Bloodstock Festival : M2TM Wolverhampton - The Bands : Heat 1.
Every year Bloodstock Festival runs the "Metal 2 The Masses" competition with regional heats up and down the country. Ultimately the winner of each competition gets to play on the hallowed grounds of Catton Hall, lining up at the festival alongside the likes of Judas Priest, Behemoth and Devin Townsend.
This year we are taking a deep dive into the Wolverhampton competition, being held at K.K.'s Steel Mill, a venue run by Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing!
With Heat 1 kicking off this Thursday, lets get to know the four bands competing for a place in the regional semi finals!
Gypsy Jack
First off tell us where your from and how long you’ve been going?
Well we were founded in Wolverhampton, but we base ourselves in both Birmingham and Wolves. Marty and Nick are Wolves lads, whereas Chris and Jonah are from Birmingham. The band has existed in many forms for some years. However it wasn’t really a “band” until this final lineup was born in February last year. Now it's a family. A very dysfunctional, chaotic family.
Tell us a little bit about your style of music and influences?
We are very fortunate to be group of multi-instrumentalists and individual songwriters. We have many mutual and even more personal influences. Drop in creative chemistry and some hard liquor; you get our sound, which is like an ocean, raw, energetic, deep, ever-changing and dangerous. Our main influences are Guns N’ Roses, Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe, Led Zeppelin, Skid Row, Hanoi Rocks etc. We take a lot of influence from these guys, but we also have our own spooky/gothic kinda vibe we like to spin on things. We don’t really like to label ourselves, but if we had to we would say Hard Rock/Sleaze.
What is your goal in this year’s M2TM competition?
Ultimately, win. We’ve got our eyes on the prize, we are completely focussed and determined on it. To play at Bloodstock would mean more than words can describe. We live, breathe and shit music. We want to go right to the top. So yeah we’re serious about competing. If we fall short, then at the very least we would like to show more people who we are and what we’re about; gain some new fans and fresh support. We are sure that no matter what happens, this will be an amazing experience for us and we are very grateful for the opportunity.
What should we look out for in your live show?
Everything! Our shows are a real spectacle and we have a strong reputation for our stage presence. We are hugely energetic. Our chemistry together is so valuable to us and really helps us put on a great show. We want people to walk away from each show thinking “holy shit!” We want them to remember that show. We have received some amazing feedback from our shows and we are eternally grateful for this. Nothing is better than hearing people enjoyed the show, thats when you know you got it right.
What do you think makes you stand out in the crowded metal scene?
We really feel our sound is unique. Also the way we perform. The music sets us apart. We have a distinct sound but we like that we can produce so many different vibes with each song. We have two brand new singles coming out in March, “Nightshade” and “Outta The Rain”. The stark difference between the two will show we have a strong potential to create music to please everyone, and that’s our biggest goal.
Other than yourselves; Who do you think are your biggest rivals to win this year’s M2TM Wolverhampton?
Wow, there are some really talented guys competing. Some great guys we have already had the pleasure of playing with on the circuit. However, with a competition like this, there’s such a diverse range of bands competing. So many genres and styles; we don’t think it will come down to popularity or experience. It will be about who fights the hardest and really wins the crowd over with emotion and determination. That puts everyone on an even plane and makes things very interesting.
Identities
First off tell us where your from and how long you’ve been going?
We are collectively from the Black Country and surrounding areas, encompassing Stourbridge, Kidderminster and Wolverley. We’ve technically been together since 2014 – with vocalist Dylan Asbury and guitarist Samie Sahim being founding members. 2016 was the year our drummer Leigh Sprason joined, followed by second guitarist Charlie Newbury in 2017. 2018 was our official “starting year”, when we released our first single “Divergent” and we’ve been working incredibly hard since then!
We are collectively from the Black Country and surrounding areas, encompassing Stourbridge, Kidderminster and Wolverley. We’ve technically been together since 2014 – with vocalist Dylan Asbury and guitarist Samie Sahim being founding members. 2016 was the year our drummer Leigh Sprason joined, followed by second guitarist Charlie Newbury in 2017. 2018 was our official “starting year”, when we released our first single “Divergent” and we’ve been working incredibly hard since then!
Tell us a little bit about your style of music and influences?
Our style of music mainly aligns with Metalcore, with Progressive Metal influences. Our music incorporates crushing, fast-paced breakdowns, but is accompanied by airy, soulful ambient sections. We encompass all types of feelings and sensations within our sound, with main musical influences being bands like Architects, Periphery and Northlane. Our ambient textural elements come from sci-fi cinematic-based influences.
