interview med Shadow of the Torturer
What is the name of your band? Shadow of the Torturer
What made you to be baptized to just "Shadow Of The Torturer"? Gabe, our first drummer, insisted on naming the band Shadow of the Torturer after a Gene Wolfe book. If we could go back in time and rename the band, we would. We prefer to use "SOTT" .
What started you in music? My older brother influenced me to pick up the guitar when I was younger. And then I started listening to thrash metal and Judas Priest in the 80's.
What made you form the band? The need to maintain to more control over my own music.
Where are all members from? B is from Philadelphia and everyone else is from the Pacific Northwest, USA.
What places will you be playing in? We plan on touring Europe again in 2014. We would love an invite to Sweden!
Who plays what? Mikey plays guitar and vocals. Tim is the drummer. And B plays bass.
How old are you? The band is 7 years old.
How do you get psyched up for a gig? Hanging with friends listening to other bands and or Drinks and weed.
What was the ambitions of the band when you started? To put out an album.
Have you made any albums? Yes.
If yes what are they? Marching into Chaos, Dronestown, Cities of the Damned split, and several compilations.
Do you have any clips on YouTube? Yes. Several. Here is one of them: http://youtu.be/ydbUNWzvl7U
What songs and what years were they released? Marching into Chaos album was released in 2009, Dronestown and the Cities of the Damned split were both released in 2013.
Have you been part of any other projects? Mikey formally fronted the band Aldebaran in which our drummer Tim still plays. Mikey was also in the band HC Minds and Tim is in such bands as Howling Winds and Splatterhouse. And Tim is actually on tour right now drumming for Saturnalia Temple.
Have you been in any other bands? Yes, see previous question
What do you work with outside of the band and the music? We all have day jobs. Mikey does construction and cooks, Tim runs his record distro and works at night clubs, and B goes to school and works in a bar.
What would you do if there was no music? Make art. Farm.
How important are your fans? The MOST important. They are the most important thing other than the music itself.
What's the funniest/most memorable thing a fan has done for you? We had a topless lady jump on stage and have her husband take pictures of her while we were playing.
How often do you rehearse? Every Saturday
Where do you rehearse? In West Seattle or Portland.
What year was the band started? 2006
Where have you played from then till now? West coast of the United States, Canada, Denmark, Germany, Holland.
What songs are in your live set's? Right now we are playing Dronestown, but it varies. Alchemy of Nine Dimensions, Cities of the Damned, and the Walk is another set list favorite of ours.
Is it always the same set's live? No.
Where was your first gig? At the Samurai Duck in Eugene, Oregon, USA and we opened for Iron Cobra.
Where was the latest gig? At the Mercury, in Seattle WA USA with the band Lycus.
Name 2 of your own songs you like at the moment? Indianapolis/Ukiah and Guyana, both from the Dronestown album.
What do you feel is the best liveband you've seen? Boltthrower. Hands down.
How old were you the first time you saw a liveband play? Mikey remembers seeing Judas Priest at the fairgrounds when he was 10 years old.
How old were you at your first gig? Mikey first started playing shows when he was 16.
What drives a band that isn't all that famous and renowned to try to make a living on their music and to keep playing? Art. The pursuit of a new renaissance.
Would you like to add anything else? Go to Blinddate records and buy our records (currently 50% off due to label closing). We will be moving our releases to Memento Mori Records and Parasitic Records.
What has been the best/most promising gig so far? Heavy Days in Doom Town festival in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Have you had any bigger tours from start till now? Our European mini tour this past spring we opened for Mournful Congregation in Germany and Holland. Then continued in Germany with Dark Tharr and Ghost of Wem.
How big crowds do you usually play for? usually small intimate venues.
What are the plans for the rest of the year? Split record with Pagan Altar where we do the rhythm tracking and they record all the vocals and leads.
What genre do you feel you are? We have coined the phrase"Ultra doom"
Why did you pick that particular style? Because it is so fun to play, and is absolutely great type of music.
What are your songs about? Death, solitude,destruction, mass suicide.
Do you write your own material or mainly covers? We write our own material but we do an occassional cover.
Who writes your songs?/ who writes the music who writes lyrics? Mikey writes the songs and lyrics
Who has the best since of humor in the band? We are all pretty funny. But Mikey probably has the best sense of humor.
What's good/bad with the band? Its hard not living in the same state, Tim lives in Portland, Oregon but B and Mikey live in Seattle, Washington.
Do you have any webpages? Yes. Our Facebook page is: https://www.facebook.com/Shadowofthetorturer and our bandcamp page is: http://shadowofthetorturer1.bandcamp.com/album/dronestown
What are your sources of inspiration? cult leaders, Black Sabbath, Yob, and Sleep.
Where do you usually play? Clubs in Seattle and Portland. The Pacific Northwest of United States.
