Exclusive Interview: Mark from Downfall!

It’s about time that we had an exclusive interview, isn’t it? We’ve been lucky enough to be able to bring you a few of those over the last year or so and since Lancashire’s Melodic Metalcore crew Downfall have a new EP entitled “Breathe” out, we figured it was time to speak to them about it!

Obviously Loathe are on the crest of a wave right now. How did getting Erik Bickerstaffe in the production chair for your debut EP come about?
The connection with Erik goes back a few years. I met Erik through music a few years ago, and became quite close, I ended up being Loathe’s drum tech for about two years. It only seemed right to have Erik produce the EP! Safe to say he killed it.

The EP features a trio of instrumentals that are distinctly separate from the five tracks proper, so when it comes to playing live shows, are you planning on using them to fill out your set?
Not so much to fill out the set, but more so to lead into the coming tracks,  building suspense and atmosphere. That’s a big part of the show for us. We don’t have any silence in our set. Start to finish, there is something going on. That’s something I’ve wanted for a long time.

Fusing Nu-Hate Gloom with a Post-Hardcore Melodic element has worked really well for the EP – is that something that you worked especially hard on to incorporate that melody?
First off, thank you! I mentioned this briefly in question 4, the sound sort of just happened. We were experimenting heavily with what we wanted and we eventually found the sound you hear on Breathe. The only song on the EP that was written once was “Breathe” it’s the only song that wasn’t written over and over again! We knew instantly that this one was right for us, what you hear isn’t too far from the original demo, just far cleaner and more refined!

There is a real sense that the Downfall sound is very current, with the likes of Blood Youth, Loathe and even Parting Gift in the same niche bracket (to name but a few). Is the sound something that came about organically or was it something that you searched to find?
The majority of the music on the EP was written about 2 years ago, and then written again, and again, and again! We worked really hard to make it what WE wanted. Obviously having something that can appeal to others is important, but being happy with our own music is massive for us. We definitely didn’t search for the sound, it just happened one day and we were into it.

Obviously you’re going to be playing a lot of shows around this beauty of a debut EP – which bands would you like to share stages with over the coming months?
For me personally, The Word Alive were a big part of me getting into this music, so playing with them would be sick, for sure. Apart from all of the obvious big bands we want to play with, playing with friends is the best feeling. Bands such as Loathe, Lotus Eater, The Human Veil and
such. That’s who we want to be playing with!

“Breathe” EP by Downfall is out now! Their merch is available here!