HEAVY Music Interviews

Interview by Angela Croudace Auri's third album, Candles and Beginnings, invites listeners into a dreamlike, genre-defying realm where emotion, memory, and nature entwine. The trio—Johanna Kurkela, Troy Donockley, and Tuomas Holopainen—embrace an intuitive and organic approach to music-making, shaped by their lifelong influences and an unwavering trust in each other. "We don't plan anything," Tuom...

Interview by Kris Peters At first glance/listen, Melbourne-based experimental collective Umlaut are yet another in a growing line of bands creating 'art' instead of music by throwing together an eclectic grouping of sounds and instruments as their personal choice of expression. Their style and seemingly haphazard musical output is, at first, difficult to take in, but once you find out the backstor...

Interview by Kris Peters US party rock outfit The Midnight Devils are a band who seem to be always on the move. Follow their socials, and hardly a week goes by without another gig in another part of the world popping up, with the good time trio operating by the old school mantra that a band lives and dies on the road, bleeding for their art. After two previous visits Down Under, The Midnight Devil...

Interview by Kris Peters If you think you've seen everything live music has to offer, think again. On July 5, Brisbane audiences are in for a jaw-dropping experience as Andrea Krakovská, Australia's very own aerial guitarist, brings her gravity-defying show to the Arcana Empress Theatre in Moorooka. Combining the technical mastery of live electric guitar with breathtaking aerial acrobatics, Andrea...

Interview by Kris Peters US rock outfit BLVD OF EYES have strong ties with this side of the world, with bass player Mark Dalbeth living in Australia and playing in Melbourne band Belusera until he left our shores a decade ago. In that time, Dalbeth has found himself playing in an American band called BLVD OF EYES, who have often proclaimed their desire to visit our shores without much success. But...

Interview by Kris Peters Everyone's favourite masters of funk-infused mayhem, Osaka Punch, are one of those rare bands that can entertain you just by walking on stage. Dead set. The charisma and boundless energy that accompany the band everywhere they go translated beautifully on their 2023 album Mixed Ape, an album years in the making and at times thought to be harder to find than the elusive whi...

Interview by Kris Peters German dark heavy rock force WOLFSKULL will drop their new album Midnite Masters on July 25. Midnite Masters will see the band put a bold exclamation mark on their history and simultaneously ignite a new level: ten songs brimming with enthusiasm, power, and catchy melodies, while exuding the raw charm of classic heavy rock. Founded in April 2018 by guitarist and mastermind...

Interview by Angela Croudace As Militarie Gun gear up to hit Australian stages alongside Touché Amoré, frontman Ian Shelton looks forward to everything from unruly shows to venomous local wildlife. “I guess my bucket list would be to see one of these disturbing Australian spiders in the flesh,” he laughs. “I don’t want to be in danger—but I’d like to see it.” It won't be Militarie Gun’s first time...

Interview by Kris Peters Sydney metal outfit Harroway have been crushing skulls since 2019 withtheir aggressive brand of metal, highlighting real life problems and issues. As such their passion has always been evident be it on stage orrecording, with their debut 2023 EP, I Don't Want To Be Here Anymore resonating on a global scale that led to a sold-out headlining tour that took the band across Au...

Interview by Kris Peters Not often a band's music comes across our desk here at HEAVY that literally makes us sit up and take absolute notice, but when it does, and you then find out it is the first ever single release from the band… Such was the case when we heard Next Time Send A Killer, the debut track from Berlin-based heavy outfit Luther. A crushing cesspool of malevolence, Next Time Send A K...

Interview by Kris Peters Speculation has been rife for years regarding a possible reunion between Sebastian Bach and Skid Row, and it will probably continue until one or both parties pulls stumps on their career, but at the end of the day, it doesn't really matter when both parties are still doing their thing, and doing it well. Of course, there are going to be those fans who would love to see the...

Interview by Kris Peters Brisbane sleaze rock outfit Snake Bite Whisky have been terrorizing the airwaves since 2014, along the way releasing two albums in This Side Of Hell and Black Candy. Their crossover appeal, coupled with an energetic live performance and precision playing, has seen the band make inroads overseas, particularly the seedier side of LA where their particular brand of rock was n...

