As ravenous and barbaric as a tornado but with the passionate insatiability of a tsunami, the Antithesis EP from Scottish metallers From Sorrow To Serenity is a striking ruthless ferocity wrapped in a scorching melodic elegance and rapacious imagination. Consisting of four merciless confrontations, the release is the debut of a band metal we will all be taking intensive attention of, if not now certainly in the near future as the Glasgow quintet build on their powerful and impressive entrance.
Formed in 2010 by the core of vocalist Fraser Smith alongside guitarists Steven Jones and Mark McInch, From Sorrow To Serenity have earned a formidable reputation for their unbridled mesh of metalcore ripe with flames of progressive, groove, and technical metal; a colossal recipe which has fuelled their intensively impacting live show. Sharing stages with the likes of Memphis May Fire, Bleed From Within, Stray From The Path, The Color Morale and many more across Scotland, the band has continued to impress and strengthen their stature and explosive presence, bassist Andrew Simpson and drummer Matthew Cowie completing the potent line-up challenging and invigorating the senses. Following their recent successful showing at Techabilitation where the band played with the likes of Meta-stasis, Nexilva, Visions, and Aeolist, the Antithesis EP is the next heavy swipe at the nation, one you can only imagine leading the band to the strongest positive responses.
The title track instantly tells you all you need to know about From Sorrow To Serenity, Antithesis emerging from a sonic brew designed by the guitars to launch a savage and riveting exploitation of the band’s craft and maliciousness. The track is a carnivore, riffs and rhythms a ravaging creative spite cloaked in a sonic seduction which scorches as it tempts. The technical enticement is equally as predacious and addictive, the band coaxing out a rapturous hunger for its towering and erosive presence whilst the vocals of Smith squall with as much animosity as that provided by the rhythms. It is a hypnotic fury completed with twisted grooves which swing with a compelling swagger from within the inventive and exciting maelstrom. The outstanding track never relinquishes being the finest moment on the release though it is constantly challenged by the remaining trio of songs.
The following Synergy approaches the ears with an electro cast ambience, an industrial lilted embrace not long alone as djent splintered rhythms and grooves encroach and prowl around the immersive evocative canvas. Into its full storm the song has less clarity to its individual elements than the first song but spawns intensive sonic smog which consumes and ignites the senses once again. It is a viscous encounter but one which flows with enticing ease as it intertwines aggressive rabidity and emotive suffocation into its exhausting melody stretched torrent.
Dead Reign is another to lend a gentle, in this case crystalline bait to lure the listener into a subsequent voracious furnace of intensity and emotional savagery. The track is a hypnotic and ferocious slab of sonic alchemy, an ever evolving passage of electronic shards and kisses, Middle Eastern promise, and melodic imagination which steals the passions within the similarly infectious violent abrasiveness and straight forward voracity. It is a masterful violation, a stunning and inventive blend of extremes and opposites merged into a sonic narrative which rivals the opener and is debatably the most creative confrontation on the EP.
The release is completed by i9, a track featuring Nexilva vocalist Gaz King. It is a barbarous challenge for the senses, the guitars and bass at their most uncivil yet refined on the release and the rhythms a blur of animosity and skilled intimidation. The track does not neglect the melodic hues the band has already shown they are accomplished at exploring either, the whole result a scintillating provocation for body and mind which backs up the immense promise and presence of the band.
There is little to temper the praise for Antithesis with, a slight lack of diversity from the vocals and a production which does submerge their delivery within the sonic tempest a little too much at times the only thing to be picky about. The EP is a powerful and incredibly weighty persuasion which declares From Sorrow To Serenity as a band to expect and anticipate a dominate future from.
Promethium is a band that through an excellent and acclaimed EP and album plus a reputation for excellent and impressive live shows that has more than earned their right to be spoken as one of the best emerging metal/rock bands in the UK. With the band preparing and working on their next album we thought it was about time to catch up with guitarist Dan Lovett-Horn to find out more and reveal more about a band that will soon be making a very distinct mark on UK rock.
Welcome guys and thank you for sharing your time with us.
Could you first introduce the band members?
Many thanks dude. On vocals we have Gaz McGahon, Guitars, Dan Lovett-Horn and Rossi, Bass Barry Mills, Drums Allan Gardener.
How long has the band been going and how did you all meet?
The band started around five years ago. I was planning a studio project after my last band was disbanding. I met up with some musicians friends and all of a sudden we had a new band. Many members later and we are still here.
