EMQ’s With LEATHERBACK – M2TM EDITION
EMQ’s With LEATHERBACK – M2TM EDITION
Hello everyone! Welcome to a special Bloodstock Metal 2 The Masses North Wales edition of our EMQs. This one is with Chester, UK based Industrial Noise solo project, Leatherback. Huge thanks to him for taking part.
What’s your name, what instrument do you play, and can you tell us a little about the history of the band?
I’m Leatherback, I play guitar and keyboard plus a whole bunch of programming. I started writing as Leatherback in early 2018 out of a desire to create freely, and began releasing EPs as part of a series up until mid 2019. I started playing live in 2019 and have been steadily developing my live show to this point.
What genre of Metal do you play?
It fits best with “Industrial Metal”.
How did you come up with your band name?
I saw a photo of the inside of a Leatherback turtle’s mouth, and it was the most metal thing I’d ever seen. It’s all jagged teeth and gore.
Where are you based and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
I’m based in Chester and there’s a pretty great scene around here, especially if you take North Wales into account. There’s a great, close-knit community of passionate metalheads.
What’s your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
My latest single is ‘If You Want It’, available exclusively on my Bandcamp
Who have been your greatest influences?
Definitely Nine Inch Nails, but in more recent years, Godflesh, HIDE and Mick Gordon.
What first got you into music?
I don’t really know, it’s something that’s always been there, I think. My grandmother played piano and was always singing, so being around that in my formative years was definitely a big influence on me. Then as I got older, and started getting exposed to punk music by friends, music became a way for me to express myself emotionally, that I could do in a way that I couldn’t with other things in my life.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician, who would it be?
Not technically a band or musician, but I’d love to work with producer Syliva Massey. She’s got such an interesting outlook on sound and creating uniqueness. I’ve learned a lot from the way she approaches recording already so recording with her would be an amazing experience.
What does Bloodstock Festival represent to you?
Bloodstock has always been one of those festivals that you hear about as being a Mecca for metal with a really close and supportive community around it, which really gels with the way that I try and live my life.
Have you been to Bloodstock, and if so, what’s your favourite memory from the festival?
I’ve unfortunately never had the privilege.
What are you going to bring to M2TM that you think will earn you a place on the New Blood Stage?
I’ve spent a long time developing my live show to add as much production value as I can for what’s essentially a one man show, but I like to think of my live performances as unpredictable, so I guess we’ll find out.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
“Don’t be a dick. Be good to each other.”
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
The thing I enjoy most is definitely the process of creating the music, but I could do without the need for maintaining social media presence.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
I see a lot of repetition in metal at the moment. New bands trying to re-create exactly what happens to be on trend, whether that be guitar tones, genre styles, appearance etc but push it just a little further rather than the next band. There’s a wealth of amazing musicians out there, but the industry doesn’t exactly reward artists who take big creative risks, so you see less and less musicians who are willing to.
I compare it to the 100m sprint at the Olympics, everyone in that race is desperately fighting it out over that 0.001th of a second, but I’d prefer to see someone doing dressage in a swimming pool or something.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
“The Downward Spiral” (unsurprisingly)
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CDs, or Downloads?
They all have their place, but I grew up with CDs, so I still covet my CD collection. That being said, nothing forces you into a proper, sit-down-shut-up-and-listen experience than putting a vinyl on.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
I supported Death Blooms and Blood Youth earlier this year which was pretty wicked.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
I’m a bit of a movie buff, so I’d like to be making films.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
Ian Mckellen, Brian Cox, David Bowie, Imogen Heap, Charles Bronson
What’s next for the band?
Just more. More releases, more shows, more noise.
Where can people find you online? Drop us your links below:
https://www.leatherbackworld.com
https://www.faceobook.com/leatherbackworld
https://www.instagram.com/leatherbackworld
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
A cake. It says so in the name.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Just want to say thanks for having me.
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