Cage

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Forming in 1992 in San Diego during the dreadful grunge era, the American Power Metal band Cage stood alone, despite being unknown and unrecognized. After "Unveiled" was released in 1998, the band steadily gained popularity by playing prominent European festivals, such as Dynamo and Wacken. Five releases and more than a decade later, Cage is ready to catapult to new heights within the global metal community. Its new release "Science of Annihilation," improves the band's chances to dominate the metal scene.

Vocalist Sean Peck and band mates Dave Garcia (guitar), Anthony Wayne McGinnis (guitar), Mike Giordano (bass) and Norm Leggio (drums) have the musical chops and determination to keep the heavy-metal spirit alive.

Sean talked via e-mail about performing and why the time is right to spread the word about Cage to the metal world.

Metal Mayhem UK: Cage has been slugging it out in the metal scene for over 15 years. How does it feel to finally start getting recognition, especially in the U.S.?
Sean Peck: To a small degree we have always gotten recognition from the media and the fans that saw us play live. Our first release "Unveiled," had us winning best new band of the year in Germany's Rock Hard magazine, so right off the bat people were giving us lots of attention. I think the fact that we have not toured extensively is really the reason we have not fully yet realized what is to come, but things are really rolling now!

MM: Why do you think it took this long, and what does Cage want to accomplish from here on out?
SP: We kind of did it backwards as we did not play around as we were younger but now that we are a bit older and financially successful in our non-band careers, we are beginning to tour exponentially more than ever before. We have a lot of shows planned and Europe will now be a reoccurring tour that will happen so we are satisfied with how it is going. This last European tour was our first full tour ever and it was very successful. This strategy is kind of cool because now we are playing at our absolute best with an amazing set list to perform. People really freaked out when they saw us, it was great!

MM: Your lyrics are so thought provoking, and you have a true talent for storytelling and creating songs that have great melodies. Do you have a list of potential topics you would like to write about, or does the music the band creates inspire you to come up with ideas?
SP: Yes sort of. Thanks for the comments on the lyrics. I take real pride in them and often do a lot of research when formulating some of the topics that entertain and educate simultaneously. Our latest CD, "Science of Annihilation," had me delivering much more fiction than normal. A few tracks I just went to cliché metal topics and put the CAGE spin on it. I really had fun with the lyrics on songs like "Speed Kills" and the title track. I also wrote two songs about some comic book characters, ("Planet Crusher" and "Spirit of Vengeance"), which I may do again.

MM: You have steadily progressed since "Unveiled," with each album getting better and heavier. What do you set out to accomplish with each release?
SP: It has been an amazing run being able to top ourselves seemingly each time. I knew with SOA that with the addition of our new drummer Norm Leggio (Ex-Psychotic Waltz), we would be able to turn up the speed and power, and this CD would really stand out. I always try to keep reaching vocally too. But the main ingredient for success is the songs have to be good. We just write from the fan perspective, like "What would I want to hear if I was at a huge arena metal show?" And that is how we do it.

MM: Your voice can go from a Halford falsetto to a King Diamond horror-growl to a Dani Filth Black Metal technique. How do you keep your voice in tip-top shape? Were you classically trained or take vocal lessons?
SP: I never took lessons and I do not warm up before a show either! I was a class clown of sorts, always making funny voices and such, and once I became infected with the metal disease for which there is no cure, I just decided that I wanted to be the lead singer in a metal band. I kind of taught myself how to sing and still discover new techniques and voices day after day. I use a different approach to each song and texture each song differently in order to keep it interesting for the listener.