Vulgaris are a band you’ll definitely want to keep an eye on, as they’ve proven with their newest album that they’re a rising name in the metal scene! Not too long ago, I had the opportunity to discuss some exciting things with the band, all of which you can now read below!
Firstly, introduce yourselves! How long has the band been around for? Where are you from? What do each of you do in the band?
Matt: Hi, Vulgaris is Jon (vocals and guitar), Jess (guitar), Matt (vocals and bass) and George (drums), in order that we joined the band. The band was formed in 2017, but the current line-up came together during 2019. We’re based in and around London, where most of the members also grew up.
Who are some of your biggest influences?
Matt: Some of the major influences on our writing and live performances have included the likes of Gojira, Conjurer, Enslaved, and Mgla, but we try to draw elements from a broad range of acts that we take influence on, and turn all those elements into something that sounds fresh.
George: My drumming influences are from old Dillinger Escape Plan, Between the Buried and Me, SiKth, and more recently, bands like Mgla, Yautja and Celeste. This reflects my listening behaviour over time, too!
Who did each of you listen to growing up? Did any of these artists influence you?
Matt: Personally, my early high school listening was dominated by Linkin Park, Offspring, Guns N’ Roses and Muse, and I later got into metal through bands such as Metallica, Megadeth, Iron Maiden, Alice in Chains and Mastodon. I wouldn’t say any of these earlier influences have carried over directly into the music that we create today, but I’ve definitely learned songs from several of those bands when I was first learning to play bass.
George: I was heavily into punk-rock in my teens – so Blink-182 and NOFX. I then got showed Slayer, which was the gateway to heavier music and then found myself listening to horrific bands like Akercocke. This inspired me to want to play faster and more technically. I thought the harder it is to play, the better the music is objectively.
Earlier this year, you released your album “Seat Of The Fire”. What is your favourite song from the album? What does the album mean to you?
Matt: My favourite song from the album is probably “Siege”; I think it’s the most well-rounded track, and the end is always very enjoyable to play live. The album’s concept was driven by our guitarist Jess, who did most of the instrumental writing for the album as well, and I based my lyrics off of his concept. In terms of the album’s meaning, it features of a story of Prometheus from Greek mythology returning in the modern era as an antichrist-like figure, which we use to reflect our own frustration on modern society’s eagerness for destruction and malice. As for what it means for me, I take a lot of pride in producing something that I consider to be a major step up from our previous album; it’s something that I take a lot of pride in having been involved in its creation.
George: “Swarm” to listen to, because it’s the closest to what I listen to, but I probably enjoy “Black Gold Baptism” to play more.
I particularly liked your song “Swarm”. What is the meaning of the song? What are your thoughts on it?
Matt: That’s great to hear that you liked it! It’s been the most successful in terms of streams, and is one of our most enjoyable to play. In the album’s story, “Swarm” follows the opening song, in which Prometheus returns and witnesses in horror the damage mankind has caused to the Earth using the gift of fire that he gave to them and suffered eternally for as a consequence; “Swarm” is the beginning of his revenge, conjuring curses and plagues upon the Earth. I enjoy the song for the way it brings together frenetic black metal in the intro and choruses with meaty, hooky groove in the verses; it’s immediate and intense, but also catchy at the same time.
George: “So anyway, I started blasting” is all I think of with this track.
If you could perform or collaborate with any band, who would it be and why?
Matt: I’m a huge fan of Cult Of Luna, and have really enjoyed the collaborations that they/their frontman Johannes have had with different artists like Julie Christmas and Perturbator; I’m not sure how much middle ground there is between them and us, but I would love to try and explore it.
George: I love eerie creepy anonymous bands like Dragged into Sunlight or Mgla. A different eerie band would be Daughters but I’m sure that’s all very unrealistic for different reasons.
Where would your dream performance be? Maybe in a certain country, or at a certain festival?
Matt: ArcTanGent festival is one of my favourite places to go in the world, it would be a dream to be on their line-up. In terms of pure scale, getting to play Hellfest or Wacken would be an incredible experience, and we’re also back in the Metal 2 The Masses competition to try and earn a place at Bloodstock festival.
George: In the UK it would be ArcTanGent or Damnation and in Europe it would be Brutal Assault for me.
What is the best part of being in a band?
Matt: Particularly with the type of music we play, there’s a real visceral energy to it when you’re in the zone that can really help to release stress, and being part of a local scene can help build some really good connections with other acts and musicians. For me, though, it’s the creative process for new songs that is the main thing that makes me passionate about being in a band.
If you had to pick one song from your discography as your favourite, which would it be and why?
Matt: While I think the songs on “Seat Of The Fire” have eclipsed it, there’s still a lot of enjoyment that comes out of playing “Goat Bong”, a sludgy single we released in 2021, and which we also had a lot of fun making the music video for.
Where do you see yourselves in a few years time?
Matt: As we’ve had shows in a few different locations outside of London by now, I’d hope we’d continue to expand our reach within the country and hopefully manage to put together a tour or two, as well as get on some festival line-ups. How much farther we might be able to get beyond that is pretty hard to say, but we’ll pretty much take each year and opportunity as it comes.
If someone had just discovered you and had no idea what to expect, what would you tell them? What song would you recommend?
Matt: We all get inquisitive questions from colleagues at work when we mention being in a band, many of whom are generally not acquainted with anything nearly as heavy as what we play; we generally try to say it is intense, it is heavy, but there is some catchiness to it as well, and we feel that there’s depth beneath the extremity that people not familiar with metal can still enjoy. I think “Siege” encompasses our style the best, but perhaps the song “Seat Of The Fire” might be a bit more accessible for fans of more popular metal styles such as thrash.
How was 2024 for the band? Are there any achievements you are proud of?
Matt: Generally good! Obviously getting the album out was a big thing, and we’re proud of what we accomplished with it. Aside from that, we made our first appearance on a festival line-up for Coalition Fest in London, and played our biggest number of shows in a year to date, including a first trip to Bristol.
Do you have any plans for 2025? Anything exciting coming up?
Matt: We already have a few shows in the pipeline for early 2025, including one in February we’re quite excited for but are waiting to confirm. We’re also into the next round of this year’s Metal 2 The Masses London competition, so we’re hoping to keep going further in that and reach the final again after doing so in 2023.
What is your favourite memory as a band?
Matt: While we ultimately didn’t win, the run to the final of the M2TM competition in 2023 and playing at Boston Music Rooms was a really fun experience. Otherwise, possible our album launch show in May for “Seat Of The Fire”; it was a great line-up of bands we’re friends with and a strong crowd watching us play our new release front-to-back, an excellent evening.
Thanks for your time! Finally, do you have anything you’d like to say to your fans and anyone that has supported you over the years?
Matt: Thanks to everyone who’s ever come watched us or given us a listen, looking forward to seeing and meeting more of you at our upcoming shows!
Thanks again to Vulgaris for doing this interview with me! To keep up with their future activities, check out their social media accounts linked below:
Instagram: @vulgaris_band
Facebook: Vulgaris
YouTube: Vulgaris
Bandcamp: Vulgaris