The Smashing Skull Sessions

MOUNTAINSCAPE This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions podcast, I get to chat with Dan and James Scrivener of Mountainscape .The Reading trio have just released a beast of an album in the shape of Atoms Unfurling , and I was delighted to get the chance to discuss the process that was involved in writing such an intense and powerful record. We discuss the guys musical influences as well as the pros...

It was a pleasure to welcome Torsten Kinsella (Guitars/Pianos/Synths) of God is an Astronaut to the show. The Irish instrumental/post-rock behemoths have been around for over two decades, and for this special podcast we get to discuss and celebrate the 20th anniversary of their debut album 'The End Of The Beginning'. Myself and Richie Duhig of The Metal Cell Podcast chat to Torsten about the lates...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions podcast, I get to spend time chatting to the amazing Jo Quail . "Heaviness is an emotional concept rather than an expression of volume" - Jo Quail. Jo has been hugely influential in rock and metal circles with collaborations and guest appearances on many big albums, as well as supporting a vast array of bands on the road, such as MONO, Amenra, Boris, Myrkur...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions podcast we have guitarist Florian Füntmann of Long Distance Calling on the show. Amidst a hectic schedule, Florian pulled his car in to have a chat with me and I think we both thoroughly enjoyed catching up!! We discuss music charts, social media, and get a good insight into what keeps this band so fresh and exciting. We even get a taster of Florian's love...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions podcast I feel extremely privileged to welcome a band like Silent Whale Becomes A Dream to the podcast. These somewhat enigmatic, but incredibly humble group of musicians opened the door on what Silent Whale Becomes A Dream is all about, sharing their thoughts and their opinions on their own unique sound and of course their affinity with the amazing Elusive...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions Podcast, I'm delighted to welcome Fall Of Messiah and Chalk Hands to the show!. Ahead of their nine-date European tour, which kicks off in two weeks time, Pierre, Antoine, and Tommy sat in with me to discuss the tour and get some insight into their latest albums, along with future plans for both bands. We also look back and chat about the early days, right...

For Episode #20 of The Smashing Skull Sessions podcast, Jean-Sébastien Mattant gives an honest and insightful look into his life, and his undeniable love for music. We begin with an update on WHERE MERMAIDS DROWN and find out what plans are being hatched following their hugely successful post-rock release "And The Raging Winds Do Blow". Often stark but always sincere Jean gives me an "access all a...

Episode #19 The Smashing Skull Sessions chat with Ian of OUTLANDER & Max of COLDBONES. Fresh from their amazing Dunk! Festival performances, I was lucky enough to sit with Ian of Outlander and Max of Coldbones . After a few false starts on my end!!, we finally got to chat about their dunk experience and the comedown that every artist and fan experiences after it!! We also discuss the UK music...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions Podcast, Filipe van Huylenbroeck joins me on the podcast. Filipe is one of those naturally talented musicians that can pull a piece of music from the sky and make it beautiful. Some of you may know his name from the brilliant and near cult status band, IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO THE CAT. He has now released a solo album under the monikor GATO DE FOGO, and his d...

Episode #17. BLAK BLAK are special. This group of musicians from Roda De Ter, Catalonia are a heavy instrumental rock band with an amazing gift to create stunning, classically-influenced stories, awash with vast, open cinematic sounds. It's heavy, it's powerful, it's beautiful and often heartbreaking. Their music has had a profound effect on me, so it was a joy to welcome them onto The Smashing Sk...

Welcome to The Smashing Skull Sessions Tri-cast series. We hit the US for our first episode of the new Tri-cast series, which brings three bands together to discuss everything and anything music related!. All hailing from the same country, I'm hoping that these interviews will shed some light on the bands own national scenes and as always, showcase the talent and creativity that's in abundance wit...

Episode #15 was a very enjoyable and very interesting chat with Kristoff, Roel and Thomas of TURPENTINE VALLEY. These guys' steady development as a dark post-metal powerhouse is plain to see. ALDER is an imposing album, that stands tall and proud among all the other great post metal albums that I have heard in the last few years, which is why I had to get them on the show. We cover many topics inc...

For Episode #14 on The Smashing Skull Sessions I got the opportunity to speak with Jason Sissoyev of Post-Metallers COASTLANDS. Firstly, I want to thank Jason for his patience, as I sat on this interview for close on five weeks!, but I am thrilled to be able to share our conversation with you all, and show what a gentleman and what an incredibly knowlegable guy he is. We spend a lot of time chatti...

