Oldham teen thrash outfit Tortured Demon are set to make their second Bloodstock appearance at Catton Park this year. Drummer Joe Parkinson tells Paul Castles what fans can expect this time from the Lancashire hotpots when they hit the Sophie Lancaster Stage on the Saturday.
ZT: So guys, you’re set to perform on the Sophie Lancaster Stage at Bloodstock – How are you feeling about it?
We’re feeling excited, and we can’t wait to return to Bloodstock! It feels like over the last two years things have come full-circle, and we couldn’t be more stoked to return to the festival where things started to pick up for our band back in 2021.
ZT: You played at Catton Park a couple of years ago and I recall things got a bit hairy on the tiny Jager Stage, what can you remember of that day?
I remember a lot of the before and after, but not much of our actual set. It all went by so fast! It was one of the only moments in my life when there was so much going on that my mind just switched to autopilot, and I don’t remember much, except when the tent almost came down, as that brought me back to reality for a split second. That set was our first show outside of Manchester, and we were blown away by the reception that we received. It’s certainly set the bar high for this year, and we’re insanely stoked to be able to do it all again on a bigger stage.
ZT: Any nerves playing on a much bigger platform this time around? Yes, definitely, but only as it’s been a little while since we last played live, and we’re playing new songs for the first time. The main feeling is excitement though, as we can’t wait to see everyone again. The Sophie tent will be the biggest stage we’ve ever played on, so we’re looking forward to kicking off the live campaign for Rise Of The Lifeless with a bang.
ZT: You’ve a new album recently released, Rise of the Lifeless, how are you feeling about that? We’re really happy with how it turned out, and we believe that it took the step up that we needed following our debut. Although we’re proud of the album, we’re certain that the new tracks will come across better live, and we’ve been working hard to get our live show up to a new standard for us.
ZT: This is your second full-length, do you think the progress is there that you’d be looking for from your debut?
Definitely, and we couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. We’re certainly still proud of what we did on our first album, but as we’ve grown as a band and as people, we’ve worked hard to fix certain elements of our sound that have maybe been lacking somewhat up until this point. We also apply the same attitude in the rehearsal room, and I believe that our live set at Bloodstock should be a big step up from any of our previous shows.
ZT: Did the recording process run to plan?
Yes it did. David Radahd-Jones did an excellent job as producer, and helped us to get down the best possible performances that we could. He’s a great guy, and we’d highly recommend him to any band.
ZT: The album has generated some great reviews – that must give you confidence that the band are moving in the right direction?
It’s great to have received so many positive reviews, and we’re super grateful to all of the publications that have reviewed us. It’s also been massively reassuring to see a noticeable increase in interest around the band from new fans, and we appreciate every single person who’s joined us over the last few months, as well as existing fans for sticking with us!
ZT: As a young thrash outfit, you’ve already been able to share a stage with some great like-minded bands such as Evile and Xentrix – how much can you learn from those experiences?
We learnt a lot from Evile and Xentrix, they’re all great guys, and they’ve always been big inspirations to us. Getting to have a glimpse of how bands on their level operate on the road really helped us to envision what the next steps for our band could be, to work hard and maybe someday aim to get somewhere close to that level. Divine Chaos treated us really well too, and we’re super appreciative of how they looked out for us on the Evile tour.
ZT: You’ve a run of UK dates in October, any other plans for the rest of this year?
Just the October Tour Of The Lifeless this year with Unburier and Red Method, after Bloodstock. We’re itching to take the new album out on the road, and we can’t wait for that. We’ll be playing some rarer tracks and plenty of new stuff, so make sure to grab your tickets and we’ll see you in October!
ZT: As a young thrash metal band, what’s your perception of the current UK thrash scene?
It’s pretty strong. There’s definitely a lot of bands, but I feel like there’s now a new generation of thrash fans, our age and slightly younger, and it’s great to be a part of that. I can see thrash having another big resurgence in 5 or 10 years, but I don’t think it’ll sound exactly like it does now, as new influences begin to creep into the genre.
ZT: Are you hoping to have time to catch a band or two yourself at Catton Park?
We’ll be there all weekend, so we’ll hopefully be catching more than a few bands. I’m hoping to see Sacred Reich, In Flames, Sepultura, Biohazard, and many more.
ZT: Anyone thinking about heading over to see you perform on the Sophie Stage – what will you hit them with?
We’ll be playing plenty of tracks from our new album Rise Of The Lifeless for the first time, and a couple of older ones too. We’ve put together a fast-paced, intense setlist, and we hope to see you down in the pit. We’ll see you on Saturday morning, on the Sophie Lancaster Stage.
Catch Tortured Demon live in October…
5/10 – Manchester Academy
6/10 – Nottingham Old Salutation
7/10 – Glasgow Ivory Blacks
10/10 – Southampton Joiners
11/10 – Norwich B2
12/10 – London Black Heart
Tortured Demon on Facebook
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