ZT-webzine: Hey Steve! Well first of all I wanna thank you for talking to us.. And how's everything going with your projects ?? And what about your health? I wish you are doing okay.

You're very welcome! I'm happy to be back in good health as well! I am now 1 year and 1 month post transplant, and getting back to being busy again, after taking it easy last year during my recovery. We are busy right now, with promotion for The EssenEss Project, and I am also doing some guest solo sessions for a few bands around the world, in addition to putting a new vocal band together as well, among many other things upcoming this year! I am looking forward to getting back to what I do as much as I can this year!

ZT-webzine : How come you named the band "The Esseness Project", what's the story behind that name?

The name is actually a play on words. My buddy Steve Hoffman and I are both named Steve. We used to hang out a lot back in the day, and every where we went, people would say "Hey, it's Steve and Steve!" We decided to name this project S and S, and decided to mix up the wording a little bit, and the end result is EssenEss. Contrary to what I've heard rumors about the name that go around, there is no link to anything else. It's just a play on how you would say S and S! ha ha

ZT-webzine : Could you please make a short introduction to The Esseness Project to those readers of ours who are not familiar with your band?

This is an all instrumental project, and for me, a delving into the world of progressive rock. It's not metal, but myself being from a long background of metal music, you know it's in there as well! There are different styles of music that find their way into our songs, plenty of shred from myself, Steve Hoffman on bass, and our special guest drummer, Atma Anur! Atma has a long history as a session drummer for Shrapnel Records. Most here may know him from the first Cacophony record, or Jason Becker's first solo album, Perpetual Burn, or maybe even Greg Howe's debut album. We just released our debut album in November 2007, on our own for now, and are currently shopping for deals to release the album worldwide in 2008, and just this past weekend, Steve and I had the opportunity to perform at the NAMM show in LA, at several booths of equipment companies I hold endorsements with. We look forward to doing more of these later in the year, and hopefully some full band performances as well, so stay tuned at www.theessenessproject.com  or www.myspace.com/theessenessproject

ZT-webzine : When did you start recording "The esseness Project" ? Have there been any difficulties when you were writing those songs? How did you develop the songs?

We began tracking Atama in April 2004, and naturally, when you have 3 guys who all have crazy schedules (Atma regularly does session and live work, Steve Hoffman teaches bass, and also plays concert double bass for various symphonies and theater productions, and my schedule at that time was NUTS!), we took our time getting him tracked, and by the end of April 2005, we had Atma done. I had a crazy schedule during this time; touring with Testament, then Nevermore, then writing and recording albums with both Nevermore and Dragonlord at the same time, and teaching guitar, it seemed impossible! But we got Atma done, and proceeded to record ourselves from there. As far as the writing process went, we had a few of these songs written already. Steve Hoffman and I had this project started back in 1993, after we were both featured in Mike Varney's Hometown Heroes column in 1993. ( I was in October 1993, Steve Hoffman was in November 1993). We were very inspired to record and album, and we got together 4 songs to start off with, and through the studio we recorded at, were able to contact Atma to record on those songs. He was into it, so we did those 4, and released that as an independent release in 1994. We received very favorable response, and continued to write songs for an album. In 1995, I got the Vicious Rumors lead guitar gig, and we put the project on hold.

When we started this idea back up in late 2001, only 2 of those songs from that 4 song EP made it on this album. The Afterlife, and In God's Hands. It wasn't difficult to write for the album; this is something I always wanted to do, as well as Steve, so we were always writing instrumental songs, only at this time we were able to weed through, and pick out ideas we were both into respectively, and between my crazy schedule and Steve's we made demos, and passed them on to each other, for each guy to add his parts to, back and forth, over a few years. It took us probably 2 years to get the demos done, with everything else going on! ha ha But once we were done, we contacted Atma immediately, he was very excited to do this, and we were in the studio getting his drums down as quickly as we could from there.

I would say the most difficult thing was the time involved, and finding it, in between everything else I had going on, from my view point. I had to get into the mode of writing for this album, which, given my diverse musical background, wasn't that hard to do. When you're involved with other people in another band, you're in that mindset while you're there. When you're done, you're back to yourself, so that was the experience I learned in doing this.

ZT-webzine: How are fans responding to the new material?

