Much like we endeavour every year before Bloodstock, this year, for Scotland’s Wildfire Festival which kicks off on 22nd June, we’re interviewing every band set to play the stages of Wiston. You get to hear (or read) right from the horse’s mouth who you should be watching over the course of the weekend.
Previous years have seen some excellent acts grace the stages as our reviews can attest to and trust us when we say this year is no different! So get reading and listening so you can plan your coffee/beer/food breaks accordingly…
Our thanks to all the bands for taking the time out to answer our questions!
Darkness Divine
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We are based in Glasgow however 2/5 of us are from Inverclyde. We rehearse in Glasgow, though so we would always say Glasgow when asked.
How long have you been playing together as a band?
We’ve been playing together for just over a year now, our first rehearsal was late March 2017.
Where does the name of the band come from?
The band name was just something cool that was being thrown about, there were a lot of ideas flying around when we were choosing a name. This particular one was, in part, from a Linkin Park song which I can’t remember but it was a newer tune. There was a line in the song that said “*something* divine” (not darkness), which sent the wheels turning and we eventually landed on Darkness Divine which we felt was a kind of good metaphor for the band as we play metal riffs and licks – but with the kind of serene female vocals softening the heavy!
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We like to describe the music as having “Ferocity and Elegance”. We take a different route from other female fronted metal bands who tend to take either a more symphonic approach to the guitar riffs and sound, or if the band and riffs are heavier then the vocals follow suit. We mix it up by keeping the technicality and aggression on the guitars but with glorious vocal melodies and harmonies bringing it all together.
What’s your live show like? Why should people watch you?
Our live show is quite simply energy and passion! We love being on stage and it shows when we play live. We understand that punters are looking for a show akin to their favourite bands and artists so we try to deliver that to them. And as we can’t afford massive lights or pyro we do it by throwing ourselves around and having a great time.
What sort of setlist can we expect?
Our setlist at Wildfire will predominantly be tracks from our upcoming EP which will be released the following week on June 28th, however a few songs from next year’s album may also make the cut depending on how long we have to work with. We have a couple of lighter songs which will be getting kept in the bag in favour of our more upbeat numbers.
Which band are you most looking forward to seeing?
We’re really looking forward to seeing Black King Cobra again with their new bass player in tow. Massive Wagons are a band we haven’t crossed paths with yet so really looking forward to them. And we also can’t wait to see our friends in Mason Hill and Neshiima rocking the place! To be honest we’ll be checking out most of the bands and just generally having a great weekend of live music but those 4 are gonna be the standouts for ourselves.
What have you got planned for the second half of 2018?
We are gonna be very busy in the second half of 2018. Immediately following wildfire we’ll be setting off on a 4 date EP launch tour where we’ll hit:
- Manchester (28/6)
- Aberdeen (29/6)
- Edinburgh (30/6)
- And finally Glasgow (1/7)
We will also be going out on the road again on another four date tour in September, however at the moment we only have Newcastle confirmed (13/9). We’ll be looking to get further south in September, hopefully hitting Cardiff and London as part of that tour but that’s all in the works at the moment. The rest of 2018 will be spent preparing the songs for our debut album recording in 2019 with the odd shows here and there.
You recently played with a few of the bands appearing over the weekend at Wildfire Rekindled. How was that?
Wildfire Rekindled was a great experience for us as we never expected to be asked, it all happened really quickly through word of mouth. Someone saw us play in Paisley and pitched us to Dave Ritchie and the rest is history. We were blown away by the quality of Landslides and The Sauza Kings but by far the highlight were Black King Cobra. Great band with great songs and also super friendly dudes, it was an absolute honour just to be mentioned in the same breath as these guys but we managed to perform well and secure a slot at Wildfire which was beyond what we had expected. A really great way to showcase local talent and a very well organised and attended gig too, for which Dave and Janah should be highly commended!
Even more recently, you reached the semi-finals of Glasgow’s Metal 2 the Masses. How did you find the competition overall?
Reaching the semi-finals was great but the result was bittersweet for us. We thought we could have gone further but alas it’s up to the judges and the crowd on the night. It did give us a chance to take a step back and look at what we might have done differently to polish our set and performance to make us an even greater force to be reckoned with next year. At the end of the day though despite our disappointment we met some amazingly talented bands who we have already got some more shows booked with so it was definitely a valuable experience. To meet other up and comers like ourselves with true skill and passion, bands like The Colony, Ifreann, Nocturne Wulf and A Ritual Spirit, is never wasted time! We can’t thank the organisers enough for giving us that opportunity.
What’s been the highlight for the band’s career so far?
The highlight for us, at the moment, as we are a relatively new band, is the responses we get after our performance. Being new – no one really has any expectations of us when they see our name on a bill and for the most part we’re playing to people who haven’t heard us before. So getting their feedback after we come off stage is awesome. Seeing people out in the crowd wearing our t-shirts is just a really cool thing too. Honestly, our entire run from our first gig in November has been the highlight! Some gigs are better than others from a performance standpoint but the feedback has been amazing and as long as we’re making people happy with music then we’re gonna be smiling. We’ve only played 8 gigs so far, so to be where we are right now through basically word of mouth is amazing to us!
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
There’s so many wild things that happen at shows these days, big productions, that it’s hard to pin point any one thing that was the most wild. We also don’t tend to do anything super wild onstage. Maybe the odd “playing each other’s guitars” spot is about as mental as we get. We are firm believers of letting the music do the talking – but you gotta get that hair swinging and throw down!
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!
Supporting Rise Against would be a dream come true as they are a massive influence. It may not be all that visible to the outside listener as we play somewhat different styles of music, but they have hugely shaped the sound of this band in terms of song structure and melodicism. And if we ever did get that opportunity we’d take our brothers (and M2tM finalists) A Ritual Spirit along to open for us! Love those guys!
What day/time are you playing at Wildfire? (If you have your slot yet!)
We haven’t received word of our time slot yet, still patiently waiting on the email coming through. Biting our nails into dust!
Pistonhead Lager, Cloven Hoof rum or Thistly Cross cider? And yes, we’ll be counting the votes!
As we have 5 members we couldn’t decide on one drink so we have:
- Rum x2
- Lager x3
