TORCHE:
Stoner pop? Beach Boys-like doom? Whatever

COBALT:
I don't really consider us black metal in any sense of what black metal is.

DODSFERD:
Motivated by desolation,
despair, hate, irony, death,
loss, betrayal, etc

PYGMYLUSH:
Between the delicacy of
gorgeous acoustics & the
ugliness of noise rock.

TRACTOR SEX FATALITY:
The most active defunct garage band in Seattle answers our questions.

MERCILESS DEATH:
Thrash metal revivalists  
speak out against false metal

JONAH JENKINS:
The man behind the voice of some of the most underrated underground American bands. 

THE PAX CECILIA:
Giving their music away for free. And it's damn good too.  

WORLD COLLAPSE:
Hardcore has always been about self-expression and
that's exactly what we do. 

U.S. CHRISTMAS:
North Carolina psychedelic hard-rockers acquire
'band to watch' status..

INTRONAUT:
The best self-indulgent odd metered prog metal band around.   

GENTLE VEINCUT:
German angular punk rock/post-hardcore for lack of a better term. 

THE INTELLECTUALS:
Italian garage rock you must know. 

NACHTMYSTIUM:
Spearheading a new wave of  extreme American music.  

BARONESS:
Men of a few words. 

MOTHER TONGUE:
On their beginnings, their first record and their first demise. 

FLATTBUSH:
Extreme world music via San  Francisco.

TOTIMOSHI:
Six drummers & four records later the band unleashes its finest.

HOLY HEART FAILURE:
Shitty emo puss-pop bands & a short tale of Wild Turkey.

THE JONBENET:
Bar recordings and a meaningless moniker.

NOVEMBER COMING FIRE:
Cheese sandwiches and 
progression in hardcore.

MORE INTERVIEWS

It took forever to get this interview. Their initial response was quick but it would be months from the time I sent the questions to the time I got them back. Intronaut's two releases reveal a band that's willing to take risks and flawlessly balance aggressive grooves with prog-tinged instrumentality. Drummer Danny Walker was kind enough to get back to us, a few months later. Read on.

- For those who haven’t heard Intronaut, please give us a description of your sound. We all know that tags are limiting, plus just one would fail to embody your sound, so something a bit more elaborate would work.

Well for starters..we're just straight up heavy! There are a lot of elements that float around in the realm of Intronaut. Maybe a little Prog, Psychedelia fused with sheer weight! Can I just call us a metal band?

- Sure you can. The band hails from Los Angeles. Are you guys all originally from that area?

I'm originally from Ventura, CA and moved to LA to start this band with Sacha. Both Sacha and Joe are Santa Monica residents. Leon hails all the way from San Francisco and also moved out to L.A. to start something new.

- The name Intronaut makes me think of Innerspace, the 80’s movie where Dennis Quaid is miniaturized and injected into Martin Short’s ass. How did the name Intronaut come about? And what does it mean to you?

I think I like Innerspace as a band name better! Well there were several names floating around at the time and Intronaut just seemed to gel more than the others. Basically Intronaut is an inner traveler. Smoke a doobie, throw on some head phones and put on Void you might feel like your inner traveling.

- For a relatively young band, your sound is quite matured and evolved. How would you describe the difference in sound and songwriting between Null and Void? How different was your approach (to songwriting) to this album in comparison to Null?

Well with Null Sacha had most of the material already written. Songs like "Fragments of Character" and "Burning These Days" had been mapped out to a drum machine. When Sacha and I hooked up I just learned his tunes and embellished the rhythm section as I saw fit. When Leon and Joe jumped on board we wrote the other 2 songs on that ep together. With Void it was more of a soul creation. We all had a significant role in these songs. I feel Void showcases Intronaut as one solid unit. On Null We were still adjusting to each others styles. As far as approach goes for writing, I think we just wanted to write the heaviest fucking record. We just do what we do!

- I guess we could ask this question to each member of the band and each could all give us different answers, but who would you consider as influences? How was your love for heavy music born? First genres/bands to cause and impression and inspire you to pick up an instrument?

Well we all listen to a wide variety of music. We all love metal, but there really is just much more out there. As for me I grew up listening to Classic Rock and Metal because that's what my parents were into fortunately. Kiss, Rush, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath etc...What really did it was when I heard Metallica's Master of Puppets. That really motivated me to thrash! Followed by that was Megadeth, Slayer, Sepultura etc...At the same time I listened to stuff like Primus. Tim Alexander's drumming was really inspiring. It was really all that late 80's early 90's Headbangers Ball and Metal Maniacs that made an impact on me as a kid.

- Void was recorded by John Haddad (Eyes of Fire), why did you pick him? And how was the studio experience this time around?

We had previously worked with him when we did the Null demo. He just gave off a great vibe and was cool to work with. Comfortable studio! We knew we wanted to work with him again after we saw what a few days and $800 can do.

- How satisfied are you with the new record? How does the end result differ from what you guys had in mind before going into the recording phase?

Soundwise - I haven't been this pleased in a while. I am such a perfectionist and like all of us are very self critical. I love the overall production of "VOID" and think it really captured what Intronaut is suppose to sound like. Songwise - I think we really topped the "Null" ep in Melody and technicality. I think we all planned on having more time to write before entering the studio. I think being pressed for time really pushed us though. Sometimes being on edge will bring out a different side of creativity.

- You are signed to Goodfellow Records? How would you describe your relationship with the label? How did the deal come about? And how happy are you with their handling of your releases?

At the moment we're with no one right now, our contract is already up with Goodfellow. Goodfellow has done so much for us. It really has been incredible! Being a big fish in a small pond has it's rewards. Everyone at Goodfellow has got their shit together and are really just as passionate about what their doing as we are and we love them for that. Sacha sent out the Null demo to different labels and basically Goodfellow was the first to respond. Their great enthusiasm drew us to the decision to sign with them.

- Heavy music seems quite healthy these days, would you agree? There are plenty of let’s say ‘experimental bands’ that cover a wide range of music who are offering really interesting takes on heavy rock. Besides metal as a common denominator, we could also say prog-rock seems to be a genre everyone agrees on, do you think that genre could help describe your sound?

I'd say so, a lot of bands seem to be branching out. There are a lot of bands that have put prog back on the table and a lot picking up on it. I've always been into self indulgent odd metered music since I can remember. I think prog is definitely part of the equation.

- Your records are getting consistently good reviews, I think you are well on your way to build a solid career, how do you see what you have done so far as a band? And what are your goals as a band?

Yeah the reviews have been great! I'm shocked at the amount of positive press. We really have just busted our asses to get the ball rolling. We have quit previous bands, quit jobs and starved to make this a top priority. We're serious and want to take it to the next level.

- What’s next for Intronaut? Touring plans, promotions, etc.

We're going to be touring the US for a couple of months October through December. We will be touring with bands such as Misery Index, Swarm Of The Lotus, Burn In Silence and Yakuza. Rumor has it we might go to Europe next year. We'll see...Cheers and beers! Check out our site for tour updates and raffles!

Read our review of Void
Intronaut Official Site
Intronaut MySpace Page