Interview with Joshua Paul of Confide
Alright. Let’s start by stating your name & what you do in the band?
I’m Joshua. I play guitar in the band Confide.
How has your music/lyrics developed while you’ve matured as a band?
Lyrically? Well, Ross/Joel write all the lyrics in the band. So, when we found out the concept of what the newest record was gonna be it was kinda up to them to portray it lyrically, but I know they pulled it off. The album is called Recover & it’s just suppose to give anyone hope, whatever they’re going through in their life, whether recovering from addiction, lost family member, divorce, anything of the short. Just suppose to give them hope throuhought the album.
How does your faith influence your music?
We all know that we are where we are because this is where God placed us & wants us to be. He gave us all opportunities & called us to do this, so that why we do what we do. I mean, all of us could be at home with wifes or girlfriends & doing other things, enjoying the standard lifestyle (not that this isn’t fun & we love touring). We know at the point where we are, God wants us to be here.
What inspired some of the songs off the newest album, Recover?
The album is suppose to help anyone through what they’re going through. I know a couple of the songs are the fact our manager just passed away during the writing process. The song “Tighten it Up” is named after him. There is also lyrics about ex-girlfriends & stuff like that. Ex-band members, members changes during the writing process also had an influence on the writing of this album.
Recover came out on May 18th. What has been the overall feedback since the release?
It’s been really well. It actually came out while we were touring in Europe. We didn’t really get to have a USA release tour. But in Europe it went really well, we had tons of kids singing alone to the new songs. So, Warped Tour is kinda our release tour for the album in North America, besides a few west coast shows we did between Europe & Vans Warped Tour. But, judging by the last 2 weeks of Warped Tour, it’s been amazing. Crowds have been really good sized, everyday everyone is singing along to the new songs. So, it’s been really great!
How hard or easy has it been with the sweeping lineup changes?
Obviously any member change can get hectic at time. But, it’s been pretty smooth. When I joined the band, I had previously been the merch guy, so I had known them for a little while, so it was an easy addition to the band because we were all already friends. When we found Joel to play drums, we only knew him via MySpace, so we went to central California to try things out with him & it went very well. Everyone got along. Same thing with our bass player who joined a year ago, he was in other bands we’d previously toured with, so when he joined it went pretty smoothly.
With the entire rhythm section and lead guitarist (& primary writers musically) leaving, was it a tough transition?
No. Not at all! The guys who wrote “Shout The Truth” were Jeff & Aaron (the 2 guitarists). When Aaron left, I joined the band. I kinda took the influences from my previous band. Me & Jeff wrote the new album the way it came out. It worked out well & we are all stoked!
Any new music videos for the new album?
The first week of Warped Tour, we actually flew our buddy from England to film a live music video. It should hopefully come out by the end of Warped Tour (late August). I’m not sure if I can say what song it’s for yet. It’s gonna be a live montage of a few Warped Tour dates.
It seems that Such Great Heights was a huge hit with your fans. What (if any) will be your next cover song?
I don’t know if we’ll ever do another cover song. The whole purpose of that was because of the line-up changes, & the time in between albums was a bit larger that we had hope for. We just used the cover song to bridge that gap, keep the kids interested in the band & let them know that we are still around. It opened us to a whole new fan base. We definitely done have any plans for another cover song anytime soon.
What does the future hold for Confide?
Well, right now we are on Warped Tour all summer. After that, we go on tour with We Came As Romans, In Fear & Faith. After that, we go to Japan with Pierce The Veil & Buried Tomorrow. We then have another USA tour to end the year, but I’m not sure if it’s actually been announced yet. So we are completely booked till December!
Any words of wisdom you would like to share with our Indie Vision Music readers?
For the musicians out there, keep trying. I started touring when I was 16. I was still in High School & did my school work while on the road, sleeping in Wal-Mart parking lots. I’m 21 now, & I’ve worked hard to be where I am now. Don’t stop trying because someone shoots you down or tells you that you aren’t good enough. If you put the effort, you’ll be able to do something with it.
