FATALIST is a new band out of the Newcastle / Central Coast area fronted by a relocated Melbourner in that of Craig Wainwright. Mixing melody with aggression always makes for an inticing listen, so we caught up with Craigos for the low down.
At what point did FATALIST form and how did it all come together?
The band started in March 2017. Josh sent me a message one night asking if I wanted to have a jam with some of the dudes from a band he played in that broke up a little while before (The Condemned). It was really as simple as that. Josh and I had been looking to start something for a while, and after a few tries with other line ups and different styles. This is what we made work though.
Would readers recognize the members from any other bands?
I reckon so. It took a while to sit down and write this out in a simple way, that didn’t look like it was some crazy family tree…
I have played in heaps of shit bands, but the ones that did the most are: Caged Grave, In Name and Blood and The Seduction.
Alvin played in Worlds Apart.
Jason has played in Dropsaw and Worlds Apart.
Magony was in Choke.
Sam played blast beats in Diviner.
Jason, Magony and Sam played together in The Condemned.
Given you’ve relocated from Melbourne to Newcastle, how hard was it to find members for a new band in a strange town?
I had a few false starts, but I had started to plant the seed before I moved up. Josh was always keen to get something started, so he was on the case for me too. I really wanted to start a Straight Edge Powerviolence band, but try finding 3 other edge people in Newy to start a band with.
Having been round the block in a few bands already, what draws you back to forming new bands?
I honestly don’t know. There is something about creating that keeps me wanting to do it. It isn’t about playing to hundreds of people, it isn’t about making money, it is about creating art with like minded people. Sometimes we get lucky and it is something others are in to, and sometimes you just have to do it for yourself. That and I am a glutton for punishment.
In your own words how would you describe the sound of FATALIST?
Ah, the hardest question ever asked. I would say we are a melodic hardcore band, drawing influence from all the bands we have all played in, and also Carpathian, AFI, Blacklisted, Cursed and a whole bunch of others. I draw influence from so many places personally, as far ranging as Cursed, Refused and Pig Destroyer to Feist and The Weakerthans.
What bands are influencing the sound of FATALIST?
For the demo it was American Nightmare, Killing The Dream, AFI and Carpathian.
With the new stuff we are writing it’s currently still AFI and Carpathian but heavier melodic bands like Damnation A.D., Day of Contempt, Unbroken and Love is Red, with the lead bits still heavily influenced by The Smiths.
What would be a dream line up of bands to play with?
Damn son. So many possibilities. For me:
The Smiths
The Murder City Devils
Cursed
Botch
Refused playing old stuff (Pre Shape of Punk to Come)
Planes Mistaken for Stars
I’d also love to play with a line up along the lines of:
American Nightmare
Carpathian
Pro Team
I Killed The Prom Queen (Crafter era)
FATALIST recently released their debut 4 song EP “Heart Attack”, where did you record it all and how did it come together?
We did that record across a few different spots. We recorded with Blake Ohlback @ ECP, we mixed with Mat Taylor @ The Inn and Mastered with Dan Randall @ Mammothsound.
I really wanted to work with Mat Taylor, because I love how he has a wide and vast taste in music himself, which made me think he would get the sound we were after. We also wanted to work with Blake, as he is a friend of the band, and was super chill to track with, as he had good input, but also wasn’t in a rush to just get it done. It created a good environment for tracking the songs.
What else is in store in the foreseeable future for FATALIST?
We currently have 2 split 7” records in the works, the first with BREAK THROUGH from Tasmania, which will be out in the first half of 2018 with an East Coast tour booked to back it.
The second one is with a Central Coast band, but we’r still working on the finer details of that one, which will follow the first split fairly closely.
We are also working on a bunch of other songs for release. The plan is to just keep it going forward, keep working on new music and playing as much as we can. What else is there really?
How can people get in touch or keep up with what’s happening with FATALIST?
Suss the tunes here: http://fatalisthc.bandcamp.com
Facebook is here: http://www.facebook.com/fatalisthc
Email us here: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.