Recently returning after two years away with ‘Have Me To Waste’, Starve To Survive‘s brand of technical hardcore proves to be dissonant and, at times, downright grim. However, it doesn’t represent how they feel about their home base of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Commonly known as Newcastle, many will be familiar with its Geordie dialect, its football team (Newcastle United) and various attractions including The Tyne Bridge and the historic Quayside district. While the neighbouring town of Gateshead also has plenty to offer including the Angel of the North.
In recent years, the city has become a hotspot for its nightlife with plenty of bars, pubs and nightclubs on offer. And even though the area isn’t known for a specific style of music, Newcastle has produced plenty of musical heroes including Sting, Bryan Ferry, Dire Straits, Maxïmo Park, The Wildhearts, and yourcodenameis:milo. While it also counts Ant & Dec, Cheryl, and Alan Shearer amongst its famous sons and daughters.
To get a better understanding of life in Newcastle, Starve To Survive talked us through its influence, its unsung heroes, the bands to watch out for and more.
The City:
We originate from Newcastle upon Tyne, UK. However, we have one guitarist from Durham, and the other is from Southport near Liverpool. We’re incredibly proud to be hailing from Newcastle, due to the newly developed and diverse music scene which is constantly growing. We have lots of friends involved in bands who are doing their own thing and becoming incredibly successful in their own areas.
Its People and Culture:
Newcastle is a city known best for its football. A lot of us aren’t massive fans, although it’s highly followed here. It also seems to be known for the accent and nights out. However, one of the former members of AC/DC (Brian Johnson) originated from Newcastle and they’ve gone on to be one of the biggest and well-known rock bands in the world.
The Music It Inspires:
I wouldn’t say there is a huge influence, although a lot of bands that are from Newcastle are very proud to be from here.
The Local Music Scene:
There isn’t really a genre to symbolise what Newcastle is about musically, however, there is a huge variety of different events happening each night hosting an enormous amount of talent. We think the city is creating some incredibly talented artists and it can only grow larger per day.
Its Most Famous Musical Sons and Daughters:
There is an unlimited list of famous individuals originating from Newcastle, but the two most recognisable artists would be The Animals and Maximo Park. For local bands, we owe it to these guys for putting Newcastle on the map for North East musicians of any genre.
Its Unsung Heroes:
Our vocalist runs a promotion company called Mosh on the Tyne with a few other local guys. Over the years, they’ve brought countless bands to Newcastle and kept the local underground scene alive and kicking.
The Bands To Watch Out For:
There are a few bands slowly beginning to gain traction in the North East, including all genres. But for our style, we want to give the lads in GroundCulture and Creak a shout out. The GC lads are smashing it at the minute and Creak have got off to a flying start.
The Venues We Visited:
From an early age, bigger local venues like the Metro Radio Arena and the O2 Academy have hosted all types of acts. Both known to be well-respected venues for larger acts and smaller artists around the world. Seeing the comparison between the two has shown us growing up what putting on a great performance really means to audiences.
The Venues We Played:
The most regular stage that we have played has probably got to be the Think Tank. For what it is, the ‘half-club’ venue has given us some amazing experiences in front of a vast number of audiences. Many memories have been made there and it continuously hosts the best heavy shows in the city.
If We Wrote A Song About My Hometown:
We’ve always been a band that’s stuck to our roots. The song’s message would purely be to do the same and never forget where you came from.
‘Have Me To Waste’ EP by Starve To Survive is out now.
