An Interview With THORN. | UDS Interviews

Check out our recent interview with Switzerland’s premium metalcore export – THORN.

For the unfortunate few who don’t know who you are, would you mind introducing yourselves?

THORN.: We are THORN. – a six-piece metalcore band from Olten, Switzerland. We’ve been active on various stages in Switzerland since 2017. Our music is groovy!

The Nintendo console in the band room might leave a nerdy impression but rest assured that we aren’t just surrounded by our own four walls in our band room, on the contrary: current circumstances in modern society, culture and the environment are only a few subjects we touch upon in our songs.

In the effort of getting know each other better – if you could be a sandwich, what sandwich would you be?

THORN.: Since we have dinner in the local Subway after rehearsals on a regular base, it makes sense to answer this question with subs. We would be a footlong Italian B.M.T. with gluten free bread and vegan garlic sauce. The gluten free bread for Mischael (guitars), the B.M.T. for Luca (drums) and vegan garlic for Juli (keys). I’m convinced that Silvan (vocals), Patrick (guitar) and Joshua (bass) would also be fine with this combination.

Tell us about your latest release…

THORN.: ‘Noctum’ was released at the beginning of the year. It is part of our upcoming EP. We released it in February and was unfortunately inspired by the many fires that were going on at the time. The lyrics focus on the people around the world, that only together we can help and try save our planet.

Coming soon is our second EP:

The title ‘Hypnotalk’ was first a working title for one of the songs featured on this album. The lyrics are inspired by the deep psychological approach in hypnosis and the negative connotation it has regarding manipulation. Further in the writing process the lyrics evolved and became universally applicable to modern society, which is influenceable and manipulated in many ways, day by day. We chose the title ‘Hypnotalk’ for the EP because it matched the other songs, since they are inspired by addiction, mental illness, dealing with loss and challenging situations and the fear of being forgotten.

Have you had a chance to tour yet?

THORN.: We have not been on tour yet, but it is on our list as soon as the covid-19 situation is over. Though we had the possibility to support bands like Emmure and All that Remains on specific shows in Switzerland.

Have you got any crazy tour stories you can share with the world?

THORN.: Once we played a venue that had some disused cases next to the load-in. We thought that such a case would make a cool table for our rehearsal space. So we packed it in our van. The case was so big that we had trouble fitting the six of us in the van. Luca got so enthusiastic that he also wanted to take a parasol with us. We did not do that for obvious reasons. 

Here at Upside Down Shark we discuss a wide breadth of pop-culture, including music, movies, TV, video games and the like. So with that in mind, if you could have a track featured in anything, whether it be any of the above on even a wrestling theme, what would it be?

THORN.: That’s a tough question. Maybe Stranger Things 4. We complete our sound by fusing elements of the electronic and synthwave genres, aiming to create and deepen our sound with atmospheric, nostalgic vibes. So this would probably be a good fit. Since a lot of us play Smash Bros. it would be amazing to be featured.

Name one thing on your band bucket list…

THORN.: As said above definitely touring!

What would be your inspirational quote to share with the world?

THORN.: Since the impact we have on the environment has always been an inspiration for our lyrics and the fact that we love Architects maybe something like this:

“If we’re gonna survive on this planet, we have to respect the rights of all those species to survive. ‘Cause we need them more than they need us.” (Architects, The Devil Is Near, 2014)

What does the rest of 2020 have in store for you?

THORN.: Because of the Covid-19 situation, we were forced to postpone or cancel all our planned shows. We also postponed the release date of the EP because it has hindered many things going on behind the scenes that were planned. We hope that we can catch up with everything that was planned by the fall. While we are waiting for the final mixes we are adjusting our release plan, working behind the scenes on our promotion and having video conferences on a regular basis. We can’t wait to go back to full band rehearsals, playing shows and releasing our music! Thank you very much for featuring us!

What’s your favourite shark?

THORN.: The whale shark. He is the worlds largest known fish species though he is vegetarian! The species is considered endangered due to the impacts of fisheries, by catch losses, and vessel strikes, combined with its long lifespan and late maturation.

Many thanks to THORN. for sitting down to talk to us! Make sure to check them out!

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