A Dirty Dozen with CHRIS “OJ” OJEDA from BYZANTINE – May 2025

Photo credit: Jason Adams

According to a recent press release: ““The Unobtainable Sleep” is the latest single from Charleston, West Virginia metal veterans BYZANTINE. The track comes off the band’s forthcoming new full-length, Harbingers, set for release on June 13th via Metal Blade Records. Produced by Peter Wichers (Soilwork, All That Remains, Nevermore), Harbingers offers nine tracks totaling forty-five minutes of deep lyrical wisdom alongside equally hefty riffs delivered seamlessly by one of the most commanding and unsung lineups to emerge from the New Wave Of American Heavy Metal movement of the early-2000s. Now a five-piece for the first time ever featuring founding frontman Chris “OJ” Ojeda, alongside former guitarist Tony Rohrbough, bassist Ryan Postlethwait, veteran guitarist Brian Henderson, and drummer Matt Bowles, with Harbingers, BYZANTINE is a crown jewel in their impressive seven-album discography.” We get OJ 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?

This album is our 7th album and our 2nd on Metal Blade Records. The album is called Harbingers. This is the first album that I have engineered and mixed myself. And a little secret… it’s the first album I have EVER engineered and mixed! Pretty dumb and scary to have your first ever mix be a label release but it was out of necessity and not want. We went through 3 other real mix engineers before it landed into my lap as a last resort. I own a recording studio and music facility in Charleston, WV so it kinda makes sense that I know what the hell I’m doing in a recording studio. HA!

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

The first instance that I realized I wanted to play music was hearing the song “I Need You Tonight” by INXS on MTV back in the mid 1980’s. I just loved that semi clean guitar lick. The next big moment which leaned me towards Heavy Metal was hearing Twisted Sister and Quiet Riot. I wore both Stay Hungry and Metal Health cassette tapes out playing them so much!

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

None specifically, no. My musical taste is so diverse and across the board that it feels like I am comprised of 30 of my favorite bands and songwriters, all rolled up like multi colored Play Doh.

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

It would most likely be Stephen Wilson of Porcupine Tree or Devin Townsend. Both are brilliant composers and recording engineers. I would soak up the information like a sponge!

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

I LOVE staying busy. That is how I unwind. A good day is having a couple cups of coffee in the morning, doing a 30-45 minute Yoga session at my house on my Yoga Mat, having a checklist of 6-8 things to complete that day, completing the checklist and also being around my kids at the same time. That to me, sounds like a LOVELY day.

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?

When Byzantine first started, we touted ourselves as a band that sounds like Opeth, Pantera, Testament and Meshuggah rolled up into one. Over the last 25 years we have evolved our style to something a little more unique than just ripping off those 4 bands but that is a good place to start for a person who has never heard of us before.

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?

Our drummer Matt cooks (he has a cooking obsession, especially making Sushi) our guitarist Hendo gets the drinks in because he owns a restaurant and is a bartender and no-one would crack the acoustic out for a singalong, thankfully! HA

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

It was a long time ago and that would have been when I got to meet and hang out with Vinnie Paul and Darrell Abbott from Pantera. I went to go see them in concert about 25 years ago and as I was leaving the concert a friend of mine walked past me and handed me a backstage pass, he said he was tired and couldn’t party after the show. I went backstage with my pass and got to meet some of the guys from Slayer, Morbid Angel but Vinnie and Dime actually spent time hanging out and partying with me. Dime signed my forehead before I left. It was a starstruck moment, for sure!

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?

My favorite thing about being a musician is the creativity part. I am not a fan of performing live so being able to take as long as I want to create new music and art at home in my studio is pretty therapeutic. I love projects that take a long time to complete so being a musician is rewarding in that facet. Currently, I run 2 different businesses outside of being a musician in BYZANTINE. I run a bathroom and kitchen remodeling business and also own and operate a music facility that also has an Air BnB attached to it. These are pretty rewarding jobs. If I had to do something else, I would want to be a Water Park consultant! HA I LOVE going to water parks. The bigger and twistier the slide, the better!

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?

The question is “Have you ever done any nude modeling?” And the answer is YES. My freshman year in College at Baylor University, I was a nude model for an Art Class that focused on the human form. I wore really skimpy underwear and had to stand up on a podium in front of art majors and pose for about an hour. The hard part was when they introduced a female model to pose with me for a few weeks. I had to REALLY concentrate to not pop a boner while modeling with her. I was 18 at the time so boners were happening all the time then… LOL! I don’t really get tired of answering any questions, really!

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?

Yes, in 2007 we decided to break up the day after our 3rd album Oblivion Beckons was released due to financial strains within the band. We reformed in 2013 but in hindsight, that 6 year breakup has set us back ever since. We have never been able to recapture the momentum we had back then. It was a very dumb move by a band full of young musicians who were about to catch fire.

12. If you could magically go back in time and be a part of the recording sessions for any one record in history, which would you choose – and what does that record mean to you?

It would be 3 albums. I would want to be involved in Michael Jackson’s THRILLER, Def Leppard’s HYSTERIA and Pink Floyd’s DARK SIDE OF THE MOON. All three of those albums are sonically perfect to me in completely different ways and I would love to have seen the lengths they had to go to in order to achieve such beautiful recordings with analog recording gear. The engineers on all 3 of these records broke new ground with their recording techniques.

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Category: Interviews