Editor’s Note: It was a gorgeous night for Spring Break in St. Paul, Minnesota as we received an invite to cover the Secrets headlining tour with special guests Picturesque at the Amsterdam Bar & Music Hall in St. Paul, Minnesota! Secrets are kind of starting anew with a new vocalist in Wade Walters in tow and they are ready to conquer and take over the world once again! Fans can find Secrets at the following locations:
www.facebook.com/secretsofficial
Madness To Creation: How has the tour been going so far with Picturesque?
Wade: Good, except for when our trailer broke down immediately on the first day, we need a completely new axle, so we actually left the trailer behind in Calgary, which was the first day of this tour with our tour manager with the van, because you can’t tow anything apparently these days without having a commercial license and stuff. We’re in this minivan right now with the most minimal amount of gear and merch possible, but we’re still trying to make the shows happen.
Madness To Creation: So did the van come with the soccer moms? *laughs*
Wade: Yeah, and Capri Suns, and soccer balls.
Madness To Creation: Besides that, what has been the most challenging aspect of this tour?
Wade: Definitely the snow.
Richard: That and two things broke, our van first, we had issues with the whole front end from the tires and axles, and then the trailer, it’s just been really giving it to us, we’re really going through the winter right now.
Madness To Creation: What has been the most gratifying moment since the recent release of the self-titled record?
Richard: It’s charting and how it’s spreading organically, and hearing how people relate to it, this record is the one that we’ve had the most control in it.
Wade: The response for sure, and for me too, this is the second record that I’ve done with the band, which is the first time that it’s happened with the band, because there’s been a vocalist change every single album, for me, it’s like people are accepting of the change more, sometimes the fans are like, “I miss this person or I miss that person”, I feel like it’s a real thing now.
Madness To Creation: You guys mentioned how your fans relate to your songs, one song I want to talk about is “3/17/16”, can you take us into that song?
Richard: Yeah, it was just about my sister passing away while we were on tour, we were all together when it happened, it was on my birthday, a lot of people came to me about the passing of their family members, right when we released it, I released the whole story about it and it really brought out all of these people’s struggles and stuff, and how people were stoked that we wrote that song and how they can relate to it.
Madness To Creation: Do you see music as a healing power for people?
Richard: Absolutely, I know when I’m bummed out I turn on some music to shut the world out.
Madness To Creation: What do you listen to when you’re bummed out?
Wade: I further depress myself for sure. I just keep it going with the sad feels.
Richard: I dig myself into a hole. We’ve been listening to a lot of Sam Smith lately, his new record is pretty good.
Madness To Creation: Would Secrets cover any Sam Smith songs like you all did with Ed Sheeran?
Wade: We’ve talked about it.
Richard: It would be really fun, but we’ve been focusing on the record so far. We will probably do a cover eventually.
Madness To Creation: Earlier, you guys have talked about releasing this record organically, what has been the challenges of that or do you feel a sense of liberation releasing it organically?
Richard: There is a sense of liberation but it’s also more struggle, the more things go wrong, the more it ends up being stressful, he’s been stressed out a lot because he’s been handling all of the graphics and stuff.
Wade: There’s a lot of things that go into it for sure, the whole point of being organic is the label in itself, it’s new and fresh and it doesn’t have as much of a pull like past labels and stuff do, but it’s about putting yourself out there for the world to see, that’s the point of this world tour for us, is taking this record all over the world and trying to spread it around.
Madness To Creation: Secrets is definitely going all over the world for sure, places like South Africa, China, and the Philippines, what places are you looking forward to the most playing?
Wade: Philippines and Manila for me because everyone that we have talked to that has played that festival has said that’s been the biggest show that they have ever played in their life, 30,000 people guaranteed.
Richard: I’m excited for China and South Africa, it should be some fun adventures there. That show in Manila is going to be rad.
Madness To Creation: Are there big differences between American audiences and audiences overseas?
Wade: 100%! All around the world, when we went to Japan, they’re very very polite and the want to hear everything you have to say, so they’ll go crazy during your songs and stuff, and they will just be dead silent in between the songs, it’s a respect thing for them, they want to hear every word that you have to say. The UK was a weird run for us, kids weren’t really too active, in Europe it got a lot better, honestly Japan is my favorite place I’ve been.
Richard: It’s all over the place, it really depends on where you’re going and who you’re with and how it’s all planned out.
Madness To Creation: Do you notice us Americans are on their phones more, or do you tune that out when you guys are performing?
