Name: Towers
Formed: 2014
Hometown: Belfast
Genre: Progressive Hardcore
Line-up: Daniel Zanker Ovalle – Vocals/Rhythm Guitar | Darren Mullan – Lead Guitar | Matthew Zanker Ovalle – Drums | Ben Acheson – Bass/Additional Vocals
◀ Q & A ▶
▶ Tell us about your band name
We are a progressive hardcore band from Belfast called Towers. We’ve been playing a heap of gigs since we’ve started and we have 2 EP’s ‘Seasons’ and ‘Arise The Red Sun’ and a few singles released. The name came from a tower we all used to hang out when we were younger and decided to name our band after it.
▶ When did you start playing music and how would you describe your sound?
Ben, Matthew and Daniel have been playing together since the age of 12 and we recruited Darren in 2014 and that’s when we started really taking ourselves seriously. Our sound is strongly based off each of our individual influences. The best way to describe it is “Progressive Hardcore” since we combine a post hardcore sound with progressive elements. We’ve been told, especially with our latest release we have a very chaotic and technical sound which why we think we stand out in the scene. We’ve always said to ourselves we’re a bit light for the heavy bands, a bit too heavy for the light bands haha.
▶ What releases have you put out so far?
Seasons was released in 2014 which really helped us get on our feet. It was the first 3 songs we ever wrote and we still play the title track till this day. We released our single “Hate and Pride” in late 2014 and a acoustic version of our song hollow in 2014 as well. We recorded ‘Arise The Red Sun’ at Start Together Studios with the immensely talented Niall Doran. We are extremely proud of the EP as we went beyond our expectations in terms of song writing in that release.
▶ Is there a particular live show that stands out amongst all the rest?
Our EP release at Contained a few ago was probably the best night our of lives. We had a fantastic bunch bands on all which we are great friends with and ended with a crowd of 170 which completely blew our minds. Was truly a night to remember.
▶ Can you talk about a Highlight and a low point of the journey so far?
Highlight has been releasing our EP and having the EP launch on the same week. We can’t really think of any particular moment that has been that low but hopefully it’s all upwards from here!
▶ If you weren’t a musician(s) how would you spend your spare time?
To be honest music has been the most dominant figure since a young age in all our lives so none of us could imagine what we would be doing without music. More than likely Matthew and Daniel would have stuck to their skateboards and be full blown skate rats if it wasn’t for the band.
▶ If you were to go on a world tour and you could pick any 3 acts come along, who would they be?
Black Peaks (Best UK band at the moment and our favorite band by far) Mastodon and probably Malevolence or Kublai Khan.
▶ What would be the 3 strangest things on your rider if you were able to make any demand?
Our friend Dman’s head mounted, The full trailer park boy’s cast with us at all times and buckfast ice lollies.
▶ Is there a particular aim or goal which you hope to achieve through music?
Literally to write a very unique record to set us off and progress on the sound we are working on at the minute and to play as many shows as much as possible in as many places we can go.
▶ Who has been your biggest inspiration as musicians?
The band Black Peaks is a huge inspiration to us. We released our EP the day before their album came out and noticed a few similarities in sound especially in the progressive sections. They seem like really cool guys who strive to write amazing music and we would absolutely love to be in the position they are in now.
▶ Are there any other Northern Irish musicians we should check out?
So many. Elder Druid, Heel of Achllies, Search Party, Warcrime, Deathbus, Fox Colony, Brand New Friend, Hollow Truth, Last Wishes, Drakonis, Steven VX, No Great Loss, Wardomised and many many more hopefully we didn’t leave any of our dudes out there.
▶ What is next for you?
We have quite a few show’s lined up but we are looking to record a new single later this year with Rocky and Niall from Start Together and hopefully get a video sorted for it. We are trying to expand our audience a lot more so we are looking to get as much promotion as possible. Also hoping to do a tour next year at some point so keep an eye out for that!
◀ LISTEN ▶
Facebook ▶ /Towers
Twitter ▶ @Towersinc
