Dark and glammy metalcore band Black Veil Brides are livestreaming in an empty Whisky A Go Go next week to celebrate the release of Re-Stitch These Wounds, a re-recording of their 2010 debut album We Stitch These Wounds. We chatted to frontman Andy Biersack about all that and more…

L.A. WEEKLY: Why did you decide to re-record the debut album We Stitch These Wounds (as Re-Stitch These Wounds)? What didn’t you like about it?

ANDY BIERSACK: It kinda goes back to when we recorded the record itself. We were on a small subsidiary label with an extremely small budget. At that age, you don’t have the experience to know the difference between different situations but we knew right away that the budget was small and we were recording in a studio in North Hollywood where they primarily do commercial jingles. There was no real live room. We were doing it at weird hours because we couldn’t afford to have engineers in there during normal hours. So we knew from the time we started making the record that this was not going to be the grand epic that we had envisioned. But you do the best with what you have and when we got the record back, I remember sitting in my car and thinking, “Well this doesn’t quite sound like what I had hoped. But let’s just get it out there.”

Thankfully it succeeded to the point where we were able to get a major label and make bigger records. But as early as 2013, we had started examining the idea of redoing it so that sonically it fit in with the rest of our catalog and what we’d been doing. Obviously contracts being what they are, we were not able to do that until the clause in our contract that allowed us to record the material had elapsed. Ultimately, we’ve grown as a band over the years and now we looked at the 10 year anniversary to say, “Let’s make the director’s cut edition of the album — re-record it, make it sound the way that we had hoped, and then release it as a companion piece for the ten year anniversary.” So it’s not meant to replace the original, it’s just like the Snyder’s cut of Justice League. It’s the band version that we prefer.

Bassist Lonny Eagleton joined the band last year — have those little changes shifted the vibe of the record?

I think that while the idea was there prior to the addition of Lonny, Lonny coming into the band and being a fan of the band has changed the dynamic considerably in a positive way. Over time, it’s hard to understand what made your band great and the problems bands have later in their career is they start to lose the plot of why something was successful, good or inspirational.

I was very fortunate in that I met someone who was around my age, and who’s main influence in his musical career was my band. It was at a time when I had grown detached from the band and there were issues within the band, and we just weren’t firing on all cylinders. I started talking to him — he was playing guitar in my solo project — and I talked to him about why the band was important to him. It was exciting to get his perspective. It got me excited about making new music again, and then re-recording this stuff now that we have this new member and there’s such a sense of camaraderie and fun. It’s like we get to start over again. Instead of this being the end cap on 10 years, it’s like the rebirth of ten years, going into the next 10 years. 

When was it re-recorded? Before or during lockdown?

We started this in September of last year, and then we were able to get it down the rest of the year. What we’ve been doing since lockdown started is working on a new record, a whole new LP. The hope is to get the first single out for the holidays and have the record out by the first quarter of next year. 

What can we expect from the Whisky set?

I’ve played the Whisky in the middle of the day to no crowd before because in the film I did, American Satan, a lot of the shows take place in the Whisky. While there were a handful of extras, it certainly wasn’t like an audience and it was the middle of the day. The difference then was, I wasn’t actually singing. I liken it to soundcheck in the sense that you are familiar with the idea of being on stage and playing music. The actual act of performing it is going to be what differentiates it from something like soundcheck.

We do have the opportunity to go to the venue the day before and work out the kinks. Like a rehearsal. It’ll be fun to see how we’re going to perform with five cameras — what’s that going to be like? It’s going to be fun to see the crew, from a healthy distance. This is the longest in my adult life that I haven’t been touring. We’re coming up on a whole calendar year without touring. The act of going on stage and performing is really exciting. This is the reality of where we are right now. If the only way we can do a rock show is to broadcast into people’s living rooms, then we’re going to do the best that we can to entertain them in their homes. 

What else do you have planned for 2020?

Like I said, we’ve started work on the new record. We’ve also started work on a companion piece comic book and film that we’re trying to do. This is a very expansive concept record. That’s been exciting. The intention is to get as much done on the new album as we can, and the hope is to have the first song out by the end of the year. This is our only time playing the Re-Stitch These Wounds front to back, but in the future we hope to continue doing these types of shows if people enjoy them.

Re-Stitch These Wounds is out July 31 via Sumerian Records. Order it here. They perform at 2 p.m. PT on Saturday, August 1, at the Whisky. Tune in here. 

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