Please tell us about the history of your band and its members.
Accursed Spawn formed in 2010 by Jay, Luke, and Paul. After playing some small shows around the Ottawa Area, our lineup was secured after the addition of myself, Adam (guitars) to their ranks, and eventually Weiyun (bass). With a solid lineup in tow, 2013-2014 saw the release of our first EP, Putrid, as well as an increased volume of shows outside our hometown of Ottawa, Ontario. After some fruitful tours throughout Ontario, Quebec, and Eastern Canada, 2016 marked the beginning of the writing sessions that would make up The Virulent Host. By the end of 2017, the recording was completed and sent to Christian Donaldson at The Grid for mixing and mastering. Around this time, we had also contacted Remi from PRC Records in an effort to expand our ability to produce and sell our music. Fast forward to today, February 2019, and we are finally ready to unleash the leanest, meanest Accursed Spawn yet. Here’s hoping that, with what we have learned as a band in the past decade, we will continue to evolve, create, and produce more music in the future!
How would you describe your style? Which bands influenced your music?
Our style is very heavily influenced by classic extreme metal, with many flourishes from outside the immediate distinction of “old school” death metal. Bands like Suffocation, Deeds of Flesh, Misery Index, Napalm death, and Bolt Thrower laid the groundwork for what we do as far as song writing, while bands like Dying Fetus, Obscura, Unleashed, Vader, and Decapitated continue to inspire us to maintain an ear for technicality, melody, and counterpoint amid the raw percussive New York and Florida death metal influences.
Why should a metalhead buy your demos/albums?
The main reason people should buy not just our records, but anyone else’s, is to support the DIY music scene. There aren’t many bands out that can afford to tour in a capacity that many consumers assume is the industry standard, and your purchases make all the difference in a field heavily dominated by streaming revenues and continuing piracy. If you enjoy an artist’s music, it is imperative that you support them by buying merchandise and seeing shows. It lets us know that this is worth doing, and is the lifeblood for many bands, artists, and independent record labels that do not have the financial backing of major label support.
What have you released so far and how were your releases received by the public/media?
We currently have an EP released, titled Putrid. It received modest attention from the local media, but admittedly fared better in the local underground than it did through mainstream music channels. The upcoming full length, The Virulent Host, marks a big leap in musicianship and production quality. We are also very fortunate to have a working relationship with Asher Media Relations in order to help us with the marketing aspects of the band, and we greatly look forward to the release of The Virulent Host so we can make a bigger dent on the Canadian Metal market than we ever have in the past!
Do you play live as well? How's your live activity so far?
We are very much a live band, and our music is meant to be consumed in a visceral setting. 2019 has been a bit slower for us with respect to shows as we staggered out some interesting video content in conjunction with our new music to promote the upcoming release of The Virulent Host. Once the album is available, we plan to resume touring activities to promote it - and of course, just to have fun playing our music to our fans and fellow metalheads!
What should labels/zines/promoters know about your band? Why should they be interested in it?
We can certainly be extreme for those new to the genre, but we also maintain an accessibility atypical to Canadian extreme metal, which leaves us in an interesting situation when paired with other live acts. We blend well with many different sub genres of metal, including Black/Death/Thrash/Grind among others. As for lyrical content, we tend to err on the side of non-partisan accounts of humanitarian crises for inspiration, as we feel that other bands have already done an excellent job representing horror and violence themed lyrics. With all elements combined, we are a hard working, versatile group of musicians with an ear pointed toward the current state of global affairs.
What plans do you have for the near future as a band?
Play more, write more, record more, practice more. Rinse, wash, repeat.
Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
You can pre-order the Virulent Host via PRC Music, buy merch on our bandcamp, or check us out on YouTube.
February 2019