Interview by Kris Peters Coming together from opposing corners of the planet, Calva Louise are a band who not only benefit from the wisdom of a diverse cultural well to draw from, but also from a musical vision and delivery that far transcends most music in the modern world. To categorise their music would be doing an injustice to the rich sonic palate offered up from the talented trio, but if pus...

Interview by Kris Peters Music means many things to many different people, but regardless of whether you listen to country or heavy metal, one common denominator remains. Music is supposed to be fun. Which is exactly the way South Wales entertainment machine Punk Rock Factory approach each and every waking moment. Essentially a covers band who spice up everyone from Meatloaf to Michael Jackson to...

Interview by Kris Peters Sydney sludge fuelled outfit Black Rheno have just released another single - A Bad Ass Love Song - and to celebrate the trio are hitting the road this August to take their music to the people that matter most to them, the fans. A Bad Ass Love Song is the third single released in recent times by Black Rheno, with all three earmarked as stand-alone singles to keep people smi...

Interview by Angela Croudace After more than 20 years of amplifying voices for justice, punk veterans Rise Against are returning with Ricochet, their tenth studio album, set for release in August. Speaking from Sweden, frontman Tim McIlrath reflects on what hitting double digits means for a band that's never been afraid to stand for something. "We've ticked a lot of the boxes," he says. "Now what...

Interview by Kris Peters Music runs in the blood. Sure, people can learn to play or learn to sing, but those fortunate to be born into a musical family generally have a head start on most. Melbourne artist Karly Jewell comes from the latter. Inspired by her late Grandfather - an acclaimed country singer-songwriter known for his work with Slim Dusty - Jewell was first bitten by the bug around 5 yea...

Interview by Kris Peters Brisbane-based petalcore outfit Torizon have continued their strong approach to 2025, today releasing their second single of the year with Sober. A sequel to previous single Bloom, Sober explores a more vulnerable side of Torizon's musical psyche and continues the conceptual journey that will be exemplified over the course of the band's debut EP - also announced today - Me...

Interview by Kris Peters Dirty Pagans have been on a crusade to return airwaves to the meatier sounds of hard rock and heavy metal for the best part of ten years now. Self dubbed riff n roll, the Adelaide outfit focuses on massive guitar riffs, dirty grooves and unapologetically loud undertones, hitting with the force of a sonic sledgehammer before ramming the point home. Fresh from last year's na...

Interview by Kris Peters Much has changed in the Sinsaenum camp since the release of Repulsion for Humanity in 2018, with the loss of drummer Joey Jordison central to the personal tragedy, which was compounded by the loss of guitarist and founding member Frédéric Leclercq's father as well. It has been a tumultuous period for the band, who rightfully took their time with their third album, but the...

Interview by Angela Croudace After more than a decade, A Skylit Drive is set to return to Australian stages this November—and frontman Michael “Jag” Jagmin couldn’t be more excited. Speaking from the sweltering heat of Texas, Jagmin reflects on what he remembers from the band’s first trip Down Under and what fans can expect this time around. “It’s been so long, it almost feels like going back for...

Interview by Kris Peters From the fractured depths of Australia’s extreme metal underground emerges Hebephrenique, a sonic entity conjured to annihilate the boundaries between chaos and control. Rooted in a volatile blend of death metal and blackened dissonance, Hebephrenique deliver auditory psychosis with surgical precision and unrelenting ferocity. Formed to embody the fractured psyche of the m...

Interview by Kris Peters Tweed Heads rock outfit The Whiskeys are a time bomb waiting to go off. After a number of years honing their skills, mainly by playing a bunch of live shows, the double-edged sword of Benny Whiskey (guitar, vocals)and Josh Larkin (drums) are now in the final stages of getting ready to unleash their debut EP Old Soul Young Blood on the world. The EP cycle began in February...

Interview by Kris Peters The Funeral Portrait have always been true champions for the underdog; the outcasts of society who are struggling to find their identity or be accepted in a world that is often harsh and judgmental. Their musical world is one of acceptance and unequivocal belonging, with a flair for the theatrical and a need for unity. In little over a decade, The Funeral Portrait have ste...

Interview by Kris Peters Heavy Metal and J-Pop are two genres which, for all intents and purposes, should not be joined in sonic matrimony, but try telling that to Australian-born Japanese sensation Ladybeard and the two girls who make up Babybeard. Since 2020, the powerful trio has existed in some form or another, spearheaded throughout by wrestler turned DJ turned vocalist Ladybeard, who brings...