Italian heavy rockers Slowtorch have been setting stages ablaze with their potent blend of heavy riffs, relentless rhythms, and fierce vocals, and their distinctive, in-your-face sound has garnered them a devoted following.
The band’s current lineup, established in 2012, includes Matteo Meloni on vocals, Bruno Bassi on guitars, Karl Sandner on bass and Fabio Sforza on drums. Slowtorch have shared the stage with Orange Goblin, Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons, Ed Mundell’s Ultra Electric Mega Galactic, Karma To Burn, Nebula, Messa, Volbeat, Fatso Jetson, Nick Oliveri’s Mondo Generator, and many more, with tours and over 200 shows in Italy, the UK, Austria, Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands.
Following the 2022 release of the band’s widely praised sophomore album, The Machine Has Failed, Electric Valley Records has given their 2014 effort, SERPENTE, a 10th anniversary reissue on vinyl.
After having seen Slowtorch perform an impressive headline set on the first day of the recent Bear Stone Festival, we asked the band about some of their influences.
Iron Maiden – The Number Of The Beast
Fabio, drums:
I was 9 when a friend who was just back from his summer holidays gave me The Number of the Beast on tape. I played it day and night until I knew all the songs by heart, air-drumming along to this fantastic new music that sounded like it had been forged in the fires of hell – I was hooked for life.
Manowar – Hail to England
Karl, bass:
This album goes way beyond musical taste, hooks, arrangements or lyrics… it shakes your core and speaks to your instincts, a bit like whatever it is that drives salmon to swim upstream or calls people to priesthood. Hail to England called and I answered, I embraced it with all its faults and contradictions. I did not choose it, it chose me, just like it chose thousands of other people. It shaped my taste in music, the way I play and much, much more.
Sepultura – Chaos A.D.
Bruno, guitar:
I bought this album with my lunch money on a school outing in ‘94 and it got me into all sorts of trouble, but man was it worth it. The artwork alone is awesome, and there’s nothing too subtle about the music: this wasn’t cartoon violence, here was a bunch of guys seriously pissed off at how things were going and venting their anger with a flood of equally pissed-off riffs. Stuff that’ll make you want to get a guitar, learn a few chords, form a band and go scream at people!
Rage Against The Machine – Rage Against The Machine
Mela, vocals:
I bought Rage Against The Machine when I was in high school and I felt like I’d discovered a deeper meaning to music. I used to sing because it made me feel good, but this album made me understand that lyrics can be a real, meaningful way of conveying things that matter: frustration with the state of the world, rebellion against an oppressive system, a call to arms and a way to channel anger in order to achieve higher goals.
