Indian River Music Company is proud to present to you “ANTHOLOGY I”, the latest release from BRINGER OF LIGHT. Rather than a collaboration like in previous efforts, “ANTHOLOGY I” has Brad TBOLT as the mastermind behind all the madness. After spending 10-12 years focusing mostly on vocal work, he felt it was time to focus more on guitar riffs, songwriting and the concepts and aspects of production. “ANTHOLOGY I” is the first part of a 7 song creation, with brutal pieces inspired by Dexter, Halo/Masterchief, Saprano’s and Cocomelon. Based in Plano, TX, BRINGER OF LIGHT is a self-labeled "deathcore-ish project" helmed by Brad TBOLT.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hello BRINGER OF LIGHT. What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
You know. I think that’s a term that’s used a lot of different ways. I used to spend many hours a week trying to perfect my singing voice, or learn sweep picking… or doing guitar speed exercises - specifically so I could be a “great musician”. I’m writing better, more interesting songs these days, and I firmly think that it’s because I stopped giving a shit. I no longer care whether anyone does or does not like my music, or whether it “fits in” to whatever people want to hear. I sit down and try to flesh out ideas and write songs that I would want to hear. I also enjoy listening to my own music more often these days - and that’s why. I don’t care what genre I’m bending or modifying, or combining… I just write and mix and produce the stuff that I want to listen to. I don’t know that anyone would call me a great musician for those reasons, but if my songwriting and production chops are better now than 10 years ago, that’s why.
Who inspired you to make music?
A lot of folks. My parents, friends, MTV, rage and testosterone, I suppose. Also, my kid - I have a little side project that’s very much for him and kids in his age range (Bradley Graybeard and The Awesomesauce Band). Specific bands over the years, as well. Today I think the most abundant and obvious inspiration to the type of riffs I’m writing is clearly Fear Factory. I also really love bluesy guitars. Went to a Kenny Wayne Shepherd concert last month and I’m just in awe of that dude’s tone. Dammit - how do you get that tone? I get inspired quite a bit from watching live music performances of all kinds. Listening to live recordings, not so much. Watching it - being at the event for the performance - seeing how the mics are placed, what the settings on the amps are, what the vocalist is doing from a technique perspective - that stuff really drives me.
Your latest release is 'ANTHOLOGY I'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
Yes! I love this release. This is about half of some songs I wrote in late 2021. I love finding hidden connections everywhere. I love concept albums. Our prior ep, “Dexter…and the Code of Harry” was a 3 song piece diving into the series and character of Dexter, the serial killer. From there, I wanted to branch out a little bigger with a similar concept. Enter “Anthology”. So now, the theme’s are from TV, Video Games, Books, children’s shows, etc. (Soprano’s, Dexter New Blood, Cocomelon and HALO for this release).
On the first ep and a few covers, I wanted to write the music, direct the themes and mix the recordings with someone else handling vocals and lyrical content. I had a buddy, he goes by Tanner Rage, collaborate on the final mix on the first EP. Mike OB did a fantastic job and I would love to work with him again, but he’s currently co-fronting Texas Murder Crew, which keeps him fairly busy. After about a year, I decided, you know what - I need to just do what I gotta do and get this out there. So I went ahead and started demoing lyrics and vocals and within about 2 weeks it all came together and was ready for a final mix. Time-wise, it worked out really well and I was able to release my favorite part of my catalog on my 40th birthday. Felt good!
On the upcoming “Anthology II”, which will continue the trend, I have a few guys in TX deathcore bands lined up split some vocal work and I’ve even had a conversation with Burton C Bell, formerly vocalist of Fear Factory, to join me on a song. Looking forward to getting more traction there soon.
Can you shortly describe each of the tracks that are on the EP?
Sure.
“117” - This song starts with a cool little tapping part that is just ultra melodic. Moves into some very mean riffs and the theme is based on the Halo franchise. I’ve been a huge fan of Halo, games, books, you name it. I used a lot of the deep lore in the lyrics - including conversations between the different species.
I also included an odd musical turn mid-song and recorded a very clean harmonized vocal melody - probably the best vocal harmony I’ve ever written or performed if I’m being honest. It was one of those times where you’re like “Fuck, what goes here, what goes here?” and you just try something. I did that and upon listen back I was just like “holy shit - that’s it… wait, I hear more…” and went in for the layered harmony. I really like that part and I’m way too proud of it for how short and insignificant it really is.
