Back-Pocket Believers caught up with Escape the Fate’s Robert Ortiz and learned a ton about the band’s current tour, their latest full length, and Max’s rehab struggle. Check it out below!

Introduce yourself and your position in the band

I’m Rob Ortiz, and I play drums in Escape the Fate.

You’re currently on the “Dead Masquerade Tour” with Alesana, Motionless in White, Get Scared, and Drive A. How is that going so far, and what do you expect for the upcoming dates?

It’s been awesome! All the dates have been going real well and the bands with us are great. We’ve been growing a much bigger fanbase which is incredible. The rest of the dates are going to be better and better.

Back in November you announced you were not going to be joining Bullet For My Valentine on their European Tour because Max Green was entering rehab. Was it a disappointment to the band to drop off the tour? And how is Max doing today?

I’m not going to sugar-coat it; it’s been tough, but we’ve been trying to be supportive. We were definitely disappointed, but we don’t mind putting the band on hold especially for something so serious. Every day’s a struggle for Max, and he’s slowly but surely recovering.

Tell a secret about youself, and each of the band members or something the fans wouldn’t know.

Well I’m really good at video games and I beat everyone. As for Max, Craig, and Bryan, I don’t really know; we’re kind of open with our fans.

In November you released your Self-Titled. What was the writing/recording process like, and how was the fan reaction?

We had such great people helping us out producing, mixing, etc. They let us do what we wanted to do as a band and wouldn’t try to change our sound or anything which made a much more personalized record. The fan reaction was great. More and more kids have been coming out to the shows, and more and more are coming to see us. As I said before, we’re really growing both as a band and in fan base.

Any last words for your fans at Back-Pocket Believers?

Thank you, and we love you!