Promethium is not your first experience in a band then?
It’s quite weird actually. I had always wanted to play in a band with Rossi and after much pestering I finally had the opportunity when he left his last band Desolate. Gary had been an old band mate from our school years and he had just returned from London after his last band had come to an end. Barry is the frontman in the fantastic rock band Massive Wagons and his main reason for joining was he was missing playing the bass. Allan is the newest member from a now defunct experimental band.
Has metal been the sound you have created as musicians or is there a touch of Ministry in your journey to date if you know what I mean haha?
My previous band was influenced by 80’s rock and the music I was starting to write was going in a far heavier direction. So there was a change of direction because my own style of playing dictated that the music was becoming heavier. I must admit that Rossi is the one who brings the Ministry side to us. I guess it’s his old man influence.
Your debut release was Tribute to the Fallen in 2009, tell us about that initial acclaimed EP.
It was really great as we knew we were onto something cool, and as soon as it was released the reviews were very positive. The radio airplay then started, and we knew we had to crack on getting the album recorded.
It seems things between that and your first album two years later did not accelerate as one anticipated for the band is that fair to say?
That is fair. What is funny is the album was recorded very quickly, however the delay came from the manufacturing end and also the release date got altered a couple of times. Originally everything was ready for April 2010. There were delays and complications we couldn’t control.
That album was the excellent Welcome to The Institution which came out last year. How has that been received?
Overall it’s been good. We have had a lot of positive feedback and some great reviews. This in turn has also been helped by our debut music video “Visions” which has been banned on most music channels. We did two versions, one to get banned and create publicity and the safe one as a fallback for, and both got banned. It would seem what we consider acceptable the outside world does not.
As with any release there are always going to be people who dislike a recording, however we have found that even with negative reviews, people check us out, and so it works in our favour. The artwork could have been better but in all honesty you don’t judge a book by its cover so why would you with an album.
The album is a powerful and varied release, what was the inspiration behind it?
The concept behind the album was to make a recording of a new kind of metal, one that fuses a varied style of influences and isn’t bothered about current bandwagons.
As mentioned Welcome To The Institution is diverse in sound suggesting varied influences within the band, is that so and what are your most inspiring ones?
Big influences overall are Metallica, Megadeth, Annihilator, Testament and 2pac
Months on from its release what are the things about Welcome to The Institution you feel could have been better and alternately give you the deepest pride?
Overall we love the album. My biggest pride is the fact that it’s an album created with friends.
What have you learned from making it that will stand you in good stead for future recordings?
We’ve definitely learnt the meaning of Pre Production, and that’s something we are doing heavily for the next album. Also learnt what I need to do in regards to recording tips for more varied sounds.
How does songwriting work within the band?
We have now got it down to a fine art. I right the bulk of the music. Rossi then re-writes it, and then together as a band we arrange it. The final piece of the puzzle comes when Gaz sits down to process his thoughts and write the lyrics.
Is Promethium a democratic or is there a final voice on certain aspects of the band?
That’s a bit of a weird one. Yes we are a full band however we allow certain people to have a final voice depending on the matter.
You are currently working on your new album, what surprises and treats are we going to discover within in?
It’s going to be awesome. I have friend who turned up at the studio the other day and literally said the songs were jumping out of the speakers at him. We have really gone back to basics on this album, looked at every riff, every solo, every drum beat and fill, and every vocal melody. It is going be an album that people will take note of and I am certain it will open the gates for us. We have really gone back to our musical roots and this is where that album comes from.
Are there any definite songs you can reveal for it and an album title for the project?
We have decided not to release the title yet, but current song titles are Believer, Gunslinger, Wont Break me, and Plagued by Evil.
Apart from the album what plans do you have for 2012, plenty of gigs?
2012 is a busy year with the first half packed with gigs all over the country including the fantastic Future Perfect festival in May in Manchester. The second half of the year will be studio based so that we can look a spring 2013 release for album two.
How hard is it to keep outside life from distracting and coming before the life of Promethium for you guys?
Music for all of us all is a passion. We love it whether it is gigging or in the studio or in rehearsal. We all work full time and if we didn’t love doing this it would be difficult to manage both things. We just don’t see it as a difficulty its part of our life and we love doing it.
Many thanks again for chatting with us.
Can we end with a couple of in depth questions…firstly which band member would you be most reluctant to share a broken down elevator with?
Rossi – he would geek you death before the oxygen ran out – although that might be a good thing suffocating in a lift sounds like a horrible way to die.
