FaceCulture: Giving You The People Behind The Music

Martijn Westerholt is a keyboardist and songwriter, and founder of Dutch symphonic metal band Delain. Westerholt is also known for his work with symphonic project Eye of Melian. After six succesful albums with Delain, vocalist Charlotte Wessels left the band in 2021, leaving the future of the band up in the air. Westerholt has decided to continue the band with a new line-up, and so we spoke with h...

Björn Gelotte is a musician, songwriter and guitarist, most know for his work with Swedish heavy metal band In Flames. With In Flames, Gelotte has released thirteen albums. They have been instrumental in establishing the modern melodic death metal scene, and have garnered both critical and commercial acclaim. We spoke with Gelotte about their latest album 'Forgone', who he is outside of the band,...

Jared James Nichols is an American blues/rock guitarist and vocalist, known for his "pick-less" playing style and as the frontman of the rock trio that bears his name. Nichols recently released his self-titled album so we caught up with the guitar virtuoso to talk about how he got into the guitar, Jeff Beck, his coice and contantly developing his skills, authenticity vs perfection, dealing with a...

Gaz Coombes is an English musician, singer and songwriter who first rose to fame as the frontman for alternative rock band Supergrass, whose debut album 'I Should Coco' (1995) made a lot of heads turn, particularly because fo the hit single 'Alright'. After his departure from Supergrass in 2010 Gaz found himself still writing songs for what eventually would be his succesful solo career. 'Turn The...

Naaz Mohammad is een Koerdisch-Nederlandse artiest die gelijk met haar debuutsingle 'Words' in 2017 grote indruk maakte. Hoewel de zangeres uitgroeide tot een van de popbeloftes van Nederland, en ze tweemaal een Edison pop prijs won en internationaal optrad, verdween ze eind 2019 uit de schijnwerpers.  In dit gesprek spraken we over deze veelbewogen periode in haar leven, waarin ze uiteindelijk vr...

Back in 2017 we had a fascinating conversation with German guitarist Michael Schenker, most know as an early member of hard rock band Scorpions, before making his name with rock band UFO and later the Michael Schenker Group. Schenker is considered as a hugely influential guitarist, having influenced bands like Metallica, Pantera, Testament, Iron Maiden, and many more. We spoke with Schenker about...

Neil Barnes is a DJ, producer and musician who makes up one half of renowned UK electronic music duo Leftfield. Their debut album 'Leftism' (1995) was a great success and remains one of the more influential albums in the UK dance scene. Leftfield recently released only their fourth album 'This Is What We Do', and we spoke with Neil about writing for the album, making genre-less music, getting thro...

Ryan Guldemond is a guitarist and vocalist for Canadian indie rock band Mother Mother, and we were lucky enough to talk to him before their show in Amsterdam. Mother Mother has released several albums since their inception in 2005. Even so, arguably their biggest break came fairly recently, in 2021, when there was a resurgence in popularity, particularly of their second album 'O My Heart,' (2008)...

Conor Mason is a vocalist and musician most know for being the frontman for English indie rock band Nothing But Thieves. With Nothing But Thieves Mason released three albums (so far) to great success, with the most recent being 'Moral Panic' (2020). With the pandemic affording him time he otherwise wouldn't have, Mason released his first solo EP 'Man-Made Sunshine' this year. We spoke with Conor,...

Alphaville is a German synth-pop band that gained tremendous international popularity in the 1980s with their hit songs "Forever Young" and "Big In Japan". The band continued to released albums throughout the decades, with vocalist Marian Gold being the only constant member throughout. Their latest album 'Eternally Yours' (2022) is a symphonic reworking of some of their best and most popular songs...

Brian Fennell, better known by his solo project SYML, is a singer and songwriter from Seattle. With his autobiographical songwriting, falsetto voice and minimal approach, Fennell creates these beautiful musical landscapes full of depth and emotion. His first big break came in 2017 with the song 'Where's My Love', which has garnered hundreds of millions of views/listens since its release. We spoke...

Larkin Poe is a Grammy-nominated American roots rock band headed by sisters Rebecca and Megan Lovell. With a fierce touring appetite and a strong body of work the sisters have carved out a nice space for themselves in the roots rock scene. Their third album 'Venom & Faith' reched the top spot on the Billboard Blues charts and netted the band a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Blues Album. W...

