LGND, the collaborative project led by vocalist Chad Ruhlig’s (For The Fallen Dreams), has been releasing new songs via Rise Records, which is part of a collection of different musicians and producers. The artist recently unveiled the song “Spite Me,” featuring Andrew Tkacyk of The Ghost Inside. We asked Ruhlig to share five things he learned from recording new music during a pandemic.  

01) The isolation was in many ways great for me to reevaluate who I was as a vocalist and lyricist. Rediscovering why I started down this path in the first place. To create music and express myself in an artistic way. 

02) As much as I love touring and interacting with fans on the road, the expectation, outside noise, and pressure to deliver material and content was gone. I was then able to focus on the music and music alone. This headspace is what sparked the idea to collaborate with all of the writers and producers I did for the most recent LGND release. 

03) Longer writing sessions! No work, public gyms, or trips allowed me to sit in on a writing session for sometimes 10+ hours. 

04) Listening back on previous releases to better understand the story I was trying to tell or where I could improve. Pre-pandemic, I would avoid listening to older material of mine because I am my own worst critic. This helped me envision what I wanted to avoid and improve on for any and all material moving forward. 

05) Lastly, all of the events during the pandemic were extremely vital for me intellectually. Sorting through lots of emotions about the current state of things and where to move on from there. Having a voice and platform to give people that small release from all the chaos helped me focus more than I ever have in my 15+ years doing this to produce the best possible material.