Speaking with Music Radar, Tallah drummer Max Portnoy revealed what it was like growing up as the son of Dream Theater drum legend, Mike Portnoy. Following is ane xcerpt from the interview.

Music Radar: Obviously your father is a hugely influential drummer, how has that influenced you? 

Max: "I do take a lot of influence from my dad, because obviously I grew up hearing Dream Theater and watching him play. So a lot of his playing does inspire what I do, but I’d say my two biggest metal influences are Joey Jordison and Chris Adler. They’ve been my go-to inspiration for my entire life! I’ve got to meet them both, Chris and Joey are both super-nice. But it was cool, I got to tour and go to recording studios. That was really influential to me, I got to be ‘That looks fun as hell, I want to do that when I’m older!’Being able to see how the industry worked and what it was like to be a touring musician in a band was really cool, I kind of got the inside scoop on it!"

Music Radar: Did you ever sit down for lessons with Mike?

Max: "He showed me a couple of tricks here and there, but he doesn’t really teach me much! I got taught by this guy called Todd Schied. There’s this place in Bethlehem near me here called the Californian Drum Shop and I got lessons from him. He’s pretty much taught me everything I know! My dad sort of shows me some of his signature fills that he does and stuff, but I got lessons from Todd ever since I was a little kid. He’s amazing, he’s taught me everything from metal to jazz to Latin. He’s showed me everything and it’s been really useful for me to understand more than just one style of drumming."

Read the complete interview here.

Tallah will release their new album, Matriphagy, on October 2 via Earache Records. Pre-order the album here, and watch a video for the song "Overconfidence" below.

An original dose of fucked up and disturbing alt-metal insanity! Exhilaratinghly fresh whilst incorporating nostalgic 90s nu-metal vibes - vocalist Justin Bonitz is a man possessed, wildly careering form blood curdling shrieks to lightning quick rap bars. Throw in electronic elements and almighty riffs plus modern hardcore breakdowns and Tallah are 2020's answer to Slipknot.

Notorious for their wild, unhinged and downright dangerous live shows, Tallah have cultivated a fierce live reputation on the underground circuit with multiple US tours and a European festival trip last summer, including their UK debut at Boomtown Fair opening for Napalm Death and Prophets Of Rage.

Matriphagy is a concept album about how an overprotective mother pushes her son to the edge of insanity through psychological and physical abuse. Having spent two decades trapping inside a glorified prison, and after some failed rescue/escape attempts, the son, in a state of heavy delirium, does the unforgivable to free himself from his mother's wicked hold. A disturbingly graphic tale that is to be taken both literally and metaphorically, Matriphagy is set to a pleasurably harrowing backdrown of brutally heavy musicianship, an unapologetic love-letter to chaos, and the sickening twist of the macabre.

Max Portnoy offers the following insight into the musical direction of the band’s latest single: "'The Silo' is the lightest track on the album, and the first time we've experimented with using more dynamics in our music. This song is a good example of showcasing what else we can do with our sound aside from the raw heaviness displayed in all our other tracks."

Tracklisting:

"[Redacted]
"No One Should Read This"
"Kungan"
"Overconfidence"
"Placenta"
"L.E.D."
"The Silo"
"We, The Sad"
"Too Quick To Grieve"
"Cottonmouth"
"Murder Seed"
"The Borderline Of Pain"
"Red Light"

"Overconfidence" video:

"We, The Sad" video:

"The Silo" video:

Lineup:

Justin Bonitz - Vocals
Max Portnoy - Drums
Derrick Schneider - Guitar
Andrew Cooper - Bass