Shifting Transmission With JJ McCANN

Enter Shikari have been a household name for almost two decades now, their unique blending of genres endearing them to a disenfranchised world starving for change.After the tables were turned during the COVID pandemic, Enter Shikari found themselves floundering without their reliable support network, at a creative loss with seemingly no resolution. Rather than allowing the state of the world to defeat them, the band took an introspective look at themselves and what was important to them, with the resulting album A Kiss For The Whole World - released earlier this year - reaffirming not only their passion for music but also their unyielding love affair with their fans.As is normally the case following a successful album release, Enter Shikari have been taking to the stage consistently ever since, with the juggernaut finally returning to Australia for the just completed Good Things 2023 Festival.Simon and Kyra from HEAVY were on hand backstage to chat with the band after the final set of their run of three festival shows in Brisbane.NOTE: due to interviews being conducted backstage at a music festival some audio might be affectedBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

4 Dec 20239min

Frenzal Rhomb are as reliable as Grandma's recipe for scones, and probably twice as durable.For more than 30 years now, Australia's masters of punk and ska have gone about their business unchecked, churning out consistently high-quality albums with tongue more than firmly planted in cheek.The lyrics - while relatively easy to digest - are also cutting, honest, raw and delivered with the spite of a rattlesnake yet still Frenzal Rhomb can seemingly do no wrong.After appearing at nearly every known Australian music festival in recent times, the Frenzal train was finally docked at an International festival in the form of Good Things 2023, and despite drawing the short straw and having to play at the same time as Limp Bizkit, still managed to draw plenty of punters to their corner of the arena over the three shows.Kris and Simon from HEAVY managed to catch frontman Jason Whalley not long before the third and final show, and he was in typically laconic form.NOTE - due to interviews being conducted backstage at a music festival the audio may not be 100% crisp at timesBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

4 Dec 202315min

For far too long, heavy metal on the heavier side of the spectrum has been overlooked at music festivals in this country.Even those that claim to be all about the metal generally stop short of having a bona fide, skull-shattering musical representative grace their stages. It happens that often that many have stopped even commenting on the fact, but the diehards have always been watching, waiting and listening.Those faithful few were rewarded this year when Behemoth were announced to play at Good Things 2023.They were by far the heaviest band on the line-up, and also one who generated a lions share of interest. How did they fare? Were fans finally satisfied?Simon from HEAVY caught up with bass player Tomasz "Orion" Wróblewski at the final show in Brisbane to find out.Just remember, this is an interview recorded live backstage so sound quality may vary...Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

4 Dec 20236min

Interview by Kris PetersSeldom does a fresh band on the scene command instant respect by virtue of past exploits. Music, as with most things in life of value, is more than having the ability to shred on a guitar or crush with your vocal techniques. It requires a certain level of respect and humility that are almost impossible to possess unless you have given your heart and soul to the cause over a prolonged period of time.Which is just the advantage Buried Shallow had when they burst onto the Perth metal scene in late 2022, armed with not only a devastatingly brutal bag of music, but also the right levels of attitude to command instant respect.Wasting no time with pleasantries, Buried Shallow plowed straight into battle, supporting up-and-coming metal outfits Nicolas Cage Fighter and Xenobiotic and drawing more people into their sonic army with every show.Following the mantra of strike while the iron is hot, Buried Shallow are releasing their debut, self-titled EP on December 1, with all five members taking time to chat about it with HEAVY.Things got off to the rockiest start possible when one of the members greeted the call wearing a Carlton jersey before things took a turn even further South when another of the band left from sight and returned wearing the colours of Port Adelaide.Resisting the overwhelming urge to call time before things had even started, I pressed on reluctantly. All in the name of metal, of course.We covered a wide range of topics, including how it feels to finally set the music free into the world, what they were going for musically, the dark subject matter explored in the lyrics, naming the EP after themselves and the expectations that come with it plus we get each member to run us through one of the five songs on the EP and explain the story behind it.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