It has caught a lot of people by surprise; they didn't expect this much diverse material from me, given my metal background! But, I have always studied all music, and taught for years as well, so it's in me, and I had to get this out! As for the response, it's good, and we're looking forward to raising more exposure for the album this year, and expanding our potential audience. If you're into guitar, this album won't disappoint you, I feel!

ZT-webzine : I'd describe your sound as a Jazz fusion and Rock Progressive, shred. How would you describe your sound? What did you set out to do?

I'll take that! It's a mixture of styles, so fusion fits in there. Steve and I both have a jazz education background, and he has live experience with jazz, so I can see that as fitting as well. But, it's not snobby jazz, it's still listenable! Prog rock, and shred, most definitely there in spades! There's some heavy riffing in there, some atmospheric stuff, sound-scape type stuff that we went for. We set out to have an album of instrumental music that had atmosphere, mood, and musical diversity, as well as chops, and I think we achieved all of that!

ZT-webzine : What inspired you for creating The esseness Project ?

Just a love of instrumental music, and always wanting to do something in that realm of music, but something a little more unique, hopefully, rather than the usual shred over once chord type of thing. I can listen to that, but I have always wanted to get a little more into the compositional side of things, as had Steve H. It's showing another side to me that I don't think people knew I had in me.

ZT-webzine : would you like to tell us a little bit about each of the songs on it and any stories behind them? and Do you have a favorite track off the new album?

The Afterlife: I came up with this song in 1993, and we decided to re-write some bits, and bring it on to this album. A sonic music on what it's like after you die, and the trip you would take in the potential "afterlife".

Sphere: Steve H's track, and one of my favorites from the album. It's more based around that bass line floats around the song the entire time, kind of a round type of sound, so he decided to call it Sphere. It has some very diverse moments in the middle of the tune, taking you on a prog rock journey from hell, and shredding it up as well!

Only Time Will Tell: A song I had written when I was 17 actually! I had the title as well, and until I got sick, had no idea what it meant, but I feel now that it was a foretelling of something that was going to happen in my life, and the uncertainty of it all. It's a neo-classical style song which keeps the shred factor burning throughout, but I wrote some more modern riffs for it when I came back to it for the writing sessions. The bridge at the end is something I hope that will take the listener by surprise!

Illuminate: Another of Steve H's songs. I am not entirely clear the idea behind the name he came up with, just that the song was a little more brighter in terms of melody when he brought it to me, but there was this sense of a brooding type of feeling well, so we went with it. This is probably one of the more balladish pieces on the album, but with many twists and turns in it as we go along in the song. Lots of ear cookies on this one. Listen with headphones!

Reflection, Redemption, Rebirth: I came up with the title and development of the song as I was on dialysis. It's darker, very melancholic to me, and it's me reflecting back on life to that point, taking what I've learned so far, or redeeming what I have learned, and using to it to grow from. That's the "rebirth" part. It's got kind of a circular feeling about it, song-wise, as we come back to where we started in the end.

Strands of Fascia: This one is Steve H's songs as well. He has a bass line that runs throughout the entire piece that is constantly tying the whole song together. Fascia is the soft tissue that keeps our bodies put together. If you look it up on the web, you'll see hat I'm saying. This one has many twists and turns, a little more on the rock side of things here, and more "up" sounding melodies on this one.

It's All In Your Mind: I came up with this one! Very diverse: the intro alone is built to confuse! Check it out! This one covers all areas of music, in sections. There's something for everyone in this one, and it gets more and more strange as it goes along. Plenty of shred factor, a good jazz section in there, and some other cool ear cookies!

Learning To Swim: Steve H's song. I think of the title as a metaphor for learning how to live; you "sink or swim", as they say, and this is learning to swim! We went for a lot of water type soundscaping on this one, and it's more of a darker piece as well, with a great bridge buildup in the middle! There's a few songs with interplay between the bass and guitar doing melodies, and one of us answering back, and I think this is one of the stronger examples of that from the album.

Just When You Think: I came up with this one. I think the title reflects the song perfectly, as just when you think it's going to stay in one place, we jump off that point, and on to another area right away! Lots of cool solo tradeoffs between myself, Steve and Atma as well!

Can You See What I Hear?: Steve H's song as well, and one of those examples of how our experience of playing together for over 20 years shows up! This one goes through some pretty moody areas, all while staying in a prog rock realm. It's kind of our Pink Floyd style song, I think, and another great one for headphones! Trip out!

