Pilgrims of Sound: Spence, how are you? What’s up?
Spence: I'm good man. Just getting ready to go on tour.

PS: You guys are playing The Warped Tour in Fitchburg. Rock on! How would you describe the experience of an Ice Nine Kills show to fans who are discovering you for the first time?
Spence: Our live show can get pretty intense. We aren't into choreographed stage antics, we prefer to let the music and lyrics affect us. We try and break down the barrier between us and the kids, so they are as much a part of the show as we are. We thrive on the kids’ energy when we play. It's an amazing feeling when kids are really affected by the music, and that’s what we try to do every time we hit the stage.

PS: You're also doing some extensive touring this summer, as far away as Florida and Michigan. How did you go about planning these shows?
Spence: It took a while to get all the dates set in stone. I think we started looking for the shows in late Feb/early March. We basically posted all over the internet saying we were going on tour and needed shows. I guess it worked out, but we won’t know how well it worked till it's over, haha.

PS: Do you have a particularly fond memory or powerful story from a show that you’d be willing to share with us?
Spence: A couple summers ago we headlined a show in our hometown of Marblehead MA. The show was at a small VFW, which has since stopped doing shows. It was an amazing experience because the place was absolutely packed and it was the most energetic crowd we have ever played to. It was so hot in the room, almost unbearable, but the crowd was so off the hook that it didn’t matter.

PS: Your bio says “Every song I write comes from either personal experience or that of a close friend.” Your song 'Last Words' is an intense story about teen suicide. Can you share what's behind it?
Spence: That song was actually not written about one person in particular. Growing up there were a few people that we knew who committed suicide, including a very close family friend and recently a kid from high school that I knew. The song is a tribute to those people.

PS: You guys have over 30,000 fans on Myspace. That’s more than most signed acts, and very impressive for somebody who is unsigned! How does that make you feel?
Spence: It's really cool man. It's amazing how much the internet is helping bands these days. But it definitely took a lot of work, haha. Lots of late nights staring at computer screens.

PS: Your album “Last Chance To Make Amends” has been selling on the SmartPunk charts competitively with bands that have a more developed support structure. How does one generate that kind of notoriety?
Spence: It's a combination of several things I think. We spend a lot of time on Myspace spreading the good word about us, that has helped us a ton. We did some advertising on Purevolume and a few other sites. We go to a lot of shows and hand out free samplers. We also make ourselves readily available to our fans: we post our AIM screen names on our MySpace so kids can talk to us and ask us questions. I think kids really respond to that, and they tell their friends and so on and so on. Kids like to support bands who are fan friendly, and that’s exactly what we are. We love our fans.

PS: The internet has revolutionized music distribution in many powerful ways. Do you have any advice to ambitious unsigned acts about using the internet as a promotional vehicle?
Spence: The internet has changed everything! Before the only way to get the word out about your small band was to tour, tour, tour. Now you can reach kids all over the world by having your stuff available online. Get the word out on the internet. If your music is good people will respond. If we can do it so can you!

PS: Name a goal you hope the band accomplishes in the next year.
Spence: Our main goal over the next year is to become a full time touring band. We are also trying to get our CD's more readily available to kids. Hopefully it won’t be too long until you can get our CD in every store.

PS: Thanks so much for your time. Anything else you’d like us to know?
Spence: Thanks for caring enough to ask us questions. We truly appreciate it. Look for big things from us in the future....peace. Oh and head over to smartpunk.com and buy our CD if you can, thanks!