Today on Sludgelord I am interviewing Daz Rowlands
from Space Witch – The amazing Space RockSludge/Stoner Metal band
who have blown the whole blog team away with their amazing new EP –
The Alchemy Paradox
I recently described this album as - “It
takes a band with talent to make you feel emotionally involved with
their music when they are relying on their music alone. But Space
Witch have pulled off this big time.
The Alchemy Paradox is a stunning debut release that I urge you all to check out now. Definitely a band to keep an eye out for. Lets hope they don’t go an extended hiatus as before. You need this band in your life.
Believe us folks that these guys are something special. Their EP is going to blast these cosmic sludge rockers hopefully onto a bigger stage.”
The band have been going since 2007 with a few
lineup changes but the constant person behind Space Witch is Daz
Rowlands (Guitars/FX) – who has kindly agreed an interview with me.
So lets get started with this insane and highly talented individual
Ladies and Gents
Q1 – Hi Daz, Thanks for doing this. How
are things with you and the band Today.
Hi Steve, we're good thanks. For the record I've
been called insane many times, but never talented! The band is
currently preparing for a string of shows we have booked in May, June
and July. We've recently recruited 2 new members and are working hard
to get the balance right for the shows, in particular for the mini
tour in June in support for our latest release 'The Alchemy Paradox'.
It's all coming together and we're extremely happy with how the new
members have contributed to the sound so far...
Q2 – For people not in the know can you
give them a brief history of the band and how it came about.
I started the band back in 2007 with a close a
friend. It was definitely an opportunity to switch off, release and
deal with some things I had going on at the time. After a few months
we got a steady lineup and wrote some solid songs based on
experimenting with some riffs and the electronics we had available to
us at the time.
In 2008 we started doing some local shows, a few
out of the area, recorded a 2 track demo 'Space Witch' and was added
to the Future Noise roster. In 2009 we played with Bill Steers'
Firebird and attempted to record a longer release. In mid 2009 we
went on hiatus which gave us all the opportunity to focus on other
projects. I focused on a side project called 'The Weird Head', but
always had the intention of continuing Space Witch.
In 2011 it became clear that a couple of the
original members didn't want to return as they wanted to focus their
efforts purely on their main project.
At that point I recruited a new drummer and an
extra guitar player. We rehearsed over a 6 week period and started to
gig again locally and in Bristol. After some discussions with the
members in 'The Weird Head' we decided in 2012 to merge the band into
Space Witch by the end of the summer the merge had failed.
After speaking to a couple of close friends within
the local scene I decided to look for new members and with their
support recruited Daniel Mansfield on drums and Ian Hickton on bass.
Over a couple of months we wrote 2 new songs and reworked one of the
older tracks. We did our first gig as a 3 piece at the end of the
year in December. At the end of January 2013 we recorded 'The Alchemy
Paradox' and gained support from Bristol based label Cosmic Tomb who
offered to put the EP out on cassette.
Since then we've done a number of shows in and out
the area and released the EP as well as securing further one-off
shows, a mini tour and a couple fest appearances.
Q3 – During that time you have been on
extended hiatus and had a few lineup changes. Was that a hard time to
carry on going. Or did you feel you everything would come together
one day and that time is now.
During the hiatus I was busy focusing on 'The
Weird Head' as well as promoting some DIY gigs I was putting on at
the time so I didn't find it that difficult. 'The Weird Head' were
quite busy locally and we self released an album during the hiatus
period.
Like I said I always had the intention of
continuing Space Witch it was just a matter of when really and with
whom. In my humble opinion each lineup change has been an improvement
on the last as working with different people keeps things fresh and
interesting. I certainly enjoyed my time with each lineup and
appreciate the contribution each member has made to the band past and
present.
Q4 – How would you describe your sound. As
I would describe it Cosmic Space Rock/Sludge/Stoner Metal
I wouldn't disagree with your description, but it
is what it is really. Get Your Rock Out in a recent review described
it as a fusion of Post Rock, Doom and Jazz, I wouldn't disagree with
that either. There are certainly elements from different genres in
our music, but rather than trying to categorise it I'd prefer to say
we have moments of heaviness, minimalism and spaced out vibes.
Q5 – Which bands and artists influence you
directly as musicians.
We listen to so much music it would be difficult
to list them all. We certainly don't listen to a particular genre
either, we like what we like and what we listen to changes based on
our mood. What I can say is it isn't main stream music we listen to.
Q6 – Are you all full time musicians or do
you have regular jobs to paythe bills.
We all work full time jobs to pay the bills, music
is our hobby. We do it because we enjoy doing it nothing else.
Q7 – Are your family and friends
supportive of your music.
Very much so, our family and friends have been
extremely supportive. They understand why we do it and continue to do
it, this is an outlet an expensive hobby.
Q8 – What is the song-writing process in
the band. Is it a group collective or is just down to one individual.
It's very much a collective process as we use
jamming as the main approach to generating ideas and getting the feel
right just as we like it. It wouldn't work if one individual come in
with a completed song, we work best where we all contribute to the
writing process. It's very much an open book where everyone throws in
their contribution into the melting pot.
Q9 – Your new EP – The Alchemy Paradox.
– What a brilliant release. Congrats on that one. Now what the hell
is it all about. Or do you want people to draw their own conclusions.
Thanks for your kind words. We can't believe the
response we've received to be honest. As I've said we do this for
ourselves, but when people like it, it's an unexpected surprise to
say the very least. Ian came up with the title of the EP and its
certainly up to people to draw their own conclusions.
