1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
We're a two piece band from Ireland, I actually find it hard to put us in one category we don't really fit anywhere, we incorporate noise/doom/Industrial/drone/black metal without ever being truly pure to any genre. I think GOURD formed from the smothering ashes of “Wreck of the Hesperus” and “On Pain of Death” which were our previous bands.
2.Recently you have released your first full length, musically how does it differ from your previous ep's?
This one was recorded through covid lockdown, so we never could meet up to jam out ideas,we both live on opposite sides of the country so everything was done solo and emailed back and forth until we were happy, there are quite a lot of layers on some of the songs whereas past recordings were more stripped back. I also think there is more of an industrial feel overall.
3,Both of the other members are also in other bands, what is it that you bring into the music of 'Gourd' that you are not able to do with your other groups?
Ray is in a new funeral doom band “Bacterium” who have an album coming out soon, and also has a solo project called “Beneath the Sod” which isn't a millions miles away from GOURD sound wise possibly more industrial in style. My other projects are quite different, “Coscradh” would be a blackened Death Metal band with plenty of noise atmospheres on recordings and in live settings, I also do vocals for Death metal band “Atheos” and again we also incorporate atmospheres between songs, so I get plenty use for my gear.
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored so far with the music?
I think lyrics were always an afterthought on earlier GOURD recordings, we just wanted to create music that felt unpleasant with uneasy videos to match, now most of our topics involve rot and decay, bleak death, the hidden darkness within all life.
5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Gourd'?
No hidden meaning behind it or anything, we just though GOURD as a band name made no sense much like the music 6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover? We actually just found the image online and felt it would make a good fit after some editing, it cuts a sombering figure alone.
7.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you open to expanding the line up or do you prefer to remain a duo?
At the start we toyed with the idea of having more members like a full band, but decided to keep it as a two piece, as we never really expected to play gigs so all recordings could be done by ourselves
8.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We have played a lot more shows than we expected some good some not so good, I think the last few have been more enjoyable, we try to use visuals at all our gigs but in some venues it's not quite possible there is a lot to set up and with quick turnarounds between bands it's not worth the hassle. We have had a good few guest vocalists, sometimes two on stage with us recently like C from “Coscradh”, MB from “Malthusian”, Rodge from “Noosed” and Cursed Monk Records, Draighean from “Gealach” and it really adds to the chaos especially the end of the set.
9.You have also been a part of a split with 'Luxury Mollusc' what are your thoughts on the other group that participated on the recording?
We are good friends with Stu from “Luxury Mollusc” and his live shows are great, in case you didn't know “Luxury Mollusc” is a one man harsh noise project. It was great working on that split with him, we both sounded very different but equally as twisted.
10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of doom metal and harsh noise?
I think true Doom fans hate us, and a lot of metalheads don't get us, so I think our fans come from very different fanbases, again we find it hard to put us into a box that fits. But this is what makes it interesting personally. I do love looking at the crowd reaction at our gigs as we mostly play on metal bills, you can see some people really getting into it and the utter disgust on some peoples faces, it is always funny to see.
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
More of the same I hope, there has been no live gigs in Ireland in nine months due to Covid lockdowns and we don't see live gigs happening for a long time. I think there is talk of another split record next, and we want to try a few more things, time will tell.
12.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 a tough question, we both listen to such a wide range of music it would make a very long list. There is so much good new stuff out there, especially in the Death and Black metal, harsh noise underground, it's impossible to keep up with all the new releases and bands.
13.Does Occultism play any role in your music?
No not really, some of the videos might portray that, but it's not anything we delve into musically
14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks for taking the time with GOURD and keep supporting the underground.
All the best
