By: Mark Ambrose & Aaron Pickford
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The two-piece metal group is
a risky venture: for every stellar example that incorporates multiple
registers, tones, and intimate dynamics (Bell Witch, NEST, Obsidian
Tongue) there are a dozen that do not sound like anything except an
inept demo tape (which I politely won’t call out here). Thankfully Oryx, the Colorado by
way of Santa Fe two-piece, fall solidly into the former group: a balanced
collaboration that sounds like a symphony of savagery. While “Stolen
Absolution” is a sophomore release, this marked their first album as a
two-piece – a sort of second debut, more distinct, assured, and unique than
their prior effort, “Widowmaker”.
Skip
forward nearly 4 months since the release of this record and the band are set
to play some of the biggest shows of their short tenure, what’s more the band
are set reinvent themselves again. This week
I hooked up with drummer Abigail Davis to get the low down on their forthcoming
shows and she tell us about their decision to change up the line up once more,
to present Oryx 3.0
So Abbey, welcome to THE SLUDGELORD! Could
you tell our readers a little about how you started playing music, leading up
to the formation of Oryx?
Tommy (guitar, vocals) has been playing in metal and
punk bands for most of his life. I picked up the drums in high school and then
really dove headfirst into it once Tommy and I started jamming five years ago.
We helped run
a DIY show space in Las Cruces, NM called The Trainyard. We lived right down
the street from it, so we would show up at around midnight and play as loud as
we wanted without bothering anyone. We just kept playing together until we felt
ready for shows. Oryx was born.
For those people unfamiliar with Oryx, is there any
bands on the scene past and present that you would use as a reference point
bands to describe your band, and who or what continues to inspire you and push
you to try new things?
Bands
like Earth, Man is the Bastard, Eyehategod, Drunkdriver, Corrupted, and Noothgrush are all huge
influences on us. Currently active bands like Primitive Man,
Yob, Bell Witch, Thou, and The Body continue to inspire
us and pave the way for heavy music in general.
What can you tell us about your latest
record “Stolen Absolution” and where
do you feel it sits within the context of current doom scene
With
‘Stolen Absolution’, we set out to
create an album that could represent our live sound more accurately and
articulate our voice better than any of our other previous recordings. We feel
the album stands strongly on its own in the current doom scene, but it’s also a
mash up of several genres and with darker undertones that black metal or
blackened doom fans could appreciate.
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| Alvino Salcedo (C) |
Does anything
spring to mind when you think about the completion of “Stolen Absolution”
and for those paying attention to the article, they may notice a change. So with that in mind, how is the mood in the
camp at present?
After “Stolen
Absolution” released in February, Tommy and I re-evaluated what we wanted
for the band. We decided that we wanted to see this band evolve and grow beyond
what we’ve been able to achieve as a two piece. We figured that one way to try
this would be to incorporate a bassist into the mix. Over the past several
months we have been writing new music with our newest member, David Saylor. We
met David years ago when we played with his band Terminator 2. David brings a unique style to
the band and we are happy to have him on board. Having a new voice to
collaborate on song writing feels like a fresh start for the band. It’s also
allowing Tommy to expand on his guitar parts in ways we’ve never been able to
do before. It’s an exciting time for Oryx!
With
you new record released and a new member on board, how is your schedule shaping
up over the next 12 months?
Well we are excited to
announce that we are heading back to the studio in June to record several
tracks for an upcoming split. This time we are recording with Greg Wilkinson at
Earhammer Studios in Oakland. This is a bucket list recording studio for us. We
have two big shows in June as well. We are opening for Ufomammut on June 9th
at Sister Bar in Albuquerque, NM and then we open for the legendary Sleep at the Ogden Theatre
here in Denver on June 11th. For these two shows, we will have a
friend guest subbing on bass while David travels back to Texas for some shows
with Terminator 2.
Get ready to see Oryx
debut as a three piece for these shows! We also have plans to tour in August.
Those dates and cities will be released soon.
Finally,
do you have any last words?
Thanks for
the interview and the support, SLUDGELORD! Cheers!
