Uncaging melodic hardcore which commands attention, Wildheart is a band from Brisbane, Australia that is beginning to make a potent stir. The recent release of their new EP offers all the reasons why. With big thanks to the band we looked to discover more; talking beginnings, evolution, that latest encounter and more….
Can you first introduce the band and give us some background to how it all started?
We basically all came from other bands that had broken up or fizzled out, so us being the members who were still keen to create music came together and started writing music. We didn’t really have any particular genre in mind, we just wanting to create music that was heavy, melodic and powerful so we started writing and recording our first EP, A Thousand Days.
How has being involved in those other bands before had any impact on what you are doing now?
As mentioned before the band came together from other bands breaking up. The only thing we all wanted to begin with was the have more diversity in our music. So bigger choruses, more clean sections and really work on our songwriting and structuring.
What inspired the band name?
It was the first name we didn’t all hate ha-ha. The name was the last thing we did before releasing music and playing shows. There were plenty of words getting thrown around and ‘heart’ got said a lot and then someone came out with ‘Wildheart’ and kinda all agreed on it. It didn’t connote any particular genre which we liked; all our friends dug it so we just ran with it.
Was there any specific idea behind the forming of the band and also in what you wanted it and your sound to offer?
Not so much when we started. But I think now that we’ve been around awhile now we really focus on things that matter to us, so a lot of songs deal with personal issues such as anxiety and depression, issues of abuse or
So how has the driving intent of Wildheart evolved over time?
When we first started we were just super focused on playing as many shows as possible and just enjoying being in a band and playing live. I think now we are definitely doing everything with intent and looking at the pro’s and con’s and making sure we’re making the right decisions to keep us moving forward.
Since your early days, how would you say your sound has similarly evolved?
We’ve definitely gotten heavier and I guess…darker. But I’ve always strived to keep that core sound in there…Big choruses and lush clean parts.
Has it been more of an organic movement of sound or more the band deliberately wanting to try new things?
I’d say it’s more organic. Line-up changes have played a part and I’ve taken on the majority of writing duties so I definitely have a particular style but one thing I’ve been very focused on working on my songwriting and giving each song a distinctive flare and something that people will remember, not simply just throwing as much ‘cool sounding’ riffs into the mix.
Presumably across the band there is a wide range of inspirations; are there any in particular which have impacted not only on the band’s music but your personal approach and ideas to creating and playing music?
I don’t think I can pin point anything in particular. Sometimes I think of a riff at work, sometimes watching another band live can inspire me, not so much musically but it can push me to work harder and push myself harder. Sometimes I’ve even walked out of a movie with creative ideas.
You mentioned the songwriting earlier; do you have a particular way or process to your writing?
Usually it just starts with me hashing out ideas then I’ll move onto demoing the songs and sending them to the rest of the dudes to get their take on it and we just go back and forth then eventually we’ll start jamming them in the rehearsal space until we’re happy with how everything is coming together.
How about the lyrical side; where do you predominantly draw the inspirations?
I think just personal experiences. Real thoughts that have come from whatever the lyric writing is dealing with at the time, or if there has been a particular topic weighing on someone’s mind. Occasionally we have come up with a concept before any music or lyrics came together. Above/Below being a good example. We wanted to write two different songs one being more upbeat and melodic and one just being super dark and heavy and then we though to tie that into the experiences of someone dealing with bipolar disorder.
Give us some background to your latest release.
We Are is the best music we’ve created and released as a band. We knew we wanted to write darker and heavier songs whilst staying true to our original intentions of simple writing powerful melodic music and just building on top of that.
Could you give us some insight to the themes and premise behind it and its songs?
We knew we wanted to delve a little bit deeper, obviously the music itself is darker so the lyrics in turn go that way as well. Everything we wrote about all comes from personal experience or events that we’ve thought about or been subjected too. Songs such as Solitude are very much about dealing with anxiety and a lack of self-worth and uncertainty, Void is about substance abuse, Calloused is about trying to move on from heartbreak. Then as a comparison Grief is basically a f*!k you to anyone who has taken advantage of their position and made unwelcome advances or gone as far as to assault someone, be it in a band or within the workplace. Essentially Then you have the title track We Are which takes a more worldly and more exploitative approach looking at things happening around us such as the general sense of oppression that is occurring in modern society, be it because of one’s race, gender or gender identity or more closely aligned with the lyrics “the top one percent” seeking to suck away any financial stability we might have, especially the younger generations.
