Categories: written

PATHOS AND LOGOS

“In Bloom” is one of Nirvana’s most recognizable songs. What made you want to revisit this particular track now? This was always one of our favorite Nirvana sons growing up, and we were both very familiar with the song, so we went for it.
You’ve pushed the song into much heavier territory—what was the biggest challenge in transforming something so familiar without losing its soul? Getting the drums just right. Grohl doesn’t just play hard, he is SMASHING his kit and getting that across was challenging. Especially because our drummer is also singing the song.
How did you decide which elements of the original to preserve and which ones to completely flip on their head? The “solo” section in the original take is a sort of fuzzed out take, and we thought it would be cool to use a more traditional solo, so we transposed the vocal melody to guitar and used that as the solo.

The down-tuned riffing and crushing grooves give the song a modern metalcore edge. At what point did the new version really start to feel like Pathos and Logos? Probably when we got to the solo and decided to transpose the rhythm guitar track down an octave. That was HEAVY.
The blazing solo adds a whole new emotional peak—what role did that moment play in recontextualizing the song? Honestly, that was the catalyst for us deciding to do the cover. We thought the vocal melody on guitar sounded great and the rest of the song came together very quickly.
Do you approach covers as a technical exercise, an emotional tribute, or a creative reinvention? Hmmm good question! To be honest, we’ve never really discussed it that way but subconsciously, they are all emotional tributes.

The video was shot guerrilla-style at a local bus station. Why was that raw, stripped-down setting important for this release? It gives the video a sense of urgency, since we were trying to get in and out without getting arrested hahah.
How much planning went into the shoot versus embracing spontaneity and chaos? The only planning that went into the shoot was us finding the location. Everything that we shot was spontaneous and whatever ideas came to us while being at the bus stop.
Do you see the video as a commentary on the song’s themes, or more as a reflection of the band’s energy? More so the bands energy.

As a two-piece, how do you create such a massive, layered sound without it feeling empty? We get that question a lot. We still record all of the parts that a full band would…Guitar, bass, drums, vocals, piano/keyboard. We actually try to use as few elements as possible in each song, and that leaves a lot of room to fill, so we do our best to make each instrument sound as big as possible when tracking so that the mix is super easy.
How has your chemistry evolved since forming in 2018? We started incorporating vocals in 2025 and plan to stick with vocals going forward.
Does working as a duo give you more freedom or more pressure when arranging material? FREEDOM, definitely. We’ve been working together as songwriters since 2007 with lots of other artists along the way. Just being the two of us now, we know how to get to our end goal very quickly and efficiently.

Your tag-team vocal approach is a big part of your identity. How did that factor into reimagining Kurt Cobain’s vocal presence? Kurt covers both singing and screaming in this song, but we don’t really overlap on the singing and screaming. Paul does the singing while Kyle handles the screaming duties.
Your music balances technical precision with heavy emotional weight—how do you keep that balance from tipping too far in either direction? Also a good question. I liken it to the saying “Learn music theory and then forget it”. Having technical proficiency is cool, but that doesn’t make you a great songwriter. And the best songs come with emotional weight. That’s the point of art, to make you feel something. So we always want to feel a connection to the song first, and then we work in the technical stuff if it serves the song.
What emotional response were you hoping listeners would have when hearing this version of “In Bloom”? Nostalgia, which is a big one.

Kyle, you handled recording and mixing—how did wearing multiple hats shape the final sound? It really let us achieve exactly what we wanted. This EP is a much more radio friendly release, so we wanted to mix the record like a pop album. That would have been hard to get a typical metal engineer to do I think.
Working with Ryan Williams on mastering, what did that final polish bring to the track? Ryan and Kyle worked together on The Black Dahlia Murders Nocturnal record waaaay back in the day, so they definitely had a working relationship prior to this project. Ryan has a great ear and helped us polish up the mixes to get them to an even more pop record sound.
How important is control over the production process to the Pathos and Logos sound? Very important. We do things at our own pace (which is very fast) and we find that introducing other people to the process slows things down. Which isn’t bad, but we are able to get so much more done just the two of us.

Fans of Between the Buried and Me, Deftones, and Meshuggah often connect with your work. How do those influences surface without dominating your identity? Man, we always talk about how big our Meshuggah influence is, but people don’t seem to hear it. Perhaps it’s because we tend to incorporate a lot of melody and so that may cloud the polyrhythmic elements.
You’re known for complex compositions and occult-driven imagery—how does “In Bloom” fit into or contrast with that aesthetic? You know, it doesn’t. It’s the opposite of that, and we wanted to do something completely different to challenge not just ourselves but our listeners.
Did reworking a grunge classic change how you think about songwriting moving forward? Probably that it has done so well that we will do more covers going forward.

“In Bloom” marks a new chapter as you build toward the 2025 Gospel EP. How does this track connect to what’s coming next? It opens us up to a whole new batch of listeners that may not have listened to us before. You never know what kind of crossover there may be and this has worked well for us.
Should fans expect more reinterpretations, or is this a one-off moment? Definitely expect more to come!
How would you describe the thematic direction of the upcoming EP? BIG.

What do you hope longtime Nirvana fans take away from this version? Mostly that we are fans too, and hopefully they relate to that.
What do you hope new listeners discover about Pathos and Logos through this release? That we bring the heat!
If someone watches the video without knowing your band, what do you want them to feel in the first 30 seconds? THIS IS COOL!!

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