EMQ’s With STITCHED UP
EMQ’s With STITCHED UP
Hi everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with Austin, Texas based Metal Band, Stitched Up. Huge thanks to their Guitarist/ vocalist, Matt MacMoran for taking part.
What is your name, what do you play and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
My name is Matt, I play guitar and split vocal duties with our bassist Chris. In 2016 I met our first drummer and started jamming and writing tunes. I placed an ad on craigslist looking for a bassist and a vocalist. Out of the handful of responses I received, Chris was the only one that actually came prepared. We clicked musically and started playing shows and working on the material that would end up on our first album titled “86”. Shortly after that release, we experienced a couple of line-up changes with our drummer, eventually leading us to our current drummer Rom Gov. He joined the band as we were beginning work on our latest release “Jupiter Jazz And The Suicide Cult”. Rom understood what direction we were going musically and truly solidified us as a band.
How did you come up with your band name?
The name Stitched Up actually suits us really well. There are multiple reasons this name stuck. Initially it was a reference to getting your ass kicked or getting fucked up in the pit.
It’s also slang for being incarcerated. When Chris, myself and the drummer from our first album, Alan Colwell first met, we were all dealing with personal battles with addiction and legal issues which landed us in and out of jail regularly.
On the flip side to that, our families and the music that we play have always been the most important things in our lives. Chris and I collectively decided to put the people and music we love first and have been lucky enough to overcome our addictions and dig ourselves out of our legal problems. So, you could say, where once our lives were broken, we’ve managed to stitch things up.
What Country/Region are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
We’re from the U.S. out of Austin Texas. The music scene here is vibrant to say the least. There are shows here pretty much around the clock. There’s a pretty healthy amount of really talented Hard Rock, Punk and Metal bands all over the state, and we’re fortunate enough to have shared the stage with a lot of them.
What is your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
We’ve just dropped our latest full length album titled, “Jupiter Jazz And The Suicide Cult”. You can find it on all streaming platforms. We also did the official hard copy release on Friday August 26th. In May we dropped a music video for the song ‘Goat Fucke’r and last week released a music video for the song ‘Necromantis’ off of the album. Which you can check out on the YouTubes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9aQo43M0lM
Who have been your greatest influences?
Hendrix, Van Halen, Zeppelin, Pantera, Alice In Chains, Pink Floyd, Queens of the Stone Age, Soundgarden, Tool, Primus, old school Metallica, Slipknot, Jinger, Testament, Sepultura, Slayer, Lamb Of God, Meshuggah. MotorHead, Mastodon, Decapitated, Gojira… I could go on like this for a while
What first got you into music?
My Brother’s older than me by a bit and plays guitar. When I was a kid, and my folks were gone, he used to crank up his stacks in his bedroom fucking loud and play 70’s and 80’s Rock and Metal. Like Van Halen and Zeppelin and shit like that and it blew me away. Just the raw power of it all. Also, the first time I sat down and really listened to Hendrix I knew I had to play. Dude changed the game.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
That’s tough. Maybe, Lamb of God, Gojira, Tool or Mastodon
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
Bloodstock, Louder Than Life, Wacken, Knotfest, Summer Breeze to name a few. To be able to share the stage with the amazing bands that inspire us to be better musicians, to not give up and to follow our dreams would be a dream come true.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
I haven’t really gotten anything weird yet.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
We’re truly grateful for your love and support. To be able to share what we do with people who feel the same that we do and give the energy back 100% makes getting out and playing all worthwhile. Y’all mean everything to us.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Dimebag and Vinnie Paul both went to soon.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
I love the whole process of writing and recording. Both for different reasons but, mostly playing. There’s nothing like playing a bad ass set in front of a crowd of people that want to be there and are all in. The energy is awesome.
The worst part… loading gear
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
More regulation put in place that guaranteed artists got compensated accordingly for their art and the work they put in.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
Tool’s “Lateralus”
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CDs, or Downloads?
I mean, digital is clean and generally sounds pretty stellar but, I’m old school so, I gotta go with vinyl.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
It’s tough to say. We played with Doyle and Combichrist. Those shows were definitely up there. We also put together a show in 2019 for Dia De Los Muertos with a bunch of our homies in Austin and that shit was pretty sick.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
Not too sure.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
I have no idea
What’s next for the band?
We’re currently writing music for our next album which we’ll probably head back into the studio in the fall to start recording. We’ve got upcoming shows in Austin In August and September and will be heading out in October with dates in Corpus, San Marcos, Arlington and possibly Houston.
What Social Media/Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
https://www.facebook.com/StitchedUp512/
https://www.instagram.com/stitched.up.official/
https://stitchedup80.com/
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
I don’t even know what a Jaffa Cake is.
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Thank you at Ever Metal for taking time out for us. We definitely appreciate your support.
Disclaimer: This interview is solely the property of Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this interview, unless you have the strict permission of said party. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.
