Passafire started in 2003 when a group of talented guys in college got together and formed a band.

Ted Bowne (Guitar/Lead Vox), Will Kubley (Bass/Vox), Mike DeGuzman (Keys), and Nick Kubley (Drums) all attended SCAD, Savannah College of Art and Design, when they met and began writing and recording.

Passafire’s success came rather quickly and has continued to grow.

Ted Bowne called into TBB to tell us a little about the band, their start and their place on the Vans Warped Tour!

Ted Bowne: “We were playing at what was once was called  Hi Fi Buys Amphitheatre in Atlanta.  We were on stage out front where the concessions and stuff were. We has passes to go backstage and meet all the other bands that were there to play with us. That is when we met Pepper. We gave them a CD and went on. We didn’t know they had their own label, next thing we knew they called us and asked if we wanted to record.”

On Passafire’s fourth album release, Start From Scratch, the Savannah, GA based Rock outfit is truly starting from scratch. Injected with energy from a new member (keyboardist Mike DeGuzman), a freshly formed band-owned label (FlameGuy Records) and a new producer, Paul Leary (Butthole Surfers, Sublime, Meat Puppets), the band have made their best album to date. Trekking down to Sonic Ranch outside of El Paso, TX, where Connor Oberst, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Sublime and many more recently recorded, they expand their sound from their previous releases; deeply honing guitar tones, exploring synth sounds, and laying down tracks of Harmonica and Banjo. “We always wanted to have a good balance of organic and synthesized sounds and we finally had the chance to make that happen this time,” recollects singer, Ted Bowne. Songs like “Dimming Sky,” “Lorelie, and the title track, “Start From Scratch,” exemplify this newly found balance.

Ted Bowne: “We are so excited to be on the Vans Warped Tour. It’s such an eclectic tour this year and it is really great to meet all these other bands.  We are happy to be coming back to play Atlanta in August and definitely want to see our fans.”

Make sure you check out Passafire’s new album out September 20th and see them live on August 1st at Aarons Amphitheatre for the Vans Warped Tour 2011!!

(Photo by Joel Pearish)