And lastly which of the band has the darkest embarrassment to hide and what is it?
If you buy a copy of our album when it comes out the sleeve notes will tell all!!
One of the most exciting and powerful releases this year has been the What We Are Contained In Is What We Are EP fromIrish metalers Red Enemy. Since 2008they have won over their homeland with impressive shows and debut EP Outsiders. Now the band and sound has ventured further afield to start what is sure to be an equalling success in the UK and beyond. The RingMaster Review had the pleasure of talking to guitarist Conor Dockery from the band give some insight into the world of Red Enemy.
Welcome to The Ringmaster Review and thanks for letting us throw some questions at you. Could you firstly introduce the band members?
The line-up currently is:
Kevin Letford: Vocals
(Myself) Conor Dockery: Guitar
Jay Doyle: Bass
Daniel Lang: Drums
How and when did the band form?
Myself, Dan and Kev have been playing together since we were kids. We would just learn our favourite songs, meet up and jam them out. Probably how every band starts really! It has essentially been the same band since then with some line-up changes and obviously some growing up musically. This line-up has been solid for about 2 years now.
Is Red Enemy the first band for each of you?
For Dan, Kev yes and myself. We’ve all filled in and helped out friends along the way but none of us have been in another band full time. Jay has been in a couple of bands; he’s been around for a while. He’s ours now though ha!
How have you as musicians and the band’s sound evolved over the past three years?
It’s quite hard to pinpoint any sort of evolution. We still write heavy music, some songs faster than others etc etc. We’ve focused on the song writing process a lot more this time around. We’re trying to simplify it as much as we can. As for content, it hasn’t changed much ha. I’m sure the songs will sound a lot different. I suppose we’ve ‘matured’, or whatever it is bands call it nowadays.
What is Ireland and specifically Dublin like for music, especially metal?
Dublin is great when it wants to be. On its day it can be as good as anywhere else in the world! There are some amazing metal and in particular hardcore bands in Dublin at the moment, so there’s a nice little scene going. We’ve played some incredible shows in Ireland but it suffers hugely from the lack of population. There just isn’t a huge market for bands, hence the severe lack of labels, management, magazines etc. In fact, there are no metal labels or management. To put it in perspective, there are what, 16 million people in London alone? Well there’s only 5 million in the entire country of Ireland haha.
Is there a close unity between the metal and rock bands there?
Yeah absolutely. We have had people from all sorts of bands at our shows! If people genuinely like a band in Ireland they will make an effort to support them. Well, to an extent anyway. We have friends in bands of all shapes and sizes and try to support them when we can! Dan has played drums with a few incredible prog bands. Kev has sung on a few bands releases and in an Alexisonfire cover band haha. Everyone is pretty close! It’s cool.
Your ferocious blend of hardcore and technical melodic metal has excited Ireland for a while now but not so much over in the UK until now which surprised us here. Was this just down to circumstances or a less focused attack until now?
You know, it’s not an easy thing for a band to build up the confidence to push themselves out there to the industry, especially if you’re stuck in Ireland. We had built up a pretty good following over here and people had been wondering why we had never toured or anything. It took us a long time to realise that we should be taking this further. We wanted to wait until we were ready to do it and when the time came, we were lucky that people like James Monteith (Tesseract) and bands like Carcer City and No Consequence were willing to help us out. They have all been unbelievable and have really got the ball rolling for us in the UK. Big shout out to James in particular. And you guys of course for taking the time to interview us. We’re very grateful.
Your latest EP What We Are Contained In, Is What We Are Worth has just been released to more strong acclaim for the band, what were your expectations or hopes with its release?
We tried our best on this EP. I know we’re capable of better but it was the best material we had at the time. I think you have to be hopeful when releasing something new. It would be unfair on the hard work you put into making it to just write it off. You obviously worry all the time about how it will be received but our expectations were…..healthy for want of a better word!
What had you learned between your well received debut EP Outsiders and the new release that had a big impact this time in the studio?
Yeah, we learned a hell of a lot after we recorded that first release. I suppose the biggest thing we took from that whole process was the fact that jamming songs in the practice space and then actually tracking them in a studio are two very very different things! We put a lot of pressure on ourselves performance wise, so when we went to record the latest EP we had prepared the songs much better. It was our second time recording with Stu Mackay in Studio 6 so that made for a much more relaxed atmosphere.
Tell us about how you write your songs and if they changed much between entering the studio and the finished results?
