Wild Gravity are a rock band with a huge and expansive sound, as displayed in their latest EP release, Initial Transmissions. I had the opportunity to check the EP out recently and loved it, leading up to this interview.
By Jane Howkins
You recently released an EP titled Initial Transmissions, which we reviewed. What can you tell us about the EP and where can it be purchased?
The EP is a collection of the first 6 songs we worked on together over the past year and a half. Much of the music was written during COVID lockdowns and even prior to that, and then Phil added in the vocals and lyrics to bring it all together.
Has the pandemic hindered your work much?
During 2020, Phil and I (Ken) discussed the idea of starting a project together. Then in early 2021, we started working on songs remotely for a few months before Covid died down a bit and vaccines and whatnot helped ease some uncertainty. We actually got more down being stuck inside because there wasn’t much else to do. Over the past 7 months, I’ve caught Covid twice, which messed up some plans back in December 2021 to get going on practicing with a full live band. Phil caught Covid right when I recovered, so a month of work was pretty much stalled around then.
Have you started writing for a future EP/album or is too soon?
Yes, we are currently writing new music for 2 EPs, trying to explore new sounds and vibes. Comatose seemed to be the song that attracted the most interest when we first put the single out last year, so we want to take that formula and expand upon that heavy yet atmospheric sound.
Do you plan to release any singles from Initial Transmissions in the near future?
We actually released all the songs as singles leading up to the EP, except for Drift.
Where are you based and what is the local music scene like?
We are based in Chicago. The local music scene is very eclectic and massive, which is great for listeners and concert goers. It makes it a little bit tougher for a band like us to find our footing when we are sitting somewhere in the middle of the rock, metal, and alternative scenes. We’re hoping the new songs we put out (hopefully later this year) will help us find our spot in the scene.
Your music belongs in the hard rock genre. What/who influences you most as artists? What have you been listening to recently?
Phil and I listen to a lot of great rock bands like Alter Bridge, Royal Blood, Muse, Nothing But Thieves, and rock/metal acts like Architects, Killswitch Engage, and Silverstein. Our band takes a lot of elements from all those bands and tries to fuse everything we love about those sounds together. Several new albums we’ve been listening to recently are from Spiritbox, Erra, Plot in You, Bad Omens, Trivium, Tremonti, Ghost, and Sleep Token.
You’re a duo. How do you manage to create the huge sound the band has with just the two of you?
Studio magic haha. I’ve recorded all the parts myself, minus drums, and then Phil tackles the vocals. We’ve had friends help us out playing drums on the final recordings. The hardest part is always delivering that massive sound live. We’ve only played one show so far because we really want to nail down the live sound as well before rushing onto a stage.
Do you have any tour dates lined up in the UK?
We wish! Maybe within the next year or two, if we happen to build a following out there.
Why do you think people should come and see you live, and what can fans expect from one of your shows?
As we’ve said before, we’re taking our time to get our show performance to the best it can be before playing shows (for now). It’s also tough getting together a live band for each show since we are a duo at the moment. But we want to put on a great performance, not just stand up there and play our shows. We want it to be an experience that you’ll remember for a long time.
Any last words for the fans?
Thank you to everyone who has been listening to our songs over the past year as we try to get this project up and running. We’ve had many bumps in the road over the past year, mostly health-related, but we’re still having fun and hoping this leads to something bigger and better.