“Saints of Newark” - I purchased my first 8 string from Harley Benton to test it out, and the opening riff to this song was just the first thing I played on that guitar. I thought it was quirky and odd, but once fully produced and mixed with drums and bass, it sounded straight up violent. I noodled for a while on what theme I could use for just sheer violence and brutality without going down the traditional death metal gore route. So I landed on Sopranos. There’s a lot of brutal content between the series and the recent prequal. Just some brutal stuff. I ended up having a buddy of mine, Scott, from Eyes of Ares sit in with me on some production stuff - he put in this simple keyboard part under that part, which inspired me to layer a few harmonized clean vocals under that nasty riff. Just turned out really well. This one has some strong Fear Factory vibes. And honestly, that’s kind of how I approach this project. “What if Fear Factory was a started as a deathcore band in 2023? What would that sound like?” - and ultimately, that’s what I enjoy and I have to say, that’s pretty much exactly what it sounds like. No shame here - just doing what I love.
“New Blood Headcanon” - This track features some simple but hooky and mean guitar riffs. The lyrical content pretty much came from a place of frustration and hope. I liked a lot of the new Dexter series, New Blood”... but I didn’t love what they did in the final few minutes. Felt like a waste. However, it could be saved. I have this headcanon about what could be done in season two and I thought - “ok, I’ll pay homage to my homie Mike, who did vocals on the first EP about Dexter by continuing the story here, in my own way”.
So basically, I like the idea that Dexter’s son lied to him and was hunting him from the start. Harison needed to gain Dexters trust, but inside, he’s got a dark passenger of his own, Trinity Killer. And Trinity tells him to kill his mom and hunt his dad down for being “bad people”. I would love to see a season two where all of that is revealed and the saga continues.
"COCOMELON". These kids show… they want to watch them a million times. This song was written about the earworms getting in your head! Also, my son tried to say "bah bah black sheep" but it was coming out as "bah bah bishhhhh", and I just liked that and thought it should go in the song.
How do you stay up-to-date with the latest musical trends?
I don’t! Ok, well, maybe a little - but not with trendy music. I use Pandora, Spotify, Youtube, all of those to find new music. I’m linked up to a bunch of facebook groups and sometimes I’ll look up some of the bands I hear about there. I’m in 5 or 6 music projects at any given time, so whatever other members are paying attention to. I really just pick and pull pieces that I like and let them inspire me to interpret or reinterpret. I switch between different subgenres of metal, reggae and EDM - but I always find myself going to back to the Fear Factory catalog and Cattle Decapitation’s last few records. Those tend to be my “home base”.
What makes you different from others?
I don’t know that I’m so different. I don’t think I’m trying to create a product for sale these days, so perhaps that makes me a little different. I’m a little out of touch (thankfully) with all the ins and outs of the current social media space, promoting and influencing through them, etc. I just write music that I like and that I hope others will like and I share it often with folks that might be like-minded. Perhaps that makes me one of a million, perhaps there’s something a little different - I’m not really sure. Probably a little of each.
What’s an average day like for you?
Well, it ain’t the life of a rockstar. I learned in my mid-twenties that you gotta have a backup cause we can’t all be rich and famous. I usually start the day by getting my toddler son out of bed, get him ready for daycare and log in to my day job. I put my pants on one leg at a time just like everyone else. Some days are great, some days are frustrating, just like you, I’m sure. I’m fortunate to have a really good job that I like, a great team and a fantastic boss. That helps a lot. So most days, it’s trying to be the best dad and husband I can be, followed by my career, then video games for a bit in the evening while I go back into dad mode.
Sometimes, I get lucky and can spend a chunk of a day in the studio. I work well in batches. I won’t touch it for a few weeks, then I come in and kill like 2 or 3 tracks in a day.
Please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans.
This is a good one. I do try to get in the forums and discuss new bands and music, share what I’m doing, yada yada. It’s funny to see that people can get really bent out of shape in a facebook forum. Like, dude, you don’t have to click my link. This is where we are as musicians - we have to share our music links with people to get the word out or no one ever hears it and I’m just screaming into a vacuum. I’m also very fortunate to be part of Indian River Music Company. There’s a hell of a lot of love and commitment that comes from the group. Networking, pushing, getting interviews like this one lined up.
What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
Make sure you have your finances in order (try to land a decent career) just in case you aren’t the next Metallica. Don’t make risky financial decisions. Try to learn your tone and how to improve it early. It’s not always about what equipment you have.
I think that’s about it - I mean, I would also like to say “don’t give a f–k what other people think, just release what you like” - but that probably isn’t the best commercial advice. I will say, this release is getting thousands more listeners than anything I’ve ever done previously, which isn’t something you hear daily from death metal bands, ya know.
What are your plans for the future?
I have probably 20 songs in development and a few extra ideas I need to track, split between 6 or so projects/bands. So I’ll continue to get in the studio when I can, develop those, find friends and folks I admire to participate and join me musically when it makes sense, and I’ll keep on releasing! We also have a little girl on the way, which means I’m going to need to fast track some of that stuff or postpone it over the summer.