Almost A Dirty Dozen with SAM LANDA from CONQUER DIVIDE – February 2025

Photo credit: Jim Louvau

According to a recent press release: “Conquer Divide have revealed their latest single, “Bad Dreams,” featuring Michigan metalcore heroes Of Virtue. The single drops ahead of their U.K. and European tour dates. The song combines Conquer Divide’s ability to mix luscious and captivating vocals and hooks with their crushing intensity, both musically and lyrically, on this introspective slab of inner turmoil, which is complemented by Of Virtue’s vocalists (Tyler Ennis and Damon Tate) melodic-turned-raging contributions. The band hailing from the U.S., U.K. and Canada have made a steady progression from their melodic metalcore inspired roots, maturing into a formidable hard rock act, nearing the end of their first decade together.” We got drummer Sam to discuss new music, influences, and more…

1. Tell us a little about your latest release.  What might a fan or listener not grab the first or second time they listen through?  Are there any hidden nuggets you put in the material or that only diehard fans might find?

We weave a lot of layers, melodies, and effects into each track, so you might not notice every detail in the music unless you listen closely. There are some that I didn’t even know were there at first! Our latest release, “Bad Dreams (feat. Of Virtue)” has some screamy vocal layers near the end that I think are pretty cool, and you might not notice them all at first. We do have a hidden nugget in our song “Wide Awake” – there’s an effect that comes from a, um, turtle having a really good time.

2. What got you into music, and can you tell us about the moment you realized you wanted to be a musician?

I was raised to be a musician from a very young age. I started piano lessons around age 3 and kept playing classical piano until I switched to drums and percussion at age 11. My parents both love music and it runs on both sides of the family. My mom was a piano teacher for years, and her grandmother used to play piano for silent movies. There wasn’t one moment when I realized I wanted to be a musician; I just always knew music would be a major part of my life.

3. Building on that, is there a specific song, album, performer, or live show that guided your musical taste?

It’s all been an evolution of different influences and experiences building on one another. I realized I enjoyed heavy vocals when I first heard “Pulmonary Archery” by Alexisonfire. I knew I wanted to try double kick when another drummer at school showed me that famous Mike Portnoy solo (I think it’s from Live at Budokan). There are a lot of little moments that added up over time.

4. If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be, and why?

I think most of us in Conquer Divide would love to collab with Courtney LaPlante and Spiritbox.

5. What is your favorite activity when out of the studio and/or not on tour?  What do you like to do to unwind?

Hang with my husband and friends, watch trash TV, doom scroll and go to concerts. You’d think I’d be all “show’d” out after touring, but nope – I love seeing and supporting live music, especially if it’s my friends’ bands.

6. How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before? What is the one comparison a reviewer or fan has made that made you cringe or you disagreed with?

Maybe emotional, modern hard rock / metalcore? It’s a bit annoying when people say we remind them of other “female-fronted” bands that we sound nothing like – even when it’s bands we like. For example, it makes sense to compare us a bit to Paramore because Kia sometimes sounds like Hayley Williams. But I don’t think it makes sense to compare us to Kittie or Jinjer or something; our vocalists don’t sound like theirs and our styles are quite different. It comes across like they’re just comparing us because we all have female vocalists. However, we’d love to play with all these bands!

7. When your band is hanging out together, who cooks, who gets the drinks in, and who is first to crack out the acoustic guitars for a singalong?

I wouldn’t say there’s really any one identifying thing for any of us. We just hang out! I do make the dad jokes though.

8. When was the last time you were starstruck and who was it?

I’m not going to say it, because they’re now friends of mine and I’m way too embarrassed to admit it, haha. I wouldn’t say I “fangirl” in a traditional sense.

9. What is the best part of being a musician? If you could no longer be a musician for whatever reason, what would be your dream job?

I love meeting new people and hearing stories from fans about how the music has affected them. And putting on a show–that’s my favorite. Outside of music, I work in marketing, and my dream job would be to build my own company. I can’t tell you what kind, because then it’ll ruin the surprise.

10. What is one question you have always wanted an interviewer to ask – and what is the answer? Conversely, what question are you tired of answering?

I’m tired of answering “What’s it like being a woman in heavy music?” I don’t think there’s one question I’d want someone to ask as I like being caught off guard by something unique. I do like talking about inspiring people to play drums and talking about mental health among creatives. I’ve had imposter syndrome over the years as well as a lot of fear and anxiety around my playing, and I want other drummers to know that if they’re feeling this way, they aren’t alone. It’s tough when you have unrealistic expectations of yourself.

11. Looking back over your career, is there a single moment or situation you feel was a misstep or you would like to have a “do over,” even if it didn’t change your current situation?

I would’ve tried to pursue music sooner, rather than go straight from university into the corporate world. I would’ve practiced my ass off at a younger age, and I would’ve started a YouTube channel when Meytal Cohen and other early adopters were doing it.

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Category: Interviews