledgling artists who were a pleasure to play with include Seiri, Bluembrace, The 3rd Degree, and Voxhaul Broadcast.

When you play live, how do you try and connect with people who have never heard your music?

When we play live, it’s very important not to have any walls up that may disconnect us from the audience, whether they’ve heard us before or not. The most important thing we keep in mind when performing is that it’s not as much about the physical notes or words being shared, but about the energy being transferred. As the lead singer, Dan wears a heavy burden of being sort of the headpiece for the emotional connection to the audience. One way that he tries to maximize that connection is to really take himself back to the moment, emotionally, in which that song was written and rather than just sing notes and lyrics to the crowd, share the story of that feeling, whether it be from his words, expressions, or simply his inner thought. It’s also been elemental for us to be as organic as possible during a performance, which is why you likely won’t see us popping and locking in unison anytime soon.

What is the craziest band story you can share?

What’s the craziest band story we can share… one time we totally kicked some dude’s ass for asking us about our craziest band story… that wasn’t you was it?   (btw – strange answer!)

What are your musical goals?

Musically, our goals are to hopefully continue creating music that excites us, and in turn excites our audience. As individuals it’s hard to imagine a time when that wouldn’t be happening, considering writing songs is much like a journal, or a diary, and regardless of what the outcome is, writing songs is just something that will happen.

Please share with our readers anything additional that you would like them to know…

We just want to thank all of our current fans and future fans for the enthusiasm and support that they’ve given us… it literally has been the fuel that has kept us pushing on.

www.MySpace.com/AlphaPrevail