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THE ARCHIVES
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Morrigan's Pit has closed down as of November 2006. The site and its articles will stay online as an archive until September at least, but probably longer.
The Archives
2002-2006
» CD REVIEWS
» INTERVIEWS
» LIVE REVIEWS
» SPECIALS
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IGNITOR
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Erika Swinnich
May 2005
http://www.ignitor.org
It was already a year ago that I reviewed a demo CD of the Texan band Ignitor that is keeping the true metal flame burning. I was esp. happy to see some real metal chicks in the band as well (Beverly Barrington on guitar and Erika Swinnich on vocals), that is such a treat when there are so many non-metal female singers fronting metal bands these days. I love metal vocals with my metal and so do they! Erika has an amazingly powerful voice, that reminds me of singers like Leather Leone! Curious? Read the interview and go check out songfiles and info on their website!
Congratulations on the two 2005 festivals you've been confirmed to play: the
Monterrey Metal Fest in Mexico and Keep It True in Germany! How did you get
on those bills?
Thanks, we're bursting with excitement! I have to say thanks to our manager,
Benjamin Niebla from Desert Rock Promotions, for opening the doors of KIT to
us. Our music was already known to Oliver, the fest organizer, but
Benjamin's skills definitely helped secure us a spot on that bill. For
Monterrey, we'd been contacted previously by Reyes Amaro, the gentleman who
runs the Dark Vission music shop in Monterrey, to distribute our CD down in
Mexico. We sent him a promotional packet and he agreed to put us on. It's
going to be a blast - I can't wait.
Be sure to go see Into Eternity's set when you're in Monterrey! :)
Do you have more live plans? I did see you are playing some shows in Texas with the English Shadowkeep in May.
We're always playing live, at least once a month. We've got 4 dates lined up
with Shadowkeep (May 20-22, and May 26), and then we head down to Monterrey
to play both the pre-party and the fest. It's going to be a busy month. In
June we'll be playing a local show in Austin, and we're already trying to
hook up more stuff later on in the summer.
Which bands would you really like to tour with?
I'd love to tour with Primal Fear, but I'm a bit biased, since they're my
favorite power metal band. I'd also love to share some stage space with
Grave Digger or Brainstorm. I like the idea of spending time with another
band that is full of intelligent, talented musicians. The exchange of ideas
and interaction would be a fascinating experience.
Your demo "Take It To The Sky" is about a year old, how have the reactions
been?
Absolutely great, especially in Europe and South America. I'm sure you're
not surprised. The German scene has been so welcoming - it's really
validating to see our music being embraced so warmly. The US has reacted
favorably, although not as strong as Europe. It's tough to get Americans
excited about much that doesn't have to do with SUVs, hamburgers or the Home
Shopping Network.
Hahaha!
You are writing for a new release, when are you planning on releasing it? Or
will you be shopping around for a deal first?
We're definitely going to see if our manager can help us get a label deal.
"Take" had a couple little nibbles but when I listen to it now I certainly
can hear the "first effort" quality it has. A lot of maturing has happened
in the past year. My voice has improved greatly and the new songs are a much
more focused metal style, so the new material should garner even more
interest.
We're working on two new songs, with pieces for another three, so I'm hoping
we'll finish them within the next couple months and start laying tracks
before the summer is over.
Are there already any offers?
Not yet - please don't hesitate to bring them forth, record label people!
Has there been any change in your songwriting since "Take It To The Sky"?
How do you guys usually write?
If anything, the writing process has become more smooth. Stu's been writing
some really solid main riffs which don't take much manipulation to form into
a song. The more we write, the easier it gets. We're clicking really well
lately. Lyrically, I've been delving deeper into history for interesting
themes, then tapping into the 80s feel when I create the melodies. More and
more, I feel like we're channeling the greats of the 80s. Playing the new
songs has really been thrilling as of late.
The Electric Eye cover you have online for download is very cool! Was it
done for a tribute, or just for fun?
Just for fun, although it's nice to have it around in case a tribute comes
along. It's usually our closing song for live shows. People really enjoy it
and it's a good way to finish the set. Right now it's our only cover, but
Stu and I were throwing around ideas of also learning "Freewheel Burning" or
Maiden's "Aces High". The version of "Electric Eye" is going to show up on the
South American LP version of "Take To The Sky", which should be going into production
soon.
Are you guys vinyl collectors? I was very happy when CDs came up.
Finally I could listen to my old Heart stuff without all the pops and
cracks on the vinyl from playing them endlessly!! By now, we just have some
collector items left.
I am quite partial to the occasional piece of rare vinyl. Vinyl is always
great because the large format allows you to do more with art, inserts,
picture discs/shaped discs - all the things that makes it unique. I'm not a
big player of vinyl though - for that it's CDs all the way. However, it's
very cool that a medium which was proclaimed dead when tapes and CDs showed
up is still around and cherished. And you can't beat the smell of a store
full of vinyl...
What are your specific influences for each of you, next to the obvious Iron
Maiden and Judas Priest?
For myself: Nevermore - specifically Warrel Dane. Singing along to "Dreaming
Neon Black" helped me develop the style I have today. Ralf Scheepers from
Primal Fear. Doro. Leather Leone. Andy Franck from Brainstorm. Jonny
Lindkvist from Nocturnal Rites. Ann Wilson from Heart.
*gasp* ANN WILSON?!?! That is only my life-long idol and favorite
female singer. I've been a Heart fan since 1976 and no matter what great
singers there are out there, no voice comes close to hers!
