PropertyOfZack reached out to Ryan Seaman not too long ago, and we could not have been more happy to see that he was more than willing to do a fantastic interview with us. Ryan of course was a member of The Bigger Lights, but recently left the band to join Falling In Reverse. Ryan and I discussed his departure from The Bigger Lights, The Bigger Lights’s current label/album situation, his joining Falling In Reverse, and more. Read up and enjoy, it’s a great one!

You joined The Bigger Lights in 2009 and stayed with them right up until you recently announced your departure. Are you happy with everything that you accomplished in the band in terms of the record and touring?
I actually am really thrilled with everything we tried to accomplish on that record cycle, we did pretty much everything on our own to the best of our abilities along with our day to day manager. It felt very DIY, and we did the best that we could with the circumstances we were given.

How did talks between you and Ronnie first begin?
Ronnie and I had been actually talking for a long time, years in fact. We shared a bus like, 4 years ago and we hit it off. But when I was in TBL we were both in different places in our lives, He would call me from prison and he told me how much he wanted me to be his drummer

At what point did joining the band become a reality?
I would say, when I was having to fly to Los Angeles at the end of April twice in one week and we had to do photo shoots, and when I went to the Epitaph office and said hello to the staff.

Did you initially struggle with the decision to leave The Bigger Lights for Falling In Reverse?
I really had to think hard about it, there’s so much I want to say, but I feel like if I did, it would waste your reader’s time.

How did the remaining members in The Bigger Lights treat your departure?
The only one I still talk to regularly is Topher, because he’s one of my best friends. The other remaining members do support my decision, but I think it will be a while again before we start talking, but there’s no hate. It’s like a clean break up with a girlfriend: you wish them well, but you need time to heal wounds. But just so everyone knows, I wouldn’t ignore a text or a call…I’m sure they wouldn’t either, it’ll just take some time.

The Bigger Lights have obviously been working on new music for quite some time now. Did you record the new tracks with them, or did somebody else?
I did record on it, it took me about a total of 14 hours to do 13 songs. We did drums at the studio where we made the first LP. Paul Barber recorded it; (My Favorite Highway, Friday Night Boys) I love that man so fucking much. Then the rest of the record was recorded at J.K.’s house. I didn’t really feel involved with the writing, I’m not going to lie. J.K. pretty much did everything, wrote guitar solos, wrote a lot of drum parts, wrote and tracked entire songs in demo form on his own, J.K. is super talented. I only came back to the house where they were recording because we had a couple shows coming up that we had to do. But I seriously didn’t have much input, maybe a guitar riff on a song, or a concept for a song when I broke up with a girl. We all jammed in a room in September for about a week and half after our headlining tour that ended in early September, got most the material down, and then we met up only a handful of times, after that since JK and Dan were producing and recording and creating the record after drums were done being tracked/recorded.

The Bigger Lights seem to have been dropped from Doghouse Records. Was that part of the decision for leaving?
I actually want to clear the air, because no one has heard our side on this. We actually asked to leave Doghouse, while they did make it possible for funding a full length record, they made it impossible for anything else. Basically their shift and focus went on their management company, and while we fully supported their decision, it kind of left our band in the dark; with people not at the label not returning phone calls, or us having to harass people or show up at their offices just to get something approved, or find out an answer pertaining to a marketing plan…if any, (not by our mgmt, but ourselves). So in the end, we felt our band wasn’t getting the attention it deserved, we made demos after demo after demo for this new record that’s pretty much completed, with no reply from the label. So either they weren’t getting the demos, or they were just too busy flying out to HelloGoodbye shows and figuring out what band they wanted to try and pick up next to shop to a major label. In the end, they were fair enough to give us a clean break, but the band had a majority of new material written in September of last year after our headliner, and it took months for any sort of real communication to go down on their end. I’m sure I’m not the only artist who was on Doghouse that has this story. There were lots of reasons why else I wanted to leave, but I don’t feel like it’s anyone’s business but my own.

Reaction from fans of The Bigger Lights has ranged from pretty calm to pretty violent. Has it been a difficult few days for you hearing from fans?
Here’s the deal… I think if you really care about an individual in a musical project, or a member of a band, you should be fine with their decision. And if not, you might not be a real fan at all. You should be a fan of the songs, the people who wrote the songs, and the messages they portray. I didn’t write the songs, I played the songs. I accompanied a vision of someone, and it just happened that we were 5 guys playing music together, and at the end of the day, I just wasn’t happy anymore. I wasn’t happy for a while. I still respect those guys, but I think they knew I wasn’t happy for a while.

On the other side of things, how has the reaction from fans of Falling In Reverse been?
The reaction has been killer, some people were like “OMG! I didn’t know where you went after you played for I Am Ghost” Everyone that is my true friend has been super supportive with everything. We’ve been practicing everyday, and it’s day 5, and it’s already sounding huge and amazing, I can’t imagine what it’s going to sound like in a month and a half.

The band is signed to Epitaph Records, which was your old home. Are you looking forward to being back on the label?
Absolutely, I felt like Epitaph has really taken care of me and take me seriously as a musician, they always have. I hang out with a lot of people over there outside of work and we have great relationships, I seriously believe Epitaph is the best label in the world, and I feel super privileged to be getting another chance with them. When I work with other bands, I always think…. Well wait a minute, why isn’t your label doing this and this and this, etc…? Epitaph really gives its artists a chance. I feel like if it wasn’t for Epitaph, I don’t think I would have had a chance at having the career I’ve had, and my band probably wouldn’t have gotten to have a chance at the opportunities that ‘were’ presented for TBL.

The Bigger Lights was sort of a drastic change musically from your previous band, I Am Ghost, but Falling In Reverse is much more of the same style. Did you miss playing in this specific sub-genre of music?
I’ll clear the air on this one too… I’m a musician, and I love playing all sorts of music. For me… I’m very lucky that I can adapt to pretty much any style. I always strive to learn and progress at my instrument and to be challenged. In every project I’ve ever done, I’ve always came out a better player or having new knowledge of my instrument, I always have something to gain artistically, and I feel you become a better player with experience, and the more people you play with. If you look at Travis Barker, he ‘s played for: The Aquabats, to Blink 182, to Box Car Racer, to +44, to The Transplants, etc… they’re all different styles of music!

I don’t know if anyone really knows my history, but I got my first ‘real’ touring start with an all girl band on Lookout Records (Green Day, Screeching Weasel, Operation Ivy) called “The Eyeliners” when I was 18 on the Warped Tour. They were a girl punk rock band. Then after that, I played for a band called Fairview on The Militia Group (Cartel, Copeland, Rufio), and so on and so forth. I’ve filled in for everyone from Jeffree Star, to Vanna to My Favorite Highway, to playing for a pop side-project with Hunter Burgan (AFI) called Hunter Revenge, to playing punk rock with Aiden. I really look up to drummers such as Josh Freese and Brooks Wackerman. If you don’t know who those drummers are, I suggest you look them up. They’ve filled in for every band under the sun, and have probably played on your favorite record. Those people have made me want to be the best drummer I can be. You can view most the projects I’ve filled in for or have been involved with on Myspace (sounds weird). I need to update it, but it’s pretty recent.

Are you looking forward to hitting the road with the band? Most would imagine that you guys are going to have a hectic schedule for the next year or so.
I’m super pumped, all the guys are super nice and talented, and we’re getting along and hanging out all the time. We have a very hectic year already, I’m pulling 12 hour days with these guys, whether it’s press, or rehearsing, or learning songs. Expect lots of touring this Fall, and some shows over the summer. It’s going to get crazy.