Are you a band which goes into the studio with songs pretty much in their final state or prefer to develop them as you record?
Final state for sure, I’m generally a pretty relaxed dude but that’s one area I’m super OCD about. I like to leave room for some experimentation in the studio and sometimes something you thought worked doesn’t so you change it up, but the core song structures are always down pat before we go in.
Tell us about the live side to the band, presumably the favourite aspect of the band?
We’ve always been proud of the fact that we always give it our all live and don’t hold back, and blown a lot of money on gear. Good guitar tone is everything.
It is not easy for any new artist to make an impact regionally let alone nationally and further afield. How have you found it your neck of the woods? Are there the opportunities to make a mark if the drive is there for new bands?
100% you just have to work hard for it, and don’t expect everything to just fall into your lap. One thing that is super important is to “own our local” Play as much in your home town as you can as people will remember your name and people in the industry will take notice and actively look to seek your band out.
How has the internet and social media impacted on the band to date? Do you see it as something destined to become a negative from a positive as the band grows and hopefully gets increasing success if in a climate where people are not buying music or is it more that bands struggling with it are lacking the desire to keep it working to their advantage?
Social media marketing is a hard one, it’s always changing and evolving but it’s become an integral part of how we reach people these days. But at the end of the day I believe if you write good music, play tight live and put your self-out there you’ll see some headway eventually, it’s very easy to compare yourself to others within the realms of social media so always take a breather and remember to focus on your own journey.
Once again a big thanks for sharing time with us; anything you would like to add or reveal for the reader
If you haven’t already checked us out please do and if you have thank you so very much! Hit us up on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date as we have plenty of rad stuff lined up for the next few months!
Check out Cinders further @ https://www.facebook.com/pg/wearewildheart/ https://wildheart.bandcamp.com/
Pete RingMaster 07/11/2018
Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright
The EP’s best track is quickly followed by a just as compelling offering in Solis. From its first breath, ear gripping grooves work their bait, vocals a caustic alignment as rhythms pounce with aggressive tenacity. Harmonies and melodic flames add to its brewing temptation, punk scowling similarly infusing the adventurous tempest. As the first, it gives suggestion of a real appetite to push their boundaries, the band not content on just repeating the well-received but less individual exploits of their first release.
The EP opens up with Was It All Worth It and straight away the track has attention hooked as a melody, with a mix of warmth and shadow in its character, wraps enticingly around ears. A rising storm of rhythms led by the feisty beats of Lewis Fife with the brooding rumble of James Carty’s bass alongside soon join the invitation, it all taking the listener into the turbulent yet catchy heart of the song where the guitar of Ben Brazier casts suggestive melodies and inventive hooks around his emotion flushed vocal squalls. It is a potent mix captivating from start to finish, melodic and post hardcore textures engaging each other in an arguably less than original but certainly potent way for a strong start to the release.
featuring in it and doing a stand up job.
How has the internet and social media impacted on the band to date? Do you see it as something destined to become a negative from a positive as the band grows and hopefully gets increasing success?
Building on the success of their debut EP, British melodic hardcore quintet, Create To Inspire, are poised to release its successor in the rousing shape of Home Is Where My Heart Dies. It is the band’s first offering since signing with Basick Records at the turn of the year; a pungent roar of emotion and imposing sound showing potent depths of invention and imagination beneath its impressing surface.
The EP opens up with History and immediately has ears under a rhythmic cosh with predatory riffs for company. Thereafter the song uncages a tide of hungry riffs amidst the vocal ire of Sean Midson, subsequently expanding and blossoming its catchy rhythms and melodic endeavour with every lyrical snarl and sonic scythe. The hefty swipes of drummer Luke Taylor continue to punctuate the track whilst inciting ears alongside the similarly intrusive tones of Dan Fuller’s bass. They also make a forceful impact on the senses whereas the imagination is held by Midson’s potent mix of attack and the web of enterprise cast by guitarists Jack Morris and Connor McLeod. The track is a potent start to the release; an ear grabbing proposal lining familiar hues and flavours with the band’s own stirring invention.