Steve Menoian

Steve Menoian — American guitarist — is a co-founder of I Prevail and the one chiefly responsible for the band's sonic architecture. His function goes beyond the instrument: besides writing much of the material, he works on the production of the group's records — a combination explaining the consistency of a sound built on layers. I Prevail works with low-tuned guitars, electronic programming and arrangements accommodating two vocalists of opposite registers, and organising that without any element smothering the others is a studio problem before it is a compositional one. His riff sustains the band's central format: enough weight to justify Eric Vanlerberghe's guttural register, and enough melodic room for Brian Burkheiser's choruses to work without sounding like a graft. He was there at the founding in Michigan and stayed throughout the whole path, including Trauma (2019), the record about Burkheiser's vocal injury and mental health that earned I Prevail Grammy nominations and placed it among the central names of American heavy rock of the decade.