HomeExclusive InterviewsExclusive Interview: Kryptess talk writing and recording “One Girl, One Thousand Lacerations”!
27th July 2023
Exclusive Interview: Kryptess talk writing and recording “One Girl, One Thousand Lacerations”!
Having spent a year ripping up the road on the live circuit and building momentum Nottingham based Death Thrash trio Kryptess finally entered Second Star Audio with Jakk ‘Noise Goblin’ Perkins (Evil Scarecrow) and Ali ‘Super Deathwing’ Harris to record their long awaited debut EP “One Girl, One Thousand Lacerations“. The results of those sessions speak for themselves with vocalist Elloise Cantrell offering tales of a psychotic serial killer nurse to accompany the sonic depravation of guitarist Tom Else and bassist Joel Wheeler. We caught up with Tom to discuss what went in behind the scenes and the conversation went something like this…
How did your previous experiences writing and recording help to smooth the path of the new record? “In Cacodaemonic, most of the music was written by the other guitarist, so this band has been a chance for me to write music in a way that comes naturally to me. Previous experience using recording software has made it easier for me to record demos at home and hone the tracks before we enter the studio proper”
How does the writing process of a new track start? Melody, riff or rhythm first? How does it evolve from there before you consider it the finished article? “A new track will start with a riff. I will then piece together a few riffs and create a basic song structure and present it to the rest of the band. We’ll then jam it and change anything that we think doesn’t work or we can improve on until we’re happy the track flows well. Then Elloise will add lyrics around the riffs”
Do you have any plans to unveil a live drummer in the future as a permanent fixture of the band? On the record itself it’s actually very difficult to tell if you used a drum machine or a session musician; so what made you go down that route? “We did initially have a drummer when we formed the band but we had to let him go. The drum machine has been a temporary solution so we could continue playing shows while searching for a drummer but it does actually make playing shows a lot easier as the drum machine never messes up haha. I will say a big thanks to Jakk of Second Star Audio who has created all of our drum tracks to sound as real as possible from the bland original drum tracks I sent him haha”
If you had the opportunity to work with a guest in the studio next time around, who would you like to work with and why? “If we were to get a guest in the studio it would likely be a guest drummer. One local drummer that I think is great is Sam of Beyond Your Design/Orbital Allignment. He’s such a solid drummer. If I was going total fantasy land I’d love to get someone like Dave Lombardo in”
For us gear nerds out there, can you tell us what you’re using gear wise (pedals, strings, drums etc) to get your sound? “I’m almost the opposite to a gear nerd and just want the easiest setup possible haha. I have an LTD guitar and use a Mooer GE200 multi-effects pedal. It gives such a great, clear, crisp tone. Live I then put that through a Seymour Duncan Powerstage 170 power amp and I use a Blackstar 4×12 cab. Joel uses a Darkglass pedal but I couldn’t tell you which model”
What difference would it make to you as a band if you could land an endorsement from a gear manufacturer? “Endorsements are really important for musicians and would be a huge step for us if we could get one. All gear is expensive and it’s hard enough to make any money from a band anyway so any kind of help from a manufacturer would be great”
Catch Kryptess live between now and November…
03/08 – Leicester, Duffy’s Bar
08/08 – Northwich, The Old Salty Dog
06/10 – Nottingham, The Salutations Inn
10/11 – Leicester, Duffy’s Bar
24/11 – Rotherham, The Hive
