Brimstone Coven - Are a promising act for the future!

Another great Stoner / Psychedelic Rock band!!!

Joe Denby talks to Stoner Rock promising hopefuls Brimstone Coven who take influence from bands like Black Sabbath, Orchid and Electric Wizard. Joe talks to them about music and what the new album is going to be like.

Music Trespass: How are you today?

Brimstone Coven: Hello Joe! We are all doing well, thank you!!! and thanks so much for taking the time to talk to us!

Music Trespass: Congrats on signing to Metal Blade, can you tell us about your first release?

John: Thank you very much... Pretty much our debut release on Metal Blade is going to be the perfect Brimstone Coven "Starter Pack". It's our second independent release remastered, there are also bonus tracks which are on our first album as well. You'll be able to jam all the material that we wrote up to this release. The album also features awesome cover art from a great friend of ours Creighton Hill.

Music Trespass: It's a cool package, can you tell us how it came about? Normally a label release a bands pre-signed material further down the line!!!

John: The timing couldn't have been any better. We released 'II' in November and it exploded. Then we got the email that got us here the following month. I received an email on Christmas 2013 asking, "are you signed, if not do you want to be". After the initial adrenaline kick, we got details. I guess they really liked what they heard and wanted to remastered and release it on Metal Blade. It blew my mind! it blew everyone's minds.

Music Trespass: So is there any new material in the pipeline?

Corey: We may have a few spells brewing in the coven / caldron. You can certainly expect the 70's spirit and dark nature of Brimstone's previous magic, as well as alternate influences that promise to take you even further back in time and deeper into the realm of the unknown.

Music Trespass: Can you tell us the history of the band?

Corey: Andrew, Justin, John and myself have all played together in other bands previously. When i wrote the first five songs and Brimstone Coven was realised, I knew that those were the only dudes that had the experience, ability and mindset that the band needed to conjure our essence of occult rock. We released the first two albums independently in 2012 and 2013 with a vinyl release of the first album on STB Records. We signed with Metal Blade early this year and we've maintained a fairly consistent live schedule throughout the band's existence

Music Trespass: To someone new to the band how would you describe your sound?

Andrew: We call ourselves Dark Occult Rock. It was a term I penned when I first got in the band to describe our sound to those who have never heard us. Corey really liked the term and it stuck. We've never really related to the terms "Doom" or "Stoner". They bear some relevance to our sound, but not entirely in our opinion. To me, those terms entail a sound that is solely based around the roots of modern Rock / Metal ie... Black Sabbath, Pentagram etc. While we do admire and consider those bands an influence, we also draw influence from sources that precede said bands. Some of the music from the mid/late sixties contains what we consider to be some of the darkest moments in music history, and we are influenced a lot from that era as well.

Music Trespass: What else do you have planned for 2014?

Andrew: Hopefully, there is nothing but positive things on the horizon for us. We plan on continuing to do what we do: write / record / play live. Not sure what the label has in store for us but we hope to reach out to further areas than ever before, play as many different cities and meet as many new potential fans as possible. Our minds are open and our spirits are high. We plan on making 2014 a monumental year in the history of Brimstone Coven.

Danzig - Lucifuge (Pictured Above)

Music Trespass: Your top five desert island discs?

Justin: That is a tough one... it's almost impossible but if I had to choose five here are my choices Guns 'n' Roses 'Appetite for Destruction', Edge of Sanity 'Purgatory Afterglow', The Eagles 'Desperado', Songs of Desperation 'Those poor Bastards' and Danzig 'Lucifuge'. It's an odd list but it is mine. These here are 5 albums I have listened to over and over again and don't see myself tiring of.

Black Sabbath (Pictured Above)

Music Trespass: Black Sabbath or Led Zeppelin?

Justin: Another tough one. This on as well is almost impossible. Black Sabbath are amazing and were darker and heavier than anyone at the time by a long shot. I really want to say Led Zeppelin, for me at least. If for no other reason other than they played a larger role in shaping me as a musician. Also John Bonham and John Paul Jones were a magical rhythm section. Just listen to the slow, groovy middle section of 'The Lemon Song', ignore Robert Plant wailing about the juice on his legs and listen to how insanely groovy and tight the those.

Interview and Questions by Dan Devour