Blindsight



Bob and Devin

Blindsight, a metal band from Ilkeston, were a last minute addition to the Notts In A Nutshell line-up at The Maze on Monday night 21^st September.  Notts In A Nutshell is a regular occurrence at The Maze on Mansfield road, where unsigned local bands have a regular slot to play live, get exposure as well as experience.  Call it Community Service from a venue that is dedicated to promoting local talent. 

Henz

 A mate plays in Blindsight and there is nothing more nerve wrecking than going to support someone you know, as you may have that awkward moment where you have to truthfully but tactfully tell them what you thought of their performance.  It’s a tricky situation as people can pick up on even a hint of unenthusiasm.  There was no need for all this pre-gig worry, as Blindsight were good.  They were very very good.  The set was effortless. There was no forced shouting or ‘trying too hard’ that you get with some bands.  The guitar work was pure metal melody, just the way heavy metal should be played.       



Frontman Grant

Although the bands own songs are brilliant, they cleverly threw in a Metallica cover midway through their set.  Being a relatively unknown band, no-one knew their song lyrics, however, everyone knew the lyrics to Seek and Destroy and it got the crowd participation that is so important at a live gig. 

Scott

Blindsight have since ventured out of Ilkeston and have played at the Run To The Sun motorbike rally at Catton Hall as well as a few gigs in Nottingham city centre.  Their next gig is at The Maze on Monday the 12th December.  One not to be missed!

Henz and Bob

The Defiled Interview

Stitch from The Defiled



My interview with The Defiled was published by Left Lion http://www.leftlion.co.uk/articles.cfm/title/the-defiled/id/4003



The AvD from The Defiled

This Halloween Nottingham will be in for a TREAT when Tru-Metallers The Defiled once again rock out the city’s popular haunt for rock and metal gigs, Rock City. And yes, I meant Tru-Metallers and not Nu-Metallers. Prior to opening the Ronnie James Dio stage at Bloodstock this year, they got death threats for not being ‘true metal’. They proved their critics wrong, as The Defiled delivered a fervent, energetic, HEAVY, horn throwing set that did the great late RJD proud. 

The AvD with his keyboard smashing antics is as entertaining to interview as he is to watch on stage. Living the rock ‘n roll lifestyle, he had been partying for 4 days with no sleep when I interviewed him, and yet he was still full of charisma and energy. Lead singer Stitch D joins us and we chat about life in the band, "being in a band is all about the free stuff...oh and the blow jobs…" The boys showing their naughty and humorous side.



Vincent Hyde

The reality is, there have been no lucky breaks, just five years of pure hard work, phoning and emailing every day for gig opportunities. Their persistence paid off and there was a time when it seemed as if every gig I went to had The Defiled as a support band. Halloween will not be their first visit to Nottingham either, they have played Nottingham’s Rock City supporting Sonic Syndicate in The Basement way back in 2009, and have played the main stage when supporting Murderdolls earlier this year.



Aaron Curse

Now that they have their own fan base and are headlining shows, the hard work hasn’t stopped and there is no rest for the wicked. Offstage there are fans to mingle with, signings and interviews to do, as well as their involvement in all the other creative aspects such as designing the merch and creating their music videos. The video for The Resurrectionists is one of my favourites and was funded by the proceeds of an advert that The AvD appeared in.  The dark, yet fun and lively video perfectly captures the essence of The Defiled.

I remember seeing The Defiled for the first time a few years ago when they supported Deathstars on their UK tour. The AvD explained how they learnt a lot from the Deathstars, just watching what they do on stage. "They are so professional and really know how to put on a show. We watch, learn and deliver the type of show we would want to see live."

The Defiled may take tips from other bands, but they have a strong identity of their own and have a clear idea of what they like and what they want to project as a band. The uniforms were also a conscious decision right from the start, and evolved from their own personalities.  Lead singer Stitch D advised that they don’t wash their uniforms, and yes they do smell! It’s only when the uniforms are on and they get that sick feeling, that’s when they know they are ready to go on stage.

The Defiled clearly enjoy being on stage, so I asked The AvD if he enjoyed watching other bands live. He excitedly answered yes, it’s been his favourite thing to do since he was a kid.  Nine Inch Nails being his favourite live band… then he corrects himself, "Nine Inch Nails when they were on drugs.  When a band stops doing drugs and becomes sensible…." The bottom line is, he shares my passion for the kind of live music that gives you a natural high, pretty much what I feel when I am watching bands like The Defiled go wild on stage. He sums it up, "we’re not trying to be anything.  We play what we enjoy and we play the music we like".

Headlining the Jägermeister stage at Sonisphere this year was a turning point for the band.  Thinking that everyone would be watching Metallica, they came onstage to find a large crowd of dedicated The Defiled fans. It was a WOW moment.  It’s a far cry from back in the day when they used to wonder if anyone would pitch up at all!  Now they have people recognising them at metal festivals and gigs.



Some The Defiled fans at Bloodstock

The AvD loves meeting their fans and has a habit of taking some of them backstage after a show. He explains further, "even at signings, you want to meet the people that come and see you and not just sign a piece of paper. I know bands say this all the time, but it’s the only reason we’re anything."

Talking of Jägermeister, I asked The Avd how he likes his Jäger. He smiles and answers ‘Warm, out of the bottle’. Now that’s ‘true metal’!

Bloodstock

Being a Bloodstock virgin, it was with much excitement that I arrived on the Thursday evening with no pro-conceptions of 'previous years' to live up to.  I was so looking forward to seeing The Defiled on the Friday that I hadn't given any thought to the rest of the weekend's entertainment.  I was glad that I hadn't given the Thursday night a miss as Revoker and Beholder were an impressive taster of what the rest of the weekend would be like. 

Revoker

Beholder

The comedians Steve Hughes and Jason Rouse were hilarious.  Steve Hughes has an intelligent wit and canny observation of life, while Jason Rouse got everyone laughing with his unpolitically correct and crude humour.  One of many highlights of the weekend was having the pleasure of meeting and chatting with the naturally funny and genuinely nice guys.    

Jason Rouse

Steve Hughes

Friday, and my biggest highlight of the weekend were The Defiled who opened the Ronnie James Dio stage.  I got the opportunity to interview and photograph them which was the cherry on top. 

Stitch D from The Defiled

There were so many great bands that weekend, but the other one that caught my eye (and ears) was Hammerfall. 

 

Hammerfall



Hammerfall

Then there was Devin Townsend who pulls the funniest facial expressions on stage.  Every picture of him is a gem.  

Devin Townsend Project



Morbid Angel -- now that's a guitar!!!

A nice surprise was seeing Napalm Death on stage as they conjure up nostalgia of my teenage punk days. 

Napalm Death

Although there was much controversy over Motorhead's performance at Bloodstock, I felt much love and respect for Lemmy as he growled their intro 'We are Motorhead and we play Rock n Roll'.  After The Defiled got death threats for not being 'metal'enough for Bloodstock, I loved the fact that he openly flaunts that Motorhead are not a metal band and yet there isn't a single soul that would look Lemmy in the eye and tell him he wasn't metal enough.  I know I had the most Rock n Roll weekend at the metal of all festivals and next year I will be back - but this time with a lot of pre-conceptions and one helluva party to live up to!