The Hotseat - John Kritikos of Breaking Point

Sydney four-piece Breaking Point have been busy the past few weeks both releasing, and touring to launch their debut EP ‘Separated‘.

The EP follows on from their debut single ‘Venom‘ and has seen them notch up shows in Sydney, Melbourne and Bendigo so far, with Toowoomba and Brisbane on the cards this week.

‘Separated‘, was recorded, mixed and mastered by Chris Blancato (Northlane). You can get it on iTunes [Here].

This week, John from the band took the time to run through our Hotseat questions. Take a read below to find out a little more about the band.

LISTEN WHILE YOU READ

THE BASICS

Name : John Kritikos
Band : Breaking Point
Job In Band : Lead Guitarist
Website Address : www.breakingpointoz.com, www.facebook.com/breakingpointaus

HOME

Hometown : Sydney
Hometown is best known for : Harbour Bridge
Best venue in your hometown : Qudos Bank Arena or ANZ Stadium
Favourite show you’ve seen in your hometown : Soundwave 2011 – Soundwave 2013
Favourite show you’ve played in your hometown : Bald Faced Stag for our debut Single Venom’s Launch.

THE BAND

How did the band first come to exist? The band was formed by our vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dennis and drummer Nick as they had been in a previous band which fell through. They recruited James our bass player through a family friend. John their lead guitarist was found through an online advertisement and with this solid lineup Breaking Point was born. We got along very well right from the start and wrote two songs on the spot. It was a good sign that things would work really well.
How long has the band been going? Breaking Point formed in 2013 and played around with a variety of songs to find their sound. Once the band found a common sound they all liked we wrote our first full song Venom and many more followed once the writing direction was clear. We played our first show in October 2014 and have been constantly pushing our writing and trying to play as many shows as we can.
Is there an interesting story behind the name? Not really we struggled to find a good name and had a list of 50 possible names we narrowed it down to 5 that we felt suited what we did and we chose Breaking Point as it suited the best. The only problem we found with the name was there were two bands that we know of that had the name which have now broken up. We checked with their labels and trademark databases but the name was given the all clear so we stuck with it.
What’s your most recent release? Tell us a little about it… Our most recent release ‘Separated’ is available now through all good digital retailers and on CD as as digi-pak from all good retailers and shows.
Got a personal stand out achievement of your band to date? I would say booking our first national tour was a pretty great feeling. It was a lot of hard work and we’ve been really looking forward to playing in Melbourne and Brisbane for the first time. We will be applying for as many tours and support slots as we can so look out for us.

OFF THE STAGE

What was your first introduction to music that made you think seriously about playing it? For me personally I was always surrounded by rock and metal music from a young age. I think the first heavy band I heard was Linkin Park and as a child I really enjoyed the song “One Step Closer”. Through wrestling I discovered Metallica on a cd and some more metal music from various artists like Megadeth and Disturbed. It wasn’t until I was at my best friend’s house and his brother accidently synced Trivium’s “A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation” to my mp4 player and I remembered watching that and being amazed with the solos. The final thing that converted me for good and that got me into actually playing guitar was Guitar Hero where I was introduced to Killswitch Engage, Disturbed, Slipknot and many other great bands. As my father played guitar I grabbed his and started lessons for one year before self teaching myself. I would spend hours upon hours everyday just playing and really enjoyed it. I knew from the moment I picked up the guitar that this was what I was meant to do.
Any band, album, or song that you personally credit as a major influence? Killswitch Engage is a major influence to my guitar playing. I would say there is a little bit of a Bullet for My Valentine influence as well. I grew up listening to these bands so it’s only natural that it would reflect in my playing. In terms of lead guitar I have a lot of different influences and listen to as many different artists as possible to broaden my playing and technical ability.
Your first band name, and what style did you play? Breaking Point is my first band and we play Metal but we call it Alternative Metal as there is no screaming.
Most prized music related item you own? This one is tough as I love a lot of different parts of my music gear but I would have to say my ESP LTD MH350NT. The guitar plays flawlessly and sounds great. Would love to get a USA Custom ESP but they are so expensive in Australia.
When you’re not doing band related stuff, what are you usually found doing? When not doing band stuff I am working full time. In my spare time I hang out with friends and family. I am also a big gamer and try to split up gaming and guitar playing equally through the week.
The thing you most look forward to just before a tour is… Playing the shows and meeting new people is definitely a plus side to touring as well as promoting our band. We will be playing with a lot of new bands so it is a great way of networking.
The thing you least look forward to before a tour is… The drive up to Melbourne and Brisbane will suck. But on the plus side the shows will be worth it. The expenses of touring also takes a toll.
Any item you seem to always forget to take on tour? I don’t usually forget things as all part of my gear is crucial so I always double check to make sure it is there before leaving.

