ANDOVER — Walking down the hallway on any given day at Pymatuning Valley High School, one might find perhaps 30 percent of the student body wearing maroon and gold. PV students have a lot of pride in their school colors and like to show it off. What might surprise a visitor, however, is the growing number of students sporting band T-shirts made in support of local musical talent. Constructed from Ruins is a fast-paced, heavy metal band that finds its roots deep in Andover and growing at PV.
The band started seven months ago. Mirroring the status quo of typical high school garage bands, the members - Matt Lautanen, Todd Thompson, Jake Sabeh, Tim Ketchum and Colin Pike - were all just ordinary friends. But these guys found themselves with lots of spare time and an ear for adrenaline-filled music.
Passionate drummer, Jake Sabeh, said all the guys are primarily self-taught. “The hardest part (of being in a band) is learning to jive with everyone and making your music fit with the band’s as a whole,” he said.
But this group is doing just that – making it work! All of the members produce hand-written chords for the songs they perform.
“We get inspiration by personal influence and our own individual dreams,” said rhythm guitarist Todd Thompson.
Colin Pike, the bass guitar player, says he finds themes and ideas to base their songs on in other music. Even though the band is heavy metal, or “screamo,” they find inspiration even in such different artists as Kanye West. West, a top hip-hop performer of today had a hit song titled “Heartless.” The guys from Constructed from Ruins use this song as the only song they cover, but it is unlikely to be recognized right away as they molded the song to fit their vocals and style which is quite a bit different from the controversial star’s original.
“Basically, we play off each other,” said Pike. “Matt will come up with the guitar riff, Jake will throw down some drum beats and Tim (lead singer) will come up with lyrics. Everyone just connects.”
Creativity is not a challenge for this energetic band. However, the biggest challenge facing the band yet is the realities of life and the nearing end of high school. Three of the band’s members will graduate in June. As they are gaining success, they must also face the plans for college and separation.
“It’s hard to realize where your life should go at such a young age,” said Matt Lautanen, one of the seniors in the band and the lead guitarist. “I keep asking myself, ‘Should I stay with the band because we might go big or pursue a safer career?’”
And there is no easy answer.
While they must debate their future, another obstacle facing the boys is publicity. Living in an entirely rural area makes having a large fan base quite difficult. Even though the band has developed a cadence in the heart of their community, attracting attention outside of northeast Ohio is a hard job to satisfy. The band accomplishes this feat by plain old-fashioned hard work. They self promote, handle their own finances and practice almost daily. The band has had a lot of success in providing for itself. To support the expenses of running a metal band the guys merchandise; they sell T-shirts, CDs, and, of course, receive money and studio time for contests and “Battles” that they have won. The boys are working as hard as they can to ensure themselves that they have done all but guarantee themselves recognition.
“Ever since we won ‘Battle of the Bands’ (a competition held at Peabody’s in Cleveland, in December) people will call and just book us,” said lead singer Tim Ketchum. “We’ve had some great requests by just playing at local gigs.”
The band had a big break when they discovered they would be the opening act for Mushroom Head, a nationally recognized group, on Feb. 26 at The Cove in Geneva.
“We’re unstoppable!” says drummer Jake Sabeh.
And it certainly seems like they are on their way. This summer Constructed from Ruins is planning their first tour, two to three weeks of performances hitting major cities across the nation. They are certainly hoping to see growing crowds at their upcoming performances.
Even though this young group of guys is totally serious about their music, everyone still has fun.
Thompson described his favorite part of the experience. “Hearing the crowd when we play live. There’s nothing better than a highly intense crowd,” Thompson said.
The performance night is their pay-off. All the steam drifts away and the music they play hits the audience with power; it is electrifying. Ketchum’s lead vocals are nothing short of unique. The band is setting their hopes high - bar none.
“It’s been a long journey, but there’s plenty more comin’,” Thompson said. “We are looking forward to what life has to offer.”
Next Generation
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Pymatuning home to popular heavy metal band
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