Last Time I Bleed For You - Sachems Head
Opus on Rachel Ray
Bio
Sachems Head Bio
Sachems Head
(Christian F. Lawrence)
sa⋅chem [sey-chuhm]
– noun
1. (among some North American Indians)
a. the chief of a tribe.
b. the chief of a confederation.
2. a member of the governing body of the League of the Iroquois.
3. one of the high officials in the Tammany Society.
4. (Slang.) a political party leader.
What is Sachems Head? Is it a band? A person? An album? Historically speaking, the mystery behind the real life “Sachems Head” is as accurate as it is mystifying. Each state in the northeast has its version of the urban legend; the Connecticut version dates back over 350 years to a time defined by violence. During a 1637 skirmish between the Pequots and the Mohegan Indians (allied with English forces), a Pequot sachem was beheaded, on a site known today as Bloody Cove Beach. But over time, all things change.
Today, Sachems Head has resurfaced in Connecticut, only now with a fresh start, and a cleaner history yet to rewrite. Sachems Head is more than a bloody remembrance, it represents a band of one, a magnum opus, a varied and eclectic collection of styles and music… it represents in all the ways possible the positives and the negatives, the struggles and the hardships, the triumphs and tribulations, the yin and the yang, the bread and the butter, the new and the old, and every nook and cranny that is the life of its creator.
But, really, what is Sachems Head? For many, Sachems Head might fall under the mold of active rock radio. But that categorization would be as great an injustice as the famed 1637 beheading. Sachems Head is more – it’s a music mixologist’s special blend of rock that takes its listeners to the outskirts of metal and brings them back with a modern twist of the grungy alternative. They are songs written specifically around a hook and chorus while seamlessly blending riffs and melodies. Sachems Head is a collection of heart-felt songs that deliver emotion and leave bloody hearts and broken relationships in its wake. Sachems Head is as much a story for all to hear, as it is a rite of passage for its creator.
Sachems Head was conceived and born of the mind of Christian F. Lawrence, better known as Opus from the national recording artist Dead By Wednesday (Eclipse Records). And while Lawrence’s past may not be as storied as the lore of the beheaded sachem surrounding the Connecticut area he grew up in, his story is as mystifying. For years, Lawrence has scratched and clawed at the face of major industry success. Although never reaching the pinnacle of super stardom many artists hope to achieve, Lawrence has kept integrity in his art while successfully making a healthy career out of his love for music and entertainment.
Prior to forming Dead By Wednesday, Lawrence was a part of the unsigned sensation Gargantua Soul. Although G-Soul was still unsigned when they disbanded in 2005, the band garnered multiple accolades fitting of national artists. G-Soul was the only unsigned act to play Woodstock 1999, and was voted the #1 Independent Hard Rock Band in the country by The Hard Rock Café.
But Lawrence isn’t merely the by-product of Gargantua Soul. In addition to his musical talents, he acted in the VH1 original movie At Any Cost featuring James Franco (Spider Man, Pineapple Express) and Kiss bassist Gene Simmons, and he also appeared on the USA Network’s Farmclub.com, and various other television shows. Christian “Opus” Lawrence is recognized as one of the most genuine, honest and hardest working DYI musicians in the industry, and while he has a lot to say, he tells his story in many different ways. Even Sachems Head is as DYI as DYI can get.
Lawrence teamed with Enoch Jensen (East Lake Recording Studio in Shelburne Falls, MA) who handled all the engineering, recording and mixing for the record. And his help ended there. Lawrence performed the wide array of musical instruments exhibited on the album, including all vocal duties. Whether it’s the late 80’s vibe of “Too Little Too Late,” the modern rock infused “Hell and Back,” or the Sabbath-influence of “The Warming,” Lawrence’s success with Sachems Head rests in the strength of his songwriting and variety – a cursory listen to “Look Inside,” “The Truth” and “My Misery” exemplify this; and deeper subsequent listens reveal even more.
For Lawrence, the lyrical content of Sachems Head may be personal, but it’s also content everyone can relate to and appreciates. It’s an album about real life topics. It’s an album that longs to find truths in life. It’s the realization that no one is better than anyone else; that we all make mistakes and need to learn from them. It’s the realization that we all bleed the same. Sachems Head is not Opus of Dead By Wednesday or Gargantua Soul. Sachems Head is Christian Lawrence, and Sachems Head is his most sincere offering to date. Lawrence looked inside himself, and Sachems Head is what he found. Yup.
(Andrew Gargano)