Returning for a third year, StormBreakers hits Bathgate’s Dreadnought Rock to give new bands the chance to play Winter Storm’s main stage and follow in the footsteps of alumni Anchor Lane and Everyday Heroes. With five bands set to take to the Dreadnought’s stage, and the running order not revealed until the night itself, just like last year, we’re giving you an advance look at who you can expect to perform. It’s always been a great night, full of new discoveries to be made and while only one band can win the top prize, we reckon you’ll be leaving with a handful of new favourite bands.
Today, we’ve got another of this year’s Bloodstock line-up tackling the StormBreakers iteration of our #RoadTo questions after they nicely answered our BOA ones!
Control the Storm
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We are officially based in Bristol. However over the years we have become a little more spread out around the country. Firouzeh is from Manchester, Matt lives in Chichester, Rich and paul are local to Bristol and Rae is wherever he is working and parks his camper van.
How long have you been playing together as a band?
Control the Storm was formed in 2010 by Rich and Rae. Some line up changes over the years happened and as this line up we have only been playing live together since May. However, this is the strongest line up the band has ever seen. We get on so well and have released a new album, played 4 incredible shows together and achieved more in a matter of months than we have in years.
Where does the name of the band come from?
Originally the band’s drummer, Gary, was a big fan of Delain. He suggested the name “Control the Storm” as they have a song with that title. The name seemed to fit the band’s direction and it stuck.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
I would say we have many dimensions to our sound. We try to write catchy songs, while keeping it heavy but dynamics and symphony are very important to us. We adopt a lot of techniques from bands such as Queen and Iron Maiden. But we also try to avoid sounding too much like them. I think what makes us unique however is our vocal style. Firouzeh has a very interesting and powerful voice.
What’s your live show like? How are you hoping to impress the judges?
Our live show is very dynamic. We like to build tension and then hit hard from the start. It’s very much a wall of sound that catches the audience and we like to get everyone involved as much we possible.
Have you been to Winter Storm before?
We haven’t been to Winter Storm. We are definitely hoping to change that this year though.
How did you hear about StormBreakers? What prompted you to enter?
Paul (bass) applied to the festival a while back, unfortunately we didn’t get booked but then a lot happened for the band in a short space or time and we were offered the chance to take part in the competition instead. It was a chance we jumped at. At the very least we would get a show in Scotland this year and if we do well we get to play the festival so it’s win-win.
What sort of setlist can we expect?
We are coming all guns blazing to this one, a set of our hardest hitting tracks from our new album.
Other than yourselves, who are you most looking forward to watch perform at StormBreakers?
To be honest, all the bands really. That’s one thing we pride ourselves on is watching all the bands we play alongside. We don’t really see it at a competition. It’s more of a chance to meet some great new musicians and hopefully gain some new fans and followers along the way.
What’s been the highlight of the band’s career so far?
This year we played the Sophie Lancaster stage at Bloodstock open air. It was incredible. We made it our official album launch party and the crowd delivered for us. It was quite mind blowing to see the tent absolutely rammed when we played. So many of our t-shirts kicking around, people singing our songs back to us from an album that had only been out for 2 weeks before the show. It was mind blowing and a show we will never forget.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
The wildest thing we ever did was have pyrotechnics at this year’s Bloodstock. Loads of fire, sparks and to finish it all off: a huge blast of confetti which absolutely filled the tent. It was a milestone for us and definitely went a long way to opening people’s eyes and ears to the band.
What are you working on at the moment/your plans for the rest of the year?
So we are hitting the studio again soon to work on more new songs. We have 2 videos lined up and lots of shows to promote the new album Forevermore. Keep and eye on our social media for updates on shows and news.
Header image by Scorpius Photography
Control the Storm: facebook | instagram | youtube | bandcamp
