To say metallic hardcore act Old Wounds have been a little busy since wrapping up their 2016 Noise Presents tour with Beartooth, Every Time I Die and Fit For A King would be a bit of an understatement. Since that tour, the band has undergone major lineup changes including the departure of vocalist Kevin Iavaroni, the promotion of drummer (and original vocalist) Brandon Gallagher back to vocal duties, followed by the sudden exit of Gallagher, and lastly, the leaving of original guitarist Zak Kessler over a dispute of playing a show with Tourniquet who has been accused of being abusive towards women.
Now, if you’re asking yourself who the hell is still in the band, we’re getting to that. Today, looking to rebound from all their changes, Old Wounds have not only reunited with their on again off again vocalist Iavaroni but they have also released a music video for their impressive new track “Only Your Enemies Leave Roses.”
“We wrote the song right before I decided to leave the band,” explains Iavaroni. “There was some arguing amongst the bandmates over whether or not it should be released. There’s a sung chorus in there – something we had never done before – but I like to sing and it’s something I’d like to do in some of our newer songs. When I told the band that I wanted to start playing shows with them again, I jokingly told them we’d have to use ‘the song that has that singing part in it.’ I’m really pleased with the video, too. Before that, all of our videos were just of us playing live. I am incredibly grateful that [the directors] were willing to fly in from California to work on it with us.”
As for Iavaroni rejoining the band after originally leaving to attend cosmetic school, the young vocalist told Alt Press:
“I was purposely vague in my post and there was a lot of stuff going on in my life that I didn’t feel the need to make a public announcement about. We did a tour with Aiden, we did Warped, we did the Every Time I Die/Beartooth tour. We did four or five consecutive tours where we didn’t take a break, ever.
I’m not trying to hit you with a sad story here, but I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease when I was 5. I’ve been in and out of hospitals since that age. [On tour], I felt myself getting sick. I hadn’t taken my meds for quite some time. I wasn’t in a good place physically or mentally. As soon as I made the announcement that I wanted to step down from the band, I was hospitalized: I made the announcement in late December and on Feb. 1, I was hospitalized. I had so much inflammation, my colon actually turned on its side and I had to get emergency surgery. I had my second surgery this past August.
Me and the guys in Old Wounds come from a long-term friendship. They were telling me, ‘This isn’t the same without you. Can we find a way to make this work, with both your health and going to hair school?’ I was thinking about this. I grew up listening to punk rock music and going to shows. Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to play in a band. I’m 25 years old, and I felt that I don’t want to be in the biggest band in the world, I just want to see the world and have fun with my friends, you know? I don’t want to be some huge successful dude [in music]; I want to write music that’s important to me and hopefully helpful to other people and others. It’s very therapeutic for me to let out my aggression. I don’t do drugs: Going onstage and performing is my release.”
Well, there you have it. Old Wounds are (somewhat) back and have a brand new song to celebrate. The band plans to hit the studio next year to release a new album but until then, make sure to jam “Only Your Enemies Leave Roses” below.
