ZaKrahe 'Terra' Interview

Updated: Dec 26, 2019

An interview with Zach Krahe regarding ‘Terra’ - released on April 26th 2019

The man behind ZaKrahe ‘Zachary Krahe’ has put together a melodic and inspiring EP that takes the listener on a musical journey. The EP is a great taste of Zach’s musical talent, and even features Richard Henshall (Haken, The Nova Collective, To-Mera). Make sure to check out ‘Terra’ and support Zach.

When did you first start working on ‘Terra’?

I don’t have an exact date BUT I did start it over the Spring of 2018. I actually wrote the melody and changes to “Atmosphere” in a grocery store café between my classes!

What were your influences for the EP? I can really hear elements of Polyphia (specifically ‘Light’).

Definitely Polyphia! I’m a fan of basically anything that they have done including “Light,” HOWEVER I would say their whole Muse record played a larger influence in my writing and playing style. I actually auditioned at Berklee College of Music with their tune “James Franco.” In addition to Polyphia I had recently discovered Sithu Aye who has been an absolute immense source of inspiration for me both as a songwriter and player. His Senpai EPs are on almost every playlist I have. I think those were the two most intentional influences I had for “Terra”, but I can definitely tell you that other bands had an influence in the composition including Plini, Haken, Scale the Summit, This Will Destroy You, and Tycho.

What’s your writing process like?

My writing process is a very intentional and regimented method that Chris from Scale the Summit taught me through a Facebook Message when I was 18. The simplest tenant of this is to simply write every day even if you aren’t really feeling the direction the song is going. Just like practicing anything you are teaching yourself how to write music, react to different situations, and become an overall better songwriter. I usually write a little bit every day (even if it’s just a few note hook) but I also find writing in different styles really helps to keep my mind fresh and in a good space. I am also the guitarist and songwriter for a progressive metal group called Amavasya so bouncing back and forth between heavy technical metal and shreddy positive “pop-metal” is incredibly refreshing. In terms of what my actual songwriting process is consists of me sitting with my guitar in front of my laptop with GuitarPro and Logic Pro X open. This allows to write out and track ideas as soon as they come so that I don’t lose them.

Which track was the most fun to create?

I would probably have to say “Sierra” mainly because of the way it evolved. After I came up with the basic motif the song sort of wrote itself with each part just pouring out. I was able to express a ton of my different inspirations from the Sithu Aye inspired pentatonic piano licks to the early 2000s metalcore bridge. I wanted to have at least one song on the EP that featured a riff that sort of payed homage to my roots in bands like Trivium and Killswitch Engage and that riff ended up being what you can hear both before and after Rich Henshall’s (Haken) solo. The whole song just came together really well and seems to be the listener’s favorite so far.

Were there any major obstacles during the production of ‘Terra’?

Not necessarily with “Terra”, but with writing a solo EP or Record in general. This is actually my 4th or 5th attempt at creating something completely self-produced and is the first time I actually followed through with it. The reasons I abandoned past ventures were various but the underlying reason would simply be self doubt. This same thing almost made me give up on “Terra” multiple times. Self doubt is one of the debilitating things I have dealt with as an artist, BUT getting to work with absolutely incredible musicians has helped me to overcome it a bit.

The EP is really uplifting, was this feeling something you consciously wanted to create?

It definitely was. At the time there was just so much pain and suffering those around me and myself were being exposed to on top of what else was going on in the world at the time. I wanted to create something that sort of pushed back against that pain, even if just for a few moments. I actually get criticized because I tend to write positive sounding melodies and progressions regardless of genre which I really attribute to the music I listen to and the person I try to be.

Rich Henshall features on the album (great job as well) - how did you get this to happen?

Let me preface this with saying I don’t have a drinking problem. I was actually at a wedding and was feeling pretty bummed because I had someone who was supposed to feature on it who sort of just ghosted me. I was scrolling through Facebook and saw a post promoting Haken’s new record (Vector) and was talking with the other people at the table how Rich was basically my favorite guitarist of all time. After a few drinks I decided that messaging him over Facebook to see if he would play on my EP was a good idea. Most people would’ve just ignored the message (it wasn’t bad or anything) but Rich took time out of his day to talk to me about it and because he is just one of the nicest guys in the industry he said he’d do it. I seriously couldn’t be more grateful that I got to have my all time favorite guitarist on my debut solo EP.

Could you explain a little about the cover art and how it relates to the EP?

“Flora” was the first track I named and I chose that name because the melody just reminded me of this lush, beautiful forest. When I moved onto the next song (“Tidal”) I immediately had these images of waves crashing in the middle of an ocean. This same pattern emerged as I wrote the rest of the songs and I realized the underlying theme was simply the Earth. With all the nasty stuff that’s going on it’s so easy to forget how beautiful this place really is. That is where the name, “Terra” came from. From here the artwork was the easiest thing (for me) of the entire process. I contacted Dixon Jong (Intuitive Designs) who has done all of the Amavasya artwork and explained the theme. I then sent him the original demo of “Flora” and I’m pretty sure the only other thing I really gave him was the word “beauty.” I told him I trust him to create something that reflects my sound and the first thing he sent me is ALMOST identical to the final product. He made a few slight modifications but he really hit the nail on the head. Working with incredible artists is always an amazing thing, but there is just something so special when it crosses mediums and Dixon has really mastered that craft.

If you could sum up ‘Terra’ in 3 words, what would they be?

Joy, beauty, and hope.

Zach’s managed to create a truly inspiring and enchanting EP, and I can’t recommend it enough. It’s been great to find out more about the process of the whole thing. Thanks for reading!

- James Carstairs