interview with Dark Mourning

Have any of you played in other bands?

Yes, Many. I started my first band when I was 13. 

Dark Mourning is a natural evolution of everything I have been a part of before ranging Glam and Punk to Funk and Grunge and Sludge, all the way to Metal and back. 

How is it that you started playing music?

Music for me was always an extension of my emotions. 

When I was young, music could move my moods and feelings. 

Often my siblings would find me tearing up during a sad song like REO Speedwagon’s “keep on loving you” and then bouncing off the walls moments later to something like Quiet Riot’s “Bang Your Head”.

Music was also an escape for some shit in my life that I couldn’t deal with while growing up. 

It was a dreamland that I would retreat to. Something to reach for, to get me out of my current place.

Naturally, I had to start playing something. 

Drums were my first choice but I wasn’t allowed play as a kid because they were too loud, so one day in grade 4 or 5 I was at a friend’s house and he had just got a shiny new red Strat. 

He taught me some stuff that day and I haven’t stopped playing since. 

Music IS the bridge to everything I have in life. Good and Bad. ( but even the bad was fun )   

What are your names? / Who plays what? 

The band consists of:

Chris W- Lead Vox

Matt T- Bass, Vox

Jerry G- Drums

Myke K- Guitar (me)

Have you had other previous members?

Not in this project. 

I have worked with Jerry and Matt in another project. 

Chris, I knew threw a previous band that recorded at my studio. 

We also all knew each other through the Canadian music scene over the years. 

You often run into local bands while on the road without warning. 

This happened a few times with Chris’s projects and one’s I was involved with... ah… the toilet tours.  

Did you make music even when you were young?

Yes, and before that I was a music listening fiend. 

In Kindergarten I brought a KISS record for show and tell (I was 5). 

Where are you from? We are all from Winnipeg Canada. Home of Neil Young, The Guess Who, and The Jets. 

What year did the band form?

Initially in 2014 but 2015 was the time when we rounded out our lineup and recorded. 

Dark Mourning all started as just a writing and recording project with Chris and myself while my past project was slowing down to a pace I wasn’t happy with. 

Not soon after that Matt happened to be recording bass OD’s for different project I was kind of engineering and mixing for a client in my studio and I played him our stuff at the end of the session. 

Fast forward a few minutes and he was replacing my shitty bass tracks that were on the song writing demo versions Chris and I had done earlier in the week. Jerry followed shortly after.  What's your style of genre?

I think Dark Mourning is a Hard Rock version of Grunge with Sludge roots.  What inspires you?

Musically what inspires me most great tone and a catchy riff. You know the ones that you crank up and don’t want to stop. I find drums really inspire a meaty riff.

I love Chris’s wide and tempo specific vibrato.

Jerry’s delivery on his drum kit. It’s something you must experience, it’s not something I can explain in words. 

Matt’s percussive bass melodies and even his right-hand technique (ex: palm mutes on bass) has always helped get the best out of my riffs. An interesting thing no one around him might know is that he is a seriously killer guitar player. Twice the player I am, that’s not hard though.  

How often and where do you reherse?

I try and play guitar every day. As far as the band all in one room at the same time: once a week, but we are always working on some aspect of Dark Mourning even if it’s stuff like this interview. 

How have you developed since you started with the music? I think because I never really stayed with any type of lesson’s I developed in my own way over time. I feel that personally my playing and song writing has matured but there is always so much more to learn and where I am now is NOT where I will be next year or 5 years down the line. The more I learn and experience the more I realize that there are many ways to go at something and to trust your first instinct. That’s not to say that woodshedding an idea is bad because it’s a necessity. A smart artist told me once not too long ago. “always trust the idea that inspired you in the first place”. 

Do you have other interests of work outside the band? Yes, I am a Recording Engineer and I have many interest’s like history and electronics. 

Are you looking for a booking agency, and what are your thoughts around that? Sure, we sometimes work with booking agents. Anything to free up some time to do what matters most and is the most fun. Playing and Writing songs.

Any agents interested in short term or long term agreements, hit us up. 

Are you looking for a label, and what are your thoughts around that?

No, I don’t believe for a band like us there is a label that will put out money to force music down people throats that is needed to make back their returns AND profit.

There is not that demand for our type of music and to be honest “rock” of all forms is not a new form of music. It’s our Dad’s music. Like Jazz was to the generation before. Not to devalue any of that. I love Rock and I also enjoy Jazz.

