Endo, a name derived from a prefix meaning "within or inside" was formed in Miami, Florida in the late 90s by singer Gil Bitton and bassist Zelick. Their debut album, Evolve, was released in 2001. After the album's release, there were a couple of personnel changes with guitarist Eli Parker and drummer Joe Eshkenazi joining the group. The band's sound has evolved and elevated with the infusion of the new members. I recently spoke with drummer Joe Eshkenazi as the band awaited the Ozzfest tour and upcoming album release.
Chad Bowar: How does your new CD Songs For The Restless sound compared to your previous release, Evolve?
Joe Eshkenazi: The difference musically is that this one is more diverse. There's a lot more melody and no rapping at all as far as the vocals go. As far as the music goes, the songs are a little more focused.
What does the title Songs for The Restless signify?
Gil suffers from insomnia and I suffer from insomnia. A lot of the lyrics have to deal with lack of sleeping, whether out of anxiety or out of nerves. There were a lot of things going on in the Endo world while we were recording our record. A lot of times Gil and I would be in a hotel room and wouldn't be able to sleep so we would start talking about music or writing. We really wanted to put a title to the record that when you listened to the songs and the lyrics it would make sense. We were definitely restless.
How did you become a member of Endo?
I've known Gil since I was 10 or 11. We went to a private Hebrew school together. We started our own little band when I was 13 or 14. Oddly enough, we ended up kicking Gil out of this band. We kept in touch. Throughout the years I would go see Endo play. I was playing in another band, and we would both support each other's bands. They got signed and were on the road in New Orleans with Sepultura when they had a blow out with their drummer. They literally called me that night from New Orleans and said that they needed somebody to replace the drummer for the upcoming tour which started 10 days later.
 |
 |
