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By: Andy Little
Hailing from Wrexham, North Wales, the excellently named Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard have just released their debut album on the New Heavy Sounds record label, which is a fuzzed up slice of colossal heaviness. A label becoming quite adept at unearthing very talented, young promising British rock bands (Black Moth, Limb, and others are on the roster). After throwing down weighty monstrous doomy, sludgey grooves at the Doom Over London festival over the Easter Bank holiday, we at Echoes and Dust towers thought it would be a perfect time to catch up with Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard. So, kindly informing us on their beginnings, influences, current album, future gigs, and new album, is guitarist Paul Davies.
(((o))): Let’s start right at the beginning: how did you meet up and form the band?
Paul: Hey. Glad you enjoyed the gig! Well myself, and the drummer (Carrat), have been playing for years. We were in a previous band called Mother Of Six before Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard with Wez (2nd guitarist) and we knew Jess (singer) from another band called Warsisters. Our band split up due to the singer unfortunately being ill and to cut a long story short, we saw Jess in a local pub and explained our vision (Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard) and she joined that night. The end, do not pass go. Ha.
(((o))): There are always influences, which drive a band toward their sound. Which influences formed the making of the heaviness you create?
Paul: As Jess will testify there is more to our influences than your average heavy bands. There are a lot of ingredients in the Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard soup and somehow they make this heavy riff thing. We like John Carpenter and Fabio Frizzi, Carrat likes hardcore cross over and hip hop, I’m a fan of krautrock, old style doom and space rock, Wez is more into modern day doom and Jess likes folk and really weird stuff. Ha. We all like history, art and geography and this all contributes to the music we try and make.
(((o))): Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard is a stand out brilliant name and suitable for the music you make. How did the name get thrown in as an idea?
Paul: Ha. The name, well, we wanted a really big name. We don’t personally think anything shorter would do us justice. Without being too boring, each word has a strong significance to us all.
(((o))): You have recently released your debut album Noeth Ac Anoeth’, on the New Heavy Sounds record label. Can you enlighten us more about it’s making e.g. producer, where it was recorded, how long it took etc.
Paul: In total it took us about 4 days, including mixing. We did it over 2 sessions at Jon Davis’ Skyhammer Studio. We did ‘Nachthexen’ first then recorded the other 2 about 5 months later. We knew exactly what we wanted and it was a breeze to record. Of course we had our mate Chris Fielding at the controls so it’s always a breeze working with him. Although we do spend a hell of a lot talking about motorcycles though! Ha.
(((o))): The album title Noeth Ac Anoeth I assume is in Welsh. Is it a phrase or/and what does it mean?
Paul: It’s an old Welsh phrase regarding a plane of existence. We don’t wanna give too much away cos it’s cool that people have something to research if they want. And you wont find it on Google.
(((o))): Can you tell us more about the album cover? Who designed it? And does it relate to the album title in anyway?
Paul: The album cover was created by Andy Garside. I gave him a brief and he really came good I think. We wanted a circular, organic image with geometric elements in it. This may represent an abode of existence like the title suggests. There may be a circular life or journey aspect to it combining abstract visions of nature and science. But then again its up to the person that buys the LP. They can see what they want.
(((o))): Your songs are quite long and laconic. Do they start out first as jams in rehearsals?
Paul: We love to jam. Ha. Noeth started off as riffs in my head then I’d jam them with our drummer and get them bolted to the drums. Then we get the others in and jam on those foundations. That’s basically it. Wez is also writing like this so we’ve got 2 takes on the same influences, so the next album is gonna be cool, and an evolution on Noeth.
(((o))): You have recently supported All Them Witches and played the Doom Over London festival. Have you got any more gigs lined up or plans to do more shows soon?
Paul: We have some festivals in the summer that we will announce in due course, and we plan to do a UK tour to support our new album in the autumn, then it’s a Euro tour early 2017 I think.
(((o))): At the Doom Over London gig the band were passing around a bottle of mead. Is mead the band’s preferred choice of refreshment? Was it home made? If so, any brewing tips?
Paul: Ah, Doom Over London, what a party. Wow. I’m gonna have to take the fifth on the mead story as we partied pretty hard in London that night and our memories took a bit of a pasting. I’m sure Alunah had a big part to play in the mead story ha. As for mead and brewing tips…. let’s say we know a Welsh guy in Minera (North Wales) called Max… we know a guy.
(((o))): Plenty of reason to keep checking out the Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard Facebook page and website as we approach the festival season. With a favourite beverage of choice in hand get ready for some incredibly heavy, head nodding induced, action.
