Doom/Stoner Metallers Midnight Whiskey Massacre debut EP - Satan’s Grin - is a weird concoction of Doom, Sludge, Stoner, Grunge, Post-Punk and Psych Rock. This is a great record that showcases the arrival of a great band especially with the excellent spiky vocals Darren Ironside reminding me of Shane McGowan and Mark E Smith at times.
I wanted to find out more about this cool band and I’m happy to report that Darren Ironside (Guitars/Vocals) kindly agreed to this interview.
Hi Darren. Thanks for doing this interview. How are things with you today?
Hi Steve, no problem, thank you for your time. All good here!
For folks not in the know can you give a brief history of how the band came together and where it is today?
I first started writing the songs that would end up on the debut material, ‘Overwatch and Control’ in 2022, out of the observations of a lot of people’s frustration and anger, of the after effects of covid and the implemented government policies and law changes since then, that worked negatively against the population.
So I guess that first inspired me to write the songs and continue to progress it to where it is today. Me and the bassist, Sam, are looking for a regular drummer and rhythm guitarist to get out playing live shows. Until then work has started to begin on new material.
How do you describe your own sound?
I guess you would say it’s a raw mix of heavy rock, proto-metal and doomy, sludgy, stoner rock, with southern rock vibes and doom metal grooves, delivered with a punk kind of sound or twist.
We're here to discuss your new EP - Satan's Grin. Great EP and quite an unusual sound but in a good way. What can people expect to hear from this EP?
Big, raw and doomy/sludgy metal and heavy rock riffs with a difference, if you love your heavy rock and metal songs with quite a unique sound, I think there is something here for everyone to enjoy as it has a lot of different musical styles and genres incorporated into it, ranging from blues, metal, heavy rock, doom, post punk and stoner rock.
One fan described the song ‘Rocking chair’ as a bit like, if Iggy Pop wrote a metal song!
This is a quite an highly unusual EP with elements of Stoner, Doom, Post-Punk and Southern Rock. Was that your plan to create something different to your previous EPs?
No, not really, it’s just how it came out with the influences of the genres I enjoy listening to, I think.
Where did the name for the band come from and where did the name for the EP came from as well?
I came up with the name some time ago, that I wanted to use if I ever got this project going and some people have said listening to this music makes them feel slightly drunk! So it seems to kind of make sense and fits the style of the music.
What bands and EPs influenced you when recording this EP?
To be honest there wasn’t any particular band or ep that influenced the recording or mindset, in terms of wanting to sound like anyone else. It was recorded straight through mic’d amps with fairly traditional methods and without too much studio trickery and the like, so it was kept quite raw sounding.
The post punk sound on some of the songs on the EP, like Rocking chair and Satan’s grin probably come from the influences and tastes of the raw sounds, of bands that I was into and loved back in the day, like Nirvana, Therapy etc and then later, heavier, more groove based doom and sludge bands, like EyeHateGod, Corrosion of Conformity, The Obsessed.
I was always into stuff with a raw, honest edge and a big sound, so I guess it came from that.
What formats is the EP being released on?
For now it is just available on digital format
You`re releasing the EP by yourself. Is that a hard thing to do in today's musical scene?
Well it’s probably easier now than ever before, for artists for to record and do all or most of the work themselves, but if you don’t have that ability to do so and you want to go into a studio and need to get it done there, obviously that has to be funded and isn’t always easy to do in today’s financial climate.
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?
I write the music and songs from home myself so far and then we pretty much go from there.
Who designed the excellent EP cover. Really brings to light what the whole EP is about.
That would be Harry Awongo via Instagram and yes there is kind of a message in there and the songs, with the world's current financial landscape and political climate being what it is, have certainly made these times very interesting for us all to be living in.
What is the current state of your local Rock/Metal scene? Do you perform gigs on a regular basis and do you have a local scene that you are actively involved with?
Locally it’s not that great, there are a few good bands within the genre, but not many venues that you can go to, that play original heavy music in Hertfordshire, unless you go to London or another big city where you can see the more well known bands on tour, or that play our sort of music within this scene.
Will you be performing any gigs to promote this EP locally or further afield?
We certainly hope to, we just need to find a regular drummer and rhythm guitarist who wants to join us on this journey.
Words of wisdom for fans?
We really hope you can enjoy the EP and try and help support all artists by buying their music and merch wherever possible and continuing to support bands and venues, to keep live music and bands alive and kicking. Without you all and all of that, it wouldn’t be possible!
Rock on!
Words by Steve Howe and Darren Ironside
Links
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