Tomorrow the next stage for this years Red Bull Studios Download Festival begins. It will see the final 15 bands battling it out for votes as they release brand new videos recorded from their time at Red Bull Studios in London.
The 6 most popular bands will win the opportunity to play the Red Bull Studio Stage at next month’s Download Festival, whilst 2 wildcard bands will be chosen by judges.
However before the next stage of voting begins, we are continuing to profile bands from the final 15.
This week we meet the last batch of 5 bands; Adelphia, Out For Tomorrow, Sinners Highway, They Say Fall and Vanity Draws Blood.
Adelphia
AH: Can you introduce yourself and your role in your band?
Jay: I’m Jay Sanderson and I play bass for Adelphia and also do backing vocals.
AH: For new listeners how would you describe your sound?
Jay: I’d describe us as surprising as we don’t just stick to one core sound of a genre, we try different ideas which conventionally might not be used but works because we’re all influenced by different things making a cool cocktail of sound.
AH: How does it feel to make it this far in the competition?
Jay: It’s incredible, being invited to record at Red Bull Studios in London is a huge privilege and I couldn’t be more thankful. It’s a huge opportunity and getting to this point was all down to our fans, it’s very humbling.
AH: If you were to make it to Download, what can festival-goers expect from your set?
Jay: A fresh sound and a performance from a band who couldn’t be happier to play on a Download Festival stage.
AH: What would it mean for you to play Download?
Jay: It would mean everything to me, it’s pretty much every aspiring musicians dream to play Download! The lead up to the final round is coming to an end and it’s getting tense, to have the chance to play Download would be a huge and unbelievable reward for all our work.
AH: Once the next stage of voting opens, why should people vote for your band?
Jay: We’re something different, we incorporate different sounds and promise that if we get through we will not let anybody who has voted or supported in any way down.
AH: Do you have any final words to share with Already Heard readers?
Jay: Thank you for getting us this far, it’s unreal we’re so excited to record at Red
Bull Studios, which wouldn’t have been possible without the help of our fans, family and friends. Thank you for believing in us as a band.
Adelphia links: Red Bull Profile|Facebook|Twitter
Out For Tomorrow
AH: Can you introduce yourself and your role in your band?
Ben: Hey, My name is Ben and I’m the vocalist for Out For Tomorrow.
AH: For new listeners how would you describe your sound?
Ben: I’d say we’re a rock band with a catchy pop edge. There’s something for everyone.
AH: How does it feel to make it this far in the competition?
Ben: It’sMind blowing! There were so many good bands that entered this year. We’re still coming to grips that we have got this far! We just want to thank everyone for voting and giving us their support.
AH: If you were to make it to Download, what can festival-goers expect from your set?
Ben: We love getting the crowd involved and to see people having a good time, we definitely like putting on a show that people will remember!
AH: What would it mean for you to play Download?
Ben: Absolutely everything, It’s every bands dream to play Download and this would be a HUGE milestone for us. Some of the guys have been to Download Festival in the past, so to actually be able to play would be a dream come true.
AH: Once the next stage of voting opens, why should people vote for your band?
Ben: It would mean the world to us to play Download Festival. We’re very passionate about what we do and the music we make. If you’d like to make us smile, please vote for us.
AH: Do you have any final words to share with Already Heard readers?
Ben: If you’ve not ‘Already Heard’ of our band, please check us out!
Out For Tomorrow links: Red Bull Profile|Facebook|Twitter
Sinners Highway
AH: Can you introduce yourself and your role in your band?
Tim: I’m Tim Everington, 22, and I’m the Lead Guitarist in Sinners Highway.
AH: For new listeners how would you describe your sound?
Tim: We are an alternative rock/metal band, with influences ranging from Black Stone Cherry and Papa Roach to heavier acts such as Architects and Bring Me the Horizon.
AH: How does it feel to make it this far in the competition?
Tim: To get this far is absolutely overwhelming, especially since we were up against some other great bands! We’re really thankful for the support we’ve received so far, and we can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve got at the Red Bull Studios stage of the competition.
AH: If you were to make it to Download, what can festival-goers expect from your set?
Tim: If we made it to Download we would definitely make a mark, anyone who’s been to our live show knows that we’re tight, bursting with energy and give it our best every time – people would NOT forget our set!
AH: What would it mean for you to play Download?
Tim: To play Download would be a dream come true, I think every band in the rock industry dreams of playing Download. So, if we got to perform at such a prestigious festival it would mean so much and we’d be unbelievably stoked!
AH: Once the next stage of voting opens, why should people vote for your band?
Tim: We’re a hardworking bunch of guys, who have literally devoted ourselves since the age of 14 to making it in a band together. To write/ perform music and to get through to Download would be sensational, we love meeting new people and having fun during and after every show. Our fans are like family to us; come and be part of it, vote for us and YOU can help start something special for Sinners Highway!
