We as Human ‘Simplify’ the Rock for Self-Titled Debut Disc

We as Human have delivered a pure, hard-rocking album for their self-titled debut, and frontman Justin Cordle says that acclaimed producer Howard Benson was instrumental in helping them hone the sound that comes pumping through listeners' speakers.

Speaking with Noisecreep, Cordle explained, "When we actually got into the music, the one thing I was surprised by was that he wasn't trying to change everything. He was just trying to simply, and I guess what I mean by that is that every drum beat has to have a purpose and we talked about filler a lot on this record and from the guitar solos to my vocal melodies, we wanted to make sure that it served a purpose."

The singer continued, "There weren't any thoughtless riff, thoughtless drum fills, thoughtless melodies thrown in there. It had to serve a purpose and if it didn't, it was out. And it had to serve the main thing and the main thing in all songwriting is the lyrics and then the music is peripheral. It moves around that. So simplifying was definitely a theme for us."

Working with Benson, a producing vet with a history of being behind the boards for some of the greatest rock records, could have been intimidating for the young band, but Cordle says that the producer immediately gained their trust.

The vocalist recalls, "He was great and from day one he came in and really made us feel comfortable, cause it was a bit intimidating working with such a legendary producer. From day one, he let us know he was on our side and was a fan of our music and the reason we were there was because he genuinely loved the music that we created and he definitely wanted it to be a collaborative effort with us. It was nothing but respect from beginning to end."

And while Benson was key in the band's sound for their debut disc, the other key element was the group members themselves. Cordle says that We as Human are a band in every sense of the word, and that proved out in the studio. He explains, "I mean you hear on a lot of albums about bands bringing in session guys to play and my band isn't like that at all. We played and sang every note on our album and didn't have session guys come in. And we made sure we could pull it all off. We rehearse all the time and make sure that we're a band that is creating all the music that it is responsible for. And Howard just simplified it for us and made sure that all the parts were there from the beginning to the end."

We as Human's self-titled debut disc is in stores now. It's also available online via iTunes.