We’ve got quite the week ahead of us! Better weather is finally here and that means I can finally spend time on the deck introducing my neighbors to the death metal that I love and adore. Yay! One release I’m looking forward to this week in particular is Nebula from As The World Dies. Out March 21st (this coming Friday, of course) through Reaper Entertainment, this is old school death metal with a twist. It’s a sound brought forward with a dose of the synth/industrial and a structural form that requires some focus. To use fewer words, it’s pretty fucking killer. We have to wait a few more days to hear it in full, but for now you can read up on Scott Fairfax’s (lead guitars/keyboards) response to our Profile questions while checking out the lyric video for “Dark Oblivion.” Get to it!

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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?

My family has always had instruments around the house, I remember my brother have a guitar and a laney linebacker amp, my sister had a technics electric piano which circumstances have it I now own, metal I started playing at around 16, with Chris Mcgragh actually, we’ve been doing this along time, so this bands been around a hell of a long time in various formats, we decided to solidify it and start releasing stuff.

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

We are old school at heart, the 90’s was the big time for death metal, and the 80’s was the big time for synth music, so we have combined them both to give the listener a fully fledged audio experience.

Is there anything about your upcoming album or about your band that no one will find in any interview or review that you care to divulge?

Well the album artwork is actually a photo of a cherub that my ex used to love, it sat in a tree and she used to get upset if she thought it was cold outside haha so one day I shot it out of the tree with a pellet gun, and took its head.

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

There’s always something going on with the member of this band, our old guitarist Ash decided to fall off stage once, he continued to play lying in the floor surrounded by people, we also not long ago had a total failure of a iPad mix from the sound engineer which totally threw us and was like… wtf is actually happening haha I kinda like those moment, the chaos.

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?

Hmm I like seeing friends bands getting out there, succeeding, getting gigs either into the U.K. from Europe or the other way round, which is getting harder and harder to do as a musician or band, I think a few years on from now or even now, the smaller bands getting priced out of the chance to play outside of their area, which is a shame, as the U.K.s venues are disappearing fast, and the support for smaller gigs is dwindling too as people can’t afford a night out!

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 stay out of politics totally, not my thing, but our main theme of atwd is the story telling of a lone survivor after some catastrophic event, I wouldn’t say I’m a green person with electric cars and all that nonsense, I drive old classic cars which is better than recycling lol

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

I repair cars as my day job, I restore classic cars as a hobby and lifestyle, I like fishing (getting away from it all) and constantly write music.

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?

I think you shouldn’t compare bands too much and take the music as that band presents it, I get the feeling that some reviewers absolutely love to compare and destroy people’s art, for nothing more than a few likes and shares.

Any specific long term goal(s) in mind?

I’m being mega selfish here but long term is I want record companies to keep putting out my music haha and the other goal is to get Jay, Bill, Ash and Chris out playing in Europe and beyond, I’ve done it for years. And I’d love them to experience it too.

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

Genesis – “… And Then There Were Three…”
Devin Townsend – “Ocean Machine” and “Terria”
Napalm Death (any)
Death – “Symbolic”
Suffocation – “Effigy of the Forgotten”

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

We are planning a few shows in 2025 gearing up the live set now, looking for promoters to give
us a stage!

Oh and already started on album 3.

Summarize your band in one word.

Dark

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Many thanks to Scott and As The World Dies for the time!

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Nebula is out on March 21st through Reaper Entertainment. For more information on As The World Dies, head over to their website.