XIV: The last of Steve H's songs, and one of the more diverse songs on this album. It starts off kind of "up" ,and then we break off into this more dark kind of mood from there. Great basslines in this one, and some of my most different work to date, I think. Check it out!

In God's Hands: The last of my songs, and another one we kept from 1993. I originally wrote this for a cousin that had passed away around that time, and dedicated this to him. On the album, I reworked it quite a bit, and there's a lot interplay between the 3 of us here for sure, with some great shredding drums from Atma at the end of this, which is a must listen for any musician! It's more or less a reflection of death, and that time coming, and who may or may not be in control of your end, as you approach it. "God" is a loosely based word here, as to me; it can mean a few things. It can be a spiritual being, or it can be the voice inside your head that tells you everything will be fine, and that you can go now, to wherever it is you will go, be it the afterlife, or just in the ground, and gone forever. I rededicated this to all who have ever suffered from the effects of kidney disease, or who have lost someone to kidney disease. It is my hope that people will find solace in this song. A very moody and anthemic piece, with a lot of Elbow used for melodies as well.

ZT-webzine : Where does The Esseness Project go from here?

We are planning on promoting this album as much as we can, through live performance, and clinic tours I am in talks to do this year as well. We are writing music for another album, and will begin the demoting process soon. I have learned so much from this experience about how I want to do this, that this one will turn around a lot quicker this time! We will continue on as we feel, and keep checking out other stylistic avenues, but the next one will be heavier in all respects. I have grown a lot musically, Steve has grown a lot as well, so we'll see what unfolds!

ZT-webzine : What was the general composition technique for the Esseness Project Material?

I think the easiest way to say this would be that we went where our minds took us! We just kind of let loose, and let the music flow!

ZT-webzine : In your opinion, how was your experience with Nevermore helpful in your compositional skills and how does that affect the way you write now ?

Well, the funny thing is, Jeff and I are both from a lot of the same background, so when I came into that situation, it was familiar territory to me, and I was able to plug in and write in that mode. The band would agree on that one as well. That was a different hat, so to speak. For The EssenEss Project, it was a different
mode of thinking, a different style of music, new ground, so there were a lot of things that were in me that I could get into this music.

ZT-webzine : What are your future plans? Future touring projects.

Steve and I just wrapped up a weekend of performing at the NAMM 2008 show, performing at BC Rich, Digtech, SIT Strings and the Krank Amps booths. We played to some backing tracks from the album, such as Atma's drums, the odd guitar part here and there, and keyboard layers as well. It was a blast, and we got a great reaction as well! We are looking forward to confirming some other performances lie this later in the year, so stay tuned!

I am also working on a vocal project with an old band mate of mine, Brian O'Connor, the singer from my time in Vicious Rumors. We are writing songs for an album, and plan on putting a band together for this, and seeing where we can go.

I am also doing session work for a few bands, and always welcome more, but I have to like what I hear first, before I agree to do it! Anyone interested in contacting me regarding this can do so via this email: steve@stevesmyth.com

I am also moving more in the area of teaching guitar. I already am running a very successful internet teaching business, and am expanding this in the coming months. If you're interested in studying guitar and music with me, email me at the same address, with INTERNET GUITAR LESSONS in the title. You can find more information about how we do this on my website: www.stevesmyth.com , and clicking on the "lessons" icon.

I have a few more things in this area getting firmed up, by way of an instructional DVD, and also will be doing master classes at a few music stores and schools throughout the year, so stay tuned at: www.stevesmyth.com  and www.myspace.com/stevesmyth

ZT-webzine : Do you have anything you would like to say to the readers of Zero tolerance webzine ?

To all fans of my past work, thank you for your support during these last few years! Your emails and messages have meant everything to me, and really helped pull me through a difficult period in my life! Thank You! I now invite you to check out The EssenEss Project! It's a different thing coming from me, but it's still me, and there's plenty of shred factor for all guitar fans on there! And, METAL is still in my heart, and I'm only just getting started again, so stay tuned, and KEEP IT FUCKING HEAVY!!!

ZT-webzine : Thanks very much for taking the time to share your musical musings with Zero Tolerance webzine.

Thank you, and all the best in the New Year to all at Zero Tolerance!