In the world of melodic metalcore, All That Remains are rightfully considered one of the genre’s finest exponents, alongside the likes of Killswitch Engage, Trivium and Bullet for My Valentine.
In fact, popular YouTuber and respected metalcore evangelist Nik Nocturnal describes the band’s 2006 album, The Fall of Ideals, as follows: “It is God-tier; the riffs still hold up to this day and the hooks are huge. It is the perfect era of metalcore encapsulated in one amazing album.”
The fact that said album was certified Gold by the RIAA in 2023 for sales in excess of 500,000 is proof positive of its importance.
A pivotal member of this band – which emerged from Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1998 – was, of course, original member and lead guitarist, Oli Herbert, a much respected and highly inspirational player and riff writer in modern metal.
Sadly, Herbert passed away in 2018. His replacement, Jason Richardson, wasn’t only a close friend of Oli’s but also, according to ATR’s frontman, Phil Labonte, the late guitarist’s choice.
On a YouTube podcast called Drinks with Johnny, Labonte revealed that Oli had once said, “Look, if anything ever happened to me I’d want Jason to be the guy. He’s the best guitarist in the world right now.” Consequently, when Richardson offered to fill in for his much-missed friend at some ATR shows, he was offered the gig.
Prior to joining All That Remains officially in 2019, Richardson had already carved his name in modern metal thanks to his precise, lightning-fast, virtuosic playing with Born of Osiris (2009-2011) and Chelsea Grin (2012-2015). These stints were quickly followed by a successful solo career with two albums thus far – I (2016) and II (2022).
Richardson also has guested with the likes of Polyphia, August Burns Red and Falling in Reverse, to name but three. Add to that a range of signature six- and seven-string guitars with Ernie Ball Music Man and Sterling by Music Man; a critically acclaimed signature MixWave amp simulation plugin; and his own website, which offers a slew of tabs and more, and Richardson’s profile is pretty darned high.
The fact that he recently won the Guitarist of the Year at the popular Nik Nocturnal Metal Awards 2024, which garnered more than 76,000 votes from the metal-loving public, merely adds to this driven young man’s already impressive resume – as does his pivotal role in the writing and recording of the new All That Remains album, AntiFragile, which was released in January.
Prior to your joining All That Remains, I understand you were a big fan of the band and Oli’s playing.
“Yeah. The Fall of Ideals came out in the mid-2000s. I was in high school at the time, so that album is pretty nostalgic for me. I’d also toured with them a few times when I was in Born of Osiris and Chelsea Grin, so I got to know the guys – and I was able to hang out and jam with Oli, too. He was an amazing guitarist and a great guy.”
How would you describe AntiFragile to an All That Remains fan who hasn’t heard it yet?
“This album was definitely a collaborative effort. I wrote the majority of the music on this one, but it wouldn’t sound the way it does without everyone involved. For everything I put into it, my thought process was that I wanted to bring back the sound that most fans know the band for – the one from the Fall of Ideals [2006], Overcome [2008] and For We Are Many [2010] era.”
“Those three albums are my favorites, by far. And, from the outside in, those are the ones you hear people talk about the most. So I just wanted to bring back that staple sound – and the dual guitar leads. There’s only one song on AntiFragile that doesn’t have a solo; the rest all have some crazy lead with harmonies spinning out of it the whole time.
“That was always my favorite part of their live show when I toured with them because it was so sick. Not enough bands are doing that nowadays, so I made sure every solo on this record had something like that in it.”
How do you go about constructing those dual harmony lead lines? Theory, ear or a bit of both?
Dynamics are pretty important. It can’t just be one thing the whole time. Like playing fast – it’s good to be able to do that, but it can’t be your only thing
“Definitely a bit of both. Theory is important because it helps expedite the writing process, but it’s obviously not a necessity. I know plenty of players who write the craziest-sounding stuff, and some of them don’t know anything about theory. And that’s almost better for them in a way because they don’t have any constraints or perceptions that might dictate what they’re going to write, if that makes sense.
“They’re just playing what sounds cool to them. The bluntest way I’ve ever heard it put is this: Al Di Meola was at one of the John Petrucci camps [John Petrucci’s Guitar Universe] and he said, ‘Learn as much theory as you possibly can and then forget it!’ [Laughs] That way it’s subconscious; it’s in the back of your head, not the front. Remember, it’s called music ‘theory,’ not ‘law.’ It’s just there to guide you, to be a suggestion and help make things work better together with each other.