1 Dec 202325min

Interview by Kris PetersPunk royalty hits Australia next week when Californian punk legends Pennywise return to our shores as part of Good Things 2023.The lovable larrikins were only out here for a massive headlining run of shows last year, but such is the demand for their musical prowess and undeniable charm the good folk at Good Things have spun their plane straight back around and pointed it back in this direction.Pennywise will be joining Fall Out Boy, Limp Bizkit, Devo, Corey Taylor, Bullet For My Valentine, Behemoth, Sepultura, Enter Shikari, Frenzal Rhomb and more for a run of three shows through Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, with lead singer Fletcher telling HEAVY in a recent interview that the band is frothing at the bung to get back out here and play.Given their almost four decades of service to the Gods of Punk it is almost a given that Pennywise have played with pretty much every band on the planet at some stage of their careers, but that doesn't dampen Fletcher's spirit when it comes to festival gigs."I don't know the whole line-up, but I know there's a couple of Aussie bands that I haven't heard of but people said I should check out," he said. "I think we've done Bullet For My Valentine before. Devo… we've played so many big festivals that we've probably played with every single band (laughs) but we just haven't seen them. Darren Hawthorn is our guy over there and our usual tour manager, and he actually works for Good Things on the production side so he'll have our list of dos. He will be like 'you're going to watch this band today, let's go'. And we'll grab a couple of beers, and we'll go check it out. We'll be making the rounds for sure. Obviously, Devo is one of the bands that turned my life around and got me into punk rock, so I'll be checking them out as much as possible. And Limp Bizkit as well. I'm a fan. I know a lot of people wanna hate them, but we toured with them on the Warped Tour when they were tiny and there was 300 people wathing them play, and I liked it. I liked it from the get go. It's hard, it's heavy. Yeah, it can get kind of goofy at times, obviously, but they're all cool guys and have always been good to us, so I will definitely check out some Limp Bizkit. Fall Out Boy is another band. Not my real go-to cup of tea if you must know the truth, but great songwriters with a good live show. We'll be making the rounds. It's gonna be a great tour. I like the diversity."In the full interview, Fletcher tells us what it's like backstage at shows like this, catching up with old friends you might not have seen for a while, their sideshows and how they will differ from the festival appearances, the early days of the band and where they fit in, what makes the Californian punk scene so special and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

27 Nov 202313min

Interview by Kris PetersGood Things 2023 will be underway next week, with the annual music extravaganza kicking off next Friday, December 1 in Melbourne before hitting Sydney and Brisbane over the following two days.Every year the Good Things line-up manages to top itself, with this year's show being no exception.Headlined by Fall Out Boy and Limp Bizkit, Good Things also welcomes Corey Taylor, Devo, Enter Shikari, Hanabie, Bullet For My Valentine, Behemoth and plenty more, covering a wide range of genres and tastes.But, without an abundance of heavy metal, where would ANY festival be? And this year organisers have secured the talents of one of the best in the business with Sepultura making the trek from Brazil.HEAVY sat down with guitarist Andreas Kisser earlier this week to find out what Sepultura have planned for their visit."I'm excited," he said, a massive smile running across his face. "It's been since 2018 we don't come back to Australia. The lockdown delayed everything by two years, and now we finally have this chance to play our new album, not only at the festival which is amazing with a very diverse line-up, but also our sideshows where we can play a longer setlist with more songs. It's gonna be a great way to close this amazing year for us. It's fantastic."We ask Kisser what the general feeling is backstage at big shows like this, with many bands catching up with each other after prolonged periods of time."That's one of the best things about festivals," he smiled again. "It's not only the bands, but crew people that we know around the world and friends that we made in Australia that are following Sepultura for so many years. It's a great atmosphere. Who knows, some collaborations may happen and ideas and stuff. It's great. It's very fertile (laughs). It's a great situation to know people and to meet your idols."With Sepultura doing sideshows starting in Fremantle on November 26, we ask Kisser what fans at these shows might get that the band might not be able to explore fully at the festival appearances."At the festival shows we have a shorter time," he offered, "around 40 to 45 minutes or something like that. For the sideshows we have our own headline show, so we can play our complete show the way we are presenting everywhere in the world. So we have a little more time to play newer and older songs. It's gonna be a more complete setlist for the fans, but on the festival we are going to represent of course the whole history. We're gonna play new songs and a few classics (laughs). It's gonna be very well represented of what Sepultura is all about. We're very accustomed to doing that, especially in Europe. When we do the festival run we have all types of different set times and stuff, so we're accustomed to building… we have kind of like a spine of the setlist that we are changing according to our limitations, but we're prepared. It's gonna be a beautiful celebration."In the full interview, Andreas talks more about what to expect, what has changed with Sepultura since they were last here in 2018, his entry into Sepultura and how it came about, how their sound has changed over the years, changing with the music industry and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

