Exclusive Interview: Struck/Down talk forthcoming EP “To Witches“, Bloodstock and influences!

You could be forgiven for feeling like the scorching sunshine of 7th July seems like it’s a long way off in wet ol’ April but actually, it’s just 79 days, which is absolutely nothing in the grand scheme of things. A drop in the ocean. What’s special about that date you ask? It’s 4 days after Tech-Fest, so it’s not that. Spiritbox will be on their UK tour with Loathe which has two dates at the London Roundhouse. But it’s not that. It’s actually the release date for a  darker, heavier new sound from the second burnt offering “To Witches“ from Canterbury Metallers Struck/Down who have paved the way with “The Enforcer“. Having enjoyed that vicious little ditty of crushing Metalcore riffs combined with a lethal dose of Groove, we had a chat with them and it went something like this…

How have you found the reaction to “The Enforcer” so far? “Releasing new music is always an exciting time for us, and all the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive! Particular praise has been leveraged at Linden’s vocals and having a more polished overall sound. These two points in particular are really nice to receive such high praise on, as they were two key points that we focused on for the new record. It’s been a very welcome experience for us so far, as it shows all the hard work we have put into this new single and the EP as a whole has been well worth it. All the kind words and great feedback has shown it has all paid off!”

The cut is the first from an EP “To Witches” set for a summer release; how much are you looking forward to sharing the new material with the masses? What else can you tell us about the record at this point? “We honestly can’t wait to share the whole EP with everyone. It  may come across as cliché, but this is without a doubt our best work to date and it is something that all of us in Struck/Down are immensely proud of. Our fans have taken really well to the release of ‘The Enforcer’, and all those who enjoyed it will love what we have coming the the full release of the EP. There are many more riffs and plenty of groove, but we haven’t been afraid to explore all our musical backgrounds to create some very unique tracks. We’d love to share more, but for now people will just have to wait and hear it when it releases in July!”

How much of an influence on the new EP was playing the New Blood stage at Bloodstock in 2021 having won Metal 2 The Masses? Did you find it a source of inspiration? “Winning the M2TM competition showed that the new music from the first EP ‘From Demons’ and all the hard work we put in during the pandemic had paid off. We found Bloodstock to be a truly inspiring experience. We  debuted ‘The Enforcer’ for the competition and later at Bloodstock, and it was so well received we knew we were onto a winner. After we returned, the rest of the EP fell into place rather quickly with the last few additions really falling into place once we had Will Mihr and Pete McLarney (our new bassist and guitarist respectively) join the band”

What would be more important to the band at this point? Playing a one off European Festival like Hellfest France, Resurrection Fest Spain or Summer Breeze Germany or 20 shows across Europe opening for a band like Siamese or Our Hollow Our Home? “It’s a tough one to answer. On one hand, having the opportunity to play a massive European Festival is the potential for massive exposure and almost certainly have a great time, with a great crowd, make some new fans and who knows who we might meet. On the other hand, playing 20 separate shows across Europe would give you 20 unique experiences and crowds that you would perform in front of, not to mention just the opportunity of playing with bands of those sizes would be an experience in itself. If we had to choose, we’d do the 20 shows across Europe. Although we’d love it if we could do both!”

If we are made up of our genes and influences, what’s in your Jeans and who are your influences? “If you pin us down and really analyse us, I’d say our genes are made of the likes of Black Label Society and Pantera, with a little bit of Mastodon and Gojira in there for good measure. When it comes to influences, it’s hard to describe just how much the band is influenced across all members. Each one of us has such a unique taste in music, but there’s also a lot of overlap between us as well. There’s a lot of love for classic and modern metal obviously, but it can range from Elton John to Lorna Shore, from stage musicals to prog. We’re an odd bunch, but we always manage to come up with ideas that seem to work!”

Aside from the EP release, what’s next for Struck/Down? “In classic Struck/Down fashion we’ll be writing more music, with the intention of composing even bigger and better riffs. We will stay comfortably within the pocket when it comes to our sound, but as we have shown before to not be afraid of exploring new ones as well. Apart from that, we intend to support the EP release both online and in gigs up and down the country. Next year we’d love to get onto some medium sized festivals, and maybe even some big ones! Returning to Bloodstock on the Sophie Lancaster stage is something we are so, so passionate about making happen and we’ll do what we have to in order to make that happen. We can’t wait to show people what we have in store for the rest of 2023, and all the plans we are already making for next year. As always, it’s best to follow us on all our socials to stay up to date with all things Struck/Down!”