Song Review: All Poets and Heroes Reveals the Story Behind Their New Single “Life on the Line”

Known for their beautiful guitar melodies and songwriting skills that will make your eyes tear up and your heart swell, local Syracuse indie band, All Poets and Heroes harbor the ability to extract the emotions from experiences in their lives and turn it into a melody that the listener can not only relate to, but genuinely feel. Their new single, “Life on the Line”, released on April 12^th, takes their songwriting to the next level. “Life on the Line” is their first release since their EP, “Where We Live and What We Live For”, and I had the opportunity to ask the All Poets and Heroes about their new single, their band, and their future.

Four years ago, Rob McCall (Guitar/Vocals) and Corey Jordan (Guitar/Vocals) formed All Poets and Heroes due to a mutual respect for each other’s song writing abilities. Although they didn’t have much of a direction at its inception, “since the EP, and with recording this album, it feels that [they] write because we have something to say. [They] want to challenge people, make them think, [they] want to make them feel and feel deeply. [They] try to craft [their] music in a thoughtful and purposeful way.” They describe their music as “real and honest and doesn’t shy away from being soft or raw or emotional”. A friend of theirs described All Poets and Heroes as “’blur[ring] the lines between the head and the heart, and choos[ing] beauty and thoughtfulness over everything else.’” Brian Modafferi (Bass) joined the band last year when All Poets and Heroes needed two fill ins and Brian and his brother “saved their asses”; Brian has been the bass player ever since. Their studio drummer on their upcoming record (hint-hint), Dom Scicchitano, recommended their new drummer Rob Zaccaria to the band. Zack Fitzgerald (Guitar) just joined the band a few months ago, but the guitar parts he wrote for their upcoming record “were so amazing that [they] went back and booked more studio time to get them on the record”, according to the band. McCall says, “Corey and I have had many talented musicians work with us, but this lineup seems a fantastic fit for the new music and energy we want to bring.” One of our Directors at WSBU 88.3 had the opportunity to see All Poets and Heroes back in December when they opened up for Johnny & the Man Kids, and he can attest to say that their band is the perfect fit.

Their music is “cerebral and emotive, tackling topics from mental health. . .to being pissed about student loans. . .[they] take [their] personal experiences and attempt to make them universal”. They are influenced by multiple genres of music but emanate an indie rock sound and essentially use anything that makes them “feel” something as inspiration in their music, hence possessing the ability to separate the emotion from an experience and translate it into music.

We want to challenge people, make them think, we want to make them feel and feel deeply. We try to craft our music in a thoughtful and purposeful way. -Rob McCall, All Poets and Heroes

“Life on the Line” dives deeper than their previous EP; “it is a bit heavier, a bit darker and more experimental, but the storytelling is still [theirs].” The first lyric “So this is the last day of your life”, complements the somber guitar melodies in the introduction of the song. When the drums come into the song, it makes the listener want to stop and take a deep breath because of how powerful, yet light and airy the vocals in the song feel. The lyrics take the listener through the story of “someone who has taken their own life. The actual character of the story has already passed away. The narrator of the song is the rational part of the brain of this person getting the last say. . .The song ends with hope. . .telling people to wait, just slow down—telling them not to make that mistake, to find a way to push through and live on.”

The song ends with hope. Hope for those who are still fighting. The end of the song is telling people to wait, just slow down – telling them not to make that mistake, to find a way to push through and live on.
-Rob McCall, All Poets and Heroes

“Life on the Line”, coming April 12^th, is just the first of many big things coming for All Poets and Heroes. In addition to this single, they will be playing shows all around the Upstate/Western New York area in anticipation for their first full length album, Occhiolism. You can listen to “Life on the Line” and the rest of All Poets and Heroes music on Spotify, Apple Music, and Soundcloud. If you’re in the Upstate New York area, be sure to catch them at their release show on April 12^th at the Wescott Theater in Syracuse, or on June 9^th at the Spark Art Space.