In a scene that thrives on passion, perseverance, and pure sonic power, Tactic stands as a testament to one musician’s relentless drive to create. Helmed by multi-instrumentalist and songwriter Peter Vargo, Tactic is a one-man metal force born out of years of musical evolution, life experience, and a deep-rooted love for the genre. From his punk rock beginnings to thrash-filled days with Suburban Paranoia, Peter’s journey culminated in the formation of Tactic during the pandemic—a project that bridges classic heavy metal with progressive flair and modern grit. We caught up with Peter to talk about the roots of Tactic, the making of Tools of the Trade, his love for storytelling in music, and where things are headed next.

Interview

TheNwothm: Hey there can you introduced yourself and where you are from? Hey! First off, thanks for the interview!

I’m Peter Vargo and I started Tactic in 2021 in Sacramento, California. 

TheNwothm: Let’s start with the basics—how did the idea for Tactic come together? Can you tell us a bit about the band’s origin story?

P.V: This can be a long story, so I will try to give the short version. Since 2004 I’ve been writing my own songs. At the time, I was drumming in a punk back called Fuller. While I still love punk, my tastes were gravitating towards metal. Later, I joined a thrash band called Suburban Paranoia and played drums with them for twelve years. Most of my songs weren’t a great fit, though, so I didn’t contribute much with them. In 2018, I met a group of guys – one of which had a studio in his warehouse. We started to jam and write tunes together. Mostly prog rock. Once the pandemic hit, we stopped jamming and I approached my friend to record a solo album. I had fifteen years of original music, so I figured might as well get them recorded. From there, Tactic was born!

TheNwothm: What’s the significance behind the name Tactic? How did you land on it?

P.V: My first album has a track called Tactic. It was written after I had received some harsh feedback on one of my songs (yet to be released!). The song is about not letting anything bring you down and pushing on with your passion, be it music, writing, education, career – anything. You can do it, and don’t let anyone drag you down. I wanted to press on with that more positive vibe, so I decided to use it as the name for my solo project. Just to note, just because I like to inject positivity wherever I can in my music, doesn’t mean I don’t tackle heavy subject matter.

TheNwothm: How did your local scene in Sacramento influence your sound or attitude as a band?

P.V: Honestly, I’ve not emersed myself in the local scene here yet. I am originally from the Bay Area and played a ton of shows out there since 2003. I loved it. Lots of great metal and punk bands. I met a lot of great people and had lots of amazing conversations about music. Being around people that shard my opinions and others that had different opinions really helped keep my mind open. One thing was for sure, we all shared a passion for music. I plan to hit the Sacramento scene shortly. If not playing shows, then at least seeing some to support my local scene! 

TheNwothm: Outside of music, what keeps you inspired or creatively fuelled?

P.V: I have a young family – two kids under 8. My wife is a huge support for me in all my passions. We love to get out and spend as much time with the kids as possible. Soon enough they’ll be teenagers and won’t want to hang out with us anymore, haha. I also write books. I’m almost done with my second manuscript. When I’m not writing music or books, spending time with the family, or doing house work, I’m playing games or searching out new music to consume. 

TheNwothm: Any guilty-pleasure music genres or artists we’d be surprised you’re into?

P.V: Should any music be considered a guilty-pleasure? Music is music and listen to what sounds good to you! But, if you’re twisting my arm for an answer, I’ll say Chromeo was always pretty rad. I love jazz, classical, blues, even some country (mostly because the drums can hit pretty hard). Anything with a good melody is good to me. I tend to gravitate towards metal, and I really love power, speed, thrash and prog. 

TheNwothm: Was there a moment when you all realised this wasn’t just a jam project but something serious?

P.V: Probably once I was close to finishing up my first record. I still had enough songs for two more records and knew I wanted to get them out. It’s been a journey releasing music and the response so far has been great. 

TheNwothm: 2024’s was a huge year for you—you dropped a single barrage and a full-length album, Tools of the Trade. Can you walk us through the creative process behind that album?

P.V: Sure. This one was a bit of a long project. I recorded 9 songs for the album and only two of them were brand new – Coward and World of Chaos. The other 7 were songs that were written years ago, however, half of them were re-written or restructured for this album. I have the old version still and it’s pretty amazing to listen to them and see how much they transformed from their original versions. Only 8 made it on the record, though. The one I cut from Tools is called Pretender. It was released as its own EP with three other songs which include a different mix of The Devil’s Inception and an instrumental version of Coward. It’s also the only release to feature The Final Fantasy. Tools of the Trade was recorded over the course of about two and a half years. I’d record at my friend’s studio in his warehouse.

The drums were set up on a riser and the place looked set up for playing shows. The drum set was huge and it was a blast to play on. I’d record the drums first, playing by memory – so no back tracks or pre-recorded guitars. I had to get them done quickly, though, as I usually only had about two hours each time we recorded a song. Most of the drum tracks on the album were done in one take. I wish I had more time to do more takes, but I just couldn’t afford it and I didn’t have the time. In the end, I think it came out sounding great. My friend was a great producer, too. He had a few ideas when it came to some guitar parts. Coward, for instance, has a lot of noodling guitars throughout the song. That was his idea. He told me to just play around and make some noises. I was skeptical at first, but I think it helped add to the song. Later, he lost the studio so I ended up purchasing my own DAW, getting the files from him and finishing up any extra guitar parts and bass at my home. Due to the nature of recording the album, not every track sounds the same, which is regrettable. I did my best with my limited resources to get each track to sound as similar as possible, but it wasn’t easy! 

