Bastions

PAUL: The presentation of Kingdom of Dogs is incredible. The attention to detail is great, and it’s refreshingly different to receive something more than a slipcase or box. Was this a conscious choice or accident?

DANNY GARROD: From day one we wanted to have CD’s out there, rather than the modern habit of just dumping tracks on MySpace and that being that. We do actively search for something a bit different though, regarding formats and style, whether it be a different case (‘We Will All Sink’ was initially released with a DigiPak) or a Vinyl CD (as featured for ‘Kingdom of Dogs’).

PAUL: How long does each individual CD take to put together?

DANNY: For the first run of ‘Kingdom of Dogs’ it took around a day to make 80 printed covers with the inlays.

PAUL: Can you describe Kingdom of Dogs in 5 words?

DANNY: Honest, energetic, bleak, hopeless, teeth.

PAUL: Can you describe the themes covered by the songs on Kingdom of Dogs?

JAMIE BURNE: I’ve had longstanding interest in subjects of aneschatological nature (Biblical, Amillenial, Pre & Post Tribulation, Dispensionalist etc). For my own peace of mind I needed to explore the seideas that have disconcerted me so often. In Kingdom of Dogs I wanted to create a denudation of human belief, its hierarchy, social structure and form.

PAUL: What makes these important to you as a band – why not play 3 minute love songs?

DANNY: ‘Kingdom Of Dogs’ was a name we had before we had a note of music written for the record. We had discussed the themes beforehand which ‘set the tone’ for the record, so to speak. The lyrics are firmly Jamie’s, but we’re all on the same page in regards to content.

PAUL: Can you describe the song writing process you usually go through? Is it a fairly separated or organic in rehearsals etc.

DANNY: It comes from both ends of that spectrum, with our different work schedules and with John being in Manchester, we often write parts on our own then bring them to the table. We always work through everything together before anything starts to roughly resemble a song. When we get together to write, it’s usually a pretty full on experience.

PAUL: Why should the average Punktastic reader take note of Bastions?

DANNY: Because we hate crunkcore and crabcore too?

PAUL: What have been your influences, musical or otherwise?

DANNY: North Wales and its sheer banality. Pretty much any band or artist that has heart.

PAUL: Given your penchant for being super DIY, what is your take on music piracy?

DANNY: I think we’re coming to a point where piracy is becoming less and less of an issue. With the convenience of the likes of iTunes and Spotify and the like, people are downloading songs cheaply and conveniently. Pretty much negates the reasons for piracy in the first place…

JAMIE: I wouldn’t say we have a penchant for being super DIY as such, I’d love to get a professional run of CDs made with the full works; 6 panel digipaks, spot varnishes and laser printed disks; but that just isn’t viable right now. So I would say, it’s a necessary means for us to get our music out there. I don’t think piracy affects a band like us, at our level anyway. If someone did steal our music, it’s still another person listening to it, and that person might turn up to a show, and that’s fine by us.

PAUL: Which other bands should Punktastic listeners check out?

DANNY: Burn Down Rome, November Coming Fire, The Chariot, Narrows, Cult of Luna.

PAUL: Where do Bastions go next?

DANNY: More shows, more songs, hopefully some vinyl soon!!

Check out Bastions further: www.myspace.com/bstns