As ever, we’re going to try and cover every single Jäger, New Blood and SOPHIE stage band before Bloodstock kicks off on August 9th. Your chance to check them out and start planning which bands to get there early for!
Trust us when we tell you that this is bound to result in some frustrating clashes because, as ever, there are some great bands on these three stages.
Our thanks to all the bands for taking the time out to answer our questions!
GarshKott – Hobgoblin New Blood Stage, Friday
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We are all based in and around ‘Milk and Beans’ (Milton Keynes).
How long have you been playing together as a band?
As the five piece we are now we have been together for two years, but the band originally started coming up three years ago.
Where does the name of the band come from?
There was a mental institution called Gartloch Hospital which opened in 1869 and closed in 1996 in a village near Glasgow. The hospital name ‘Gartloch’ really caught our guitarist Aaron’s eye but there was something missing. We felt it didn’t have the punch we wanted and also we wanted to be easily found on social media. Aaron was mulling over the name one day, saying Gartloch over and over again, and accidentally said ‘Garshcot’. Our vocalist Tom took that away and came back to us with the name ‘GarshKott’ instead and it has stuck ever since.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We have many different influences within the band ranging from Alter Bridge to Pantera, Gojira and Parkway Drive. We would say we are a groove metal band but we didn’t aim for a specific genre. The sound we came up with evolved naturally as we played.
What’s your live show like? Why are people going to watch you instead of another band?
We bring heavy, we bring groove and we give the crowd a 110% kick ass show; a show for them to remember. For the 30 minutes that we are on stage, we want the crowd to feel what we feel when we perform; not giving a shit about any of life’s negativity and just losing yourself in the moment. In those 30 minutes we want the crowd to let their hair down, to be feeling good, to be feeling pumped and to be feeling Goddamn alive! We all go to heavy metal shows for the same reason and we want to make sure we give something back to the crowd, who have taken time out of their day to come and watch us.
Have you been to Bloodstock before? What did you think?
Unfortunately not all of us have, but we have heard so much about it and cannot wait to be part of the Bloodstock family. Our drummer Mike has been before and he always says it’s the one festival where there is a real family vibe. No bullshit with anyone and you always feel welcomed. He swears it’s the place to be, better than any other festival he has been to.
Did you enter M2TM thinking you could win it? Which region did you win, or did you come through other channels?
Hell no we didn’t think we could win! Every band was just was good as the next in our eyes. This was our second time competing and didn’t get easier this time round either – every round we played was just as tough as the last. The competition was so fierce and all the bands we competed against brought their A-game to every show. It was just phenomenal to see. There is so much talent in the underground scene.
We won the Northants Metal to the Masses, despite being a Milton Keynes band. Northampton was where we got our start and we still currently play frequently in the area. Promoters like Phil Walker from Lost Island Bookings and Skye, Bobbie and Kane from HOP Events took us under their wing and provided an excellent platform to launch ourselves. It allowed us to play alongside other immense acts like Stereo Skull, Black Ink Sun, From Eden to Exile, Siderian, Reaper and Krysthla, all of whom have pushed us to be who we are now. We should mention that all the support we have received from friends and fans in Northampton has been absolutely mind blowing. We owe the Northampton scene for the past two years of our live career. This is why we competed in Northants Metal to the Masses.
What sort of setlist can we expect?
We have a very heavy and groove-filled set list in store with some good hooks and a melodic flavouring on top. This is the best recipe for a heavy show.
Which other bands do you most hope you’re not squished up next to so you can see them play?
We are fortunate that we don’t clash with any of the bands we want to see such as Bleed From Within, Ingested, Fahran and of course, Judas Priest. We’re also looking forward to seeing Imminent Annihilation and our friends Ashbourne as well.
What are you working on at the moment?
Once we have done Bloodstock we will be hitting the stage at Beermageddon and will be playing a show as main support for Heart of a Coward at the Craufurd Arms in Milton Keynes. After all of that, we will back to the grindstone putting together our debut album.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
From a performance view, seeing the crowd opening up pits or separating for a wall of death and even just seeing them head banging in sync is wild. That doesn’t sound like much but to be on stage watching the crowd reacting like that to your material is such a hair raising experience. To top that off, when the crowd is roaring your name back at you so loud through your set that you can barely hear your own vocalist – that shit is wild!
Jäger, Hobgoblin Ale, Red Bull, Kingstone Press Cider, Kaltenberg Beer or Bulleit Bourbon? And, yes, we’ll be counting all the votes!
- Aaron and Mike – Jägermeister all the fucking way.
- Guy – Bulleit
- Tom – Kaltenberg Beer
- Adam – Kingston Press Cider
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