Think thundering drums and screaming guitars and you are meeting a Manchester-based five piece with an old school beat and fierce female vocals. Their debut single release came in 2023 and since then they have built up a solid following and with the release of an EP, “Fight to Be Free,” they are currently in the middle of their first tour.
We review the EP at the end of this feature, but we were really pleased to get to say hello to the guys and look at where things are in the world for them as we approach Christmas 2024.
Dani, Vocals
Al, guitar
Harry, guitar
Richie, Bass
Sean, Drums
It’s always hard starting off as a live act as your own material is less known by the crowd and you probably haven’t got enough of your own material for a full show, so covers come into the picture as ‘crowd pleasers.’ Which covers do you put into the show and who gets to choose?
Dani: We usually try to avoid covers at our shows but we have done a couple over the last year. A fan favourite is definitely “Livewire” by Mötley Crüe, which always gets the crowd singing along, and we do a mean cover of “Kitty Gurl” by the famous drag queen RuPaul! We’re very lucky to be at a point now though, where fans are starting to sing our own songs with us at shows, and that’s a really amazing feeling.
Banshees are women of the fairies, I believe. Female lead vocals…are you looking at the myth side of things in your lyrics and music?
Al: Absolutely! Our first EP was a bit more on the futuristic and dystopian side, but the music we’re recording at the moment definitely has some more fantastical elements to it. Think ancient religions and rituals! Dani and I are both really keen on ancient folklore these days so maybe we’ll be seeing more songs written with this in mind in the band’s future!
Let’s talk “Hidden Chapters,” as I liked the heavy slow drum heartbeat and I liked the art work for the single as well with the burning book. Can you tell me about the single and who does the art work?
Dani: Thank-you! “Hidden Chapters” is definitely a favourite of ours. We chose to release it as the first single from the “Fight To Be Free” EP, as it’s all about new beginnings and finding your way. Each single artwork from the EP was created by our good friend Emily! She had never been commissioned for this kind of style before, but we saw her previous works and fell in love! She’ll hopefully be doing all of our artwork for the foreseeable future!
Image tends to develop as the band gets more noticed. At the moment you have the black outfit look; is the image being consciously looked at and controlled yet, or is it every man (or woman) for themselves?
Harry: It’s definitely a very rough-around-the-edges ‘denim and leather’ vibe and Dani even went as far as to dye her hair to match our black and red colour scheme! She also keeps trying to convince us all to trade in our jeans for spandex pants! I think if anything changes, the (mostly) black clothing is here to stay!
Well… We do think that the spandex pants may have been a wrong turn (lol). Is the music business as you expected when you set out, or has it been a very different journey from what you may have thought?
Richie: Being in the music business is a constant learning curve, and we’ve learnt a lot even in the last few months during the Fight to Be Free tour! Having only recently signed with a manager and releasing music without a label, there’s been a lot of trial and error to figure things out ourselves! We know there’s plenty more for us to learn along the way and we’re sure the future has plenty of surprises in store for us too!
The EP has been well received; we enjoyed the listen here and felt like reaching out. Who does the songwriting, or does someone come up with an idea and then everyone contributes?
Dani: Thanks! All of the music we’ve released so far was written by our wonderful guitarist, Al.
Al: Some of the songs are drawn from my own experiences, while others draw from both classic and modern literature. Our next release, scheduled for March 2025, is much more of a collaboration from all of us, which we are very excited to share with the world!
What is on the horizon that you can tell us about for 2025? Any chance of seeing you all at one of the festivals perhaps?
Sean: Spring 2025 is definitely going to be a busy one for us! We’ll be releasing a bunch of new music and touring areas of the country we haven’t visited yet, including a London date soon to be announced! We’re also going to be playing Wildfire Festival in Scotland during the summer, which is incredibly exciting!
And as this is December, if you had to play a show on Christmas Eve and needed to get a Christmas song on the set list, which one would it be? A discussion ensues on what the Christmas song would be, so it’s only fair to give all of their suggestions an honourable mention.
Harry: It has to be band aid! Bono really hit the heartstrings with that one.
Al: Christopher Lee’s version of “The Little Drummer Boy!” The man is a legend and everything he does is legendary!
Sean: “Christmas Time” by The Darkness! If we don’t play this one, I’m going on strike!
And I hope you liked the feature, dear reader! If you did, please check out the other pages of the magazine; we have many great features, merchandise, editorials and even poetry! We work hard for you, and if you want to show some appreciation and support what we do, then do use the Support Us link below and buy us a coffee for Christmas! Always appreciated.
By Benny (the Ball) Benson
“Fight to Be Free” EP Review
EP runs at 4 songs, just under 15 mins.
“Hidden Chapters” opens with some great heavy drums and takes us into the realm of “Everlasting Darkness.” The chorus has a pleasing melodic hook and the lyrics are interesting, moving toward the story; hints of prog rock here and there.
“Hit the Ground” is a song in a hurry. It is one of those rock driving tracks to listen to in your car on an open road. It took me into the territory of a band I used to love but who disappeared, The Marmozets. It has that math rock vibe with big drums and energy all the way.
“Fight to be Free” is the song title from the EP and is rock radio friendly; commercial rock radio needs to get this one on! A powerful melody in the chorus helps the song be distinctive and I really liked the vocals from Dani on this one, with the harmony background vocals working well.
“To Save the World” closes down the EP. A lengthy instrumental takes us into the heaviest track on the EP. It brings the curtain down in a more aggressive style and I got the sense it was a track that is immediately looking for the live show; the guitar breaks are just made for the gig.
In summary, as a debut introduction to the band, the EP cuts the mustard just fine. It gives a taste of what they can do and the sense of a band ready to get out there to show what they can do is immediately apparent. If rock radio will support them and they can get momentum on the gigs, then they definitely have the musical chops to make an impact.
Standout Track: “Hidden Chapters.”
By Stevie Ritson
You can stream music from Wailing Banshee here.
