Shenandoah SOundcheck

L.A. of Maldición breaks down metal

“Growing up, the three types of music I heard a lot were salsa, reggaetón, and metal.“

By AnnMarie Hall, October 24th, 2023

Malidición is a new band entering the heavy metal scene at JMU (James Madison University). The band is made up of four musicians who are students (and a previous student) at JMU. They found each other because they were all members of the Heavy Music club started by L.A. Perez in 2021. Perez — a junior — is the lead “singer/screamer” (as he described his role to me), Kyle Doherty — a sophomore — is the bassist, Carter Groff — a junior — is the guitarist, and Noah Zupan — a JMU alum — is the drummer. 

What’s the story behind the name, Maldición?  

So, the story behind the band’s name is actually kind of random. I was studying abroad in Spain, and I was probably two or three weeks from coming back to the U.S., and I was trying to think of a good band name. In Puerto Rico when you’re talking to somebody, like part of your family who’s older than you, and you say goodbye, or when you say hello, you usually say bendición, which means blessing. I had just got off the phone with my dad, and I heard him say it. And maldición is the opposite of bendición. It means curse or like damn, so I thought it would sound cool as a band name. 

How did you and your band members meet? 

We met because of the Heavy Music Club I started in the fall of 2021. My phone number is listed on the website, BeInvolved, and the drummer, Noah, who was a senior at the time, found it and texted me. He said “Hey, I didn’t know this existed. We should get together and jam.” Then the current secretary of the Heavy Music club and our guitarist, Carter, said, “Hey, I want to jam too.” So, we were the original three members for a while. Then just last month, we added our bassist, Kyle, who has been a member of the Heavy Music Club for about a year now. 

You have your very first live performance today, how are you feeling about it?  

I’m really nervous, but I’m also really excited. Because honestly, even if it doesn’t sound great, as long as people have fun, that’s all that really matters to me. 

 What is the coolest part about playing music? 

The excitement that I feel when playing. It’s also really cool to see everyone else in the band get really excited as well.

What does your typical day of practice look like? 

If we’re trying to write songs, a typical day of practice looks like just trying to make things up. Like making up the lyrics and each person’s section. And then we’ll just start saying, “Okay, let’s put this after that section,” or “That kind of sucks, let’s change it.” If we’re just practicing and don’t need to write any new songs, we’ll run through the songs as many times as we need. At practice two days ago, we were rehearsing the setlist for our performance tonight. We ran through the setlist all the way through twice. And it was going really well until the cops kicked us out.

What is your best advice for someone who might want to start a band?  

Find people you’re actually going to want to play music with. Get to know them and find the time to jam a few times. Try and get the feel of how you work together because if you don’t like your other band members, or even the music, then you’re just going to hate the music that you write, and it’s not going to be fun. That would be my biggest piece of advice.

You say your sound is a little harsh, what would you tell someone who wants to get into hardcore metal music? 

Start easy. Start with the popular stuff because that’s the most digestible, you know. I started by listening to what my dad would play, like Iron Maiden and Metallica. From there I started getting into harder stuff. I know people who have just started with Fall Out Boy, and two years later, they were into death metal, which is kind of funny. If you have a vested interest in getting into metal music, you’ll find stuff that connects with you. And that’s what really matters. 

What’s your history with metal music; how did you find to love it? 

So, my dad’s a metalhead; he was a metalhead in the 80s. When I was growing up, the three types of music that I heard a lot were salsa, reggaetón, and metal because my dad always played those in the car. So, when I got to middle school, I took all his musical influence and I started to find my own.

What are your goals for the band in the upcoming months, or just the future in general? 

 I don’t really have any serious goals. We’re not trying to do anything special or even get money. It’s just a band for fun. 

Interview has been edited and condensed for clarity and length.