EMQ’s With SHADOW OF NYX

EMQ’s With SHADOW OF NYX

Hi everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with Australian Symphonic Metal band, Shadow Of Nyx. Huge thanks to their Pianist/Vocalist, Campbell, 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 Campbell, I play keys and do a bit of lead and backing vocals. Shadow Of Nyx was formed by our drummer Chris in 2019. He had always loved symphonic metal and wanted to put a band together to explore that genre of music. We all got along almost instantly and it didn’t take long for us to write our first few songs. From there it was just a matter of building our sound (something we are still doing) and tightening up as a group. 

How did you come up with your band name?

It was something Chris, our drummer, brought to rehearsal one day, as soon as we all heard it i think we just said yes that is our name. Nyx is the Greek goddess of the night so the idea of Shadow Of Nyx just seemed to fit perfectly. 

What Country / Region are you from and what is the Metal / Rock scene like there?

We are from Melbourne Australia, well, Seaford Australia but no one knows where that is so it’s easier to say Melbourne. There is a strong local scene for both rock and metal here with a good amount of venues having live music every night, although it does feel like the number of venues having live bands play is slowly decreasing. Thrash and death metal seem to be among the more popular metal subgenres in Australia, so our point of difference in the local scene is to do something more melodic, hence symphonic metal. 

What is your latest release?

We released our first ever EP “Melodis” about a month ago. It features the first 5 songs we felt were ready for performance and sharing with the world. That’s not to say it is the first 5 songs we ever wrote. It took us a few songs until we felt we had found our sound.

Who have been your greatest influences?

As a band, I know a lot of us listen to bands like Nightwish and Epica, so I guess you could say we take influences from some of the symphonic metal greats. On a personal level, I take influences from a lot of different places. I have played classical piano since I was 7, so classical music, particularly Beethoven, has had a big influence on my musical tastes. I’ve also sung in choirs since i was 8, choral music has had probably the biggest single impact on my life. The friendships I’ve made through singing will be with me forever. In a metal context, the biggest influences to my keyboard style would have to be Jens Johansson, Bob Katsionis (whom I now have the privilege of knowing on a more personal level) and Jordan Rudess. 

What first got you into music?

My father is a drummer and all my uncles on my mothers side play in bands, so I grew up around musicians and gigs. It felt natural to me to become a musician myself. My mother takes credit for my music taste leaning towards the metal genres. As the story goes, she would listen to Black Sabbath while pregnant with me. 

If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?

I’d love to collaborate with Jordan Rudess. I’m so curious to see what his thoughts are on how he goes about writing keyboard parts in a progressive metal context and think I would learn a lot from collaborating with him.

If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?

Wacken. Does that even need an explanation? 

What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?

I once got a pack of time delay circuits. Very odd, although I do keep thinking they would make a pretty cool necklace. 

If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?

First and foremost, thank you for all the support. We know it’s cliche to say this, but we literally couldn’t do any of this without you. Its fans that give us an audience at gigs, its fans that are the ones who listen to our music, there’s no much point in being a band and writing songs if no one is ever going to hear them. 

If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?

That’s a tough one. I never got to see Freddie Mercury with Queen and everything I have ever heard about him was how amazing he was as a performer. So I think I would pick him. 

What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?

Definitely the most fun thing is being able to express myself through music, to create something from just an idea in my head to then hear it as a fully formed song or recording is something truly special. I also enjoy being able to bring listeners and fans on that journey too. When I get comments about how certain songs I‘ve written made people think or feel a certain way, that’s very satisfying. I hate pretty much everything that’s not the music itself, setting up for gigs and rehearsals, waiting around after soundcheck, having to play a part 20 times in a recording studio looking for that “one” take.  

If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?

More collaboration between artists, and more cooperation between different music genres. Music is music at the end of the day. Could you imagine how awesome and weird a supergroup of say, a rap artist, a pop artist, a jazz drummer and metal guitarist would be? 

Name one of your all-time favourite albums?

Dream Theater – “Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory”. That album was the one that opened my eyes to what’s possible with a metal band and that breaking the mould is totally okay. 

What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?

Download for convenience, Vinyl for the physical product.

What’s the best gig that you have played to date?

With one of my old projects I got to open for Helloween here in Melbourne. That was probably the best night of my life. Shadow Of Nyx hasn’t really done anything that big yet, but who knows what the future holds? 

If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?

I would like to think I’d be doing science of some kind, I have a degree in science and a degree in computer science. 

Which five people would you invite to a dinner party? 

Jordan Rudess, Brian May, Chris Newton (drummer from Shadow of Nyx, he knows how to talk a lot and is great for awkward silences), Neil Degrasse Tyson and Stephen Fry. I can only imagine the conversations that would occur with this group of people. 

What’s next for the band?

Gigging and touring to promote the release of our EP. And we are hard at work on new material for what we hope will be our first full length album.

What Social Media / Website links do you use to get your music out to people? 

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/ShadowOfNyx
Youtube – https://www.youtube.com/@ShadowOfNyx
Spotify – https://open.spotify.com/album/0yjSHfo5cSZHsMnA26CeKR?si=JdIMsGENS3y5Tyq5c-eS9w
Apple Music – https://music.apple.com/us/album/melodis-ep/1667450568
Youtube – https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_lvConDy687nTRTS5_Hdb5lFapvbMA1aVQ&feature=share
Linktree – https://linktr.ee/ShadowOfNyx

Time for a very British question now. As an alternative to the humble sandwich, is the correct name for a round piece of bread common in the UK either a Bap, a Barm (or Barm Cake), a Batch, a Bun, a Cob, a Muffin, a Roll or a Tea Cake?

Muffin? We have a thing in supermarkets here called an English Muffin? 

Disclaimer: This interview is solely the property of Ever Metal. It is strictly forbidden to copy any part of this review, unless you have the strict permission of both parties. Failure to adhere to this will be treated as plagiarism and will be reported to the relevant authorities.