For Episode #13 on The Smashing Skull Sessions Podcast, I'm thrilled to have Tim Moens of ASTODAN on the show. I have been a fan of Astodan's music since 2017 and have admired their steady climb to the top of the post-metal roster, with their unique ability to go from passages of thick, riff-driven melodies to pin-dropping moments of calm, never losing the mood or the energy. Tim is a driven guy,...

Episode 12: On this special episode of The Smashing Skull Sessions, Vinyl Edition, I chat to Philippe Allenbach of Elusive Sound and Yannick Peysale of Voice Of The Unheard, to discuss the explosion of vinyl and the work that's involved behind the scenes in getting these works of art onto our turntables. The guys give me an insight into what's involved in choosing what bands join their roster, as...

In this week's episode of The Smashing Skull Sessions Podcast, I sat down with Scott Wasilewski from PORTAL TO THE GOD DAMN BLOOD DIMENSION. Rotten Fruit, Regular Orchard is an album that was first released over a year ago, but with a vinyl release now available, the album has been given another lease of life. It's a unique and absorbing piece of music that aches and haunts with its coarse and unp...

Not many bands can play Cinematic Sludge/Post Metal like Telepathy . Their sound is immense, and their live performances, colossal. The whole band sat in with me recently to chat about where Telepathy has been and what the future holds. We discuss their live shows with Solstafir , their latest Burn Embrace tour, and so much more. A huge thanks to Piotr, Albert, Richard and Krystian for taking the...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions I'm thrilled to welcome Georg and Jelle of DODSRIT to the show. Their latest release MORTAL COIL literally blew me away when I heard it back in 2021, showcasing its devastating blend of melody, ferocity and power. We get to chat about the inception of the band, their musical influences, and their ferocious live shows. Georg sheds some light on the promotion...

This week on The Smashing Skull Sessions, I'm honored to welcome Mark Owen of We Lost The Sea. We Lost The Sea are one of post music's great bands and are probably best known for their album DEPARTURE SONGS, which was released in 2015, and gained them widespread acclaim within the post-rock and metal scenes around the world. The band have reached notable success for their emotional and energetic l...

For episode 7, I was delighted to welcome the very knowledgeable and multi talented Rodney Fuchs of Monosphere to the show. The Puppeteer has to be one of the cleverest and most imaginative releases of 2021, and Rodney gives us an insight into the thought process that masterminded this powerful concept album. We also cover many other topics including "Spotify V Bandcamp", so be sure to check it ou...

This week I got the opportunity to speak to Clement Libes of Bruit≤ . The Machine Is Burning And Everyone Knows It Could Happen Again is their latest release and it is something really special. Bruit≤ have torn up the rule book and have created an album that spans across endless styles and genres without constraints. The music went where it wanted to go, and in doing so has created a piece of work...

I was delighted to interview Kevin Storm and Ken Simerly for the show. Fleetburner is an international project from guitarist and songwriter Kevin Storm whom conceived the idea in two months, back in 2018. Fleetburner is a conceptional album, following the adventures of a boy who leaves the sufferings of a war torn land behind by building a ship to escape and sail the oceans. It was great to discu...

I was delighted to interview Jason Stallworth for The Smashing Skull Sessions. Jason is a terrific example of how hard work, belief and over-coming obstacles can lead to a career as an independent artist with a huge internet following. Jason is also a published author, has released a new death/melodic album titled Masterpeace and reviews beers. It certainly was a terrific conversation with Jason w...

Myself and Evan my co-host (of Worn Out) were delighted to talk to Grumpster, an upcoming garage punk band from Oakland, California. Their star is quickly rising in the Bay Area Punk scene with some brilliant live performances, cool videos and hook laden songs. The group consists of Falyn Walsh on bass and vocals, Noel Agante on drums and Lalo Gonzalez Deetz on guitar. It was great to hear them ta...

Myself and Howard of Partholón were delighted to welcome the wonderful Johan Van Hattum (bassist) of Terzij de Horde to the show. Terzij de Horde is a black metal band with dark vitalism as central theme, from Utrecht, NL, formed in 2010. Johan and Howard share a friendship formed through music over many years. So it was an absolute pleasure to enjoy the stories, insights and love of metal that ca...