Talking of things that work well together, AntiFragile has a nice mixture of intensity and melody.
“I agree, thank you! [Laughs] Dynamics are pretty important. It can’t just be one thing the whole time. Like playing fast – it’s good to be able to do that, but it can’t be your only thing.”
To be brutally honest, ignoring your blazing leads, trying to master some of your riffs on this album would break a lot of players, including myself. What does it take for you to maintain your level of playing, let alone improve?
“Some of those riffs I couldn’t play right now, because I haven’t been practicing as much as I should be. [Laughs] I could definitely play the majority of the stuff on the record, but – If you’re not practicing this kind of shit consistently every day (at least a little bit) – endurance is where things can start to fall apart.
“Even if I were just to do 30 minutes a day, I would never have to go through the ‘rebuilding my technique’ phase ever again. But I don’t do that when I’m home, [Laughs] so I’m gonna have to do it again at some point soon.
“For example, that song The Piper – it just sounds like a metalcore riff, because it is – but it keeps going by so fast, and the verse riff in that song is supposed to be all down-picked. I can do it when my technique, endurance and stamina are up after I’ve been practicing that stuff for a week or two straight.”
“But right now, during this interview, if I were to pick up a guitar and try to play that, my right hand would just fall apart. When I know I’ve got to play stuff like that live, I make sure I’m consistently practicing for two or three weeks beforehand, working to where something like that is more comfortable and isn’t a stress-test where your just arm just gets locked up after trying to play it for a little bit. It’s like working out; that’s the best analogy I can give for it.”
Your tone on AntiFragile is great. Did you use amps or your signature MixWave plugins?
“When I was writing and tracking, I did everything through my plugins. [Producer] Josh Wilbur tried a couple of things to see what’s gonna work best, but he ultimately ended up just using my plugins. It’s got his touch on it for sure, but before he shaped it onto the mix, it was my MixWave amp sim.”
When you’re recording, are you standing or sitting?
“I sit the fuck down… I’m lazy! [Laughs]”
![All That Remains - Forever Cold [Official Lyric Video] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/U8D_WWkYDEw/maxresdefault.jpg)
Do you have any advice you’d like to pass on to aspiring guitarists?
First, you’ve got to learn solos by players you look up to. You need an arsenal of licks, runs and ideas to pull out of; you have to build that library first
“Pay more attention to improv because I feel like not doing so has bitten me in the ass a little bit. I’ve seen videos of me running improvisation live, and while they’ve always been better than I remember them being in that moment, I’m not where I’d like to be.
“This is probably an unrealistic standard, but someone like Guthrie Govan can go up there, pull something out of his ass on the spot and it’s just the sickest thing you’ve heard every time! Nick Johnston, too. Those guys can just pick up the guitar and think on their feet so well, whereas I get inside my head, and it doesn’t come out like them. Everyone is always their own worst critic, but I’ve definitely got to work on improv a lot more.
“First, you’ve got to learn solos by players you look up to. You need an arsenal of licks, runs and ideas to pull out of; you have to build that library first. I’m very compositional; I’ll work something out then practice the shit out of it and get it down. But every now and then, there are moments you never think are gonna happen in your career where being able to improv is essential.”
“Like when I played the jam at the last G3 reunion with Eric Johnson, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. My friend, Bryan [Beller], plays bass for Joe, so I texted him to see if I could come to the show that night and hang out.
“He hit me back an hour later with, ‘Sure, do you wanna play?’ I was like, ‘Uh, yeah sure. I’ll come and play G3; that’s sick.’[Laughs] Obviously I’m not going to say no to an opportunity like that, regardless of me thinking, ‘I suck at improv.’ I just went, ‘Fuck it, I’m gonna do it!’
“Nita [Strauss] who played the same night as me, had a similar experience. They hit her up and she almost said no – but then her husband said, ‘Are you kidding me? Go play!’ So we were in the same headspace, I guess. I watched the video of me at that jam and I was like, ‘OK – that was much better than I thought it was in the moment!’ That said, it definitely wasn’t Guthrie Govan. [Laughs]”
- AntiFragile is out now via All That Remains.
- This article first appeared in Guitar World. Subscribe and save.
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