It’s that time of year where we set out to interview as many of the Sophie, New Blood, and Jager bands as we can in the lead-up to one of the most anticipated festivals of the year, Bloodstock. Answering our questions here is Simon from Denali who play the New Blood stage on the Sunday.
Simple things first – where are you guys from?
We’re scattered about in various areas around Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire, but we consider ourselves primarily to be part of the outstanding Hertfordshire metal scene as we all have roots there and a strong connection with the bands emerging from it.
How long have you been playing together as a band?
The idea of the band has been ruminating for a while, and started really gathering pace in the summer of 2020. Unfortunately due to lockdowns it was impossible to actually all meet up and rehearse the ideas that became the Denali EP at that time, but as society started to unlock in 2021 we all jumped at the chance to get into a practice room and start bringing the songs to life.
Where does the name of the band come from?
Denali is the name of a famous mountain in North America, and when considering our song themes of sorrow, loss and solitude, and the sometimes grandiose and imposing aspirations of our sound, the name seemed to fit.
Describe your music. What makes you unique?
We fit somewhere between melodic death and doom. When constructing a song we like to ensure we are telling a story. Listening to our debut Denali EP, each song is a long-form tale centering around central themes of mourning, sorrow, madness and otherworldly terror. We dance around the line between melody and crushing heaviness, ensuring listeners can be lulled and pummeled in quick succession.
If you like what we do, consider ing us on Patreon for as little as £1 per month!
What’s your live show like? Why are people going to watch you instead of another band?
Building an atmosphere is key to what we do, especially live. A Denali live show is designed to captivate its audience with its haunting themes, before bringing them back down to Earth with ferocious force. Consider a Denali set to be peaks and valleys of riffs, drums, melodies and intense vocal narration.
Have you been to Bloodstock before? What did you think?
We’re all veteran Bloodstock attendees, with some of our number having been fortunate to play the festival in other bands such as Countless Skies and Everest Queen. Bloodstock is in a league of its own when it comes to UK metal festivals: the atmosphere of it is incredible and the sense of community is unmatched.
Which M2tM region did you win, or did you come through other channels?
We were actually very fortunate in that we submitted an application to play at the festival and against all the odds we managed to land a slot!
Can you put into 10 words or fewer how it felt when you realised you were heading to Bloodstock?
Speaking for myself I’d have to say “Mind-blowing, an item off the top of my bucket list!”
What sort of setlist can we expect?
We have a couple of prime cuts from our EP lined up, plus a little something people won’t have heard before…
Which other bands do you most hope you’re not squished up next to so you can see them play?
I’d be gutted if we clashed with Soen, as I’ve wanted to see them play for a long time.
What are you working on at the moment?
New material! With our debut EP out in the wild we have a cache of new ideas which we are in the process of honing so that we can further diversify our set and look towards future releases.
What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show?
I seeing Gwar years ago at Bloodstock and not expecting the amount of audience interaction and prop use. Seeing the aftermath of their set was unreal, as people walked away drenched in various different fluids.
What drink do you throw back to get yourself fired up before going on stage?
Give me a beer or an ale and I’ll be primed and ready, but I’ll also never turn down a nice rum.
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Denali: facebook | instagram | spotify | bandcamp | youtube
