Interview: The Spectre Beneath (Written)
Games, Brrraaains & A Head-Banging Life bring you an interview with power and progressive metal band, The Spectre Beneath.
1. Hello! Thank you for taking the time to chat to us. First things first, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started.
Pete: Back in January 2019,I’d just finished an album with my other project, Plague and the Decay. When I started writing the follow up, the music seemed to be more melodic and a little less thrashy but with just the same amount of turbo charged riffs. It was a slight shift in tone and I thought it would be a good idea to add a female vocal to bring out the melodic side even more. Plague and the Decay drummer, Consta, was onboard and then long time collaborator, Katy, helped write and add nuance to the vocal melodies so they would suit a female voice. I then found L Lockser from an online demo and we managed to put our debut album, The Downfall of Judith King, in September of that year.
Katy: From my perspective I was late to the party. Pete and I worked together in our day jobs and he heard I’d done some session singing in the past and about 10 years ago, he asked me to help out with another project, a concept metal album. It just grew from there, we worked well together and he kept asking me back. Initially, I just kept subtly changing his vocal melodies until he actually started asking my opinion and then on to writing melodies together. We love a harmony so it was a match made in heaven!
2. Someone comes to you and asks you to sum up what kind of music you play – what do you tell them?
Pete: I initially thought we were just a metal band but we were called Power/Prog metal in the first ever review for our debut album and it seemed to stick. If you like power metal and progressive metal but don’t want to go too far in either direction, The Spectre Beneath maybe for you. Definitely all clean vocals to allow the melodies to shine and to allow big harmony choruses. I’m a big fan of bands like Overkill, Forbidden, Testament and Annihilator, so there’s an element of thrash about it all as well, especially in the quicker tracks. We definitely don’t have layers of keyboards either, apart from some piano and a few atmospheric drones, we try and keep the music riff and vocal focused.
3. What’s currently going on in your camp? New releases? Tours? Etc.
Pete: We have a mini-LP out later this year with 6 songs on it. We have the next album planned out and we would say 70% of it is written. There are some killer riffs in the mix, fast songs, moody songs and a song called Germ which has a sleazy, dirty groove which is something new for us. After two and a half years without releasing anything we are keen to get more music out there. After releasing the mini-LP hopefully around July/August time, we’d like to finish writing the new full-length and get it recorded before Easter 2024.
4. What has been the most positive experience of making music to date for you?
Katy: For me, being lost in the experimental process and reaching for a medium to tell a story or create a feeling of emotion through music is an honour. I’ve always used music to help me to feel and process emotions and the thought that I could be a part of that outlet for even one person is incredibly humbling- so it’s that reward when people tell you a track is their go-to when they’re happy/sad or wanting to vent after a hard day. That’s what keeps me wanting to do more.
Pete: Collaborating with like minded people. Also, having a reviewer call us one of the most valuable discoveries on the world metal scene was pretty special. It’s always a positive to have such validation for what you’re trying to achieve.
5. Likewise, what has been some of the more challenging aspects and how have you overcome them?
Katy: Realising my limits for sure has been difficult. When we started the project I was the only vocalist, and we had great material but I always felt like the vocals just weren’t big enough or powerful enough, I’m definitely not made for metal having a pop background and I just always felt they were the weaker element. When we made the decision to have L on the last album and I heard it back for the first time with her vocals it was like hearing the tracks complete for the first time. It was a challenge to let go of that, as a vocalist you always want to be upfront but actually I think I enjoy the process much more now and it’s definitely been the right decision.
6. How do you handle the modern expectations of being in a band? Always online, having to put out content constantly, your success measured in likes and follows?
Pete: I have to admit, I’m not a big fan. I can’t keep up with it all. In some respects I’m glad this is the case. When you’re busy writing etc… you simply don’t have any content to share and I’d rather not post anything than post some random nonsense. I follow some bands on Instagram and they constantly post stuff, but it’s content with very little substance and I quickly lose interest. I feel some of the mysticism musicians used to have has been lost when such content is endlessly churned out. Although it maybe to the band’s detriment, I’d rather post less but when I do, I try make sure it adds value to the brand.
7. What’s something that really ‘grinds your gears’ about the industry/business these days and what would you propose is done to combat it?
Katy: The cost of live music. This has been over commercialised and I don’t feel it’s particularly accessible in the current climate. The technological advancements in stage and effects are absolutely incredible but the impact often leaves many fans priced out. I appreciate the work that goes into creating a show but for me it doesn’t enhance the experience. Add to that the extortionate prices that venues charge for drinks etc.
Pete: It’ll be easy for me to moan about streaming, Spotify and the like, but I don’t have any theories on how to combat it. It’s not going away yet I don’t think the money is there to pay artists a decent cut. However, one subject I tend to whine about is modern production. With the advancements in technology, you can get a great sound without spending a lot of money, which is great, but, for me, some of the character, rawness and energy is being lost. Albums being overproduced is becoming a bug bear as they sound too good, too clean and thus sound a little sterile, this is metal where instruments are overdriven, why would you want it as clean as possible? Because of this, many bands sound alike because they use the same production techniques and plugins and, as a consequence, lose part of their identity. Even though their music sounds good, there’s nothing to set it apart from other bands in their genre. What ends up happening is the fans/listeners receive the same experience from not only one band who uses the same settings every album, but all the other bands who have similar settings. Certainly from my perspective, fatigue soon kicks in because it feels like you’re getting the same thing over and over.
As well as that, the layers of keyboards some bands adopt don’t, in my opinion, add anything at all, in fact, they simply drown out the guitars, but that could be me because I love guitar riffs, the more the better in my opinion.
8. Speaking directly to listeners – what would you ask they do to help support your music?
Katy: It’s pretty simple I think. Play it loud and share it wide. That’s really all we can ask.
Pete: I agree with Katy, turn it up, give us a like and share the music, it really does help get our name out there.
9. Outside of the music, what’s do you do to relax?
Katy: I certainly can’t match Pete for the sheer number of hobbies, I swear he has a time turner. But I volunteer a lot to support the development of Ice Hockey in the uk for juniors, girls and women. Don’t get me wrong I can’t skate, not even a bit but both my daughters play and so I help out on the administrative side managing the teams and other jobs that allow me to keep both my feet on normal ground and raise awareness of the sport so that we can create more opportunities for women and girls to have a development pathway in this country. I also love calligraphy, even though I’m a complete amateur but there’s something extremely therapeutic about it.
Pete: I’m an independent author, horror, thrillers, that type of thing. I’m currently working on my second whodunit, which are quite tricky to put together as you have to work from the end and work backwards.
10. Where can people find you?
Katy: People can find us on all the usual streaming platform with the digital album being available to buy from Amazon and Apple. If you are after physical copies, they are available at our Bandcamp site.
