Contrasting Emotions With MICHAEL SPREITZER From VERONA ON VENUS

Contrasting Emotions With MICHAEL SPREITZER From VERONA ON VENUS

Interview by Kris Peters
It is too easy to get stuck into playing a certain brand of music as an artist.
This can be for a variety of reasons such as the popularity of your band, public expectations, being pigeonholed - any number of reasons. This problem is accentuated when your band is well known for releasing a certain brand of music, where often any deviation or experimentation is met with hostility by existing fans.
It is a situation DevilDriver guitarist Michael (Mike) Spreitzer has found himself in for a prolonged period of time, despite having an unwavering desire to explore other elements of his music personality.
His love for DevilDriver and the music they perform is still as strong as ever, but there has always been a gnawing yearning to explore another side of metal which has always held his interest.
Industrial metal.
After resisting the urge for too long, Spreitzer finally turned his talents to another passion within the realm of metal, forming Verona On Venus (VOV) as a side project to DevilDriver with the sole intent of showcasing yet another of his loves musically.
VOV has released two singles now - Rodent and Monarch Acid Test - from their 2024 debut album Popular Dimensions, expelling some musical demons while simultaneously feeding others.
With a strong emphasis on industrial and goth metal laced with the heavier sounds of the 1990s, Popular Delusions is a collection of songs that are personal in musical nature to Spreitzer, with him also taking the surprise step of assuming vocal duties.
HEAVY recently caught up with Spreitzer to talk about his new project.
"This is something I've been wanting to do for a while," he began. "When I was in high school, I grew up on more… I transitioned from heavy metal into more industrial metal and goth, and Verona On Venus is the result. This is something that has taken me back to my roots and gives me an outlet for that genre of music that I can't really do with DevilDriver."
In the full interview, Mike talks more about Verona On Venus and how long he has been wanting to do something like this, the mysterious campaign that introduced the band and their music, the single Rodent and what he was going for with it, stepping up to sing and how difficult that was, what he gets differently out of playing guitar and singing, the musical nature of the album, covering an Acid Bath song and why, future plans for VOV and more.


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Backstage Chats With SCENE QUEEN At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage Chats With SCENE QUEEN At GOOD THINGS 2025

HEAVY was lucky to again be invited backstage at Good Things 2025 to chat with the bands about their shows and other fun stuff. Today, Angela tackles Scene Queen to get the low down.Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them. Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

14 Des 20256min

Backstage Chats With WARGASM At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage Chats With WARGASM At GOOD THINGS 2025

Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them. Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

14 Des 202513min

Deeper Wells And Deeper Laughs: Dyssidia’s MITCH BRACKMAN Gets Real

Deeper Wells And Deeper Laughs: Dyssidia’s MITCH BRACKMAN Gets Real

Interview by Ali WilliamsIf you thought progressive metal was all serious faces and minor chords, think again. Mitch from Dyssidia joined HEAVY’s own Ali Williams for a wild, winding, and refreshingly unfiltered chat—spanning everything from vinyl snobbery to deadly Frisbees and Adelaide’s criminally underrated music scene.Dyssidia just dropped their sophomore album Deeper Wells of Meaning—only five years after their debut, because, you know, global pandemics and musicians’ creative “pauses.” Mitch spills on the pain of planning an album launch, only to have COVID crash the party two weeks later. The silver lining? More time to marinate, mature, and, presumably, stare at the ceiling thinking about vinyl colour options. Forget digital downloads; Mitch’s passion for vinyl is a religion. The band doesn’t just release albums—they curate tactile experiences. The latest artwork, painted by Adam Burke (with an actual brush—no AI here, people), is so gorgeous that Mitch reckons at least 20% of positive feedback is just fans drooling over the cover. Want a double LP with wild colours? Dyssidia’s got you. Want a band-branded stubby cooler? Even better—just watch out for Mitch’s plans to weaponize plastic frisbees at shows. Rock and roll, but with dental insurance. The band’s gearing up for their album launch in Adelaide, with Adriatic, Wings of Thanatos, and Kuiper joining the chaos. Touring across Australia is like prepping for the Olympics—distances are brutal, costs are bonkers, and sometimes even the koalas get confused by daylight savings. Perth fans: you’re loved, you’re loyal, but unless someone donates a private jet, don’t hold your breath for monthly Dyssidia visits.Dyssidia have re-joined forces with Wild Thing Records—mainly because the contracts are so chill they’re basically handshakes, and the friendships are the real glue. According to Mitch, it’s not about the business as much as it is about the hang. “Most of the time, you’re just trying to survive and connect with other bands, so your mini-tour isn’t just you in a van talking to yourself.”There’s no road map for being a modern prog-metal band. Dyssidia is all about that flexible, DIY, make-it-work spirit—embracing the weirdness of the times, working from home, and enjoying the freedom to create on your own terms. New music is brewing (eventually), Adelaide is still underrated, and at least Ali and Mitch are now Facebook friends. In the words of the great philosopher: Thanks babe.”Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

