Doom/Stoner Rockers FLAMEBEARER are slowly gathering the creative forces for releasing their brilliantly entertaining upcoming new album "IGNITER" due for release later this year. The album features a great mix of Punk, Hard Rock, Doom, Sludge and Stoner Metal sounds bound to get your heart pumping from start to finish.
FLAMEBEARER released their excellent debut album Brazen back in 2024 to some great acclaim within the underground Heavy Rock scene. The record features a ton of great tracks you can instantly sing along with great classic Heavy Metal melodies holding things together.
I wanted to find out more about the band and they've kindly agreed to do the the following interview which tells you all you need to know about how the band started and what to expect from the forthcoming album.
Hi guys. Thanks for doing the interview. How are things with you today?
Dom: Great thanks. Glad the summer seems to finally be arriving!
For folks not in the know, can you give a brief history of how the band came together and
where it is today?
Alastair: My last band Brule had called it a day just before COVID, and then Andy's band ended and we got chatting. We started coming up with ideas. We found Dom and Thiago and got the ball rolling. We did a couple of demos and then first album Brazen came out 2 years ago.
Andy V: Yes, Oak my old band had run it's course. It was lockdown and I was determined to get something together as I really wasn't done with this yet. Al rang me and it's crazy it just starts with a couple of riffs and here we are.
How would you describe your own sound?
Dom: We're a blend of hard rock, classic doom metal and punk swagger, with a splash of glam rock thrown in there for good measure. We got described once as Glam Doom, so maybe that's a good way to put it.
Alastair: I once described us as high energy doom. We are as comfortable listening The Sweet and Slade as we are listening to Immortal and GBH. Big riffs and big choruses, and the odd solo too.
You recently released your new single “Bow Down To Me”. Great track. What has the
reception been like to the track? Are you pleased with the responses the single has received.
Dom: People seem to really like the energy of it and it goes down really well live. We just want more people to hear it! I think there is a vibe to the song that opens us up to different audiences, so getting the song out there to them is an avenue we'd like to explore.
Andy V: I love the video we've made. We don't have a lot of resources but make the most of what we have. It's got out on socials well, Spotify not so great or YouTube but it's making a lot of noise on Instagram etc.
This is the first track to be released from your forthcoming second album. Can you give any details when the album is being released and what people can expect to hear from the album.
Dom: The album will be called Igniter and it's going to be released on August 7th. And we're thrilled to say we've partnered with Interstellar Smoke Records who will be releasing it on vinyl as well as through the usual digital platforms.
Is the upcoming album vastly different to your 202-4 debut album “BRAZEN”.
Dom: I wouldn't say vastly different, but I think with Brazen we sowed a few seeds for what was to come. So I'd say the faster, punkier elements of that album are what have carried over into the new record the most.
Alastair: I think we have just evolved a little more down the punkier, up-tempo side.
Andy V: Vocally and lyrically we have spent way more time diving into melodies, themes and lyrics etc. Way more time on backing too. I think the songs are stronger and have a lot more impact. We are very proud of this one.
Were you happy with the responses that BRAZEN received from the Stoner Rock/Metal community.
Andy V: The response from those who heard it and bought it was wonderful but not many people did and that is the biggest challenge, getting it out there to be heard.
Dom: It was a good step up for us though and did help us land bigger shows.
Looking back, would you change anything about that album?
Alastair: Yeah, releasing it on vinyl would have been good!
Andy V: I think we had great songs but we needed to add depth to them. I think we needed to look at backing vocals a lot more etc. Something we've done a lot more on this next album.
What bands and artists influenced you when recording the BRAZEN and even the upcoming new album.
Dom: We really wanted to keep up the energy on Igniter and show a bit of cocky rock'n'roll snarl. We kept realising there was a sort of Scandinavian rock vibe coming forth when we were writing it. We were getting some Hellacopters/Turbonegro/Kvelertak feels from it and we didn't shy away from that
Alastair: There were definitely less obviously Trouble-inspired riffs from me this time around. We are all into a variety of punk bands anyway, from MC5 and Stooges, through to Misfits and GBH. Kiss, early Crue and WASP also feature in our musical DNA. I love super obscure 80s demo bands as much as the next metal nerd but you nothing beats a huge chorus.
Can you advise if you’ve played or currently playing in other bands so folks can check out your other musical projects.
