Stephen
LoVerme is the vocalist/bassist of the drum-n-bass doom crew Olde
Growth, a Boston product whose Owl EP was featured HERE on Mister Growl a
few weeks ago. I raved about them and really encourage any fan of rock
music to check them out, especially if you’re partial to tunes with
stoner groove and a doomy crunch. Stephen was kind enough to take the
time and answer a few questions that were bouncing around my noggin.
Read ahead for volcanic activity, potentially regrettable tattoos, and
lots of Neil Young.
Mister Growl: You've mentioned that the songs on the Owl EP aren't exactly fresh and new. When were these songs written and under what circumstances?
Stephen: We
were playing "Brother of the Moon" and "Warrior Child" back when we
were touring behind our full length, almost two and a half years ago.
At. the time that record already felt really old to us and we had just
written those songs. "Brother" started developing while I was traveling
in Central America. I hiked an active volcano in Nicaragua which has an
interesting story behind it. The Spanish called it "the mouth of hell" and
built a huge wooden cross at the top to stay the demons. The local folks
knew the volcano as Brother of the Moon and would sacrifice children to
it. Any time human sacrifice and gateways to hell are involved there's
probably a song to be written.
The
other two songs were written shortly before we recorded in the spring
of 2011. I wish we'd taken more time to get them tighter, but the energy
is there. Why it's coming out now and not a year ago is kind of a long
story, so I'll just say it was a series of missteps.
Mister Growl: It
seems nature and natural wonders inspire a lot of your music. What
natural images/experiences have made the biggest impressions on you?
Stephen: "Brother
of the Moon" is really the only song that was inspired by an actual
experience with nature. Staring down into the crater of an active
volcano and breathing in its fumes was quite an experience. The main
riff and general idea of the song came into my head right on the spot.
With "Sequoia" we had this massive sounding song, and when it came time
to write lyrics, giant, centuries old trees seemed like the way to go.
Those two are really the only songs we have that are about nature, but a
lot of our songs contain some kind of reference to nature because it
makes for powerful imagery. Even in a city nature is everywhere you
look; weeds sprout from cracks in the sidewalks, birds make themselves
at home in our architecture. A sunset can convey strong emotions; vast
oceans endless possibilities.
Mister Growl: Around this time last year you commenced a spring tour. Any plans on embarking on another tour soon?
Stephen:
Yes! We're overdue for another east coast tour, and we have our sights
on the west coast as well. It's just a matter of putting plans in
motion, which, when you're doing everything yourself has to go at your
own pace, which with us can be pretty darn slow sometimes.
Mister Growl: What is the strangest story from your spring tour?
Stephen: One
of my favorite experiences was in Pittsburgh. We played in this kid's
bedroom in the attic of a row house in a very old neighborhood, and
crashed with one of the other bands, also a two-piece. While we were
hanging out after the show they got into an impassioned debate on
whether Sigur Ros or Godspeed You Black Emperor! was better. It should
be mentioned the advocate for Sigur Ros has the Lift Your Skinny Fists
to Heaven album cover tattooed on his arm. We also played at a really
cool house in Bloomington Indiana called the Gourley Hole - on Gourley
Street of course. They have the whole house wired up so that the music
playing over the speakers in the basement also plays upstairs in the
living room and kitchen. And we got to play in front of a wall of old
TVs playing obscure, trippy cartoons.
Mister Growl: Boston
and the New England region has a very healthy music scene. How has the
local scene impacted your own music or experience as a band?
Stephen:
On top of there being a ton of great music in the area, a lot of bands
tour through Boston, to the point where you have to make decisions about
what shows not to see. It's not uncommon to go out to see your friends
play and end up seeing a band you've never heard of that's totally
awesome. I don't really listen to that much hardcore, but I go to a lot
of those shows and it's definitely rubbed off. It's pretty crucial to
see bands that rip on a regular basis because it pushes you to become
better. I have the privilege of seeing Elder all the time, and they blow
me away every single time I see them. They're tight as hell - the
rhythm section is relentlessly locked in with each other and Nick just
soars over it. He can shred circles around most guitar players but it's
always very tasteful and compositional.
Mister Growl:
You're big supporters of Ed from Doommantia, who continues to face a
tough situation. From your experience, how much camaraderie do you
notice within the metal community?
Stephen:
Ed was one of the first people to notice and write about us, so when we
found out he'd fallen on hard times we did what we could to help raise
some funds. We weren't the only ones. I'm not quite up to date on his
situation, but I hope that things are looking up. Time and again I've
seen people come to aid of their friends, both within and outside of the
music community. But yeah, camaraderie is how underground music
continues to thrive, and it's always been that way. If you help out a
band on tour with a show and treat them well they'll gladly return the
favor.
Mister Growl: Hydro-Phonic Records released a beautiful version of your self-titled LP. How did you start working with them?
Stephen:
I found out about Hydro-Phonic through their work with bands I was into
like Black Pyramid and Sons of Tonatiuh. I sent a promo copy of the EP,
which is how we initially got in touch. We were all set to release the
EP as part of a split, and when that fell through I mentioned to Travis
that we wanted to release our self-titled on vinyl. He was into it, so
we started working on putting that release together. It worked out great
because we both wanted to put out something really nice. We're excited
to be working with Hydro-Phonic again for the vinyl release of Owl.
Mister Growl:
I read that Olde Growth is the first band you had ever provided vocals
for and noticed great strides with this new EP. Do you have any special
routines for practicing vocals?
Stephen:
Thanks! I don't really have any special routines, but I listen pretty
intently to the vocalists that I like and have learned to pick up on all
the little nuances. I tend to practice a lot when I'm alone in the car,
or in the shower. But it's never a very disciplined practice, I just
enjoy signing. We've also started recording most of our shows, which has
been helpful because I can hear what's not working and make adjustments
accordingly.
Mister Growl: If you were reborn as a non-human animal what animal would you be?
Stephen: Probably some sort of bird, 'cause, you know, flying and shit.
Mister Growl: What's up next for Olde Growth?
Stephen:
We're working on a bunch of Neil Young covers, arranged for our playing
style. The plan is to record a full-length record. We've played a few
of them out and so far the response has been pretty positive. We're
working on some new original stuff too, but the Neil Young project has
been a breath of fresh air at a time when we were feeling a bit stale.
Many thanks to Stephen for his time. If you haven’t heard the Owl EP yet you can listen to it here for FREE, with links to their website and Facebook pages: http://oldegrowth.bandcamp.com/
And order their debut LP through Hydro-Phonic Records, who will also be handling the vinyl release of this amazing EP, here: http://www.hydro-phonicrecords.com/releases.html
