Satellites & Sirens On their New Album "TANKS" & Winning Our Battles with Love

Satellites & Sirens has announced their plans to release their fourth full length studio album, which will be called TANKS. The title track and lead single goes for adds at radio September 12.

The band has spent over a year writing Tanks, which follows their 2014 album, One Noise. Tanks will be released with DREAM Records, and the band calls it their favorite release yet. "This record is different but familiar, it's fun but challenging, it's roll the windows down and cruise and close the door and think," lead singer Geoff Hunker explained. "I wish you could all have been in the room for the last year as this came together so you could see the time and thought and passion that's been put into this and to see the things God orchestrated to make this record happen."

Satellites & Sirens has been actively sharing album updates on their facebook page, encouraging fans to spread the word. A recent picture shared showed the album's tracklist on a whiteboard, marked to show the progress on each song.  Their new album will be released on October 14th on DREAM Records.

Q:  Thank you so much for your time.  You guys have come a long way since your debut album with WORD Records.  How has your music change or remained the same over this period of time? 

I think each record has progressed in some way for us.  Each record has been very different but still somehow fits the S&S brand, I listen back to our records and can hear a lot of growth in each record in the style as well as lyrically.  As our musical tastes have changed I think our musical choices in the studio have as well.

Q: Considering the fact that your previous album "One Noise" was so well loved by fans and critics alike, was there a lot of pressure in the making of TANKS?

I think there is always some pressure when making a record, there is a lot of tension in making decision in the process that you like as well as trying to decide if others will like it.  It did add a bit more stress coming off of a single (Jump Start My Heart) that did so well at radio and no matter what the mindset is you are always trying to beat out what you have done before.  Though there was the pressure of trying to make something as successful or more than One Noise, we tried to just focus on making something that we would be extremely proud of in the end weather people loved it or not.  It is such a difficult industry to compete in so we just tried to put it all aside and do what we felt God wanted us to say and make music that at the end of the day we would ourselves listen to.

Q:  TANKS is a very unusual title for an album as well as for a song.  For readers who may not have heard the song TANKS before, what's the song about? 

Very true, I think that is one of the reasons we went with it.  It is a seemingly ironic of an idea, but in Proverbs 25 verse 21 it says "If thine enemy be hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he be thirsty, give him water to drink."  The world we live in is so full of hate, racism, bullying and just a lack of care for other people, and God tells us and has shown us through scripture that we should love, love the hater, love the racist, love the bully.  In the war of life, love is the new fight.  Maybe if we chose to feed our enemies things could be different and more people could be reached for the kingdom. TANKS was just our way of trying to say that.

Q:  When you were recording TANKS, what was (were) your aim(s) for this album?  What do you want the take home message of the album to be?

I don't think we had one specific take away form this album.  We wrote about a lot of different things and not all being connected.  We want people to take away the idea that we can fight hate with love, that maybe we should live in the moment instead of trying to capture the moment for social media, that we are stronger together, that no matter how many mistakes we make or how far away from God we run that He is still our home and will receive us as his beloveds, that we as christians should be setting trends and creatively breaking the molds, and that its ok for christians to write love songs! ha!  There are a few of the take aways we want for people!

Q:  Pick a couple of songs off the record and tell us why you are passionate about them.  

I am passionate about this whole record, but if I need to pick 2 I would choose "Old Souls".  First off I am just so excited about how this song turned out, it has a great feel and I just feel like we created something unique with this one.  But what this song is about is something that I think can connect to many.  We want to remind people of what it was like to have that childlike faith and wonder.  When we could be anything and dreams seemed attainable.  When cardboard boxes were spaceships and we really believed that faith could move mountains.  Let's get back there, that faith is the same and God really does have plans for our lives that could blow us away if we would step out of our ruts and remember.  I am also very passionate about the song "Waste Some Time" because this song is for my wife.  God has blessed me with the most amazing woman of God and understanding and supportive wife.  She stood beside me through my worst moments, touring and being away in the studio and hardly seeing each other.  This song is a feel good, roll your windows down but it still encompasses all that we have been through together and going through.  We have had a lot of stress over the years, miscarriage, struggle having children, me being on the road, finances, full time ministry and now we are trying to become foster parents!  I wanted this song to be something she could turn on and just feel good and be a getaway even if it's just for 4 minutes and 17 seconds!

Q:  Besides your own music, who else do you listen to?  And what's on your iTunes now? 

I love music and am always in search for something new!  But some of my favs and what I am listening to now are Jimmy Eat World, stoked about the new record coming out October 21st.  As well as One Republic, I had the opportunity of producing TANKS myself and so I look up to Ryan Tedder and his song writing and producing.  Lights, Lany, Switchfoot, Bethel!  I am all over the board!

Q: TANKS speaks about winning our battles with love.  Why is love the best defense and offense in every battle?

I think because love changes people.  Hate breeds hate, the bible tells us to "turn the other cheek", "if our enemy is hungry, to feed them" and when Jesus was put to death on the cross for all mankind He did't yell in anger and pray "Father, condemn them"  He said "Father forgive them". All Jesus did was show love, that's what I want to be like. 

 

 

Tags : satellites & sirens satellites and sirens interview dream records tanks satellites and sirens tanks satellites and sirens news