24 Nov 202313min

Interview by Erin EddyWhile She Sleeps are just one of the many massive bands that are included in the lineup for this year’s Good Things Festival. As such they will be on Aussie soil as of November 30, kicking off their stint here with a headlining show in Melbourne.HEAVY had the pleasure of chatting with bassist Aaran and vocalist Loz about their impending trip over here, as well as the release of their sixth studio album, Self Hell, which is dropping on March 15, 2024.The boys eagerly told HEAVY that they’re keen to escape the UK climate and enjoy some Aussie sunshine and that they will likely be taking the opportunity to get amongst it at Good Things and enjoy some of their favourite bands.We also discussed the new album and the direction their music is taking.“I think it feels like a natural progression, but also we’re trying to do something fresh for our fans,” Aaran explains. “We like to keep our fan base on its toes in terms of knowing what to expect from a new record from us. We’ve said it many times, but we don’t want to be a band that finds our sound then just sits in it.”Listen to the full interview to get the low down on the upcoming album, Self Hell, as well as what to expect when While She Sleeps is in Australia.The band will be performing at all three Good Things dates, as well as playing side shows on November 30 at Stay Gold in Melbourne and December 5 at The Brightside in Brisbane.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

22 Nov 202322min

Interview by Kris PetersOne thing that has always typified Australian music is the internal support system encouraged by those within it.Band members often share their talents amongst two, three, or sometimes four other bands, with his fellow bandmates offering words of encouragement and respect rather than bemoan the fact their guitarist, or their drummer is not exclusively a part of their musical gang for want of a better word.Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule, but as a whole Australian music is made up of and populated by like-minded musicians who just want to play.Aussie rock outfit Palace Of The King is no exception, sharing its members with other bands such as Jon Stevens, The Screaming Jets and The Superjesus, an outside collective that adds nothing but starch to the Kings when all return to the fold.The proof of that is in the band's latest single Tear It Down, a high-energy rock track done only as Australian rockers can. The song is lifted from Palace Of The King's upcoming album Friends In Low Places, which will be released via Reckless Records next month.HEAVY sat down recently with vocalist Tim Henwood to find out more. We start by asking how Tear It Down has been received."It's been great," he beamed. "Because it's quite a full-on written song. I don't know if you've noticed, but we've been putting a new song out pretty much every eight weeks for months now, and I've been trying to mix it up. The last one was a bit more of a cruisy Americana, Black Crowes kind of thing and this one's much more fast, risky, kind of 70s-tinged Queens Of The Stone Age type of thing. I've been trying new stuff, so every time I put a new post up saying here's a new single fans of the band have piped up and said 'I wasn't expecting this', so I gave them a bit of a banger.In the full interview, Tim talks more about Tear It Down and what the song is about, how it sonically represents the new album, the overall direction of Friends In Low Places, producing and recording his own music and the pros and cons involved, a brief history of the band, the album launch tour and more.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/heavy-music-interviews--2687660/support.

22 Nov 202315min