I used to spend whole afternoons just hanging out at the CD shop listening stations trying to find new undiscovered bands that I could be exposed to. Current trends are that (well not so current anymore) most people don’t seek out new music like this anymore. 

Music is a back-ground event. It is not too often people make an event out of music like it used to be. It’s just too easily assessable and the demographic with the most free spendable (disposable) income will spend it on “Steam” or other things. 

What made you decide to make this music? Honestly, I never chose it. I just always did it and for many different reason’s over the span of my career. 

What are your songs about?  Who does the composing and writes the lyrics? Chris does 99.9% if not 100% of the lyrics. The rest the band does together. 

Do you start with the music or the lyrics? Music but only because my music voice is much louder than my voice. I am kind of an introvert.  

Do you compose in a certain inviroment? Yes, it always starts with a riff that I come upon while noodling on guitar often in my underwear in my room unplugged. If it hits a nerve I record the riff for when I have more time to develop (refine) it. Most of the time I workshop it to a point where I bring it into jam or I keep developing it in my studio while recording a demo version with scratch drums etc.  

Have you done any covers live? Yes, Chris really believes in including at least one cover in each set. 

What language do you sing in? English. 

What are the least and most people to attend one of your gigs? Well there is always at least 4 people there! LOL 

What ages are most of your concert attendants? 18-65 surprising variation. 

Do you always play the same songs live, or do you vary? No, we always rotate songs in and out depending on the vibe of the venue and other acts. 

Do you have a regular place you play live often? No, we like to change things up. We believe variation works best for us and for selling merch. 

What was your first gig like? Dark Mourning’s first gig was awesome. It was a high energy outdoor festival and we closed the Saturday night on the main stage. 

What was your latest gig? Our last gig at time of this interview was with Evergrey at the Pyramid cabaret. 

Have you had to cancel a gig? Yes, in Europe at the end of our last tour there. Chris developed laryngitis, it was terrible but we supported each other and had a great night tearing up Amsterdam instead.  

Where have you played live this year? We played threw out our province (Manitoba) and across 3 European countries, 

Where do you plan to gig the comming year? I am not sure what is confirmed as we are working on that right now. The plan is more in Canada, back to Europe and possibly LA/Las Vegas. 

When did you start to sell merchandise, and what do you have for sale? From our first show. We had CD’s, clothes, 8x10s, drum sticks, stickers, etc. 

Where can people buy your merchandise? At our shows, some stuff is available online but you need to contact us directly for that. 

What do you think about people downloading music instead of buying records now a days?

I think it’s a shame, it’s a shame the industry fat cat’s didn’t have the foresight for what was in the pipe technology wise. Now the cat is out of the bag and there is no putting it back until they really get streaming inline.

That said, the new artist’s in the old business model were not dealt with fairly, but at least there was some development happening. Now it is what it is and I play music, money or no money. 

How do you think the music industry have changed because of this?

I think musicians now need to have many projects on the go simultaneously in order to keep momentum and funds going. Take Mastodon for example, they all have many side projects going. Same with Anthrax, the list goes on. 

What do you think of my work? I think what you do is very important and us musicians need to give yourself and people that do what you do more credit. Thank you. 

How do you think and know that this interview will help you in the music business? Maybe someone will listen to their first Dark Mourning song and it will inspire them to pick up an instrument. Maybe someone will tell a friend and they both might tell other friends and come and see us play. Anything is possible and I try not to expect anything in life, but thank you for your time and exposure.

Do you have any role models or idols? You know I often think about this, I had tons when I was younger. I like the way Garth Brooks stay’s real humble though he is very successful. I like how Andy Sneap can produce an updated version of an older band while not spoiling the product (Exodus and Accept for example)

Why do you think that they exist? I think they do what they do because they are inspired to do so, and they like to work hard.

Is it easier to find inspiration from older bands, or bands that are more active today? Inspiration is not a dated event, trends are. So I say both. 

What have been your biggest obstacles? I have always been my biggest obstacle, in every difficult event/period of my life, I was always the 1 steady factor. 

Do you have any new material?

Yes we do and have been very busy recording it. 

What are your web sites? www.darkmourning.com You can get to all our social media sites from there. 

How can people reach you?

[email protected]

or threw facebook. 

What are your plans for the future? Make goals and smash them!

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