Songs generally start from a riff or drum idea. If we like the idea a lot, we will try and use it a few times throughout the song, with some slight variations. It takes us ages to finish a song! I’m not sure why that’s the case but I suppose you just want it to be perfect. They never turn out perfect though……so it’s a strange one haha. Vocals will usually be written last. Kev will have the bones of the lyrics written and will piece them together over all the parts. Our songs change very little in the studio. Some songs are left to the very last minute to complete, as was the case for the last track ‘Wolves’ on our latest EP. We wrote the last section of that song in the studio. It ended up being one of our favourite parts so maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing.
Your lyrics are as strong in political and social themes as the sound itself; for sure there is never lack of material in this world but which is the biggest inspiration for you, human greed, selfishness, or its apathy?
I can probably speak for Kev in that he takes inspiration purely from what he sees and experiences. With this EP it just so happened to be written around the time that Irelands economy shat the bed. The lyrics on the album may be very different.
Do you believe the majority of people listening to your music and with other bands with strong messages and points to their songs, actually take on board the lyrical content as maybe they did over the previous decades? Or just listen with a less focused ear in that way?
I would probably say the majority of people do not take on board what the vocalist is saying. I certainly don’t speak for everyone because I know myself that there is certain bands whose lyrics I love and find extremely relevant. I think it very much depends on the band. Some vocalists have that ability to just focus your attention solely on what they’re saying, and nothing else. Other vocalists don’t have that ability. Certainly in previous decades, songs were more often built on a strong lyrical idea than a strong riff so to speak. Again, it depends on the band really.
You have just come off your first UK tour with Save Your Grace, Visions, TesseracT, and Once A Wolf, how did that go?
It was amazing. As I said, we couldn’t have asked for anything more. We were looked after really well by the promoters and all the other bands were great. Happy days.
Were the audiences aware of the band as such? Was there a good core there for you guys?
We have a few friends in bands over there who have really helped spread our name around a little bit. A few people at the Brighton show had come especially to see us, that was a bit mind blowing. We don’t have huge expectations when it comes to crowds, which I think is a healthy thing. You’re rarely disappointed then as they. J
You have also supported Parkway Drive on their tour of Ireland, how did you find that and was that a point when people outside of the country started to take notice?
Those Parkway Drive shows were a huge milestone for us. I’m not too sure how it affected people outside the country, but certainly it put the marker down in Ireland if nothing else. It all kinda comes and goes so fast and then it’s over. Like anything good I suppose! We really enjoyed ourselves. Some of our families came too. It’s nice to give them a completely false sense of how the band is doing haha!
What are your own influences as musicians?
I mean, as we’ve gotten a bit older our tastes have broadened substantially. That tends to happen to most people I think. The biggest change we’ve noticed, especially writing this album, is how much of an influence bands and artists from other genres are actually having on the music. Ireland is producing some incredible Post-rock/shoegaze bands like Enemies and Overhead The Albatross (to name but a few) who are rubbing off on us, inspiring us to explore a bit more I think. It’s not necessarily what they play, but the way they play it. The way the drummer may accent part or the way they play a certain chord progression etc. Don’t get us wrong though; we’ll always be a metal band and still love listening to metal. But the origins of some of our ideas seem to come from very different genres.
What is next up for Red Enemy?
We’re playing a show with those Americans Texas In July next week then its back over to the UK for two weeks. We’ve begun writing our first full-length album so that’s pretty exciting. We’ve never had a full release before so it’s all a bit new. Your best way to keep up to date is through our Facebook page.
Cheers for letting us in on things Red Enemy and good luck with the EP. Would you like to give us some last words?
Thanks so much, guys. Eh…..we mainly just want to thank anyone who has taken the time to check us out, interview us or come to a show recently, especially all the promoters involved in our upcoming tour. Sound.
designed by the guitars to launch a savage and riveting exploitation of the band’s craft and maliciousness. The track is a carnivore, riffs and rhythms a ravaging creative spite cloaked in a sonic seduction which scorches as it tempts. The technical enticement is equally as predacious and addictive, the band coaxing out a rapturous hunger for its towering and erosive presence whilst the vocals of Smith squall with as much animosity as that provided by the rhythms. It is a hypnotic fury completed with twisted grooves which swing with a compelling swagger from within the inventive and exciting maelstrom. The outstanding track never relinquishes being the finest moment on the release though it is constantly challenged by the remaining trio of songs.