TheNwothm: What are your favourite tracks from the songs you have released so far and why?

P.V: Are we talking all of the songs I’ve released, or just on Tools of the Trade? I’ll answer both ways. On Tools, It’s a close tie between Tactic and World of Chaos. Every song on the album has some significant meaning, with maybe the exception of August, 1958 which is about Stephen King’s IT, and The Devil’s Inception which is a dig at the satanic panic. The title track is an instrumental, but the music was a lot of fun to write. The last three songs are almost a trilogy of sorts and I originally wanted a piano overture to proceed them using motifs from each song. That didn’t pan out, and probably for the best. The album runs pretty smoothly front to back and a piano overture might have dragged that down. The three songs – Survivor, Awakening and World of Chaos – don’t share a narrative, but each song is about similar topics. I’ll leave it at that and let listeners decide what the meaning of each song is! Sorry! Got off track there. Out of all the songs I’ve released so far…Going Down the Hard Way was a fun one and a little different from what I normally write – and has some awesome solos, too! – and The Courtyard has a pretty cool chorus!

TheNwothm: How did you come up with the idea for the album artwork?

P.V: I honestly don’t remember exactly, haha! The name of the song for my instrumental just kind of popped into my head (it had a couple different names in the past). Then, I had this idea of a line of factory workers walking towards an industrial complex with smoke stacks and such. In the center of the factory was a stage with a band playing on it. A figure closest to the cover was to be holding a tool box with tools sticking out of it, but the ‘tools’ were supposed to be a guitar, drum sticks, picks…those kinds of things. Obviously, the whole idea didn’t come to life, but we still got the smoke stacks and a silhouette of some dude shredding on guitar! Looked good to me, so I went with it. If anyone is curious, I did in fact pay an artist for the artwork. No AI was used.

TheNwothm: Are you planning on having a live band to tour your music?

P.V: I hope to. My plan is, when my kids get a little older, I can look into starting a live band. I’d love to play these songs live and work with others. Playing live is some of the best memories I have and I look forward to getting back out there soon.

TheNwothm: And if so where would you like to take Tactic?

P.V: I’m a little older now, but not too old! That said, my personal goal would just be to play and write. Record new music and release it. If Tactic never makes it beyond the local scene, that’s cool. I’ve always told myself, if even one person out there likes my stuff and jams to it, it was a success. Some people seem to dig the record, so I am happy with it and looking forward to the next release.

TheNwothm: How do you see Tactic evolving over the next year or two? Any new music in the works?

P.V: I am always trying to challenge myself. I know I write music that isn’t reinventing the wheel or anything, but I’m not out there to do that. I DO, however, like to add things on guitar, or bass, that might be slightly different than what would be ‘normal’. It could be a subtle guitar track under the main riff, or some layering. Same with bass. I try to play in the pocket and not follow the guitar all the time. I also don’t try to chase certain trends in metal. I get why some trends are trendy, but I strive to stand out as much as I can. As much as a NWOTHM band can, anyway! I’m also always trying to expand on how I write and come up with new ideas. In fact, I just finished a song that will likely be on my fourth record (I know…I need to release my second and third first, and they are in the works), currently called Resist. It’s one of my thrashiest tunes and the chorus is very different for something I’d normally write. I even added some death metal style guitars underneath the main riff. I’m also currently finishing up the epic on my second album. It’s a narrative and I have four singers on it! To give you an idea of the song, I feel it has an Avantasia meets Iron Maiden sound.  

TheNwothm: For new listeners who might be discovering you through this interview—what’s the one song you’d want them to hear first, and why?

P.V: Ooh, this is a hard one. It really would depend on what style of metal you want to hear. I tend to write songs that fit in the classic NWOTHM sound, to power metal, to speed and thrash. I love all sorts of metal and don’t want to subscribe to just one to write. All of my albums will be a mixture of the types I love the most. That said…The Devil’s Inception is an easy one to listen to. It’s my shortest song so if you hate it, at least it’ll be over soon, ha! Survivor may also be a good one to start with since I feel it showcases some of the speedier, power metal style I gravitate towards. I grew up listening to fast punk rock, so a lot of my tunes have that early Offspring speed. For those that don’t particularly like vocals, the song Tools of the Trade would be a good listen. I know you asked for one song, but it’s hard for me to choose only one! 

TheNwothm: How can our readers buy your music and merch?

P.V: You can purchase Tactic music anywhere online. Amazon, Apple Music, Bandcamp…you name it. I don’t have physical copies of the album made, but I hope to get some done. I did get full booklet artwork done. It’s just pretty expensive and I’d hate to have a few hundred CD’s lying around if no one buys them. If the demand for physical copies ever comes up, then I’ll make them. Otherwise, I will focus more on new music. Until then, check out my socials, follow me on Youtube/Instagram/Facebook…you get the picture. I try to post updates and snippets of new riffs from time to time.

TheNwothm: Where can fans follow you online?

P.V: As stated above, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Lemon8, TikTok, Bandcamp…I think that’s it for now. I’ll likely start other profiles as the need arises. I do all my own promoting, so it can be time consuming to manage a lot of different socials. 

TheNwothm: Anything else you would like to mention?

P.V: Thanks for the opportunity for an interview! It has always been a dream for me to release my music and share it with people whether they love or hate it. Seeing the response up till now has encouraged me to keep writing, so keep an eye out. New music is always being worked on. 

Bandcamp: https://tactic1.bandcamp.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tacticheavymetal

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tacticheavymetal/