12 Des 202518min

Backstage chats with ALL TIME LOW At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage chats with ALL TIME LOW At GOOD THINGS 2025

HEAVY was lucky to again be invited backstage at Good Things 2025 to chat with the bands about their shows and other fun stuff. Today, Angela gets cozy with All Time Low.Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them. Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

11 Des 20258min

Backstage Chats With YOURS TRULY At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage Chats With YOURS TRULY At GOOD THINGS 2025

HEAVY was lucky to again be invited backstage at Good Things 2025 to chat with the bands about their shows and other fun stuff. Today, Kyra and Angela get up close with Yours Truly. Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them. Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

11 Des 202513min

Living In A Perfect World With STEVE TULIPANA From SEASON TO RISK

Living In A Perfect World With STEVE TULIPANA From SEASON TO RISK

In 1994, Season to Risk had been on tour for the past four years, playing as a young opening band on legendary shows with Killdozer, Unsane, Neurosis, Prong and Killing Joke. Their first album had sold well, with songs charting on radio and getting music video airtime on MTV and Canada's Much Music. There was an opportunity to take advantage of the popular wave of alt rock and nu metal dominating the air waves and being signed unexpectedly to major label Columbia Records put them in the position that they had amazing support as artists, but also someone to answer to and the machine must be fed.The band decided instead to work with Martin Bisi (producer of Sonic Youth, Foetus, Swans, Cop Shoot Cop) and use their major label money to deliver a punishing post hardcore masterpiece of crushing noise rock, In A Perfect World. The album has become a cult classic and over the course of the past 30 years, some of the songs off In A Perfect World became mainstays in live shows.And now, Season To Risk have decided the time is right to revisit that timeless album, having In A Perfect World remastered by Duane Trower (Weights & Measures Soundlab), creating a reissue that gains new clarity without losing its raw urgency. Released on Record Store Day in the United States, In A Perfect World has been rejigged to embrace the modern sound, with Season To Risk using the experience to harness their focus and energy into live shows and a new record.Singer Steve Tulipana joined HEAVY to take us behind the scenes. We start by asking if the nerves are any different, releasing the same album three decades later."I mean, it's weird," he smiled, "It's 30 years old, which is kind of a trip obviously for us. To think about how much time has passed… It doesn't feel like 30 years ago by any means, which is over half my life. I'm more nervous because we have some US dates we're going to start. It's a pretty gruelling little run of shows we're doing, and we haven't done that in many, many years. So that's got me nervous, more than the record coming out".Going into In A Perfect World back in 1994, Season To Risk had just finished four years on the road and were understandably more than a little jaded. We ask Steve if this had any effect on the finished product."Yes, I do think we were (jaded)," he nodded. "So a lot of the material from the first record - and it's a cleaner record for sure - we were young, and it was our first material that you take a bunch of years to write. Then you get signed, and then it was delayed forever. We were always trying to challenge ourselves, and we were wanting to be more… it's not like it was incredibly conscious. I mean, we didn't want to sell out, but we were trying to find this heavy thing. We had some road on us, and we had some life experience on us at that point so it was darker and things were a little more fucked up. To be candid, I was a little more fucked up in my head, but that's the experience you go through, right?"In the full interview, Steve focused on the reissue of In A Perfect World, reflecting on the surreal nature of the album's 30-year anniversary. The remastering process was highlighted, with improvements made by guitarist Duane Trower being explained, although digital rights for a remastered version have not been granted by Sony, leaving fans without a digital option for now.The conversation also explored the band's artistic evolution, with Steve discussing their maturation and the incorporation of new elements like synthesizers in their upcoming material. The importance of clarity in lyrics while maintaining a unique sound was emphasized. We spoke about the release of a new album, with the aim for completion by the first quarter of the next year.Steve discussed the natural evolution of Season To Risk and how it has impacted their music and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

11 Des 202523min

Backstage chats with COBRA STARSHIP At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage chats with COBRA STARSHIP At GOOD THINGS 2025

HEAVY was lucky to again be invited backstage at Good Things 2025 to chat with the bands about their shows and other fun stuff. Today, Angela sits down for an awesome one on one with Cobra Starship.Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them. Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

10 Des 20258min

Backstage chats with WINDWAKER At GOOD THINGS 2025

Backstage chats with WINDWAKER At GOOD THINGS 2025

HEAVY was lucky to again be invited backstage at Good Things 2025 to chat with the bands about their shows and other fun stuff. Today, Kyra gets to know Aussie metal sensations Windwaker.Big thanks to Destroy All Lines and the team at Dallas Does PR for allowing us to share the day with them.Big thanks also to the team - Kyra, Geoffro and Angela as well as our new video team, Grey & Brook.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

10 Des 202511min

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