EMQ’s with SILVERLIGHT SHADOWS
Hi everyone! Welcome to our new EMQ’s interview with Australian Grunge Rock band, Silverlight Shadows. Huge thanks to guitarist/vocalist Nida 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?
I’m Nida, I play guitar and sing. We started in September 2015. I had a lot of songs ready to go so I contacted Dan (Bass) as we’d talked about having a jam a while ago at a mutual friend’s party. We got together and jammed with drummer Rick. It was supposed to be a one-off thing, but the jam went pretty well so Dan & I caught up a few more times and got to know the songs. After that we had two more jams with Rick, then headed to the studio to record the first album, “Silverlight Shadows”. It was recorded in two days. Not long after that we headed back to the studio and recorded our second album, “Headspace”. We’ve just released our new single “Black The World” in January 2020.
How did you come up with your band name?
I came up with the name while cleaning my kitchen. It just popped into my head. I had a few other ideas, like Apocalypse Shadow, which we decided was too dark, eventually we went with Silverlight Shadows. It represents all things that come out in the moonlight – good and evil.
What country are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
We’re from Melbourne, Australia. The underground scene is really strong here; There are heaps of awesome bands and plenty of cool venues. You can pretty much catch an awesome band here any night of the week. There are some really good relatively unknown bands who, in my opinion, are kick ass! We also have two great community radio stations, PBS and RRR, that showcase and promote the underground music scene. I think the worst thing happening is the lack of support for these awesome live venues. A lot of them are really struggling. It would be great if people got out there and supported the scene a little more.
What is your latest release (Album, EP, Single, Video)
We released a single in January 2020 on 7″ inch vinyl. It’s a split release with our mate’s Monarchus. The launch show for this was at Last Chance Rock n Roll bar in Melbourne on January 18th.
Who have been your greatest influences?
I listen to a lot of music, lots of different styles so there are influences coming from all directions. The band I have listened to most over the last few years would be King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard. Both Dan (bass) and I grew up being heavily influenced by Australian bands like Magic Dirt, Tumbleweed, The Meanies & Spiderbait. Definitely a lot of bands with fuzzed out guitars too, like the Melvins & Nirvana etc.
What first got you into music?
From the moment I saw Animal from the Muppets I was fucking sold. To see him go absolutely crazy just made me want to do the same. Mix that with my old man banging his head to Deep Purple in the car there was no way I could escape that fast heavy and frenetic beast that is rock!
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician who would it be?
I would like to get Gene from Monarchus to sing on one of our tracks.
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
SXSW Everyone I know who has been there has loved it. It would be amazing to be amongst so many like-minded music fans and bands.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
I haven’t received any gifts yet from fans, except for the occasional drink, which I don’t mind!
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
Don’t buy Cheetos Flamin’ Hot Puffs – they’re not very tasty!
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Hendrix. He was a genius. There was no one like him before or after. He was one in a billion.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
That’s a hard one, I really enjoy lots of things about being a musician. It’s really awesome when you come up with a riff and see it evolve into a song. Recording is great because you finally get to finish the song and hear how it’s meant to sound for the first time. Playing live is great as well, the energy you can create with the whole band humming along and see and hear the audience react to the music is really rewarding. I don’t really enjoy all the selfless promotion you have to do online these days.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
Maybe an ice age to wipe out all the dinosaurs!
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
Blood Duster – “Lyden Na (The Now Sound)”
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CD’s or Downloads?
Vinyl, CD and then cassette, in that order. Digital stuff is great for in the car or when you are out camping etc.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
Probably Brewtality Fest’ in Melbourne. It’s a celebration of metal, rock and beer. Blood Duster headlined and they are one of my favourite bands.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
I would most likely be stuck on a farm out in the middle of nowhere driving some sort of heavy machinery!
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
Benny, Trav, Saltz, Sponge & Dan. I would serve them chicken schnitzel except for Benny, he’s vegetarian so I would make him some nice chilli pasta.
What’s next for the band?
Right now, we’re writing stuff for our next release. We are mixing things up a bit on this one, I will be playing bass on a few tracks and Dan will be playing guitar and singing. It’s a bit of a different sound from what we have been doing but still plenty of fuzzed out guitar tones to enjoy.
What Social Media/Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
All the usual one’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Bandcamp Youtube etc our music is available on all the streaming platforms:
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
I can’t say I’ve ever heard of Jaffa cakes! I don’t think we have them in Australia. I actually googled this and found a video on YouTube with a nerdy girl giving a long explanation about how they had done studies on this phenomenon and that technically they are a cake????!
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Thanks for interviewing us and thanks to anyone who has come to a show or listened to our tunes.
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