Withhold is a New School Christian Hardcore band outta Holland, Michigan. The ages range from
13-15 but don’t let age deter you from this excellent in your face hardcore band. They have a
excellent sound and are sincere about what they do. I did this interveiw over the internet,
so its not as personal as I’d like it to be, but it works, I guess. So here we go.
F.L.Y.-SO who are the members of Withhold and what do they do and what are
there ages?
W.-Derek James-guitar-14,
Jonathan Kleyn-vocals-14 38/45ths
Andy Peerbolt - drums 15
Dave Vandervelde-bass-13 (baby)
F.L.Y.-How did you all meet?
W.Through school. We all go to the same school.
F.L.Y.-How long have you been around?
W.-About 6 months
F.L.Y.-Who are your mucical influences?
W.-A lot of them. To name a some: Overcome, Zao, Earth Crisis, Jihad,
Unashamed, Mr. Bishop's Fist, Bloodshed, Wallside, Constantine Sankati,
Metallica (laugh, laugh).
F.L.Y.-Are any of the guys in Withhold in any other bands? Have they ever
been in any other bands.?
W.-No one in Withhold is currently in any other bands. Jon, Dave, and I
have been in a band called Point Of Impact. Withhold sort of formed from
Point of Impact. We got a new drummer (Andy), changed or name and style,
and wrote new songs. But ummm, I (Derek) kind of want to get a spazz-core
band going. Like a really emo band or something. That stuff is fresh. So if
anyone out there lives near West Michigan and wants to start a spazz-
core/emo band. let me kow. Oh yeah, Withhold also needs another guitar
player or bass player. So let us know if you want to try out or something.
F.L.Y.-What made you decide you want Withhold to be a Christian band?
W.-What else would we do. As Christians, we need to spread the message
and reach out to people who don't know Jesus. The main point for starting
Withhold is spreading the message and because we are all Christians, our
lyrics reflect on our thoughts and actions which have been inspired by
Jesus Christ.
F.L.Y.-What are some of the bands you played with?
W.-We've only played one show, actually. We are a fairly new band and we
also never have the oppurtunity to play shows. We wish we could play
more. But we have played with Pink Daffodils, and Seasons In the Field.
F.L.Y.-Do you have any shows coming up.
W.-I think that we have two shows coming up. We are playing with
Perseverence, and Subsist on Aug. 30 in Indiana.
And I think we might play a secular show on Sept. 19 in Grand Haven, MI
with a really good band called Hamilton and some other local bands that I'm
not quite sure of.
F.L.Y.-What is the scene like in your part of Michigan.
W.-The scene here is really bad. There are a lot of local secular hardcore
bands. But as far as Christian hardcore goes, I think that we are the only
ones. I think that there is a Christian hardcore band starting up around
here. I know the bass player and I think that they're trying to get something
started. So I guess we have that to look forward to.
F.L.Y.-Are there many bands?
W.-There are a lot of secular hardcore bands around here. There are bands
like Legacy For the World War, Hamilton, Thoughts of ionesco, Wallside,
and probably the biggest band that was around here was Jihad. But they
broke up a while ago. A lot of the kids don't except Christianity.
F.L.Y.-Where do you see Withhold in the future.(Where do you think the band
is heading.)
W.-I guess I see Withhold still playing in the future. We are all really
young so we won't be getting married or going to college any time soon.
F.L.Y.-Is Withhold a sXe band? Does anybody in the band claim sXe? Why or
Why not?
W.-Withhold is not a sXe band. We were, kind of. But some of the members
aren't sXe anyomre. Jonathan and I do claim to sXe but to do not hold it
above Christianity. A lot of people get really mad when they here of sXe
Christians. But I feel that it is a good thing if you do not have pride in it. We
know that we are drug-free because of God, not some X. An X didn't save
our life, Jesus did. I don't X up or anything because I feel that that would be
putting sXe before God. I would rather put a cross on my hand.
F.L.Y.-I here your releasing a demo. How is that going, and when will it be
released?
W.-The demo should be released some time this fall/winter. It will have
probably 5 or 6 songs on it.
F.L.Y.-Do you have any Merchandise for sale.
W.-We have stickers right now for sale and we should have patches and
possibly shirts this winter.
F.L.Y.-That's it, is there anything you'd like to say to close?
W.-If you haven't accepted Christ yet, please do. Time is running out.
Christ died for you to save you from your sins. He loves you more than you
could ever imagine. Always remember that. Thanks for the interview. We
really appreciate it.
addresses:
Derek W. James
191 w 11th St.
Holland, MI 49423 (616)-396-7444
withhold@geocities.com