As well as almost all the bands on the New Blood, SOPHIE and Jagermeister stages that we’ve covered over the last couple of weeks, we managed to get a cheeky word with Saturday RJD stage openers Cambion…
Cambion – Ronnie James Dio Stage, Saturday
How did you meet?
When we where younger we all went to the same music college, paths had crossed then, and as the lineup changed to what it is now Marc got in touch through an advert online. Later Jonny ed who had already been playing with Marc for some time.
How long have you been playing together as a band?
It must be about 10+ years now since the start, but as the current lineup I’d imagine 3 years.
Where does the name of the band come from?
The name just sort of came about by accident. It actually means a half-human offspring of the union between a human male and a succubus… pretty cool eh!?
What are your influences – individually or as a band?
As a band we all share very similar tastes in music. The main influences behind what we write could be best put as Meshuggah, Textures, Monuments, Gojira. There’s really too many to name but we try to incorporate as much of our all round musical tastes in what we do.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We try to make music which a broad range of people will enjoy. We’re quite experimental and I think what we value most in our music is a sense of groove and melody. We do have a lot of technicality in our songs, and the time signatures can almost be not worth trying to figure out!
What’s your live show like – why should the baying hordes troop over to the stage you’re playing on to watch you?
Playing live is what we live for, it’s something we put all of our energy and practice in to. We want to see the crowd having just as much of a blast as us. Generating an atmosphere which can draw you in and play with your head a little! Seeing people go nuts, or just enjoying themselves is what it’s all about.
When/how did you find out you’d been selected to play at Bloodstock?
Bit of a funny story… Our manager Rachael Harrison got us over to her house to have a Skype chat with Simon Hall, our other manager, who also runs the Metal 2 The Masses / Sophie Stage at Bloodstock and of course is the vocalist in Beholder. When we were hooked up he asked us if we’d like to tour with Beholder, and we eagerly said yes, we had a blast last time. Then he quickly said “Scratch that, how’d you like to open the main stage for Bloodstock?” We were shocked and speechless! However… We will still be touring with Beholder again soon I’m sure. The man’s a tease!
What sort of setlist can we expect?
We’ve mixed up our set a bit from what we’d normally do. We’re also going to be playing two brand new songs from our forthcoming album which will be great to see how they go down. We’ll be playing a lot of the favourites, so yes it’s going to be pretty fresh!
What are you working on at the moment?
At the moment, we’ve just finished the writing for our debut album, and we’re looking to record very shortly. So we’re in the organising stage of all of that, and have begun making tracks on the next album already. We just can’t wait to get this album out, it’s been in the works for a while now!
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done on tour?
Oooh, I’m afraid I couldn’t answer that, what happens on tour stays on tour! However I’ll give you a taste of the kind of insane things that go on… I once, I didn’t put any sugar in Jonny’s tea… The outcome was pretty wild.
What advice would you give to a young band just starting out today?
Practice until your teeth fall out, set your goals high, keep the ego to a moderate level, and make sure you’re having a lot of fun! The truth is you have to put the work in, play A LOT of gigs, and you must enjoy what you’re doing as much as possible, what you enjoy and your vision becomes a reality.
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!
That one’s easy… Meshuggah, Cambion, Oakhaart. Gotta happen!
What stage / time are you playing at Bloodstock (if you have your slot yet!)
So we’re on the Ronnie James Dio stage, at 10:45 am on Saturday. Prime hangover cure I say!
