Interviews: Realms

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Post-Hardcore/Metalcore band Realms from the UK. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1. Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

It took us such a long time to agree on a band name. We decided we wanted to have a one word name and loads of random names were thrown around for ages and eventually we settled on Realms. I think it got mentioned because of either Yu Gi Oh or because we thought it’d be a good name for a nightclub. 

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

Like a lot of people, we’re heavily influenced by the music we grew up with. We’re all in our mid-late twenties and grew up in the post-hardcore ‘emo’ era with bands like Silverstein, Funeral for a Friend and My Chemical Romance. I personally like the versatility of post-hardcore. As a genre there are so many elements you can work into the sound and it’s very varied. One minute you can be going hard with a heavy breakdown and the next you can calm things down with a clean part. Anything goes really and that’s what interests me in music, the use of dynamics.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

Karl (vocals) and Jed (drums) knew each other because they grew up in the same town (Doncaster) and played in a band together before this one. I knew Karl from university where we lived in the same dorms. We started writing music together after years of procrastination and because Karl already knew Jed we bullied him into joining the band. We met Ford (guitar) and Jordan (bass) through online ads.

4. Each band member favourite band?

Matt: Fightstar

Jed: Kids in Glass Houses

Ford: Ghost

Karl: Underoath

Jordan: Muse

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

I consume so much music and have consumed so much music in my life that I feel like I ought to give something back. I can’t listen to music without hearing something that inspires me to pick up a guitar and start jamming. Whether it’s a band in our genre like letlive. or a rapper like Kanye West I find inspiration in everything. I really enjoy the feeling of coming up with some music that you listen back to and are really proud of. I also really like it when people come back to us after hearing our stuff and tell us that they dig it.

6. Where was your last gig?

Our last show before lockdown kicked in was in Sheffield at Mulberry Tavern. It was our first round for Metal 2 The Masses 2020. We didn’t get through but we qualified later on through the Wildcard. Unfortunately our next round is currently postponed!

7. Where would you like to act?

We’ve never played a show in London. I’d quite like to play there. We’ve also never played Manchester, Newcastle or Nottingham, they’re on our list for sure. I just want to get a few more big cities ticked off.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

The dream would be to play with Funeral for a Friend. We all love that band. I doubt it will ever happen, but that would be the dream.

9. Whom not?

We’re up for playing with anyone really, whether you’re lil pump or Bring Me The Horizon hit us up.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

Our first couple of shows I got a bit nervous before performing but I wouldn’t say it was stage fright. I know Karl (vocals) has said previously he gets nervous before shows but he uses it to push himself when performing. He uses those nerves to do better and to spur himself on. General advice I’d give though is to maybe start small and work your way up to playing on stage. Start from your bedroom, then start playing in a band with fellow musicians, invite some friends over to watch a practice and eventually you’ll feel comfortable enough to go on stage. It’ll always be a weird feeling, performing to people, it’s not entirely natural, but adrenaline usually kicks in and makes it a lot easier.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

I’d say Funeral for a Friend is our biggest influence. They’re a band we all actually agree on and we take a lot of influence from. We even cover one of their songs in our set. They just blend heavy riffs and melodies perfectly.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

I don’t thing anyone has ever asked us for anything haha.

13. What do you think of your fans?

We appreciate anyone who takes the time to check us out. We are fully aware there are thousands of bands and artists out there that people could choose to listen to over us, so for someone to spend their limited time on this earth to listen to our music over someone else’s is a massive thing to us. 14. What do you think of our site? We really like the site. Anyone who takes the time to promote music is a legend in our eyes and the variety of artists you feature is super cool.

15. Something add?

We’ve just dropped our second EP ‘Burn the Orchard’ on all streaming services so go check it out!