Today's
guest is not an artist, musician or part of any band. He's been a
very good friend of mine over the last few years and he does a
brilliant job promoting the Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal scene via his
excellent website and numerous weekly podcasts via Core Of
Destruction Radio.
Today's
guest also promotes the heavier side of the underground musical
spectrum to an avid fan-base. I wanted to interview the one and only
Steve Woodier for quite a while now and he kindly agreed to this
interview.
If you don't know who Steve Woodier is – Steve runs The Shrieks From Below.
In
this interview Steve spills the beans on how he got involved with the
entire blogging scene, where his musical journey began (Before I was
even born. Sorry Steve, Couldn't resist that one) and the pitfalls of
participating within the Metal Underground Community.
Hi
Steve. Thanks for doing this interview. How are things with you
today.
Frustrated.
Suffering with connectivity issues with the Wi-Fi, so I can’t
upload my show onto Mixcloud as the connection keeps dropping.
Unfortunately, my computer knowledge is on a par with Paul Rote (Paul writes for Doomed & Stoned) which
doesn’t bode well.
How
did you get started with the entire blogging scene. Can you give a
brief overview how you started and where you're currently writing
today.
The
reason I put my foot in the door of the blogging scene can be
attributed to two things really. Firstly, and mainly, because of my
involvement in a forum called Hard Rock Revolution. It was the first
time I actively discussed music with like minded individuals. You
have to realise, at home, there was no one to talk to about it. I was
a complete failure at converting various siblings, Nieces and Nephews
to anything remotely heavy, and my son, just shakes his head in pity
when I play him something.
It
became apparent that my knowledge of the underground music scene was
at least the equal of most of the frequent contributors, so it gave
me more confidence to express my opinions about it.
Secondly,
with the inception of Bandcamp, of which I was a part of from the
very early days, it was exciting to post details of new, unknown
bands, and receive a really positive reaction on the Forum, so I
guess that fuelled the fire.
You're
now writing for The Shrieks From Below. How did the blog came about
and why did you choose that name for your blog. Though it wasn't the
original name for the blog.
I
started posting bands on Facebook, I was quite a late started there,
and someone must have sensed my enthusiasm because I was approached
by Grip of Delusion Radio to play a selection of tracks via a podcast
show. The trouble is, because you upload an entire show as one mp3,
the Radio Tuna (The bit you click on to play the show) can’t
differentiate between the band playlist, so you can’t tell who’s
playing at the time. That was then, the entire reason for the blog.
It
started as a vehicle to post the running order of bands on the show!
My Niece, who was 14 years old at the time, set it up for me. When it
was done, I asked her what she thought of it. She told me that the
blog looked fine, but the music was shit!
It
was originally called ‘Pull The Legs Off The Spider, Tear The Wings
Off The Fly.’ I liked it, but as you can see, it is way too long a
name, so I picked a something that suited the music I mainly
concentrate on, ‘The Shrieks From Below.’I then set up a new blog
because I couldn't embed Bandcamp links on the old one, and here I
am. The name comes from a track called ‘ It Shrieks From Below’
from one of my favourite doom/death bands, Decrepitaph
You
also produce regular podcasts for Core Of Destruction Radio. How did
that came about.
I
originally started with Grip of Delusion Radio. As I mentioned, Vania
contacted me about starting a show. It was difficult at first because
of my ineptitude with anything that has a keyboard, but with guidance
I gradually managed to set something up. I was literally sweating
with nerves before the first show in case it didn’t play, or
sounded really crap or something, goodness knows what I’d be like
if I played a live one, which, incidentally will be the next step.
Hopefully I can find someone who can show me how to do it. Things
didn’t quite work out for one reason or another, no ones fault
really, so I eventually found my way onto Core of Destruction Radio
after contacting Jerry Wood.
Is
that a time consuming process to create a regular/weekly podcast for
Core Of Destruction Radio.
It’s
a royal pain in the arse, particularly if you’re a perfectionist
like me. You choose the tracks, then load them onto something called
Audacity. Sometimes, the bit-rate of the track is poor, so you have
to individually nurse it to a better sound. Then you record your
voice which I hate doing. My son reckons I sound like Michael Owen’s
football commentary on the telly.
The
beauty of recording everything first is that I can edit out most of
the erms and uhms before it goes on air. Then you have to meld the
tracks together so it sounds as seamless as possible with no
discernible gaps between them, before converting it to an mp3
version. I then listen to it myself to make sure I haven’t fucked
up anywhere, before its uploaded into Dropbox for one of the guys to
load onto the server.
I
always sweat a little that its been loaded on time, mainly because If
I promote it and mention the bands that are featured, It would be
embarrassing to say the least if it didn’t actually play. I don’t
help myself though because I’m always last minute. It usually takes
me six hours to prepare a one hour show.
How
do you decide on which bands to feature and the theme for your
podcasts.
