One of the bands who may be a little bit different to the more traditional BOA band is Xero, who hail from Newcastle. Vocalist Steff took the time to answer my ramblings.
Paul: Let’s start with a brief history of the band
Steff: Me and Jamie have been part of the band since 2012, but it was a very different entity then and we weren’t the founding members. Jordan joined just before we moved down South for Uni and then when our old drummer left in 2015, we got Alex in, who is also ironically from Newcastle - although we met at uni!
Paul: Who is the current line up?
Steff: Steff - Vocals, Jamie - Guitar, Jordan – Bass, Alex - Drums
Paul: Describe the band’s sound and influences
Steff: We’d describe our sound as Alternative Metal with Progressive influences. Our main inspirations to the band are probably Karnivool, Tool and Tesseract but we have a lot of other influences individually that we like to bring to the mix too.
Paul: Prior to Bloodstock, what are some of the highlights for the band so far?
Steff: Working with Liam Nolan at Metropolis Studios was a pretty cool experience. We’ve also organised a few tours, which is a lot of work but when it pays off it’s worth it.
Paul: Let’s move on to Bloodstock and your road to the festival. Please tell us about your journey
Steff: We had just played a gig supporting SÜMER and we were talking to Ian (vocals/guitar) after the gig. He said that they had done M2TM a few years ago and he recommended we apply as he said how much it had done for them as a band.
Paul: We know from our friends in bands that getting to the M2TM final is a great feeling. Tell us about the build up to your final and how you handled it
Steff: We totally didn’t expect to get that far at all, never mind get a slot at Bloodstock! We were continually surprised each time our name got read out and hearing it at the final was absolutely mad!
Paul: What about when you were announced as winners? What were the emotions like?
Steff: We were just totally speechless but soooo buzzed to play at Bloodstock
Paul: So, moving on to the festival itself, what can we expect from you?
Steff: 30 minutes of the heaviest, grooviest, sludgiest music we can conjure up!
Paul: Which bands are you looking forward to seeing there?
Steff: We’re most looking forward to Tesseract, but we’re just planning on seeing as many bands as possible over the whole weekend!
Paul: Have you been to Bloodstock before?
Steff: No, this will be the whole band’s first time at Bloodstock!
Paul: And finally, tell us a guilty pleasure about each member of the band!
Steff: Ketchup sandwiches
Jamie: Kylie Minogue
Jordan: Being the little spoon
Alex: Cherry Coke for breakfast
My thanks to Steff for his time and our best wishes to Xero for their slot on Friday 9th August at Bloodstock. They should be a breath of fresh air.
Paul: Let’s start with a brief history of the band
Steff: Me and Jamie have been part of the band since 2012, but it was a very different entity then and we weren’t the founding members. Jordan joined just before we moved down South for Uni and then when our old drummer left in 2015, we got Alex in, who is also ironically from Newcastle - although we met at uni!
Paul: Who is the current line up?
Steff: Steff - Vocals, Jamie - Guitar, Jordan – Bass, Alex - Drums
Paul: Describe the band’s sound and influences
Steff: We’d describe our sound as Alternative Metal with Progressive influences. Our main inspirations to the band are probably Karnivool, Tool and Tesseract but we have a lot of other influences individually that we like to bring to the mix too.
Paul: Prior to Bloodstock, what are some of the highlights for the band so far?
Steff: Working with Liam Nolan at Metropolis Studios was a pretty cool experience. We’ve also organised a few tours, which is a lot of work but when it pays off it’s worth it.
Paul: Let’s move on to Bloodstock and your road to the festival. Please tell us about your journey
Steff: We had just played a gig supporting SÜMER and we were talking to Ian (vocals/guitar) after the gig. He said that they had done M2TM a few years ago and he recommended we apply as he said how much it had done for them as a band.
Paul: We know from our friends in bands that getting to the M2TM final is a great feeling. Tell us about the build up to your final and how you handled it
Steff: We totally didn’t expect to get that far at all, never mind get a slot at Bloodstock! We were continually surprised each time our name got read out and hearing it at the final was absolutely mad!
Paul: What about when you were announced as winners? What were the emotions like?
Steff: We were just totally speechless but soooo buzzed to play at Bloodstock
Paul: So, moving on to the festival itself, what can we expect from you?
Steff: 30 minutes of the heaviest, grooviest, sludgiest music we can conjure up!
Paul: Which bands are you looking forward to seeing there?
Steff: We’re most looking forward to Tesseract, but we’re just planning on seeing as many bands as possible over the whole weekend!
Paul: Have you been to Bloodstock before?
Steff: No, this will be the whole band’s first time at Bloodstock!
Paul: And finally, tell us a guilty pleasure about each member of the band!
Steff: Ketchup sandwiches
Jamie: Kylie Minogue
Jordan: Being the little spoon
Alex: Cherry Coke for breakfast
My thanks to Steff for his time and our best wishes to Xero for their slot on Friday 9th August at Bloodstock. They should be a breath of fresh air.