The expectations placed on new and emerging bands in the modern era surpass any of those from eras gone by.
Not only is there the sheer abundance of new music being released on a daily basis, but there is also the proportionately high number of new bands forming at a rate never seen before.
“In a world where music is very single orientated we wanted to keep to that whole tradition of making a full album where people can listen to from start to finish and make sense.”
Scotty Alexander
Because of this, there is not only competition in the form of bands vying for their own slice of the market pool of listeners, but there is also the growing attitude of complacency when it comes to recycling familiar trends and genres while also striving to stand out and be heard.
Melbourne four-piece alternative rock outfit Terrestrials are just one of a plethora of bands starting on that long industry road to acceptance and success, but have done everything in their power to avoid being absorbed into a growing pack of fresh artists by choosing to diversify their sounds within the label so graciously applied to them.
While promoted as alternative rock, Terrestrials upcoming debut album Iridescent – to be released on December 8 – contains elements of many more styles and influences, creating, according to their press release, “intensely dark, melodic moods through subtle hints of prog rock and metal”.
HEAVY caught up with vocalist Scotty Alexander, Bassist Lee Armstrong and guitarist Adrian Duke to find out more.
“Pretty pumped,” Scotty enthused when we ask the boys how they are feeling about the album’s release. “It’s something that we have been working towards for a copious amount of time now. We were probably about a quarter of the way during all the pandemic stuff, and we were starting to get a bit of momentum happening up to that point. So it’s been a bit of a journey, but I think it’s that extra bit satisfying to get through having a little bit of resilience.”
We ask the band to delve into the musical side of Iridescent a bit more.
“We did alot of songwriting over the years,” Adrian began. “It’s the best of, but it all fits together still. Quite a while ago Lee put together the song order, and we worked that into the album a bit with quite a few transitions. I wouldn’t say the songs are that prog, but the album feels proggy.“
“There’s moments of prog,” Scotty continued. “It’s called alternative rock, but it sounds aesthetically… We dipped our toe in a few different genres, just to a touch to keep things interesting for us, and it seems to be accessible to people.”
In the full interview, Terrestrials talk more about the direction of the album, what sorts of things they discussed going into their debut, the singles released and how they represent the album as a whole, the awesome video for Hollow Hands and where they came up with the idea, combining their influences in music, supporting Osaka Punch recently, their upcoming album launch show and more.