Mostly
random. (there’s a surprise) If a label or band is kind enough to
provide me with a promotional copy of an album, out of courtesy at
the very least, I’ll play something from it. A track may come up on
shuffle on my ITUNES library that makes me want to play it on the
show. I also make a point to always play some older songs.
My
reasoning is that there are always people who have just started
listening to this kind of music, so why not play them some of
classics? I played ‘Jim Beam and Good Green’ by The Glasspack as
a case in point last month, I also love that song which also helped.
I try and mix it up a little with different genres. I rarely bother
with themes, although after some light hearted banter with Billy
Goate (Doomed & Stoned Head Editor) and Leanne Ridgeway (Riff Relevant Co-Editor), I did an animal cruelty episode featuring
bands such as Owlcrusher and Chimpgrinder
Do
you ever think about doing interviews, news and features with bands
and include them on your podcasts. Something similar to what Billy
Goate does at Doomed & Stoned. Or would you rather just focus on
the music.
To
be honest I just don’t have the time, but that may be a weak excuse
for not having the confidence either. My main goal is promoting the
bands, mainly unsigned ones. There’s nothing like receiving a
message from someone thanking you for playing a song of theirs that
they’ve put an inordinate amount of time and trouble into, ans
saying that they’ve received a couple of extra sales, or ‘likes’
off the back of it
What
has been the overall reaction to your podcasts from fans, labels and
bands in general.
Its
all been positive. I have bands and labels contact me regularly. As
you know yourself Steve, you can develop pretty close ties with some
of them. People like Maurice from Blues Funeral, The Doomstress,
Alexis Hollada and B!X of Psython regularly comment on posts and put
themselves about amongst the relevant groups on Facebook and that's
commendable and you can imagine the likes of those guys being really
approachable at gigs. The blog is getting more hits each month, and
my shows on Mixcloud usually climb pretty high in the Metal Charts,
so its all good.
You
have a wide range of musical tastes across different genres. Though I
know you focus more on the extreme side of music. What are your
favourite genres of music and why do they appeal to you.
I
know that I have a reputation for liking the more extreme side of
underground music, but personally I think that’s something of a
misconception. My musical tastes have never been as diverse as they
are now, I think its just that I will stretch the boundaries further
than some. In saying that, doom/sludge and doom/death are probably my
first choice, but something by, say, Earthless, will run those pretty
close.
At
the moment I’m having a crossover thrash revival. I have always
liked the underbelly of the scene. I dunno, I just love the dense
guitar sound and the dynamics and, OK I’ll admit it, it does appeal
to me to not be part of the herd that listens to more mainstream
music. I lead an average life, have an average job, so this kind of
music helps me to be a little different
Which
band, artist, album or genre did you first become a fan of. How did
your love-affair with music began.
My
love affair with music started in 72/73. A mate of mine had a brother
who was into Wishbone Ash, Steely Dan, that kind of thing. He took us
to see Hawkwind at the Liverpool Stadium. Part of the gig ended up on
the Space Ritual live album. I loved the experience, but the band
didn’t move me too much. It wasn’t until the same brother bought
me Black Sabbath’s Sabotage for my birthday,that I turned to the
dark side. In those days you were either into Uriah Heep, Jethro Tull
and bands of that ilk, or you took the left hand path with Black
Sabbath, and that's the path I took.
Then
along came Sad Wings of Destiny by Judas Priest and that firmly
cemented my love of heavier music. At that time, the advertising
blurbs described Priest as the heaviest band in the world, so that
was good enough for me. Actually, I think this path was inevitable. I
listened to Slade and The Sweet before Sabbath took a hold. If you
listen to some of the b sides of some of The Sweet singles, tracks
like ‘Burn On The Flame’ and ‘Cockroach’ then you’ll
realise that behind the facade, some of these bands actually rocked
like fuck.
I
thought Bucky Brown from The Ripple Effect and Bandcamp Download Hoarder had an extensive BandCamp collection. Until I saw
your profile. Fuck. Over 3310 purchases and counting. How have you
managed to build such a huge collection. (No wonder your wife bans
you from buying stuff).
I’m
obsessed with Bandcamp, aren’t we all hahaha! I started on Bandcamp
from the early days and it just bloomed from there. Most of the
music I play, I’ve bought myself which I’m quite proud of. Quite
often I’ll get a download code from a band , but I’ve already
bought the damn thing. Ben from She Beast always sends one a week
after I’ve bought it, I’m sure he does it on purpose.
You
have to realise that in the 70’s and 80’s you found out about
bands by word of mouth, or tape trading. I used to trade stuff of the
up and coming NWOAHM bands like Vio-lence and Dark Angel. I was an
avid reader of the ‘Sounds’ music paper. When the latest copy
came out, it was the highlight of my week. So now something as
awesome as Bandcamp is available I’m like a bull in a china shop.
In saying that, for every gem on there, there are 100 absolute
shiters.
Which
physical media do you prefer – Cassette, CD or Vinyl.
