>My name is Dan, I play bass, and I hate writing with capital letters, but I thought it'd be easier for me to do so you didnt have to do it later.

We really can't wait for you new album "Colors" to come out, how did the writing process go for it?

>It was amazing, the easiest writing experience I've ever had. Paul and I had started piecing a song together around the time we recorded the "Anatomy.." record, and we finished it in september and jammed it with everyone right before we left for our last US tour for "Alaska". We took off for the holidays and got back together in mid January and had an overflow of ideas, which lead to the whole second half of the album and then we worked backwards and started in towards the middle from the beginning. Thinking in terms of the whole record made it easier to lay things out and integrate parts from later songs in the earlier songs and really give it that conceptual feel musically. We were thinking on another level and trying to make this album something different from the beginning, and we never had any holdups in the process.

How does it feel to work with Jamie King again, does it feel more natural this time around?

>Well Jamie's been a part of the band since day one, he recorded everthing the band's ever done (including the first three song demo) except for "The Silent Circus". Paul, Blake and I recorded an instrumental song we wrote for a compliation (that'll probably never come out) back in February, and even then we were talking about what would become "Colors" and about certain album tones we were really into, and even about the few songs we had written at that point, just trying to get him excited about the project. Jamie gets us and our music like no one else and he really nailed it this time around. Plus we were the first band he recorded in his new studio/house and it was AWESOME! Completely different vibe than the old basement/garage. We were lounging and watching the basketball playoffs while Tommy was doing vocals and he had no idea, whereas before we had to go back to Blake's house when he'd be doing them. He's also got a huge backyard that's perfect for whiffle ball and that reall made all the difference in the world. Jamie just rules and we had a blast this time around!

What were the major influences that you had for this record (other artists, literature, books, etc) as well as for your sound and style in general?

>We all brought our own personal influences into the mix, which has always made btbam what it is. That being said though, Paul and I were the main writers on "Colors", so our influences are way more appearent on the cd. Paul's got a style that's really unique, and when he sent me the first bit he had written for "Ants of the sky" (the first song we wrote), I was super stoked and knew that it had to be out of control, and it ended up being this 13 minute long song that's mainly instrumental and is a perfect middle of the album song. I was very into listening to my favorite concept albums and finding out what made them flow so well, albums like "The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway", "Scenes From a Memory", "Dark Side of the Moon", etc. We really wanted the album to have this feeling from start to finish that it was a single musical idea like those great records, which is how I really feel any album should sound.

We saw that you guys got the name Between The Buried And Me from the lyrics of a Counting Crows song, as well as covering one of their songs on your cover album "The Anatomy Of," Do you guys just really like their music or what?

>They are indeed a good band, although I think my interest in them peaked with "August and Everything After". The "Colorblind" cover was from a differnt session than "Anatomy" with a completely different lineup, but I'm glad it found its way onto the disk.

You guys have shared the stage with great acts such as Bleeding Through, Strapping Young Lad, and Unearth, what are the touring plans for the support of this new album and who will be on the tour with you?

>We're in the works of figuring out what our plan is for the fall and there after at the moment. All we know is we want to do a full US headlining tour sometime around when the album comes out (sept 18th!), and to have a small package so we can finally give our fans the nice long set they've wanted for years.

Since a majority of the band is vegan, do they have to bring special food on the road or can they cheat and buy fast food?

>Well I'm one of the three vegans in the band and I'll tell you it's been wonderful to be home and cook food the last 6 months! On the road we usually eat at places that we can all go to, such as MOE'S, panera bread, taco bell, as well as grocery stores. But good lord, I can't wait to hit up all the delicious vegan restaraunts around the country. I'm talking Gianna's, Soul Vegetarian, Native Foods, The Globe, Herbivore, Love and Haight, Green, Pizza Plant, and that delicious place in Norfolk we always get cheese pizza from. Food is easily the thing we look forward to most while on tour, and at home really. Except for Wednesday nights, then we watch Lost.

Of your favorite artists, which is making your most anticipated album of 2007?

>The new Dream Theater record just came out and we're all real excited about it. They're my favorite band and a huge influence on our music, and I really like alot of things they did on "Systematic Chaos". The new album from The End is killer, the new Sleepytime Gorilla Museum is out of control......um, I dont really know what else is coming out! Thumbs down on the new Chris Cornell record. I'm always holding out waiting for a new Cave In record but, you know...

We also like Glass Casket. Since Dustie and Blake are in it but the band is on hiatus because the other members are in college, when they are finished, what will happen to Glass Casket or for that matter BTBAM?

>I'm not in Glass Casket but I do know they're more of a side project now. They havent toured in something like three years. I'm sure they'll record another record this winter.

A lot of people put you guys in many different genres of music such as metalcore or progressive metal, which do you think best describes you?

>I'd like to just be described as a progressive, forward thinking band. This album is a progressive metal/rock album in that it's taking every idea we've done and gone to the next level. The very idea of "Colors" stems from the song "White Walls" and it's really about breaking away from everyone we're usually lumped in with, whether it be a talent show like Ozzfest or all the tech metal bands that are springing up everyday. This album has finally catpured everything we've wanted to do, and really is the album I've wanted to write since I was in highschool. We are a progressive band that's always going to try something new and you'll see that in every aspect of us starting this fall.

Thanks for answering our "deep seeded" questions heh. Is there anything you would like to say to the readers of Skylinepress.net?