Cyanate is a familiar name to local metal fans, but the group those fans saw when Cyanate started in 2011 is vastly different from what the band is about right now.
This progression isn’t just about leaving and returning band members, even though founding guitarist Scott Schlingheyde has been the only constant since the beginning; it’s more about the music and stage show. Cyanate writes epic songs—sometimes reaching close to 10 minutes—blending progressive rock, groove metal and metalcore influences, and the band’s shows have become more elaborate, featuring video and lights that are synchronized to cues in the music.
All of these evolutions have led to some opportunities that most Reno metal bands dream about. Take the band’s summer plans, for instance: a 16-day tour centered around the Loud as Hell Open Air Festival, taking place July 31-Aug. 2 in Calgary, Alberta.
“I mean, that has been about really manifesting the shit out of all this,” Schlingheyde said. “We all wanted this to happen, and this is the best group of guys that I could think of doing it.”
Heading out of town
Among the bands playing with Cyanate at the Loud as Hell festival are metal heavy-hitters such as Allegaeon, Summoning the Lich and Fallujah. It’s the first time that Cyanate has played internationally, and they’ve earned a good slot for it, too, playing late in the afternoon on the second day.
When I asked the band who was planning the tour around Loud as Hell, everyone pointed to guitarist Jerad Mochel and chuckled. Mochel is indeed the organizer of much of what’s helped Cyanate get to this crucial point in its career. He said this was Cyanate’s second try to get into the festival.
“Last time, they said we were super-close, in the top 5 percent, but there were just a couple of things in our submission that we could work on,” Mochel said. “So this year, we really focused on all of that, and then when they made the announcement video (for all the festival bands), he said, ‘These guys’ submission was absolutely bulletproof. We’re super-excited to have them on.’”
This journey for Cyanate was a long time in the making. Joining Schlingheyde and Mochel in the current lineup are Robert Landers on drums and Dimitri Macouin on lead vocals. Colin Kyger is the group’s touring bassist. Landers and Mochel are prodigal members: Both joined in 2012 and then left in 2013. Macouin joined in 2019, right in time for Landers to return on drums that same year. Finally, Mochel came back in 2022 after what he called “a 10-year hiatus” from music.
Jerad Mochel estimated the band members have put in 250-300 manhours to figure out the systems and find the right visuals to go with their songs.
With this lineup in place, Cyanate set about transforming itself. This includes the use of video and lighting rigs, as well as keyboard/synthesizer parts, written and performed by Mochel, that are used as onstage backing tracks for live shows.
“The professionalism and the production of what we have going now is just something that no Reno bands, that I know of, have ever done,” Landers said.
Added Schlingheyde: “I was a MESA/Boogie (amp), blow-your-ears-out type of guy for many years,” he said to a chorus of “this goes to 11” jokes from his bandmates. “But it’s so refined now. We all have in-ear (monitor systems). We’re so much tighter as a unit, and the production is over the top.”
All of the band members have participated in sourcing video and bringing in ideas for Mochel to edit together. That teamwork to make this dream work is something the band agreed is taking a lot of time, but the rewards have been great.
“Every other band that I’ve been a part of, there’s this element of wanting it to go somewhere, but mostly doing it for fun,” Macouin said. “But in this band, once Jerad came back, we all sat down and really focused on what we wanted out of it.”
Said Landers: “It’s more professional, but still has that super-fun element in it, always.”
More than just riffs
That more polished look is apparent from the use of synchronized lighting and video systems in Cyanate’s shows. Mochel estimated the band members have put in 250-300 manhours to figure out the systems and find the right visuals to go with their songs.
“It wasn’t just like, ‘Here you go; plug in, play it,’” Mochel said. “It was more like having to make it work yourselves. It was a big learning curve, and a lot of nights of just screaming at the computer and pulling out my hair and reaching out to people on Reddit, which really helped.”
Cyanate’s music has changed, too. The members agreed that their current sound is more technical and dynamic, with twists and turns in the songs, and not just aggressive roars. A new three-song EP is going to be released within the next month, with two songs from it already on streaming services.
Mochel writes most of the new songs, but the members all have freedom to add parts and help arrange them before they decide to add them into their sets.
“As I have grown, my songwriting has evolved as well. I tend to look at a song as a thread, and I try to find some kind of a through-line from the start to the middle to the end,” Mochel said, adding with a laugh: “And sometimes I end up with a beautifully knit sweater, and sometimes I end up with a pile of yarn on the floor.”
With all the proper stitching in place—both musically and visually—Cyanate has seen some strong results from the DIY crafting. After several years, they are now at the point where they can headline a medium-sized club show in Sacramento, something that’s a rarity for a band from Reno.
“There’s a competitive thing between California bands and Reno bands, and it’s been like that ever since I can remember, but Cyanate has broken through that,” Schlingheyde said. “We don’t feel any of that competition; it’s just like friends playing. It’s a whole other level of camaraderie.”
This extends to the band’s next show, the first InFERNo festival at the Fernley Raceway. Cyanate is playing on the Saturday of the fest, March 28.
“We’re super excited to be a part of something that could grow into something bigger,” Schlingheyde said.
Added Macouin: “We want to see it come back every year, especially if they’re willing to throw in local bands. That’s kind of what this scene needs—a decent-sized festival.”
Cyanate will perform at the first InFERNo Music and Fire Festival at 7 p.m., Saturday, March 28, at Fernley Raceway, 1963 S. Highway 95A. Visit instagram.com/cyanate.band for links to music and videos. InFERNo takes place Friday, March 27, through Sunday, March 29. Learn more at fernleyaces.net/inferno.