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?
S: We like to think we’ve taken the best aspects of Metalcore, Deathcore and Groove metal and put them into one sound and one vision. We are incredibly driven and have high reaching aspirations, which will take a lot of work but we have the energy.
PD: Can you tell us briefly about your background – i.e. where you’re from, how you came to make music, etc.
S: We’re all from Northern Ireland. Every member of the band bar Nick (Survivalist is his first band) have been in and out of bands for years. We all knew of each other so we got together and jammed some ideas and it all came together very quickly.
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?
S: I think our biggest influences are people like Pantera, Malevolence, Whitechapel those kind of genre defining acts that broke the mold and transcended beyond their sound. We want to create music that sounds familiar but fresh. Mental health, world affairs, personal afflictions, politics, war. The good stuff.
PD: What are your aspirations as an artist?
S: Dream big and fly high baby. We want to reach the top and enjoy it whilst we’re here.
PD: What is the proudest moment in your music career so far?
S: Every time we release a new song we get a little bit more confident and those moments are our best and proudest.
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?
S: It’s an uphill struggle, everyone is doing it now and it’s never been so accessible. You have to stand apart from the crowd and have the drive to do so. We have our sound and we carry that energy onto the stage with us. You get back what you put in.
PD: And how do you book and promote your live shows and tours? Any performances coming up?
S: We use a few booking agents and promoters mainly the Distortion Project, Half Hearts, Dead Cult, Bad Reputation and Our Divide so far but we will work with anyone that offers decent shows and tours.
PD: What do you think about downloading music online? What about streaming sites like Spotify?
S: I think they need to start being more realistic and fairer on artists. You have to stream a song 5000 time to generate £10. That’s less that a shirt at a show. In a time ridden with poverty and in the middle of financial crisis it becomes more and more expensive every day. There has to be a better way where everyone gets paid so artists can continue to create.
PD: What song do you wish you’d written and why?
S: There’s so many but Myself (Gav) and our bassist Nick recently had a discussion about the song A.N.X.I.E.T.Y by Of Virtue just because of the really simple idea behind the hook and chorus. Very catchy.
PD: Is there anything you don’t like about the music industry, which you would change if you could?
S: So much, greedy hands in too bands pies. Artists, companies and labels with another agenda. Companies exploiting bands, merch cuts. I could go on but you get the gist. It’s not all bad though, there’s a lot to celebrate. Music gives the voiceless a platform to express themselves, camaraderie and hope.
PD: So, what are you working on at the moment?
S: We are hard at work on some singles mainly our next two ‘Greater Negative’ and ‘How to stop thinking about Death?’ and some other projects that shall remain unnamed because we have bigger plans for those.
PD: Where can we learn more about you and buy your music/merch online?
S: All of our socials, Bandcamp, streaming services. The usual places. I’ve included our link tree below.
https://linktr.ee/survivalistni
PD: What music have you available online and where can we buy it from?
S: Our music can be streamed from every platform around the world and bought exclusively from our band camp. Physical copies of our Debut album ‘VII’ are also available at our shows.
Thank you for having us. Peace.
Survivalist links:
Band/Artist location – Belfast Northern Ireland
Facebook – You Tube – Bandcamp – Merch –
Twitter – Instagram – Apple – Spotify – Amazon – Deezer – LinkTree –
Check our page for Survivalist