PUP, is a Canadian punk rock band that formed in Toronto in 2013. Their self-titled debut album put the punk world on notice, and they have been a staple in the scene ever since. We managed to sit down with guitarist Steve Sladkowski before their show in Amsterdam to talk about their latest album 'The Unraveling of PUPTheBand', being back on tour, their musical identity, the fragility of the band,...

Johnny Took is a guitarist and songwriter for the DMA's, an indie rock band from Sydney, Australia. The band gained notoriety with their Britpop inspired debut single 'Delete' and subsequent debut album Hills End (2016). Since then the band has expanded their sound, experimenting with electronics on their third album The Glow (2020) and continuing this trend on their upcoming album How Many Dreams...

Charlotte Wessels is a Dutch singer, songwriter and instrumentalist, previously known as the lead vocalist for symphonic metal band Delain, and now focusing on her solo work. We spoke with Wessels about her new album 'Tales From Six Feet Under Vol. II', creating a feeling of togetherness in her live shows, allowing her songs to evolve, the musical direction she is going in, the struggle for equali...

Dayglow is the indie pop project by singer, songwriter, and producer Sloan Struble.  Although he writes, plays, and records everything himself, he does tour with a band. Struble released his debut album 'Fuzzy Brain' in 2018 which featured  the massively popular 'Can I Call You Tonight', and his following has been growing ever since. We managed to sit down with Sloan when he was in Amsterdam to ta...

Camilla George is a Nigerian-born, London-raised saxophonist, composer, improviser and bandleader whose blend of afrobeat, hip hop, jazz and more has garnered her an impressive following. George recently released her second album 'Ibio Ibio', that was inspired by her Nigerian heritage and African history. We spoke with Camilla about the music she grew up with, the London jazz scene, having a life...

Marlon Williams is a New Zealand singer-songwriter, guitarist and actor who'se self-titled debut album was released to great critical acclaim in New Zealand in 2015. His follow-up album 'Make Way For Love' (2018) topped the New Zealand charts, as has his newly released album 'My Boy'.  We spoke with Marlon about the album, his maori roots showing up in his music, dipping his toe into acting, simpl...

Lewis Capaldi is a Scottish singer and songwriter who topped the UK Charts first with his single 'Someone You Loved', followed by his debut album 'Devinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent' (2019). Capaldi was so popular that he made history by selling out an arena tour even before his debut alum was released. We spoke with Lewis about what he's been up to since then, his best and worst gigs, the ri...

Tom Chaplin is an English singer, songwriter and musician, best known as the frontman for pop rock band Keane. Chaplin achieved massive international success with Keane, behind their best-selling debut album Hopes and Fears (2004) and the albums and singles that would follow after. After the band went on hiatus in 2013 Chaplin announced  that he was pursuing a solo career as well. His third solo a...

David Paich (1954) is an American musician, songwriter, vocalist and producer, best known as co-founder, songwriter and vocalist for rock band Toto. Aside from the millions of records sold with Toto, Paich has also written for some of the greatest artists in music, including Michael Jackson, Donna Summer, Rod Stewart and more! In 2022, Paich released his first ever solo album 'Forgotten Toys' and...

Heather Baron-Gracie is the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist for English indie pop band Pale Waves. The band first garnered success with the release of their 80s inspired synth-pop debut single 'There's a Honey' and their second album 'Who Am I?' (2021) made it into the top three of the UK album charts. We spoke with Heather about their new album 'Unwanted' (2022), making an album during lock...

Max Cavalera is a Brazillian guitarist, singer and songwriter wo co-founded heavy metal band Sepultura in 1984, and after his departure in 1996 formed his new band Soulfly. He is also known for his work alongside his brother Igor in Cavalera Conspiracy and heavy metal supergroup Killer Be Killed. FaceCulture spoke with Max about the new Soulfly album Totem, the music he grew up with, finding heavy...

Gilbert O'Sullivan is an Irish singer-songwriter that made his claim to fame in the early 70s with standout hits like  'Alone Again (Naturally)',  'Claire', and 'Get Down'. O'Sullivan continued to release albums throughout the decades, all the way up to his latest album 'Driven' (2022).  Despite being 75 years of age, the songsmith has never lost his passion for songwriting and making music, as ev...

Katie Melua is a Georgian-British singer-songwriter who's first two albums Call Off The Search (2003) and Piece By Piece (2005) topped the UK album charts. Ever since, Melua has expanded her sound and continued to release albums to great success. In yet another step to take her out her comfortzone and grow as an artist Melua enlisted producer Simon Goff, whose solo album 'Vale' she adored, to crea...