Architects’ Sam Carter: Tom Searle’s Death Is Not Defeat

The Holy Hell period of Architects’ career has been defined by creative triumph and personal tragedy. At the first ever Sonic Temple festival, we spoke with vocalist Sam Carter about how he’s coped with the death of guitarist Tom Searle and what’s on deck for the future.

Carter explains the purpose behind opening Holy Hell with “Death Is Not Defeat” and immediately hitting fans with that message. “Essentially, it was Dan [Searle] speaking to Tom and trying to convey that his death was not a defeat, because Tom was so strong throughout everything that happened.”

He continues, “The thing that really bummed us out was the way people say, ‘Lost his battle with cancer.’ He never lost his battle. He was such a strong person.”

The members of Architects attended grief counseling after Searle’s passing, and Sam still sees his therapist. “There’s so much toxic masculinity around where it’s like, you have to be strong, you can’t cry. That’s just total bullshit. For a long time, I ran away from my emotions with everything that happened. Speaking to someone is so healthy, it’s so good. I genuinely think everybody should do it. We live in a fucking crazy world, right? You feel like you’re going crazy before something like this happens.”

As for Architects’ future, Carter is set on continuing a ride which has been successful beyond his biggest dreams: “We’re not rock stars, we’re not trying to be anything we’re not. I hope that some people come and see us and they want to start a band and that starts the next generation of bands.”

Check out our discussion with Sam Carter above and check out Architects’ tour dates here.

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