The
bloody heavy stoner metal rumbles through the vast of Australia as
new (yet not so young) power trio Witchskull rocks over the country.
Officially Tony McMahon (bass), Joel Green (drums) and Marcus De
Pasquale (vocals, guitars) gathered under that name only two years
ago, but facts say that they know each other much longer. So don’t
be surprised with Witchskull's professionalism and skills as they're
literally merciless in their aspiration to bring down the best groove
they have. They sound classic, they sound modern and actually and
overall they sound killer. As their debut “The Vast Electric Dark”
was released in October 1st,
2015, the trio already has already started writing new material, and
Joel readily tells me about Witchskull's current status in this
interview.
Hi Joel! How are
you? What's going on in Australia? What is the current scene like in
Australia especially for upcoming bands such as yourselves.
All
good thanks Aleks. Lots going on in Australia mate, we have a very
strong scene with a lot of really good heavy bands. It is hard for
Australian bands to get recognition overseas because it is difficult
and expensive to tour, but our scene has always had a lot of killer
bands.
Okay, what's
Witchskull current status?
Currently
we are playing shows in Oz to support The Vast Electric Dark while
writing for the new album that we are recording in New York in
October 2016.
What are
perspectives to consider with organizing gigs in Australia itself and
Tasmania or New Zealand? How many places is it possible to visit
during one tour?
Australia is a big
place, so touring is not easy. Canberra (where we are from) is only
300km to Sydney and 650km from Melbourne so we can easily play the
main two cities in Oz over a weekend. There is smaller towns like
Newcastle and Wollongong that are close by but most other big cities
are too far to drive, so you need to fly. We have only played Sydney
Melbourne and Canberra so far, but hope to get to the other major
cities over the coming year or so? I have never played NZ or
Tasmania, but would love to at some stage.
How
do you already have a new album so soon? How many songs do you have
for it and will it hold the direction you took on "The
Vast Electric Dark"?
We
rehearse a lot and are constantly writing, and don’t want to spend
too long between records. I am not a fan of long albums, so we will
probably have 8 or 9 on the new one? We are working on around 15 and
will select the ones we like most closer to the time. Our direction
is pretty similar to The Vast Electric Dark, but we don’t let
anything stop us pursuing whatever feels right at the time. I feel we
are getting better, but I guess time will tell? As long as the three
of us are happy, we really don’t concern ourselves with outside
opinion. Obviously we would prefer that people like what we are
doing, but we don’t care if they don’t. This band is purely about
playing what interests the 3 of us and what comes naturally.
And one more
question - why are you going to record it in New York? I bet that you
have some really good studio on your mind.
We Chose New York
because our bass player is from there. He moved to Oz in 2005 and we
thought it would be good to make the next record in his home town. We
were trying to record at The Magic Shop, but it recently closed down,
so we are now recording at a fantastic studio in Brooklyn called
Studio G.
Witchskull –
World’s Away
Your
debut full-length "The Vast Electric Dark" was released in
October 1st, 2015. How did you promote it as you released in such a
DIY way? Do
you now have now label or distro who now help you?
The
album was recorded and pressed independently, so all of the initial
work was done DIY. Since then we have signed with a NYC label called
STB Records for a vinyl release of the album and Ripple Music out of
San Francisco for worldwide release of all other formats. This should
all happen in the next few months, so we are pretty stoked about
that.
"The Vast
Electric Dark" is a tight and solid album. How did Witchskull
get together. Did you all know each other or before you formed the
band. How did you gather under the mark of Witchskull?
We have only been
together for a couple of years, but Marcus and I went to school
together and played in a metal band back in 1985. We all have very
similar tastes in music, and wanted to create something that wasn’t
forced in any way. Our writing comes from the gut, with no bullshit.
It is what is entrenched in our DNA. Marcus and Tony had the concept
of the band going before I joined, but things didn’t fully start to
take shape until they asked me to join.
May
I ask you what the concept of Witchskull from the start was?
From
the beginning, we wanted to create music from the gut. We want to
make primal, feral, heavy music that hasn’t been polluted by
concerns of how others will perceive it. We simply don’t give a
fuck what anyone thinks, so everything we create together remains
pure.
The band plays
rocking stoner with doom elements, do you care about such labels?
We
grew up listening to Sabbath, Motorhead and AC/DC, before going
through NWOBHM and the first wave of thrash. Because we have been
listening to heavy music since we were kids we don’t care too much
about how music is labeled. For us it is all about how it makes us
feel. If the 3 of us like it, then we go with it. We have been
labeled a lot of different things and don’t really mind.
Most of your songs
have a lot of really infectious parts, and overall impressions from
the "The Vast Electric Dark" are pretty positive. It's
strong stuff. How do you see Witchskull potential for further
development?
Thanks for your kind
words, it is very much appreciated. I guess we feel that our songs
are getting stronger but that is purely my opinion. I guess we won’t
know until the second record is done? We are really into what we are
doing, so as long as we are happy we will keep it going.
Joel, what emotions
influence you when you play and compose with Witchskull? Is this
process a conscious one or not?
Most of what we do
comes from jamming a single idea for a long time. We let the songs
evolve and never force arrangements. We leave songs open ended until
they kind of arrange themselves over time. For us, this seems to keep
things cohesive and unforced. We try not to think too hard about it,
so I guess we are not overly conscious of how we put it all together?
Songs
lyrics on "The Vast Electric
Dark" sound both abstract and
personal, what do you put into it? I'm talking about both music and
lyrics - what's Witchskull about?
The
lyrics are Marcus’ domain. He is an incredible artist…Very well
read, articulate and unique. Musically we are all involved in
building the songs. Most of the riffs are from Tony and Marcus, but I
contribute as well. Once we get an idea, we jam it for weeks or
months until it kind of arranges itself. Things seem less forced to
me if they evolve naturally over time. We try to keep things simple
and groove based and heavy…Less is more is our belief.
Witchskull – Pan’s
Daughter
How do you see the
"witching" aspect of the band's concept?
Again,
Marcus is more the bloke to talk to regarding our conceptual take on
things. If you read through his lyrics you can take a lot of
different things from them.
What is the most
difficult part of being in Witchskull?
It’s
not difficult at all. Marcus and Tony are like brothers to me, so I
couldn’t ask for more. Being in any band requires patience and
above all, respect so because of our friendships we are able to
resolve differences fairly easily.
And what is the best
experience you ever had with the band?
I
have played in a lot of bands over many years, and never felt a
stronger chemistry that what we have in Witchskull. That in itself is
the best part of this band for me.
Joel, what are your
plans for the next Witchskull record? Do you already have some tunes
in mind?
We are writing for the
new album now, and are very happy with the results so far. We have a
great studio booked and have a really good producer locked in, so we
can’t wait to see how it all turns out?
Thanks
for your interest in the band Aleks, hopefully
we will meet before too long!
