Here we go again… Last year we covered every band on the Hobgoblin New Blood and Jagermeister stages in the run-up to Bloodstock 2015. This year, we’re going one better and aim to have interviews from all the bands on those two stages as well as all of those on the SOPHIE stage prior to the event kicking off on August 11th. That’s almost 100 interviews to get online for you lucky people over the course of the next couple of weeks. I bloody love this job, but you lot owe me a beer at Catton Hall, right?
Thanks to all the bands who’ve taken the time to respond!
Two Tales of Woe – Jagermeister stage, Friday
Vocalist Carl King rattled off the following for us
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We are based in Dublin, Ireland but our come from Dublin, Tipperary, Armagh and Kildare.
How did you meet?
The band has been going for a good few years now. In this current lineup myself and bassist Dave have know each other over 15 years. Lucky to have met the rest on my travels.
How long have you been playing together as a band?
Two Tales Of Woe have been around 11 years with a lot of lineup changes along the way.
Where does the name of the band come from?
When I started the band up all those years ago it was originally intended to be a side project as I was in another band. I planned to release two EPs and then leave it at that – hence the Two Tales Of Woe moniker, two stories of sadness. But it grew from that and it is what it is.
What are your influences – individually or as a band?
We have a wide range of influences from Mastodon, Crowbar, Cathedral, ZZ Top, Black Sabbath, COC… to name but a few.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We are in a genre of one….SLOOM….Which means we aren’t quite Sludge and we aren’t quite Doom but we take all the best bits from each of those genres and create the beast that we are today.
What’s your live show like – why should the baying hordes troop over to the stage you’re playing on to watch you?
You never forget a Woe show, crunchy Riffage hooking vocal melodies and crushing heaviness all rolled into one….great festival and drinking music.
When/how did you find out you’d been selected to play at Bloodstock?
We entered the Irish Metal 2 The Masses and got to the final….played the gig of our lives and made it impossible for poor Simon Hall to just choose one band,so he chose us for the Jagermeister stage and Ten Ton Slug for the New Blood Stage.
What sort of setlist can we expect?
A barrage of pure SLOOM classics good fun and great music….all round good times.
Which main stage band do you most hope you’re not clashing with so you can see them play?
Twisted Sister and our good friends Corrosion Of Conformity.
What are you working on at the moment?
When we return from Bloodstock we hope to start recording a new EP and ideally would like it complete by Christmas time.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done on tour?
A long time ago we were playing a festival in Ireland and some of the bands teamed up to thrash the dressing room. By the end of it all the walls were covered in butter, piss and god knows whatever else…
What advice would you give to a young band just starting out today?
Be as original as you can, or at least if you are gonna play doom, for example, do it right… but put your own spin on it. Enjoy your music and have fun, never lose the fun from your music.
If you could be part of any 3-band line-up who else would you have on the bill? One band above you and one below – a chance to plug a smaller, unsigned act!
Well we have played with a lot of amazing bands over the years but I would love to play with Crowbar with Ten Ton Slug or Caustic God from Northern Ireland opening up.
What stage / time are you playing at Bloodstock (if you have your slot yet!)
We are playing on the Friday on the Jagermeister stage. Not sure yet what time but we seem to be top on the Friday bill so possibly last on Friday!
