Unto Others’ Gabriel Franco Names His Dream Tour Pairing

Most bands on the way up have big dreams, so who would Unto Others ultimately like to tour with? Singer-guitarist Gabriel Franco continues to see milestones being checked off as the group progresses and he shared some of the band’s dreams and goals with Full Metal Jackie for her weekend radio show.

So who’s on Gabriel’s touring wishlist? “Of course, I’d love to play with bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Judas Priest or my other metal heroes. I would love to open for Ghost if they would have us,” he continued. “I really admire Tobias Forge and his work ethic and what he’s done with that band, and I just think we would also meld pretty well with them.”

That said, Franco adds, “But as far as the attainable goal? It’s just solid, steady growth. Never giving in to laziness and just kind of hanging back. Always having some kind of build for the band. This is a marathon, not a sprint and I want to be around in 30 years and still having fun doing this.”

Within the chat, Franco also discusses the making of Unto Others’ Never, Neverland album, reveals the reason he and the band gravitated toward their goth metal sound and served up one of the songs in the group’s catalog that he’s most proud of. Check out more of the discussion below.

It’s Full Metal Jackie. This week, very excited to welcome Gabriel Franco from Unto Others. Excited about your new record, Never, Neverland. Gabe, I understand this was a very exhaustive process for you, working on the new album. What was the jumping off point for this new music that got the ball rolling? And how did this album’s recording process differ from previous efforts?

It was different and the same as the rest of the records, really. It started off and it was a difficult process, but all our records have been very difficult and work intensive.

I started writing the songs for Never, Neverland three years ago. Some were finished before Strength came out in 2021.  I had 40 demos when we went to the studio last fall, and we whittled that down to 16 tracks on the album.

Gabriel, one of the standout songs on here is “Angel of the Night.” It’s truly got a timeless quality, and it’s been called the closest to a power ballad that you might get for the band. It’s still got that goth vibe to it despite there being a sweet sentiment. Was it more of a challenge to write in this style? And do you think you might explore more of that down the road?

Probably not. Honestly, “Angel of the Night” was kind of an accident. While I ended up loving the song, and it has my favorite solo on the whole record that Sebastian [Silva] pulled off, it was actually me practicing writing a pop song, and I wasn’t planning on recording it.

Then the label hears it and the producer hears it, and they go, “Why don’t we work on that one.” You go, “Okay, all right, let’s whatever. I’m open to all ideas right now.” So it is kind of a power ballad. That’s what I would call it is, since I don’t have exactly the voice of Klaus Meine or Sebastian Bach. I don’t have their voices, so I’ve been saying it’s more of a goth power ballad.

Unto Others, “Angel of the Night”

Gabe, it’s got to be fun to watch the steps that this band takes. You’re coming off one of your biggest European headline tours to date. Are you able to stay in the moment and enjoy when these milestones experience come up. And is there still something on your checklist that you’d like to see this band achieve, whether it’s touring with a beloved act or reaching some other goal?

I do try and stay in the moment. It’s difficult sometimes when you’re on tour every day. A huge festival can feel a little bit run of the mill or routine after you do ten of them in a row. But I always take time when I’m feeling tired or burnt out to remind myself that what I’m doing is very special. And I get to be here with my best friends touring the world. I try to make the best of it, even if I am a little bit tired.

The second half of your question was anything left that we want to achieve? Of course, I’d love to play with bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Judas Priest or my other metal heroes. I would love to open for Ghost if they would have us. I really admire Tobias Forge and his work ethic and what he’s done with that band, and I just think we would also meld pretty well with them.

But as far as the attainable goal? It’s just solid, steady growth. Never giving in to laziness and just kind of hanging back. Always having some kind of build for the band. This is a marathon, not a sprint and I want to be around in 30 years and still having fun doing this.

Unto Others really seems to have hit that sweet spot of metal and goth that hasn’t been as well represented in modern times as it was when bands like Type O Negative and Sisters of Mercy a few decades back were roaming the metal landscape. What first attracted you to this style and sound of music?

Excellent question.I’d say the first gateway into this style was probably Sisters of Mercy. In fact, I was listening mostly to thrash metal, trad metal, heavy metal, the new wave of traditional heavy metal bands in the 2010s era when I was getting this band started.

READ MORE: Meet Unto Others, the Band Reinventing the Goth-Metal Sound

The only reason it has a goth edge to it is because when I was writing, I knew I couldn’t sing high and my strong suit is low singing. So that’s how it became kind of what it was and morphed into. We have kind of our own identity here.

Where do you see the state of heavy music today and what Unto Others and some of your peers can bring to it?

Heavy music today seems to be leaning in a bit more hardcore direction, at least that’s what’s popular at the moment. But aside from the trends, metal is like spanning the entire spectrum and I think people have so much access to music right now with Spotify and all the digital streaming platforms that your average metal fan is not just a metal fan in one genre anymore. I feel like it’s less pigeonholed than it was ten years ago with everybody cut into it. There’s no I’m a black metal fan, or I’m a thrash metal fan, or I’m a power metal fan. You’re seeing a lot more bleed over.

I feel like our music successfully integrates a lot from every metal style. And perhaps that could be why we’re doing okay in the metal scene. I really think that metal needs more of that, more of the unification, because it really bugged me growing up as a guy who’s just into heavy metal all over, and someone saying, “Oh, you can’t listen to that, or you can’t listen to this.”

As someone who is a songwriter and had a heavy hand in the band’s creative side up to this point, I wanted to ask you, what is the lyrical or musical part of a song that you’re most proud of in the band’s catalog?

There’s a few but the first one that comes to mind for me is the end of “When Will Gods Work Be Done.” When it goes into this wacky, terrifying, kind of hallucinogenic war nightmare kind of riff with orders being barked over this gnarly solo … I kind of just fell into a trance writing that part and spent four hours just doing the same solo over and over again. When I was done with it, I was just so happy with it. That’s the only one that really comes to mind.

Of course, there’s been so many. When I say I’m proud of it, I’m proud of the work I put into it. I understand that some people can listen to it and think it’s mediocre. That’s fine. But for me, it was like one of those magic moments, and as an artist. You live for those.

Unto Others, “When Will Gods Work Be Done”

Gabriel Franco of Unto Others with us.  They’ve got this new record, Never Neverland. And what else is on the horizon for you guys?

We’ll have a few more tours going next year in the States and Europe and perhaps some more countries as well, but we’ll announce those as we get closer to them.

Thanks to Unto Others’ Gabriel Franco for the interview. The band’s ‘Never, Neverland’ album is out now and available for purchase. You can also stay up to date with the band through their Facebook, X, Instagram and YouTube platforms. ind out where you can hear Full Metal Jackie’s weekend radio show here.