The Downbeat

My guests on the podcast this week are Chris Davis and Andrew Tkaczyk of THE GHOST INSIDE. In 2015 The Ghost Inside suffered through a life changing bus crash which claimed lives, limbs and nearly the future of the band. 10 years later TGI is stronger than ever - thanks to the mental fortitude of the members and an ingenious device created by Andrew’s father ‘THE HAMMER’ that allows him to play th...

My guests on the podcast this week are Jeff Moreira and Chris Hornbrook of Poison The Well. Poison The Well almost single handedly defined what Metalcore is today and they are BACK with their first album in 17 years. We talk about what led to the hiatus, what led to the reunion, the new album and much more.

No episode this week. The vibe does not match the collective grief of the heavy music community. Back next week.

My guest on the podcast this week is Devin Swank, vocalist of Ohio Death Metal band Sanguisugabogg. We talked about his approach to lyrics and songwriting, the early days of the band, taking inspiration from horror…and we talk a LOT about death metal.

My guest on the podcast this week is Cody Quistad, guitarist of Wage War. With 4.3 BILLION streams to his name, Cody is also an incredibly talented and sought-after songwriter. We caught up to talk about Wage War’s new EP ‘It Calls Me By Name’ as well as what he thinks of the modern scene and the term’ Octanecore’ - when heavy breakdowns meet active rock choruses, which is something that Cody pret...

My guest on the podcast this week is Mark Morton, guitarist and founding member of Lamb Of God. We talk everything about their ripper of new album ‘Into Oblivion’ as well as his new signature Gibson guitar, sobriety, writing a book, AI in music and much more. I made a friend today.

My guests on The Downbeat podcast this week are Tūranga Morgan-Edmonds and Lewis de Jong of ALIEN WEAPONRY.Alien Weaponry are a groove metal band from New Zealand, and their music and lyrics heavily reflect all three members’ Māori ancestry. This episode digs into said ancestry with conversations about Tā moko (traditional Māori tattoos) as well as the Haka, a ceremonial Māori dance that the band...

My guest on the podcast this week is Matt Garstka, drummer, educator, amateur arm-wrestler and 1/3 of arguable the most progressive band on planet earth. We talk about his recent distal bicep tear and his recovery, as well as the use of AI in music, musical competition, and my recent drum lesson with him

My guests on the podcast this week are Flo and Kevin of LANDMVRKS. We talk About the struggles around making their new album ‘The Darkest Place I’ve Ever Been’, as well as Flo’s battle with anxiety, the importance of their role in France’s burgeoning metal scene, US ‘cuisine’…and graffiti

My guests on the Downbeat Podcast this week are Colter Cuthbertson and Mike Sugars - the dual vocalists of self proclaimed SPINKICK DEATHCORE band Psycho-Frame. In many ways an underground supergroup, Psycho-Frame make hilariously heavy music and their debut LP Salvation Laughs In The Face Of A Grieving Mother easily made it’s way into my top 5 of 2025. We talk about everything around the band- fr...

My guest on the podcast this week is Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood. Acclaimed guitarist and producer whose credits include Animals as Leaders, Periphery and Sleep Token. Nolly is also the co-founder of GGD - a hugely successful plugin company that went from being two friends with a mutual love of capturing drum tones to a household name in the world of music production. We talk in depth about the origin an...

My guests on the podcast this week are Will Ramos and Austin Archey of symphonic deathhore band Lorna Shore. We catch up before their show in Nashville to talk about their new album ‘I Feel The Everblack Festering Within Me’. We also learn about the different types of blast beats and vocal techniques needed for their intense sound, and we talk about Will’s suitcase e-bike…a lot.

My guest on the podcast this week is Cody Ash. Cody is the drumming powerhouse behind the country megastar Jelly Roll. We tell the entire story of his career trajectory - from sleeping in a van in metalcore bands all the way to his current gig playing sold out arenas alongside the likes of Eminem and Post Malone.

My guest on the podcast this week is Vinny Mauro of Motionless In White. In this special Halloween SPOOK-TACULAR we talk about ALL the creepy stuff: ghosts, his investigations of the paranormal, and we also create his horror movie villain dream blunt rotation. Thanks to everyone on the patreon for providing the decorations and fog-machine for the most TERRIFYING episode of the podcast yet...

My guest this week is George Lesage Clarke IV (seriously). George is the vocalist of the pioneering black metal/shoegaze band Deafheaven. A deeply poetic and well read man, we do a deep dive on their latest album Lonely People With Power (my AOTY) his lyrics, the nature of hereditary vices…and Cradle Of Filth.

My guests this week are Emma, Pedro and Jeff of Dying Wish. We talk in depth about their new album Flesh Stays Together, Emma’s recent wedding, their hilarious band dynamic which dates back to meeting in high school… and we crack a lot of jokes. Madison is joined by guest producer (and Emma’s groom) Jeremy DePoyster of The Devil Wears Prada. It’s chaos and I’m visibly wet from the chaos of having...

My guests on the podcast this week are Alex Terrible and Jack Simmons of Slaughter To Prevail. In this no-holds-barred episode I talk to the Russian deathcore band about their meteoric success and Alex’s recent bareknuckle boxing injuries - as well as settling into life in the USA, wrestling with bears... and the full story on everything controversial surrounding the band.

My guest on the podcast this week is Jona Weinhofen. Jona is an Australian metalcore guitarist known for his work with I Killed The Prom Queen, Bleeding Through and Bring Me The Horizon. We talk about his history with all of these bands as well as Lego, reading fairy smut… and playing the guitar whilst on the toilet.

My guest on the podcast this week is Aaron Gillespie, a founding member of the band Underoath and a well established songwriter and producer. We talked the state of the music industry, work ethic, his 5 year stint in Paramore, drums, and much more. Aaron was originally on the audio podcast with an on-location episode that unfortunately had all sorts of technical issues so it was great to have him...

My guest on the podcast this week is Adam Easterling, vocalist of Orthodox. One of my absolute favourite new modern heavy bands. We talk about their UNREAL new album: A Door Left Open as well as his love of nu metal, extreme weather, dreams (and how they influenced the album) and I mention ONE movie too many times...

My guests on the podcast this week are Matt Honeycutt and Eric English of KUBLAI KHAN. We caught up to talk about their latest album Exhibition of Prowess, Matt’s short stint working at Hot-Topic, tattooing, ghosts, scary movies, fast food and much more...

My guest on The Downbeat this week is David Gunn of KING810. An incredibly enigmatic and interesting man, we talk about magick (a lot), King's new album Rustbelt Nu Metal, his many brushes with the law and much much more.

My guest this week is Aric Improta, visionary drummer and artist. You might know Aric from his videos where he backflips on a drum kit, you might know him from his paintings and artwork released in many forms under the moniker Hexwave, you might know him from his drumming with bands like Fever 333, Night Verses, or might know him as 1/2 of his new blistering project HOUSE OF PROTECTION whose new r...

My guest on the podcast this week is Isaac Hale, guitarist of KNOCKED LOOSE. We talk about how all good music has to be funny, his unrelenting need to create music, fashion, touring, our love for MESHUGGAH, GOJIRA AND METALLICA...and we form the most diverse side project the world has ever seen.

My guest on the podcast this week is Josh James, guitarist of Stick To Your Guns. A veteran of the hardcore scene, Josh has also played with bands like Eighteen Visions, Evergreen Terrace and Casey Jones. We talk STYG's new album 'Keep Planting Flowers' as well as nearly becoming paralyzed, pooping in boxes at Christmas, and an unorthodox way to teach kids about the birds and the bees....