AH: Do you have any final words to share with Already Heard readers?
Tim: Final words would have to be to please keep supporting your local, independent music scene and all live music! Also, if you like our music and we’re playing a show nearby, keep your eyes peeled for us posting about the need of teabags when were on the road! We can’t live without brew!
Sinners Highway links: Red Bull Profile|Facebook|Twitter
They Say Fall
AH: Can you introduce yourself and your role in your band?
Kehn; Kehn Gembalczyk, 19, Lead Vocalist.
Joe: Joe Sleight, 22, Drummer
AH: For new listeners how would you describe your sound?
Kehn: As a collection of musicians, our tastes vary to a drastic degree. We have such a massive range of creative influence, resulting in a sound that we can honestly say is ‘us’. We don’t like to tie ourselves down to a particular style, if we’re writing a Pop ballad and it sounds great, then we’ll write a Pop song. If we’re writing an intricate Metal track, then we do just that. You get some really interesting results.
AH: How does it feel to make it this far in the competition?
Kehn: It’s totally surreal. It goes without saying that we’re so appreciative of the effort everyone made for us, and it was an incredibly humbling experience to have the support of our entire hometown. We were completely astounded by the levels of dedication. We had no idea that everyone would back us as much as they did, and we sincerely appreciated every single vote.
AH: If you were to make it to Download, what can festival-goers expect from your set?
Joe: Our live performance is something we’ve worked really hard to perfect, scrutinising every detail until we’re all satisfied we’ve done the best we can. You have half an hour to make an impression, and we feel that if we leave the stage with even a single member of the audience feeling underwhelmed, we’ve not done our job properly. We want to people to walk away after our set and remember us.
AH: What would it mean for you to play Download?
Kehn: We attend Download annually and have done for some time. Every year we’ll find ourselves watching a band new to the festival, and we’ll always say “next year, that’ll be us!” and fingers crossed that this year we’ll have the chance! Walking out onto the stage at Donington Park would be such a huge milestone for the band and five dreams would instantly be coming true.
AH: Once the next stage of voting opens, why should people vote for your band?
Joe: We feel we have so much more to show for ourselves as a band. This first round was a huge success for us and it’s only made us hungrier to push harder and give everyone a taste of what we really have to offer. We can’t stress how much gratitude we have for each and every vote we receive, but we promise if we manage to play Download, we’ll make sure that everyone who voted for us will be pleased they did.
AH: Do you have any final words to share with Already Heard readers?
Kehn: We could never have dreamed of making it this far. We’ve released our entire back catalogue over at our Bandcamp, and we’re planning a massive free hometown show this summer that’ll feature other bands from the competition, just as a little something to say thanks! Regardless of the outcome, we could have never comprehended making it this far, so from the bottom of our hearts, thank you.
They Say Fall links: Red Bull Profile|Facebook|Twitter
Vanity Draws Blood
AH: Can you introduce yourself and your role in your band?
Kerrie Alexander – Vocals
Ryan Stevens – Vocals
Frazer Welsh – Drums/Vocals
Luke Jervis – Guitar
Elliot Ball – Guitar
Charles Jones – Bass
AH: For new listeners how would you describe your sound?
Kerrie: Bouncy breakdowns layered with melodic lead guitar create a catalyst for aggressive movement inducing music. Hooking you with catchy chorus lines and punchy screams.
AH: How does it feel to make it this far in the competition?
Kerrie: To be given a platform like this for people to hear our music is unbelievable.
Luke: It is breathtaking to think we’ve reached this point in the competition, we couldn’t fathom how it would feel and still can’t. It’s surreal.
AH: If you were to make it to Download, what can festival-goers expect from your set?
Charles: Expect a seriously energetic performance. Fronted by two vocalists, we create a unique chemistry both visually and vocally. We’ve worked so hard to get this far, therefore we will be pushing the boundaries and giving everything we have to show the crowd our passion for music and our love for Download.
AH: What would it mean for you to play Download?
Frazer: To put it simply, it would be a dream we’ve been longing to accomplish. As fans, Download has been a yearly tradition and always will be. The festival boasts bands that we idolise and to play the same festival would be incredible.
AH: Once the next stage of voting opens, why should people vote for your band?
Ryan: So much hard work and emotion is poured into Vanity Draws Blood, we would be lying if we said we didn’t want to play download more then anything in the world. We hope that the unique sound we produce and passion for music is enough to inspire people to vote for us.
AH: Do you have any final words to share with Already Heard readers?
Elliot: THANK YOU! It’s people who are equally infused about alternative music that keep it alive.
It’s fans of music that make all the hard work worth while.
Vanity Draws Blood links: Red Bull Profile|Facebook|Twitter
Red Bull Studios Download Festival links: Website|Twitter|Instagram
Words by Sean Reid (@SeanReid86)