WATCH

ON THE STAGE

When on offer, what’s your one must have item on the rider? Free food and a place to stay for the night would definitely have to be the highest on the list. I would say our vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dennis and bass player James would probably throw beer on there as well. Me and our drummer Nick don’t drink so it is definitely not a priority.
Got a favourite place you’ve toured… and why? Well so far we have only played in Newcastle outside of Sydney shows so hopefully we really enjoy the shows in Melbourne and Brisbane as it will be our first time playing there.
Got a favourite venue you’ve played… and why? Probably so far would have to be the Bald Faced Stag in Leichhardt for a few reasons. Firstly there is parking out the back of the venue for bands, which most venues do not supply adequate parking or really care about the artists playing there and accommodating for them. Load in is easy just some stairs to climb. It has a decent sized stage, great sound/acoustics and has plenty of room for the audience. It is also pretty cheap to hire. We played our first show at the Bald Faced Stag so it’s only right to start our EP tour there.
Any embarrassing on stage moments come to mind? Well in our first year of playing live I had a few cheap cables so one show my amp kept cutting in and out and because my setup involved so many cables it was pretty hard to figure out which one was the issue. That was a nightmare of a show for me. Do yourself a favour and buy the expensive cables as I have had no problem ever since. Our bass player has pulled out our rhythm guitarists lead at one show. I purchased a wireless unit to prevent this but have failed to convince them to get one. Ah well there loss I love the freedom it gives me and has rechargeable batteries.
Any pre-show rituals? We usually just gather in a circle and shout and pump ourselves up. Always feel really confident going up on stage and we feed off the crowd’s energy.
What do you find is the hardest aspect of touring in a band today? Definitely the costs associated with touring. Vehicle rental, accommodation and food keeps a very big debt so you try to recoup as much as you can at shows. If you are not an established band you are in for a lot of expenses as well as the risk of someone breaking into your van or trying to steal your gear at shows. We make a very strong effort to bring gear inside with us at hotels and keep it near us at shows.

RIGHT NOW

Last song you listened to? Killswitch Engage Element of One Live back in the Howard Jones era. They released a live dvd and it sounds incredible. Would have been an awesome show to have watched.
Last album you picked up? The new Killswitch Engage album Incarnate. Killer record with lots of great riffs and lyrics.
Which band or album is currently on high rotation? I don’t really listen to much music but when I do it is usually Killswitch Engage or another modern metal band. I do sometimes check out bands on youtube.
Tell us an up and coming band or artist you think we should go and listen to right now? Wovenwar or Wearing Scars are killer bands with great guitar players and musicians.
What’s on the cards for the next few months for the band? Playing as many shows as we can after our National EP tour and trying to get on as many international supports as possible. We are planning to hit the road again in November for another national tour as well as doing our best to promote the band and our music. I have written eight songs in draft, so I will probably start working on them with the band for the next release.

IF ONLY…

You can pick any one album for your band to cover in full, what would it be and why? That is a tough one. I would probably say End of Heartache by Killswitch Engage as it is a great record with heaps of melodic tracks. We would put our own spin on it which I think would work really well.
You can pick any one band / artist to cover one of your albums in full, what would it be, and why? I would be interested to see what Killswitch Engage could do with our EP. They are all great musicians and our goal is to be able to one day share the stage with them on Tour. I love what they did with Holy Diver, in fact I prefer it more than the original by Dio.
One band you wish you were able to see live but never had the chance? Breaking Benjamin only because I have seen every other band I have wanted to and they can not fly to Australia because of the singers fear of flying.
One venue you have yet to play that you would love to? ANZ Stadium to a sold out crowd would be amazing to play at. That is the dream hopefully one day we can achieve it.
The chance comes up to fill in for a member of a band for one tour, which band would it be, and why? Killswitch Engage as they are my favourite band and I would love to play alongside either Joel or Adam. I think it would work really well and would be a dream come true for me to share the stage with people I looked up to as a teenager.
A headline tour overseas comes up, tell us two bands you’d take along to support your band. Well if we are headlining I guess we could pick bigger bands then us. My dream lineup would be Bullet for My Valentine and Killswitch Engage playing with us. Now that would be an amazing show with one of them on the bill, let alone having both on one tour.

PLUG TIME

Got any final words? Our debut EP ‘Separated’ came out April 15th and available on digi-pak and online through Firestarter Music from all good digital retailers. We are currently on tour to celebrate the release of the EP. We have also just released a music video for ‘Visions’ too.

TOUR DATES

BREAKING POINT
APRIL
29th – Shamrock Hotel, Toowoomba [18+]
30th – The Backroom, Brisbane [18+]
—> Tickets available at the door.
—> For more information, visit [Here].

TOUR POSTER