KILLING FROST

Questions answered by Mårten - Guitar & Synth.

Q1. For readers who might not be familiar with you, would you please provide some background on the band—where you’re from, when you formed, etc.?

We’re from Helsinki, Finland and we were formed in 2018. We were on the road with Foreseen and Red Death at the time and talked about starting a new band with Niko on the vocals. Initially it was Jaakko on guitar, Joonas on bass and me on drums but I made it clear from the start that I wanted to play guitar for a change but I could be behind the kit until we find someone suitable. On the demo it was Mirko on bass and me doing drums, other guitar and keyboards. A couple of variations later we finally figured out our final line-up with Niko on vocals, Jaakko on guitar, Mika on bass, Roope on drums and me on guitar and keyboards.

Q2. Who are some of the band’s primary influences?

The whole thing was built around this soundscape certain bands had. Like Sheer Terror, Celtic Frost, Darkside NYC and Crowbar. The muddy and harsh guitar sound is something you don’t come across often anymore so that was especially appealing to us. I personally adore Josh Silver’s work on the keyboards so I try to soften the guitars with some synth noodling now and then.

Q3. Many modern hardcore bands have opted for more polished production—is this something you’ve consciously moved away from?

Yes. I think hardcore music has reached a certain point of saturation because of its increased popularity and that causes a lot of bands sounding the same because of the current trends. For sure you can achieve the image of big production and clean sounding instruments, but do you really want hardcore and punk inspired music to sound all that? I’d rather have it sound more raw and handmade. Not appealing to the masses.

Q4. How do you feel your sound has evolved from your first release?

Even though we had this blueprint for the band early on it was still more about trying things out and how they work. After the demo and couple of first gigs we knew what we really wanted to sound like. I think we have found a fitting pattern for us to write music and perform live confidently. We sound more dark and powerful than in the early days.

Q5. What was your mindset writing and going in to record your Frozen Dawn EP?

I feel that the EP was our first release as a proper band since we finally had a steady crew behind it. So that in mind we just wanted to make a great 7”. Sound wise we wanted to go more towards rough direction than on the demo.

Q6. Who are some other great bands on the scene we should be paying attention to?

Dome Runner, Forced Humility both from Finland. Right now we have a great thing going on here up north and a lot of people are missing it.

Q7. What does the band have for plans on the horizon?

We just finished working on our upcoming compilation album with two new songs and we hope to have it out on our US tour this winter. After that it’s high time we start working on our debut LP.

WINNIE AMA

DAWNWALKER

The Angels’ Share