Mountaris are a band that meld an array of different sounds to form a rather unique style that you might call doomgaze. Hailing from Geelong, Victoria, their debut EP Desolate was released in Nov of 2017 by Transcending Records.
For those unfamiliar with your band, please give a brief one liner about your sound and a quick FFO.
Mountaris is a ‘doomgaze’ band, taking elements of doom metal, shoegaze and post-metal to create smooth yet heavy soundscapes accompanied by soaring vocals. FFO: Alcest, Katatonia, Junius
What was the writing process like for your album?
The songs on the record were written over the course of a few years, usually starting with a single riff and collaborated on together in a room until everything made sense together with the lyrics and vocals added later. Writing songs this way has always proven to be time consuming and often frustrating, but we feel it’s given everybody a chance to bring their own influence to the music and resulted in a more interesting outcome.
What do you think sets your band apart from the rest? What does Mountaris bring to the table that no one else does?
All members of the band come from quite different musical backgrounds so we feel we’ve incorporated a lot of ideas that aren’t often heard together and makes our music quite unique. We have tried to intertwine heavy patterns with light and ethereal progressions that sometimes catch you off guard but all blend together well in the bigger picture.
What sort of things inspire you to create music?
We’re all big music lovers so there’s a lot of bands and artists over the years that have really had an impression on us and made us want to make our mark. Outside of direct musical inspirations I think in a general sense we’re inspired by the state of the world and music as an opportunity to share yourself with a larger audience in a way that maybe gives a better idea of your feelings and views than just with words.
How do you feel about the current state of the music industry, in particular streaming services, “illegal” downloads and such?
We’re at a really interesting time in the music industry, the internet has made a huge difference to how people consume music. Illegal downloads has been a touchy subject for a long time, stealing music is obviously something we wish didn’t happen but with how easy the internet has made it to do this (and get away with it) it’s always something that’s going to be hard to police. Streaming services have probably been the best step towards making a difference in this regard, they have given people the opportunity to pay for their music in a way that is convenient and cost-effective while still ensuring bands, distributors and labels get something from it. There will always be something special about holding a record in your hands, whether it’s a CD or vinyl (are people still collecting cassette tapes?) so I hope people continue to support physical media to allow artists the opportunity to be able to release something you can actually hold!
If you could share the stage with any other musician (dead or alive), who would it be? Dean – Freddie Mercury, enough said. Absolute legend of the stage who will likely never be matched. Rhys – Id say Judas Priest because theyre of legendary status and who wouldnt want to stand next to rob Halford while he blasts out breaking the law or painkiller? Casey – Dimebag or Ozzy Osbourne, for sure.
Which albums are in your top 10 right now?
Elder – Reflections of a Floating World
The Ocean – Precambrian
Between the Buried and Me – Colors
Mgla – Exercises in Futility
Rush – Moving Pictures
Archspire – Relentless Mutation
Frenzal Rhomb – Hi Vis High Tea
Frost Giant – The Harlot Star
Monolord – Rust
Sasquatch – Maneuvers
Fast forward 5 years from now, what’s Mountaris doing?
Hopefully still making music! Ideally I’d love to keep writing and evolving as a band, it’s been an interesting ride so far and I’m really proud of what we’ve done so in 5 years time I’d like to think we still love the music just as much if not more and are keen to keep writing new and interesting tunes.
Craziest thing you’ve ever done together with the band?
We’re all getting a bit old for real crazy shenanigans! We once played a show in the middle of winter on a friends farm and blew the power, I guess that was pretty crazy.
Thanks for your time, anything else you’d like to add?
Just a big thanks to everyone who’s supported us on our journey so far. Friends and families, Mike and Chase from Transcending Records for giving us a shot and of course anybody who’s ever given our music a chance.