Interview with Pete Devine of Pete’s Rock News and Views (http://petesrocknewsandviews.com)
PD: How would you describe yourself or your band as an artist?
OT: Oblivion Throne are a heavy metal band with little genre restrictions. But we enjoy playing with the idea of if the trajectory of modern extreme metal had taken more classic metal influences. Blastbeats and Motorhead riffs?
PD: Can you tell us briefly about your background – i.e. where you’re from, how you came to make music, etc.
OT: Two of us met for an ale one evening in our local city of Asheville, North Carolina, and decided to take our budding ideas seriously. Within the next few months, we had our demo out, a third member, and gigs under our belt.
PD: Who and what inspires you to make music, both in terms of musical and other influences? What do you like to write about in your songs?
OT: Our influences are too vast to hone in on. But we fancy ourselves akin to, say, Celtic Frost in terms of our willingness to hold a groove and get experimental in the same breath. Lyrically, we are atmospheric storytellers. We like to paint a picture of a moment in time, literature, myth, and string together word poems to embed the listener in the image.
PD: What are your aspirations as an artist?
OT: Keep pushing the envelope, and play as many great gigs as we can. We are most certainly a performance-based band.
PD: What is the proudest moment in your music career so far?
OT: Cannot speak for all of us, but we all seem to be quite enamored with this new EP we have out.
PD: Promoting one’s music is such a challenge these days, especially with so many new artists emerging from bedrooms
in the day of the home studio. How is that going?
OT: In truth? Not as hard as it may be for some. We don’t sit in the shadows, and we also have the greatest individuals ever out there as fans and friends. Our regional scene has been entirely supportive. It is difficult, still, to be sure, but we have excellent fans, promoters, venues, etc. We are grateful to everyone involved, down to the people who keep the venues clean.
PD: And how do you book and promote your live shows and tours? Any performances coming up?
OT: We have two performances coming up indeed; one at Fleetwoods in Asheville, NC on February 25th, and one at The Pour House in Raleigh, NC on March 19th. We’ve many still in the works. I guess we just enjoy networking and talking to our fellow bands, and things sortof come together. We’re aided quite a bit by our local venue The Odd, and our bass player is a social animal to the utmost greatest degree.
PD: What do you think about downloading music online? What about streaming sites like Spotify?
OT: Sure. Just come see us live. Also, buying merch helps! We still all like physical media, and will always push to advocate its continual relevance.
PD: What song do you wish you’d written and why?
OT: If there is a song we wish we’d written, don’t worry – we’ll write it.
PD: Is there anything you don’t like about the music industry, which you would change if you could?
OT: Price-gouging by ticket websites. Larger venues taking cuts of bands’ merch. Music is a business, but it doesn’t need to be a monopoly.
PD: So, what are you working on at the moment?
OT: We are currently embarking on promoting this new EP further, booking gigs, and worming our way into the earholes of the masses.
PD: Where can we learn more about you and buy your music/merch online?
OT: We have our website, social media, and any booking inquiries can be made at oblivionthroneband@gmail.com – we’re open to anyone as serious as we are.
Oblivion Throne links:
Band/Artist location – Asheville, North Carolina
Website – Facebook – You Tube – Soundcloud – Bandcamp – Merch –
Twitter – Instagram – Apple – Spotify – Amazon –
Check our page for Oblivion Throne