What is your goal in this year’s M2TM competition?
It’s a great honour to be a part of Metal 2 The Masses 2020! Our goal is to be able to perform in front of many new audiences, so we can introduce our sound to those who have never heard of us before. We hope to captivate those who are after something fresh and different in the metal scene, and overall have a blast! Naturally, progressing through the competition is our goal too, but taking part in an event like this is fantastic for bringing the local metal scene together, giving local bands the recognition and appreciation that is ever so important – being a part of the competition is a brilliant thing in of itself!
What should we look out for in your live show?
Our live shows are energetic, with lots of cinematic and ambient elements being played alongside and backing up the music itself, filling it with texture. We’ve just released our new single “Semblance” and will be performing that, alongside “Divergent” and a bunch of other equally exciting songs coming soon this year.
What do you think makes you stand out in the crowded metal scene?
The aspect that we believe differentiates us from the rest of the metal scene is our attention to detail within our music. This all translates to our live shows too, where our aforementioned ambience backing tracks add a surreal but exciting level of texture and drama to the performance, whilst the technical stop/start nature of our music creates a very adrenaline-filled sense of occasion, which we think is currently quite underrated in the metal scene. Our music has the perfect blend of emotion and aggression, leading to an experience that is sure to get everyone moving.
Other than yourselves; Who do you think are your biggest rivals to win this year’s M2TM Wolverhampton?
All of the bands performing this year are incredibly talented and it will be a challenge to musically compete, but we think that Recall The Remains are our biggest rivals. They have a sound that is within the same “sub-category” of metal as us, so we are keen to see how it plays out!
All of the bands performing this year are incredibly talented and it will be a challenge to musically compete, but we think that Recall The Remains are our biggest rivals. They have a sound that is within the same “sub-category” of metal as us, so we are keen to see how it plays out!
Lynus
First off tell us where your from and how long you’ve been going?
Lynus hail from Wolverhampton /Shropshire. We have been going for 15 years; original members Mike, Adam and Mark. As of October we have had the talents of vocal powerhouse Andy.
Tell us a little bit about your style of music and influences?
Our musical tastes are eclectic. We grew up on a diet of classic rock, grunge and hard rock, taking in punk and southern rock, amongst others, along the way. There's nothing we love more than crafting a song with a groove that gets the crowd's heads a bobbing. How do we sound? Well, why don't you come and see us play live, then tell us what you think!
What is your goal in this year’s M2TM competition?
Our goals are simple really: we are tight and we know our craft, so we want to give the crowd a treat and go as far as we can.
What should we look out for in your live show?
Riffs and tight grooves, maybe the odd anthemic tune, with blinding vocals weaved in between. We want to take the crowd on a sonic journey.
What do you think makes you stand out in the crowded metal scene?
Odd one, as we are more rock than metal. So... we're a breath of fresh air. We think people will like our energy and tunes.
Other than yourselves; Who do you think are your biggest rivals to win this year’s M2TM Wolverhampton?
Andy's other band White Crow, we love Blood Church but tbh, there's loads of great bands about; we can't wait to share the stage with them. The Midlands rock and metal scene is alive and kicking.
Militia Inc.
First off tell us where your from and how long you’ve been going?
We’re all from Wolverhampton, we went to the same school (Highfields represent!) and we’ve been jamming together since the early days of our time there.
Tell us a little bit about your style of music and influences?
We’ve always been inspired by a healthy blend of thrash metal and classic rock. Think Metallica/Anthrax mashed up with Thin Lizzy/Whitesnake.
What is your goal in this year’s M2TM competition?
We want to have fun, as cliché as that sounds. We always work best when we’re enjoying what we do. It’s the atmosphere of the crowds and venues that bring out the best in us.
What should we look out for in your live show?
Guitar harmonies. (A little bias there as it’s one of the guitarists answering these questions.)
Joking aside, I’ve always heard people comment on our chemistry, and how you can tell that we’ve been friends for a long time.
What do you think makes you stand out in the crowded metal scene?
We like to mash things up and churn out a mixture of classic rock style with thrash metal attitude. I think it gives us a pretty uncommon sound in the more modern scene.
Other than yourselves; Who do you think are your biggest rivals to win this year’s M2TM Wolverhampton?
I’ve seen Second Cities play a few times and they know how to work a crowd. They’ve got a decent shot at it. White Crow are a bunch of awesome guys too. If you haven’t checked them out yet you definitely should.
I’ve seen Second Cities play a few times and they know how to work a crowd. They’ve got a decent shot at it. White Crow are a bunch of awesome guys too. If you haven’t checked them out yet you definitely should.
