The Metalist za’s very own guitar man, Kevin Rule, caught up with Cape Town’s Atlantic South for a not-so-serious interview ahead of their supporting slot for the mighty Fit For A King this Thursday!
Cape town fans, this is one of your last opportunities to get tickets, follow the ticket link below and make sure you don’t miss out! No one likes FOMO.
So…What makes you explode?
(Ric) When a good live rock song reaches an apex, then drops away and there’s that total vacuum of silence for an imperceptibly brief moment before all the atmosphere rushes back in and the music hits critical mass. That makes me explode like a bug on a windshield.
(Gareth)For me it’s when I drink Coca-Cola and eat Mentos.
On a more serious note…since your formation in 2013 you have gone through a couple of band member changes. Tell us a bit more about where the band was and where it is now.
(Ric) I’m the new kid on the block. The others will regale you with Tales of Yore, all I know is the current blend is potent and sexy and ready to start pushing the current sound into daring new places.
(Gareth) That’s a great question. The bands ethos has never really changed although I would say that now in 2018 we are far more driven in achieving our personal goals. I think with the current line-up we all have that same passion and drive. Each member has adopted an “all hands on deck” approach and we are far more involved in every part of the process not limited to writing material but to the marketing of the band as well. Some people say “Too many cooks spoil the broth” although the fact that everyone is so involved suits us perfectly. We are still 5 best friends writing music we enjoy.
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You acquired the skills of known shredder Charles “metaaaaaaal” Pullin…how has his dynamic influenced the band’s writing?
(Gareth) Anyone who knows Charles will know that he is an absolute character. It’s almost as if he was never recruited, he kind of just slotted right in. People don’t actually know that he had in fact been involved with the band from basically before the band even formed. He recorded our first demo as a three-piece back in early 2013. He helped us with everything from recording to gear. When it comes to writing, he just knows what we need. We have always had that relationship where we can look at each other and just know what is needed. Believe it or not he brings a certain calmness and patience to the table that really balances us out. That’s the many years of experience shining through.
(Ric) We’re just rubbing that Charlie funk all over the riffs. He’s been spitting out inventive song ideas like a machine, and it’s really satisfying to start building additional parts on top of such a strong foundation. One things I also really dig is being next to him when we’re on stage because I’m a bit of a novice and he keeps me on my toes. His favourite thing to do is to wait until I’m playing something complex and then wander over and literally kick me in my ass and then grin at me. You gotta be battle-ready at all times with Charles.
You’ve got a couple of really crunchy releases, when can we expect more brutal sonic attacks? What else is in the near future for you?
(Gareth) We have been working on new material for quite some time now. As you know our EP “Fall In Line” was released late 2017/early 2018 but so far we basically have an albums worth of ideas. We are busy in the process of fleshing out the songs in their entirety and will have a new release in the not so distant future. We conducted an experiment with the last EP in terms of release so we are looking at the new material with a much finer tooth comb.
(Ric) We got into a room a few months ago and decided to write a song. Three hours later there was an entire song, catchy riffs, unpredictable structure, trademark breakdowns, it was just all there. This is the first time I’ve experienced being in a band room generating new material from scratch and it was exhilarating. We’ve got a whole pile of great ideas that we’re incubating that seem to be taking us in a more rebellious Classic Rock direction, without compromising on the crushing metallic backbone obviously.
You recently opened for 36 Crazyfists, and soon Fit for a King, those are some pretty epic shows. How is this not going to your heads, you bunch of prima donnas?
(Gareth) Bruh… seriously… you should know us by now haha! Yeah we are obviously stoked that we have been afforded these opportunities to play alongside these amazing and inspiring acts but the only real thing on our minds is that we put on a good show for the fans and promoters. Getting booked is the first hurdle, playing a tight entertaining show is the main hurdle. You got one foot through the door but at the end of the day you must deliver the goods.
(Ric) All these recent opportunities are totally going to my head. I’m in a terrific band with top-tier musicians opening up for internationals. I’m officially cool at last. HOW YOU LIKE ME NOW, BITCHES?!
Can you please explain to everyone why Luke is such a ‘poesface’?
(Ric) Who told you Luke’s a ‘poesface’? Who’s saying mean things about my friend?! WHO?! I’m gonna find them and I’m gonna say discouraging things about their fashion sense and I’m gonna unfriend them on Facebook and I’m gonna passive-aggressively put a horse head in their bed. They mustn’t be nasty to my Lukey, he’s sensitive.
(Gareth) Just look at him. It’s probably because he is a painful perfectionist.
If black wasn’t the traditional uniform for metal….what do you think it should be?
(Ric) I think Metal folks should all just give up on trying to fit in and start wearing nothing but fleecy animal onesies. No underwear or anything, just flopping about freely like Mother Nature intended.
(Gareth)Well for us, we usually do not confirm to the uniform. I’m a bit biased and would say it would have to be backwards caps, flannel shirts and board shorts.
Let’s be honest, you guys are damn good at what you do, how can you improve from where you are now?
(Gareth) First of all thank you for the kind words. It’s a great compliment coming from you Kev. I think the best place we can improve is essentially with work ethic and writing. It’s obviously hard with everyone working full time but yeah I read something the other day about musicians wanting career level results with hobby level commitment. That struck a huge nerve with me and we are going to go the extra mile with the new stuff.
(Ric) It’s encouraging that people respond to our sound. I would say it’s time to start exploring some fresh lyrical territory, maybe widening the tone of our songs to include a bit more structural dynamics. For me specifically, I’m excited because the next batch of songs will give me the opportunity to really tailor-make my bass-lines for maximum internal bleeding.
Good luck for the shows and the future. This isn’t really a question but you can use this space to now thank me for my awesome interview…
(Ric) Kev, I loved your questions. You understand the need to poke fun and inadvertently get interesting stuff out of us without boring us. Nice one. I hope there’s something usable in all my verbose psychobabble.
(Gareth) Kevin you are amazing! We love you and have always cherished your beautiful soul. You write some pretty dank music too. Thanks for the interview and kind words brother! Hope to see you at the show! Fit for a King baby, it’s going to be some crazy fun! We also want to thank the team at Jam Packed Productions for having us on board.
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Interviewed by: Kevin Rule