Thundering through summer, let’s keep the temperatures up with another Band of the Day. Today we bring you noisy foursome Black Fast…
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We are from small towns in Illinois USA. As an entity we occupy a fictional clubhouse in the minor hamlet of St. Louis MO of the USA.
How did you meet?
We met as young musicians in a small college town pursuing other people to jam with and parties to attend.
How long have you been playing as a band?
Our first proper gig was eight years ago. Now we’re old men.
Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from?
When I was a kid I heard about how a priest would fast before performing an exorcism, and such an arcane fast was called a black fast. I thought it would be a cool name for a heavy metal band someday. Boy was I wrong!
What are your influences?
I’m mostly influenced by that feeling of running from feral neighbourhood dogs or trying to escape ill-intentioned kids by pedalling as fast as you can on your bicycle without the chain popping. That, and for a long time after first seeing a VHS tape of a Slayer concert. I was scared.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We are unique in that a lot of people will likely not long endure the sound of my singing voice. And also our character flaws are actually quite endearing under the guise of the band.
Do you have any particular lyrical themes?
I don’t have any themes intentionally, but my tastes revolve around the supernatural, existential, and science-fiction based horror.
What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played?
We’ve played exactly 174 live shows and they’ve all been rippers.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
We broke our own van three times, our bass player broke his foot and got his cast peed into, played a double header, and swapped underwear with good friends all in about 30 hours. The shows went great. Also one time a hobo was our sound guy.
What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.?
We are extremely proud to endorse D’addario strings in the studio and on the road and at home and at the laundry mat. We play Suhr, Jackson, PRS, Charvel, Ernie Ball/Musicman, D’Angelico, Heritage, and Breedlove guitars, and anything else we can get our hands on. Soldano, EVH, and Aguilar amps on the road. Marshall and Ampeg amps in the studio. Pacific drums on the road, Pearl Masters in the studio.
What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment?
We have a new album, Spectre of Ruin out worldwide on eOne Friday, July 13th!
What are your plans for 2018?
We are going to tour our dicks off and give ‘em a little bit of the ol’ what-for.
If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before!
I want to open for Bob Seger and have Kenny Rogers as support.
From previous Band of the Day Empire Warning: If a Norse God had to take over from one band member what god will it be, what position would they be filling?
I don’t know if Zeus would approve, but I believe you could swap me out with the patron saint of quality footwear without much hubbub.
From another BotD, The Crawling: Being in a band can be as much of curse as a source of enjoyment and satisfaction. What keeps you going when things get tough?
You can always walk to the gas station when you run out in a different country.
And from King Bison (UK): If you could join any band on stage for one song, who would it be and what track would you play?
“Enter Sandman” on a fuckin’ bass.
Black Fast: official | facebook | twitter | instagram | youtube | spotify