Wade: I don’t usually see people on their phones unless they are filming or something like that, I’ll say something to them if they are, I’ll be like, “get off your phone man, come on, you paid money to be here”.
Madness To Creation: The Misfits had a show where people had to lock up their phones before they could get into the venue, would you go for that?
Wade: I wouldn’t because the more content online that there is of us, the better, that’s how I feel at this point, but if I feel that we’re as big as the Misfits, then maybe.
Richard: At the same time, they are paying to see the show, so let them see it how they want to see it, if they want to see it through a screen, then that’s fine, just don’t be distracting.
Madness To Creation: You guys have several local bands opening for you and Picturesque tonight, if they were standing here in this interview, what advice would you give them?
Wade: Don’t stop and keep going. If you have a passion for it, don’t stop and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Keep making moves.
Richard: Keep practicing. We’re kind of struggling on our own, we don’t have the greatest advice.
Wade: We’re basically a local band with a minivan.
Madness To Creation: Word Association: Underoath’s new single “On My Teeth”?
Wade: It’s spot-on Underoath. It’s exactly what they are, or the word “f***”
Madness To Creation: People were in a rage when they dropped the f-bomb.
Richard: I thought it was dope.
Madness To Creation: Most controversial thing you’ve ever seen in concert or while on tour?
Richard: We saw a guy punching a girl the other night.
Wade: We did right square in the face, he got beat up pretty hard.
Richard: We were just loading up the van and people were like, “there’s a fight” and we were like “oh my God”. It was this one dude against the venue staff, it didn’t fare well for him.
Madness To Creation: Vans Warped Tour calling it a day after this year?
Wade: It’ll just be a festival after that, it’ll be like the Self-Help Festival where it’ll just be the major cities with five or six dates.
Richard: It’s probably a good thing, let it take a break. Let new bands come in and have other bands grow.
Wade: It opens up for much more touring because when you’re a band and if you’re not on the Warped Tour during the summer, you can’t tour.
Richard: I’m very excited to tour and not Warped Tour this summer, but I’m very sad that it’s over, I would just love to have a good tour in the summer.
Madness To Creation: Favorite band growing up?
Wade: Underoath. Taking Back Sunday.
Richard: Underoath and Brand New.
Madness To Creation: Guilty pleasure song that’s on your listening device?
Wade: Daughtry. I do have one that is much worse, Chumbawumba.
Richard: Sam Smith.
Madness To Creation: I love the music video to “Strangers”, probably should talk about the music more, before you get ready, what’s the song and video talking about?
Wade: It’s a relationship song, the whole song is called “Strangers”, people facing the opposite way from each other, not knowing that they’re in the room with each other going about their day to day lives, and they’re just not meant to be anymore. We wanted to make it a simple concept visual with every song release possible even if it meant being simple like that, it came out pretty cool.
Richard: It was really intricate, just about separation.
Check out the music video to “Strangers” by Secrets here!
Madness To Creation: I know that you have to get ready for the show tonight. Is there anything else you want to plug or add?
Wade: Go pick up our new album! It’s $10 when we play live and go buy tickets to our show online or at the venue so we can keep playing.
Richard: All of our social media platforms is at secretsofficial.
And there you have it! Special thanks to Natalie and Annie at Big Picture Media for setting this up for Madness To Creation! Here are Secrets tour dates below!
Friday, April 13th- Arcade Empire in Pretoria, South Africa
Saturday, April 14th- Sundowners in Johannesburg, South Africa
Saturday, April 21st- Mercury Live in Zonnebloem, South Africa
Tuesday, April 24th- Yugongyishan in Beijing, China
Wednesday, April 25th- Yuyintang in Shanghai, China
Thursday, April 26th- Voc in Wuhan, China
Friday, April 27th- Mao in Guangzhou, China
Saturday, May 5th- Pulp Summer Slam in Manila, Philippines
Friday, May 11th- Crown & Anchor Hotel in Adelaide, Australia
Saturday, May 12th- The Evelyn Hotel in Melbourne, Australia
Sunday, May 13th- The Bald Faced Stag in Sydney, Australia
Thursday, May 17th- The Small Ballroom in Islington, Australia
Friday, May 18th- The Brightside in Brisbane, Australia
Saturday, May 19th- Whammy Backroom in Auckland, New Zealand
Sunday, May 20th- Valhalla in Wellington, New Zealand
For tickets and further information on any of the shows listed above, click here!
Fans can pick up a copy of Secrets self-titled album via Apple Music here!
