With a modern twist on the classic grunge sound, Return To Dust have been captivating and winning over fans since the release of their debut Black Road. The band was kind enough to join TGEFM for the latest in our Roll Of The Dice interview series and we are so glad they did.
- Thank you so much for agreeing to this interview. Could you tell us a bit about the
band, your sound and what you want to represent for your fans?
Matty (vocals, guitar): of course, we’re a heavy rock band based in Los Angeles with beaming influences
such as Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. Thematically, the band pulls from the gloominess of grunge,
but has the melodic sensibility of active rock or indie.
Graham (vocals, bass): Matty and I are long time friends; we moved to LA from Dallas, TX nearly four
years ago to start the band with a huge dream and no idea how to pursue it. We began writing songs
together throughout the pandemic, growing through personal turmoil and tragedy. We met Sebastian
(lead guitar) later on (2022) when he stumbled upon our rehearsal while on a walk with his mom. - What album or band or significant singles made you go “Yeah, this is what I want to do” Not just an influence but who or what was the catalyst?
M: Obviously Alice in Chains Dirt, but I can’t give enough credit to Anthony Green from Circa Survive and
Saosin for helping me find my voice– screaming his lyrics in the car was effectively my non-formal vocal
training.
G: Thank You Happy Birthday – Cage the Elephant, more from a writing and composition perspective than
anything, it was one of the first albums i think i fell in love with. It shows a tremendous range of style as
well as incredible writing and expression. Matt Shultz is a goddamn genius.
S: …And Justice for All by Metallica, the harmonies are beautiful in every song. The leads are
memorable, like the “one” solo. Every geetar player knows it because it was monumental at the time. The
solos showed me techniques I never knew existed, and the riffs showed me a way of playing I’ve never
heard of or seen before and it still blows my mind to this day. - We understand that Graham was a collegiate wrestler. Beyond having the muscle when a venue tries to demand merch cuts, how does the individualistic and competitive mentality of a wrestler play into the band’s writing and recording process? Are there issues in giving up control and sharing the workload after years of taking all responsibility on your own shoulders?
G: hahaha, well i’d open with saying it was never about giving up control or responsibility or anything like
that; my choice to do music was completely separate from my involvement in wrestling (I did it alot
growing up, and got mostly tired of it by the time I hit college). Either way, wrestling is actually much more
team oriented than people might think (even though it’s a 1 vs 1 sport). There’s lots of camaraderie even
in the extremely competitive environment. so it’s taught me more about how to get along with people and
manage my own emotions rather than any sort of ‘power renouncement’.” - We all have a few, what is your biggest regret? A gig you turned down, advice you didn’t take, what one thing do you wish you handled differently as a musician?
M: The only thing I can think of, not really a regret, just a criticism, is the crippling self doubt that comes
with being a musician. Wondering if you’re going to make it? wondering if anyone’s going to like your
music? wondering if you should’ve stayed in college? All of these things (with the sinister aid of a little
THC), contribute to quite the piss poor outlook on your craft. We all have doubts, but once I stopped
generally worrying about nonsense and started believing I was on the road to happiness & self-fulfillment,
the entirety of my demeanor changed about being a musician.
S: I wish I handled advice differently. My parents always gave me advice in the beginning and I always
took it as them controlling what I do which is just wrong in my part. I always take their advice now but in
the beginning I wish I listened to them more and understood the difference. - One of our obligatory questions in these interviews also tends to be the one I have found most important on a personal level. Who are some bands on your radar that TGEFM readers may not know about, but you think they should?
M: Phaeic is an incredible band in Los Angeles, we played our first couple shows with them and it blew me away how good the frontman (Kris)’s stage presence is.
G: Lakuna, they have such a unique heavy shoegaze sound and I’m surprised this band isn’t on radio or big tours, they play mostly locally in San Gabriel Valley (east of LA), but we’re going on tour with them early next year. - What’s next for Return To Dust?
M: we have a couple big reveals for 2024 involving touring, but for this year, we’re finishing off by rolling
out a couple more singles, ending with a ballad around christmas time. We’re currently finding the right
strategy to release our breadth of recorded music, to put it in front of as many potential fans as possible,
and bring it to them live in their own state. - Was there anything I missed that you’d like to share or dive deeper into with our readers?
M: Thank you all for taking the time to be interested in our silly little journey, it’s really just beginning for
Return To Dust. I want to say that fans make us everything that we are; from every comment left, dm we
get, and whoever decides to come to a live show, we notice it, and it helps us keep doing music every
single day, thank you.
and thank YOU That’s Good Enough For Me, these questions rock, you guys seem to really care about
who you’re interviewing and that means a lot to us. Please keep us in mind for future endeavors and we’ll
do the same<3
Roll of the Dice is a short interview format with a variable amount of questions. A pair of dice is rolled and the total, between 2 and 12, is the amount of questions we can ask. All questions are given to the interviewee(s) at once, no follow-ups are allowed. The interview may be lightly edited for content and clarity.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/