1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
We actually release it tomorrow, so we've been mainly focused on getting ready for the album release! We're promoting it the old-school way - DIY - no promotion companies or record companies to help us - so it's a lot of legwork and talking to as many people (like your good selves) as we can to try to get the word out there that we exist and, hopefully, that we are good at what we do.
2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Very firmly in the melodic death metal genre. Our music is dark and suffused with atmosphere, without relying on synths to do this. We offer an intense, aggressive and epic interpretation of death metal without being a "brutal" or "technical" band, and at the same time we're melodic without using clean vocals or straying into power metal-style scales. We keep it dark! It's a logical progression on from what we have released in the past - this album is just more mature, I guess.
3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
I draw inspiration both from my own experiences and from stories from history and science. This new album is split about half and half, and deals with everything from the bog men of Ireland (The Wasting Throne) to the pressure to procreate (Ancestral Weight). The title track is about an obscure episode of eco-terrorism from Scottish history - a group of university scientists who formed an organization called the Dark Harvest Commando to pressure the UK Government to decontaminate an old anthrax testing site. They did this by sending anthrax soil from the site to the government with promises to widely distribute their "dark harvest" if nothing was done. The common theme, as with the music, is darkness.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Hammerdrone'?
I'd like to say there was something profound behind the name selection... but really, we were coming up to our first gig, without a name, and had been through hundreds of suggestions...and Curtis (rhythm guitar) said "how about Hammerdrone"? He doesn't even really know where that came from!
5.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We've appeared at the Calgary Metalfest and the Farmageddon fest, both of which were awesome experiences. More recently, we supported both Numenorean and Krepitus at their respective album release shows in Calgary - these were incredible shows. The one adjective that is almost always used to describe our stage performance is "intense". One reviewer recently called us "intimidatingly intense" which I think is my favourite ever description of us!
6.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
CD release show in Calgary is tomorrow - and we are appearing at Loud As Hell 666 - which is being headlined by Battlecross - in August. We'll try to take ourselves on the road as much as we can.
7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We're doing OK by ourselves...but yes, some label support would, I am sure, help us get a bigger audience - that would be welcome!
8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of melodic black and death metal?
We've been well received in the metal underground in countries as diverse as Nepal, the UK, France, Slovenia etc. People seem to appreciate the particular style of melodic death metal we are producing - or, as one reviewer put it, death metal that happens to be melodic.
9.What is going on with 'Krepitus' these days, a band that also shares a couple of the same members?
Yeah, our bassist, Teran, leads Krepitus on guitar and vocals - it's his main band, really, He was only supposed to be helping us out (but has been doing so for 3 years, ha!). And Curtis plays bass with them. They're an awesome thrash-death band - they sound like Revocation meeting Dissection in a dark alley. They've not long ago released their debut album, "Eyes of the Soulless" and it's really, really good. They're busy recording a new single and writing their next album, I believe.
10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
More of the same, essentially - in that we'll keep writing dark, heavy, melodic death metal. But we try not to think too much about writing a deliberate style or type of song and just let what happens, happens. As long as the five of us in the band like a song, that's all that matters to us at the end of the day.
11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
That's always a hard question because the influences are so many and so wide. Some common influences would be bands such as Death and Kataklysm. In terms of what I'm listening to these days...not enough! I've had a dearth of new music recently so am busily trying to find time to listen to some cool new bands by checking out some underground radio.
12.What are some of your non musical interests?
Personally...I run, swim, bake and draw.
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Just to say thank you for your support. It is truly appreciated.
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