As the singer of Tempe metalcore act Eyes Set To Kill, Alexia Rodriguez has made a name for herself, landing a spot on the Warped Tour and getting lots of ink from the glossies.
Solid vocals and great looks will do that in a genre ruled by brutish men in saggy size-40 Dickies who shred their throats screaming as hoarsely as possible.
Today, Rodriguez enters a whole new world with her solo side project. Lexia: Underground Sounds is a huge departure from ESTK's sound.
In fact, "Basements," which Up On The Sun is streaming exclusively, sounds a lot like a Paramore song. (Oh, and there's a Radiohead cover on the album, too, if you can believe it.)
You can hear the track and read an interview with Lexia below.
Up On The Sun: First of all, why do a solo record at this stage in your career?
Alexia Rodriguez: I have always been a fan of different types of music so whenever I have spare time, I don't limit myself to the styles of tunes I create. I never really planned on starting a new project. I have just been writing so much different material over the years that I felt like I had to share it some how. I have two sides to me as a musician; the heavier, darker rock lover, and then the mellow acoustic/ experimental artist. Eyes set to kill will always be my heavier metal/rock side so throwing these mellow tracks under my own name is hopefully going to showcase the diverse artist in me
UOTS: Eyes Set To Kill has been around about seven years now and seemed to have some momentum going forward with Broken Frames? Do you think ESTK fans will like this record since it's so different?
AR: So far a lot of eyes set to kill fans love what I have done especially the fans of Eyes Set To Kill's acoustic tracks like "Give You My All," "Come Home," etc. A lot of our fans are pretty open minded just like us, so I think that the majority of them will love how different it is.
UOTS: What do your sister and the rest of the band think of Underground Sounds?
AR: Anissa loves to listen to it on our drives and sing along to it. They think it does a good job at showing another side of me. We all love acoustic and electronica so listening to it isn't torture like it might be to strict metal heads (ha ha). The band has always supported me with my own music just like I would support them
UOTS: Will you be doing any of your solo songs on upcoming ESTK tours or will the projects be completely separate?
AR: I would love to play some of my own songs on an ESTK tour but unfortunately, I don't think some of my tunes would do well in a metal packaged tour (ha ha). I would love to play an acoustic Eyes Set To Kill tour to play some of my own stuff, too. But we will have to see...
UOTS: As a songwriter, what Underground track are you most proud of and why?
AR: I am most excited about "Waste". It is one of my oldest folk-influenced songs that started out with one guitar and one vocal. It ended up having a lot of piano, shakers, strings etc. It turned out to be better than I envisioned and I feel like I brought it to life better in the studio with all of the additions.
UOTS: Why the Radiohead cover?
AR: Radiohead is one of my favorite bands, and I have wanted to track a cover for awhile now. I was obsessed with OK Computer and especially the track "Climbing Up The Walls" last summer while we were in Brazil. I did my best in reinventing the song and making it my own version, and hopefully if they ever hear it, they will like the work I have done.