Ann Wilson, Debbie Harry, Joan Jett, Stevie Nicks and Pat Benetar were the
ladies who impacted me most when I was a little girl. However, I gravitated
towards Ann more because of songs like "Barracuda" and "Crazy on You" and
"Magic Man." She has such a great voice which can go from soft and sweet to
gritty in mere moments. I only had two Heart tapes when I was young:
"Private Audition" and "Heart". I liked "Private Audition" better than
"Heart" because the songs were all so different - "City's Burning" to
"Angels" to "America." I loved the emotion in Ann's voice in "America" and
would sing that over and over (I still sing it to this day!)
"Private Audition" was the first I didn't like as much anymore ;) The first 4 are still my favorites, but there have been some great ones later on as well.
The rest of the band really enjoys Accept, Motorhead, Saxon, Manowar, KISS,
in addition to a lot of punk stuff. I've also gotten them into Primal Fear
and Grave Digger quite a bit.
Erika, I have never heard your previous band Autumn Tears, but I read you
did some operatic vocals there. Do you have some classical training?
I had a very good high school vocal teacher. She taught us the proper
techniques of classical singing - enunciation, breath control, vibrato,
blending your voice with those of others. Having that training has made all
the difference in my singing, both the operatic style and metal style. The
two styles may be different but focus, projection, proper breathing and
singing from the proper place in the body is all important. Otherwise, you
won't sound good and you may actually hurt your throat.
I need metal vocals with my metal and there are only few women who can
really pull it off (you, Betsy, Leather etc), but these days bands that combine
metal with delicate, angelic and/or operatic vocals are very popular. What do you
think of those type of bands?
I used to like Nightwish, Lacuna Coil and Within Temptation a few years
back, when those combinations of pretty singing plus heavy music was more
novel. Occasionally when I want to polish the opera chops I'll break out
"Oceanborn" and sing along. But as a genre, I'm quite tired of "heavy metal
with tiny breakable angels", as a previous interviewer put it. There's a lot
of women out there who can sing cleanly very well, but finding the girls who
can roar with power and grit is more difficult. Don't get me wrong - I
admire Tarja a great deal. That lady has a set of lungs to die for, and her
drive for success is amazing. She has come so far in 10 years that Nightwish
has been around. So has Lacuna Coil, even if the only thing I ever see in my
mind when I think of them are Christina Scabbia's sexy shoes. For me, metal
needs to be full of sweat, messy hair, leather and spikes and bullet belts,
and if there's a woman in the band, she needs to look like she eats men for
breakfast.
So, erm... do you? *grin*
Hahaha, men are on the menu breakfast lunch and dinner. However, I've been
having the same meal for the last 5 years so I don't want everyone thinking
I'm treating life like a giant man-buffet!
Hehehe! Nice comparison :)
I saw some pics of your studio and I'm totally impressed. It looks as
chaotic as my computer corner! ;) Do you plan to record your full album there or is it
more to make demos for yourself?
Ah the studio. Yeah, it's pretty messy! But it gets the job done, and for
free! My desire for recording a full length would be to go to a pro studio
and do the whole thing there. Budget is always the limiting factor with
recording though, and without a deal, we really have no funds for recording.
Vague plans have been mentioned to at least record the drums at a pro studio
so we can track everything separately - that's the biggest limit of Stuart's
set up. The full album needs to sound bigger and better than "Take to the
Sky."
Suppose you'd get a nice deal with a good budget, with which producer would
you want to record?
I'm terrible with questions like this since I never, ever read the credits
on the CDs I buy. I never know who produces CDs or movies - it drives my
friends crazy. "Hey Erika let's go see that new Soderburgh movie!" My
response, "Huh? Who's he? What did he make? Oh, Oceans Eleven? Traffic?"
Being serious though, Mat Sinner would totally do a great job with us, and
I'm sure Jack Frost would too. I like Andy Sneap's work as well. It would be
interesting to see what those guys would think and how they would mold our
sound. There are a lot of producers here in Austin, and also in Texas as a
whole, but you just never know if these guys have any idea what your music
is about. I'd feel much more comfortable with a producer from within the
metal genre.
For sure, otherwise you'll end up with something fairly disappointing
(soundwise) like "Enemies Of Reality". Although what was disappointing for a
band like Nevermore (with their previous recordings) would probably make
many unsigned bands poop their pampers from happiness ;)
Oh man, "Enemies of Reality". What a disappointing CD. I can't even listen to
it - it just sounds so muddy. Signed or unsigned, I have a fairly high
standard for how I want things to sound. "Take To The Sky" might not be the most
powerfully mastered disc out there, but everything's pretty clear on it. If
we were at a pro studio and ended up with a crap sounding result, I'd put
out my own money to fix it if I had to. The end product is all-important -
it is what sells the band to the listener, to the label, to the
distributors, the clubs. If it's not well done, then all that songwriting
and recording effort has been undermined. Why even bother spending the time
refining your music if you're going to record a CD that sounds like it's
been tracked inside a cardboard box? It just does not make sense to me.
I wish you good luck creating that new album and playing those great
festivals! Anything left you'd like to say to our readers?
Thanks to everyone who has supported us. Please check out our website at
http://www.ignitor.org. We are so excited to be coming over in November to play to the heart and soul of metal - the German fans. Metallum ergo
Imperium - stay true and follow your hearts. Metal people are the best!
submitted by Marlies 13.05.2005
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