Few questions – interview with progressive thrash/speed metal band from Canada - DROID.
Ave, can you introduce your band to
our readers? – When was it founded and what style of
music do you play , etc.?
We (Droid)
were formed in 2012 by myself, Jacob Montgomery (Guitar and Vocals), Sebastian
Alcamo (Drums) and Mike Gabor (Formerly on Bass). In early 2017 Mike was
replaced by long time friend of the band and veteran Toronto bassist Chris
Riley.
We play a style of metal that is a mix of late 80’s thrash metal and early 70’s
progressive and psychedelic rock. We’ve been referred to as space thrash or
psychedelic metal by audience members at shows before.
Where and
under what conditions were you recording the new album? Who was in charge of
sound, production and mastering?
The band originally entered the studio Easter weekend in 2015 to record 3 songs (2 of which were intended for a 7” and one for a split 7”) but upon the collapse of plans for the 7” and split the band decided to re-enter the studio in late April 2016 the record the remaining 6 songs that were planned for the album. The combination of these two sessions is what ended up being the album (Terrestrial Mutations).
It was recorded at Skylark Park Studio in Pembroke, Ontario and was engineered by Jordon Zadorozny (owner and operator of Skylark Park) and produced by myself and Jordon.
The mixing and mastering was done by Mark Kopernicky at his studio in our hometown of Brampton, Ontario.
How many
copies were released and which medium was used for this new edition (CD,
digital, vinyl, cassette)?
500 copies will be released on CD by
Nightbreaker Productions out of Italy and a very limited run of Cassettes will
be put out by Temple of Mystery Records out of Canada.
Right now we are still shopping around the record to labels for a vinyl release.
Who is the
author of the lyrics and how were they created and about what do the lyrics
deal with?
I
(Jacob) handle all of the lyrics. Lyrical inspiration usually comes from
whatever events are happening (and overwhelming) in my life at the time as well
as what ever literature I am reading at the time (usually non-fiction
sociological articles). Thematically the struggles of daily life on an
individual and global level tend to be an ever present re-occurring theme, any
and all ‘Sci-fi’ references are purely allegorical.
Who created the logo of the band, and
who took care of the graphics and the website? What about you and social
networks? Do you consider these things important?
Our
current logo was created by a graphic designer and very close friend to the
band named Adam Power. The album art was done by Danny Francis and the layout
for the record was handled by Annick Giroux.
I think social networking is important for small bands such as ourselves
because it allows us to be put into direct contact with fans, promoters, labels
etc. It also allows for an easy platform for promoting your music and sharing
it with anyone and everyone around the world.
Though I do believe it is not entirely necessary and that there is no true
substitute for gigging a lot and word of mouth promotion.
Which label did you choose for
releasing your album and why this label? Are you satisfied by how your label
represents you and takes care about you?
Alex
Panza from Nightbreaker Productions reached out to us after our first Ep
(Disconnected) was released on vinyl to remix and master it for CD. He also at
the time offered to work with us on any future releases by the band, an offer
which we took him up on recently due to how pleased we with with our past
experiences in dealing with him and the label.
Annick Giroux (who operates Temple of Mystery Records with her husband
François) reached out to us about possibly putting out our record some time
after booking us for Wings of Metal (The best Metal festival in Canada!).
I
am very pleased to be involved with both of these labels as they are owned and
operated by fans and musicians themselves, so there is a great level of
enthusiasm and patience and understanding that comes from someone who
completely understands where you are coming from on an artistic and business
level. Both go through great lengths to ensure the bands they collaborate with
are completely satisfied with the final product.
I have nothing but the upmost respect for both Annick and Alex. Die hards like
them keep the scene alive.
Which bands
do you idolize and where do you get your inspiration?
The
bands that most inspire the music of Droid from a song writing point of view
are Voivod, Mekong Delta, Atheist, Coroner, Megadeth, Annihilator, Hawkwind and
King Crimson.
I get my inspiration musically from whatever records I am listening to at the
time of the writing process (song writing influences can be and broad and
general as that statement implies), though recently (and for our third record,
seeing as our second album is already written) more melodic bands have started
to influence my song writing such as early Fates Warning and Vicious Rumors.
Did you send
your record to some Labels - which are the labels? How was the response?
We
have sent our record to a few labels in Europe with the hopes of getting our
album released on vinyl. The ones who took the time to listen to it and respond
to us with compliments with regards to the production quality of the album and
the bands musicianship, though declined due to the unorthodox nature of our
music being outside of their taste and or sound of their label.
How many gigs
have you played? Which type of gigs do you prefer, whether it's (clubs or
festivals) and which of your performances would you consider as the best?
We have played probably somewhere around 30-40 gigs (though that is just a guess) since 2013.
Personally, I prefer house shows or small DIY venues. These are the kinds of shows I started playing first with previous bands and that is where you tend to find the most enthusiastic audiences as well as the most relaxed and energetic performances from the band.
That being said I do have to say that performing Wings of Metal Festival in
2015 and opening for Angel Witch was a high point for the band.
Of any of our shows id have to say that our show last spring with Absolut
(R.I.P) and Tau Cross was one of the tightest shows the band ever played.
What about
your plans for the future? What do you want to achieve with the band?
We
currently have 3/4ths of our second album rehearsed with our new bassist,
so we hope to enter the studio early next year to record the follow up to
Terrestrial Mutations with the new line up.
I am also half way through writing our 3rd album, which will be a
concept record (a first for the band).
Our immediate show plans are to play around Ontario and Quebec for this current
record, hopefully reaching the east coast of Canada for some shows the
following year.
Our long term/future goals are to do a short European tour and play more
festivals and to continue writing and stretching the boundaries of Droid.
How and where
can your fans contact you? Can you provide some contact information?
Anyone
can contact us via e-mail at droidhm@gmail.com
or via facebook at https://www.facebook.com/DroidDroidDroid
Thank you very much.