Alastair: I originally met Andy when an old of mine played with his band Ossiyan, and then we played with his next band Oak (which at various times featured Richard from Warpstormer and Scott from Green Lung, so well worth checking out). Andy also sings in 1968, a killer hard rocking band with a Blue Cheer approach to volume.
I currently also play in Under The Ashes; sort of death/thrash/crust kinda of vibe. Slayer, trouble and sacrilege riffs and some blast beats. Thiago played in Mocho Diablo back in Brazil. I've been in loads of band over the years including Decomposed and Mourn in the early 90s, Blood Island Raiders in the 00s and Age Of Taurus in the 10s
Which bands, artists or albums inspired you all to pick up a musical instrument and to become a musician.
Alastair: For me it all started with Iron Maiden on Tiswas. I had a tiny drum kit and a mic as a kid but never managed to learn to use either correctly. Eventually got a guitar in 88 and I've stuck with it. I'm hoping I'll get the basics right on that soon enough. I grew up on classic metal and heavy rock, so it was Maiden, Saxon, Manowar, Gillan, Kiss, Lizzy, MSG and so on that formed my outlook. Then thrash and death metal, but seeing Candlemass in 89 was one of those life changing moments. I got into doom, and since then Trouble, Vitus, The Obsessed, Force and Pentagram have been a huge influence.
Andy: Led Zeppelin, Sex Pistols and The Cult had a huge influence on my life from mid teens, it all started from there.
What are your high points and low points with Flamebearer or your musical career in general?
Alastair: For Flamebearer, playing Bloodstock as pretty much unknowns and getting a huge reaction was great. Playing live is all about having a connection. Outside this band, in previous bands I've supported two of my almost time favourite bands - Trouble and Bang. Also I played with Lord of Putrefaction so I'm one of only a few people who never saw them.
Andy V: Bloodstock, Stoomfest, mucking around making music videos and coming up with riffs these are the high notes for me. I think it's tough when you put your heart and soul into great music and not many people hear it. We work extremely hard trying to break through but it's on its way.
Dom: Sometimes it's not all about the biggest stages with a sea of people, sometimes the best shows are intimate with a bunch of people you are connecting with who are just purely connecting with the music and with the show. Last year we headlined the Beneath The Arches festival at Radio City Social in Chelmsford. It's a fairly compact but amazing venue, and every person in that crowd was going wild. It was such a blast and probably one of my favourite shows we've played. Also the guys at Radio City Beer Works very kindly collaborated with us on creating our own beer for that show - Taste Helles. So that was an amazing thing for us.
What is the creative process or setup within the band? Do you write the music together or do certain people within the band do that?
Alastair: It often starts with me chucking riffs onto the group chat, and if they stick we then jam them in the room. Sometimes the song is done in 20 mins, and sometimes we show it over time. That said, Dom brought Electric Haze in pretty much as it is. Falling Down on the other hand started life 25 years ago with an old band of mine.
Andy V: Vocals just come out of me.I make sounds which kinda make melodies and go from there. Lyrics are something I've definitely spent more time looking at on this album. They used to be an after thought really.
We all know that London has a vibrant and huge Rock/Metal scene. However, does this allow you to perform gigs on a regular basis and do you have a local scene that you're actively involved with?
Alastair: London has loads of venues and there are always places to play. If anything, London has multiple scenes, you can go to two death metal gigs and see two completely different sets of fans. Obviously there is the whole Desertfest/Desertscene thing, and them and Old Empire are bringing in a lot of the big name bands and providing the push at that end. You've got London Doom Collective and they are also doing something similar on a more underground front. Helgis in Hackney is focal point for a lot the dirtier end of our scene, whether doom, sludge, death or whatever.
Will you be performing any gigs to promote the upcoming album locally or further afield.
Dom: We have a release show coming up on August 8th, the the day after the album drops, at The Grace in London (upstairs at The Garage in Highbury). We're really looking forward to this show and we have some great bands coming to play with us to celebrate - Wytch Pycknyck from Hastings and fellow London lads Satan's Baby.
Before you go, do you have any words of wisdom for your new and potential fans out
Andy V: Most definitely keep coming to shows otherwise it's going to die. The sheer talent out there in the underground is unreal now. Keep checking out new bands as well, in general just get out there, there's actually a world out there waiting for you, stop looking down and start looking up, it's all three for you.
Words by Steve Howe and FLAMEBEARER
Links
https://www.facebook.com/flamebearerband
https://www.instagram.com/flamebearerband/?hl=en
https://flamebearer.bandcamp.com/
Thanks to FLAMEBEARER for all of the details.