Q10 – Was it an easy EP to write and
record for.
The first 2 tracks on the EP took a lot of hard
work for us to get it to feel how we wanted it from a
writing
perspective. The last track on the EP took no time at all and just
dropped out pretty much. We recorded the EP DIY style over a couple
of days at a local rehearsal studio and we only used 2 average
microphones. OK, we spent a small sum of money getting a local studio
to mix and master it.
Q11 – Now it has been released would you
change any aspect of the album. Or would you leave it as it is
We'd leave it as is. We're happy with it as it
captures us at a point in time and in it's rawest form as a 3 piece.
Since we recorded we've added little things here and there, but that
is purely by happy accidents when we've played them live.
Q12 – How big of a help has BandCamp been
in getting your music across to the masses.
BandCamp really makes things easier for us as it
takes the pain out of hosting our own site. The streaming,
downloading and merch selling capability is perfect for us as it
doesn't need much effort from us. We put the stuff up and BandCamp
deal with all the technical stuff.
Q13 – Congrats on releasing the EP on
Cassette Tape and selling nearly all of the copies out. Was that an
easy decision to make to release it on Tape. Is there a
chance of a CD/Vinyl Release in the future. Or is it too expensive.
The tapes have now sold out. We heard the release
on cassette for the first time recently and the sound of it is
amazing. Not only do cassettes sound great they are cheap to produce
too, the perfect media for bands that don't have much money and want
to put it out physically rather than just digitally.
When Nate from Cosmic Tomb offered to put it out
we couldn't turn it down. There was no question in our mind it was
the right media to put out and the right label to work with. Like any
other band on the scene we'd like to put out a vinyl release in the
future. Initially a split vinyl followed up by a double gatefold
would be ideal. Cost is a big issue for us, we have no money to put
into a standalone vinyl release. CD media for sure at some point.
Q14 – Is there a scene in your home town
for you guys to gig regularly.Or do you have to travel further afield
to perform live.
The scene in Stoke on Trent was pretty healthy on
the DIY side of things. Plenty of people turning out for shows and
showing their support. More recently its been difficult as a lot of
the venues that allowed DIY shows have shutdown or have stopped doing
it due to company politics. 2011 and 2012 we were very active in the
local scene, 2013 has seen us play more shows out of our area.
Back in the day there wasn't as many
doom/sludge/stoner shows put on within travelling distance, but at
the moment it seems to be very active and we could easily go and see
3 shows a month. With us being based in Stoke we can easily travel to
Manchester and Birmingham, and just make an evening of it.
Q15 – In five words what is the Space
Witch live experience like. (Folks – I will have my own live review
coming up when I see them perform live in June 2013).
Moments of Minimalism(1), repetition(2),
heaviness(3) with dynamics(4) and feel(5).
Q16 – What is your fave track off the EP.
Mine has to be – Black Pyramid. Not one of the longest tracks but
some of the best riffs are on that track.
For me it has to be Hang the Witch, but that song
has more of a personal connection to me. Black Pyramid we threw
together in about an hour and to be fair was pretty forced at the
time we wrote it. Not usually the way we go about things, but with 2
weeks to go before our debut show (with the new lineup) we had little
choice, but to knock it up quickly.
Q17 – What are your favourite bands around
at the moment. Do you listen to modern day rock/metal or do you just
listen to the classic era of Stoner/Sludge/Doom/Post-Rock/Post-Metal.
There are so many bands, eras and genres that I
listen too it would be difficult to list them all. I tend to listen
to the underground more than anything else to be honest that is where
I feel the best modern music is created. Theres been a few bands this
year (thus far) that have absolutely blown me away;
Undersmile/Comawall, Yowie and Bongripper.
Q18 – What are your views of blogs such as
Sludgelord featuring and reviewing your records
The support we've received from the scene
blogs/zines/YouTube channels has been amazing. Without them we would
of not been able to get our music out and heard to the extent it has
been. We are very grateful for all the support we have received past
and present. We see them as the core of the underground (DIY) based
music. Blogs and zines keep the scene alive.
Q19 – What are the most and least
rewarding aspects of participating with the band. Obviously the
reality of how expensive it is being in a band could be considered as
a negative aspect.
We do what we do because we enjoy doing it. The
rewarding aspects are doing the shows, hearing the final masters of
recordings, seeing your mates at least once a week, receiving support
and feedback from various sources. Its a real bonus for uswhen we
play a show that we enjoy which is followed up by folk telling us
they enjoyed it too. The positives far out weigh the cost aspects in
our opinion, but at the end of the day we do try to cover costs where
possible, if not we share the costs between ourselves.
Q20 – What words of wisdom would you give
to a band starting out or some friends wanting to start a band of
their own.
Do it for one reason and one reason alone... For
the love of it! If you want to get shows in and out of your area then
networking is key. If you want people to listen to your music then
make as much as you can freely available via streaming, downloads and
YouTube. Use free or pay as you go services such as Facebook,
BandCamp, Bigcartel, PayPal and Tourbox to help promote yourselves
and build up a contact network. Above all else support the scene, go
see bands in/out of the area and speak to people.
Q21 – Finally, Do you have anything to say
your fans
A big shout out to the people that have been to
see us, brought a T Shirt and/or brought the EP. All the guys in
Space Witch are absolutely blown away by the support you have shown
us. The people in this scene are the best!
Well Daz thanks for talking to me. Been
great talking to you dude. Good luck with your excellent EP. No doubt
I will catch up with you at the Leeds gig in June. All the best from
Sludgelord.
