Look. When you label yourself as “party doom” and you have an album that is so ridiculous it inverts to sublime, you have my curiosity. When your first two singles – “Knife Fever” and “Appetite for Construction” – roar out of the speakers straddling the razor edge of hardcore, noise rock, and doom, well… then you have my attention. UK outfit Gurt have been rolling that particular boulder up the hill for over a decade now, and new album Satan etc. sounds like the band going the way of Wily E. Coyote and opting for blowing the boulder to smithereens. My point being this thing has teeth, isn’t afraid to bite, and huge tracts of riffs for miles. Guitarist Rich Williams took some time out before Satan etc.‘s release to answer the Nine Circles Profile questions, expounding on the “party doom” label, the lack of any Satan harm, and more. Check it out below, and check out the album when it lands this week. Killer metal that’s the perfect amount of scuzz for the summer season.

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How and when did you first get into playing music, or metal more specifically, and how did your band get its start? Any pushback from family/those close to you?

I got a guitar for Christmas when I was 15. Spent some time learning the basics and all those famous guitar riffs everyone learns on guitar, “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, “Smoke on the Water”, etc… I always liked the heavier, chunkier riffs and guitar tones, which led me to grunge and metal. My circle of friends who also played guitar and drums, we were all listening to Metallica and Slayer, trying to learn the songs and play together. Before I had a guitar, I learned the flute at school, which came full circle when I added flute onto our last record “Bongs of Praise”! I never expected that to happen when I joined a sludge band! Gurt formed in 2010, out of the ashes of the band Rowse, with a shared love of Iron Monkey. Me and David (Spicy) (on bass) joined in 2012, after two of the original members left, and then Bill joined on drums in 2014 for our European tour with Dopethrone. We’ve all been in other bands (and we still do moonlight in other bands now too!). I’ve never had any pushback from family about playing metal or in bands. I feel very fortunate to have a very supportive family, who allow me the time and space to keep playing as they know it’s something we love to do.

How would you describe your band and what you play to someone who is completely in the dark?

We’ve been labeled “Party Doom”, which pretty much sums it up. That is to say, downturned, slow and fast fuzzy riffs, screaming vocals with a healthy dose of humour and puns. We’re all about injecting a bit of fun and humour into our shows. The song titles alone usually put a smile on people’s faces!

Is there one (or more) thing about your latest / upcoming album or about your band that no one will find in any interview or review that you care to divulge?

Believe it or not, no Satans or any minions were harmed during the making of this album.

Any funny stories from playing shows / tours / festivals, etc?

Picture it – we’re on tour in Europe, driving along the motorway and we’d had a heavy night, feeling a bit worse for wear. Bill suddenly decides he isn’t feeling too well. Before we know it, he’s leaning out of the window being sick at high speed, it’s going all down the side of the van… It’s a hot summer’s day, the other windows are open and the rest of us receive a spray of sickly mist…

To his credit, thankfully he managed to avoid all the inside, but there was a huge mess on the outside of the van that needed an extra pit stop to clean off en route to the next show.

What do you see as some of the great things happening in and around the metal scene (yours or just in general) and what are some of the worst things happening right now?

I think it’s brilliant that the live scene bounced right back post covid, and hasn’t looked back. Seems like there’s more gigs and tours than ever. Sadly, some bands didn’t reemerge, but there are so many new ones now, and if I’m honest it’s hard to keep up. There is still an appetite for heavy shows and people do come out!

For us as a band, as with everything, it’s more expensive than ever to fund what we want to do. We’re very grateful to have a loyal and generous fan base who keep buying our merch and records, which helps towards paying for the next recording and tour.

Most folks have passions for a cause or causes that are close to them. What, if any, are some of the most important issues (social/political/humorous/etc.) for you / your band and how do you insert those issues into your music?

I hope we bring a bit of escapism to people with our songs. No one is coming to Gurt for our political opinions. The riffs are heavy, the content isn’t. I don’t think we consciously insert any issues or causes into our songwriting process, we’re just having some fun together. We have an ever growing list of song titles based on funny words or phrases, which Gareth will use as a jump off point to base the lyrics on.

Do you guys have day jobs or hobbies you want to share?

Yeah we all have day jobs, we don’t make a living from playing music. Outside of music being the main hobby, I’m into some outdoor activities. I’m an aspiring surfer (meaning I’m not that good, but I like to have a go), but living in London means I don’t get to partake as often as I’d like. In the meantime, I often go climbing – there’s a massive indoor centre down the road from me which is a lot of fun. My son got an Xbox for Christmas, which I’ve taken to using more than him, so according to him, apparently I’m a ‘gamer’ now! Saying that, all the guys in Gurt are pretty keen gamers. It’s also no secret that Gareth is very passionate about Lego and has amassed a huge collection we are in awe of whenever we visit his house.

What advice do you have for music critics and outlets out there? How can we all better serve the genre in the eyes of a hard-working musician?

We all need to do everything we can to support grassroots venues. They are the heart and soul of most music scenes, and under constant threat of having to close down. Without these venues to play at, new bands will have nowhere to get their start, practice their craft and we will eventually lose the vibrant music scene Britain is known for.

Any specific long term goal(s) in mind?

We’re keen to book some more tours and get out to places we’ve never played before (US & Canada – we see you!). We’ve just finished up making this new record, but already have the next one in our sights. We usually don’t sit too long doing nothing, so we’ll probably soon start jamming new riffs and get album
no. 5 on the way!

… And something to do with AI, and the metaverse or NFTs. Apparently it’s gonna be big so we should probably get on that.

When you’re not obsessing over your own material, what are some of your favorite albums to listen to currently?

I love to listen to movie and TV soundtracks and scores, particularly if they have a synthy or ambient vibe. I am a massive “Dune” fan, so have been obsessing over the Hans Zimmer scores to both those recent movies. The latest Carpenter Brut album “Leather Terror” still gets a lot of play time for me. But only recently the new High On Fire and Melvins albums came out, two bands I love, so they are getting played a lot. And the new one from Brume, our mates from San Francisco (featuring the ex-Gurt guitarist) is killer.

What is the near future outlook for you or your band? Any specific events on the horizon that the masses should be aware of?

Our 4th album “Satan etc” is out on 7th June, lead single “Knife Fever” is out now with another single to follow on May 21st! Preorder now at http://www.gurt.bigcartel.com and http://www.gurt.bandcamp.com. We will be playing Riffolution Festival in Manchester on 29th September. We’re keen to get the new songs out on stage, so keep your eyes and ears open for more shows to come later in the year and beyond.

Summarize your band in one word.

Currently: “Blegh!”

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Many thanks to Rich for the time!

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Satan etc. is out on Friday, June 7, and preorder options are available here (as well as Bandcamp linked above). To stay in touch with Gurt, give them a follow on Facebook.