After her performance on the Eyesore Merch stage and before opening for Venom Prison, we got a chance to have a quick chat with Jo Quail in relation to her performances on the day at the festival and her plans for the next few months.
You played a little earlier on today at the festival. How do you think it went?
Well, I’ve kind of just got off stage really and from the audience reaction, it was very, very well received. The audience was really enthusiastic and respectful as some parts of my set are quite quiet and I was ed by some of The Vintage Caravan later in the set which was really awesome. I had a lot of fun!
You recently re-released Exsolve. How has the response been to it?
Incredible to be honest. The release that came out last year was on CD with just the three tracks whereas this re-release is on Vinyl with a bonus track on it. This is also the first release on my new record label which I just started and we decided to do a vinyl instead of re-pressing cd’s. We sold more than a quarter of them before it was even released so I’d say the response has been great. It’s quite a special package which we took a lot of time on and it’s hopefully very representative of the work I put into writing it.
Damnation has sold out once again this year. Can you think of any reasons it has sold out again?
Because people really enjoy it. They plan their curation very well and chuck a few curveballs in for good measure as well. The way they plan the stage times as well is really good and they are just nice people to be honest.
I’ve been informed by Larissa from Venom Prison that you’ll be performing with them tonight. Are you looking forward to that?
After we finish this interview I’ll be going to meet them and talk it through with them. I’ll be providing an intro to their set and also performing a song which is solo cello so it’ll be interesting to see how that goes down as their music is very heavy. It should go well, but we’ll see!
Fun question now, how many bows do you go through in a typical set?
[Laughs] I don’t break any but I do have to get them re-haired regularly. I normally take about 2 or 3 bows with me when I’m touring as there are parts which require some more attack and as such put more stress on the hairs. So yes, re-hair regularly but no breakages.
What are your plans for the next few months?
I’ve got some December dates with Mono in Europe which I’m looking forward to. We’re then heading to Australia together in March which’ll be nice as it’s been a few years since I’ve been there. I’ve toured with Mono quite a few times now so we tour really well together.
What bands are you hoping to catch today, if you can?
There’s plenty that I want to see including Vintage Caravan, Opeth and Alcest but I’m probably going to have to rush about like a lunatic due to scheduling of things.
What do you want to see less of in the music scene?
Wow, that’s a very interesting question. No-one’s ever asked me that. I think possibly fewer embargos to people who are trying to do it their own way. I’ve always done things myself and have self-released and then set my own label up and it seems as though there can be a blinkered approach to some genres which makes it difficult to get into unless you know the right people. To me, audiences are becoming more broad-minded and anything that encourages that is welcomed.
Given the cello is not really associated with metal, how do you think people perceptions of the instrument and yourself has changed over the years?
I think it’s become easier over the years and through my development as an artist I’ve got more confident in my writing. I’ve always written what I want to write and as I mentioned earlier, people are becoming more broad-minded and there’s plenty of heaviness in music that’s not metal which has led to audiences being more receptive. Also, it’s nice to have that break from consistently heavy music so I guess that’s helped as well.
Tea or Coffee?
Always tea. I generally go for Earl Grey as I don’t have milk but sometimes a cup of builders’ tea is all that will suffice. I’ve actually got a kettle in my tour-box now if there’s no kettle in the venue which happens more than I’d like to say!
