Backbone Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

With Backbone you can expect a brutal sound, that's for sure. We practice an extreme metal that contains some technical and at the same time melodic sense. I think that, despite making use of the guttural voices that usually belong to death metal, we consider that people from different musical backgrounds can enjoy the group.

2. Recently you have released an EP, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording?

Musically what we try to achieve with the EP is a synthesis of the bands that preceded the formation of Backbone. Alhazred was a groove-oriented band, thrash and a bit of old-school Death Metal. Mostly influenced then by Lamb Of God and Sepultura. On the other hand was Melisma, a Melodic Death band that had a style of composition a little more orchestrated, dramatic. Making use of these elements and the musical influence of each member, we were composing the songs. Some of them were old demos that we adapted to our new sound, and other songs emerged based on the rehearsals. We believe that this mix helps Backbone to get out of the standards for each style, and try to vary without tiring the listener.

3. A lot of the lyrics you write deal with the writings of H.P Lovecraft and Geometry, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

We consider Lovecraft as an inspirational engine. The theme he deals with in his stories is very much in line with the lyrics of the band, so who better than Lovecraft to represent much of our content? In one of his stories, Lovecraft refers to a submerged city called "R'lyeh" where almost unspeakable creatures inhabit. That city is of an impossible geometry, that escapes to the reality and the laws of the physics of our world. Therefore, and more reasons, we chose it for our EP.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Backbone'?

The name Backbone comes after several months of having formed the band. We were sitting in a bar listening to music, looking for a name that identifies us a bit more. By that time we called ourselves "Skeptic", and there was simply something of the name that did not sound right. So after a few drinks, brainstorming, we came up with Backbone (which was a cover that we made of Gojira). We thought that song was very closely related to the sound of the band. It is a strong name, and apart from its anatomical meaning, it is like the nucleus of what makes up the different parts, and in this case, the band.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

The best shows we had so far, we think, were at a local bar called "El Carpo". It's not a very big place, but that's why the experience of playing there is very good. People are very close to the band, and you can see that they have a good time. We all had a good time. On the other hand, on the stage, we always try to generate a dynamic on and off the stage. Move with rhythm, jump, do headbang, and that’s what makes people also catch on and participate.

Also the time we were opening for the known Argentinian metal band "Malón", when they were touring near here. It was months after our first gigs, and it was our first experience with a big stage. That was a huge surprise to us.

We prefer to have fun and enjoy, than to be completely static and trying to play everything perfectly.

6. Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

Yes, we will play in several Argentine cities: for example on August 5th in Corrientes. We also plan to play on Misiones in September. In addition, we will present our EP in The House of Cultures in Resistencia, Chaco Argentina. Then the idea would be to continue in Buenos Aires, Rosario and even, Paraguay. We would love to be able to travel more but there are economic issues and at the moment we do not have a record company to support the tours. Everything goes out of our pocket.

7. Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

We do not have any deals yet, but we do not lose hope that someone might be interested in Backbone. We would love to have the support of a label.

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of death and groove metal?

It still surprises us every time we see some new followers from another country on our facebook, or when we see the statistics of our networks that indicate that in other countries they listen to us. The first time we noticed it was the day after launching the EP, when we entered bandcamp and saw that there was traffic coming from VK.com (the Russian social network). It's crazy that an emerging band goes so far in the world.

The good thing is that from what we could see, the response was mostly positive. It has a lot to do with what we said before, and is that the band is not closed in a single style, and I think it offers good doses of technical and galloping Death Metal, while using clean passages, which lead to progressive and melodic solos.

9. Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

It is something we always talk about, precisely because we try to evolve and try to keep us always fresh and with an original sound. I could say that the groove is what we all have in common with the band, and we feel that it is the basis of the Backbone sound, so that aspect will not be lost. In the last compositions we try to incorporate more melodic elements too, even with some clean voices so as not to resort only to guttural voices.

10. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

We had several influences since each of the members of the band has preference for different styles. Mainly, the ones we have in common, we could mention: Pantera, Sepultura, Death, Gojira, Cannibal Corpse, Lamb Of God, The Faceless, among many others. Mainly we try to move within the technical or progressive Death Metal as a reference. But outside of those styles, we listen to bands like Cloudkicker, Tesseract, even genres like Synthwave or Vaporwave. In some songs you can even listen parts of post-rock or ambient in the compositions.

11. What are some of your non musical interests?

We have varied interests outside music. Almost all members study or have university degrees. Parallel to music, we have a fairly normal and even dull life. Among our interests are: psychology, computer science, journalism, literature and even drawing. But music occupies a privileged place in our lives.

12. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

We want to thank everyone for their support. For these interviews that help us to promote what we do, the reviews of different portals and blogs from which we receive absolute support. To those who enjoy what we do and especially to all those people who disinterestedly believed in our work. Thank you.