I
only buy mp3’s now, mainly for my iTUNES library and to play on the
show. I might find the odd CD in a charity shop, one of the older
classics maybe. I don’t own a cassette player, and I don’t own a
turntable. Also, imagine the grief I’d get if I bought Vinyl?
Do
you have particular favourite album on vinyl you like to listen to
all the time.
As
mentioned before, I don’t play vinyl, haven't for years, although I
really miss the days when I would hop on the bus to Penny Lane
Records in Liverpool and browse through the wax there. Some of the
covers were works of art.
Like
myself, you're heavily involved with The Doom Charts. Do you like
doing the monthly doom charts or does it take it's toll on you.
I
have to hold my hands up. I haven’t contributed for a while, mainly
because of the time factor. Also, most of my votes never ended up on
there hahahaha!
That’s
not a gripe by the way because I still follow what goes on and I know
that the actual voting is regularly discussed and the guys are always
looking for ways to improve it.
Has
is it surprised you how well liked the Doom Charts have become and
well respected by the Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal community in general.
No,
not really surprised, there are some pretty big hitters who
contribute. Plus, its a handy way of seeing what you’ve missed.
The biggest problem, for me is that it doesn’t, or can’t, truly
reflect what’s going on in the doom scene. It doesn’t represent
the real underbelly of the scene and as such remains populist. Its
difficult to amend that, and again it is acknowledged by the
contributors, because the majority of the guys are into similar
sounds.
Lucas
Klaukein asked me to contribute for that very reason, but,
unfortunately there needs to be more people who are into the more
extreme part of it. However, as I’ve said, the guys are aware of
that, and it’s good to see that all of the hard work they put in is
rewarded.
You're
highly respected within the Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal community. What
things do you like being involved with the community. Are there
certain aspects you don't like when promoting bands across the entire
scenes.
The
best thing is when a Banda acknowledges that you’ve actually made a
difference to their sales or standing within the scene. I concentrate
on the little guys, the ones without labels, or have a demo that they
have spent a lot of time on and are really proud of. They ask you
what you think of it and occasionally you have to say wow! Cave Suns
was an example.
Another
one was a band called Black Thyria. I played a track of theirs on the
show last month and they couldn’t believe that someone was actually
playing one of their songs. It makes the effort and the expense worth
while.
On
the downside, all too often you can promote a show and the bands
can’t even be bothered to share the post. Some of their, ahem,
public relations leave a lot to be desired. Another downside is
receiving a promo, but then you can’t do anything until such a
blog, or radio station has streamed it or previewed it first. I’m
well aware that there are many, many, blogs and shows with more clout
than mine, but my time is precious and I refuse to tread on
eggshells.
I
had to pull a show at the last minute once when a label got all
shirty about a track I was going to play, saying that it was going to
be part of a press release and under no circumstances was it to be
played. That’s after I asked, and received permission to play it, I
always check as a matter of courtesy first. Band who are just
starting out just want their music played and don’t care where and
when, and are usually humble with it.
What
have been your favourite albums of 2017 so far.
I
was dreading this question. Another vintage year so far, and I don’t
keep lists. The Grim Ravine’s ‘The Light is From Below’ is a
favourite, as is ‘Rotten Sabbat’ by Regress. Recent favourite is
So Much For The Sun’s self titled. I’m also looking forward to
‘Veneration Rites’ by Longbarrow
How
do you relax away from the crazy world of blogging. As we all need
time away to chill out.
Music
takes up a HUGE amount of my time, so there isn’t much time for
anything else. I live right alongside a canal, so I love walking the
dog, then breakfast at the local pub. I did go fishing, but just
don’t get the time. I love football, both watching and playing.
Liverpool FC is my team. Otherwise its music, music, music.
Well
Steve. Thanks for doing this interview. Great catching up. Do you
have any final words of wisdom you would like to share with us all.
Thanks
Steve. Being asked to do this was a great surprise, and a huge
honour. Words of wisdom, hmmm. I’ve noticed a lot if squabbling
between various factions of the scene recently, whether it be
bloggers or YouTubers. Its making the bands choose who to align
themselves with, which, in the long run isn’t a good thing. We all
need a united front.
For
example, if you receive a death metal album to review, but you never
touch that particular genre normally, then rather ignore it, send it
to a blog that will be keen to promote it. Share the albums around
with each other, get the music out there. Obviously get the
permission of the band, label or PR Rep in question before doing this.
As
for the bands and labels, if you see that a blog has reviewed an
album or gig of yours, then at the very least show interest by
sharing it, the guy who wrote it has not done it for financial
reward, but for the sheer love of your music, same with the radio
shows.
kiddies,
always wear ear plugs at shows...it makes sense in the long run, take
it from one who knows.
Finally,
ffs, don’t forget the enjoyment you once had listening to music and
discovering new bands, keep the flame burning inside, things have
never been so good with this amazing scene.
Words
by Steve Howe and Steve Woodier
The
Shrieks From Below Links:
