photo : JV Photo & Film
3rd June, 2023
With Hellfire, and now Castor, being released, is there a new Remission album in the works for us, or are they stand alone singles?
There is indeed a new album on the way! Details of which are to be released in the coming week. We have been sitting on this for a long time and we are very keen to finally get it out there
How would you personally describe your 3 band’s current sounds? How would you label them?
They are all very abrasive in their own way. Remission I would describe as a mix of Melodic death-thrash. Suneater is a lot more doomy/sludgy, and quite a bit heavier than Remission in that sense. Pincer+ is a bit more down the road of hardcore/nu metal(ish) whilst embracing that distinguishably savage HM-2 tone for maximum violence. Sonically, I’m a massive fan of each style.
Why heavy music? What is it about this style and sound that attracts you to it?
I love the aggression and power of heavy music. I feel that there’s a catharsis from playing and listening to metal that is very hard to find in any other genre of music. I was attracted to this aspect of it from a very young age and that has remained unchanged the older I’ve become.
How did you first discover and get into metal?
I was pretty young – about 6 or 7 at the time, when I heard BYOB by System Of A Down on Rage, ABC’s music program, one morning. The craziness and aggression of the music was something I found incredibly captivating and I immediately fell in love with it.
Who were/ are your music heroes? Who inspired you to want to play metal?
My heroes are people like Alexi Laiho, James Hetfield, Dave Davidson, Josh Middleton, and Joe Duplantier. All guitar wielding frontmen that have their own styles and have each made a huge impact on the current state of metal. Alexi is my #1 idol and he is the reason I wanted to start playing guitar, and the reason I still am to this day.
Was there a defining moment that made you decide to play an instrument?
I saw Children of Bodom in France when I was 17. Watching Alexi perform ignited a spark in me where I thought “I want to do that one day”. I got home from that trip and immediately started saving for my first guitar.
Did you start or join the bands?
I started Remission back in 2014 with our previous guitarist. Remission still is my first real band. I joined Suneater after they had a lineup change a couple of years ago, and I joined Pincer as vocalist whilst the band was still in the project/demo stages.
How did you learn to play guitar? Formal lessons, self-taught, online…?
Aside from having about 3 guitar lessons when I first started out, I am completely self-taught. I have learned certain techniques from people I admire here and there, but most of the work has been done by sitting and practising by myself for hours on end over the years.
What guitarists inspire you these days?
There are heaps! I’d say my biggest current influences are Alexi Laiho from Children of Bodom, Dave Davidson from Revocation, Josh Middleton from Sylosis, and Brandon Ellis from The Black Dahlia Murder.
Performing metal vocals is an art form in itself. How did you learn to scream/ yell/ growl? Did you work on different techniques and styles, try to emulate the people you listened to…?
Basically, Remission underwent a lineup change in 2018 where we parted ways with our previous guitarist/vocalist. Being so influenced by people like Alexi etc. I put my hand up to become the frontman. I had no previous experience doing any kind of vocals so I kinda had to start from scratch and learn as I went. I took inspiration from vocalists I admire and tried to kind of find my own voice by seeing what my strengths and weaknesses were. As the years progressed I’ve become a lot more proficient and am able to draw on and emulate many different styles of vocals from vocalists I look up to.
How often do you practice your vocals?
Definitely not as much as I should, haha. I really only do them in rehearsals, while playing live or in the studio. I don’t have the practical space or soundproofing to be able to practice at home unfortunately.
photo : James Skilian
What vocal warmup techniques do you use, if any?
A couple of low growls, and a couple shots of whiskey is my usual warm up. For me it’s most important that I feel somewhat relaxed before doing any kind of vocals.
Were your parents supportive of your choice to play an instrument, and play in a band?
They definitely questioned my desire to be in a band at the start, having had no experience but being so gung-ho about it in the beginning, but as my bands have developed over the years they have been there to support me in so many ways, and I am very grateful for that.
How often do you get to practice with your bands?
When time and life in general allows, I usually like to practice with each band once a week. That’s not quite happening too much at the moment, but I get a lot of practice playing the songs at home.
How often do you practice guitar? Is it playing along to songs, working on specific techniques, etc…?
I like to practice every day really. Most of my practice involves playing through songs, cleaning up certain techniques and licks and working on my weaknesses as a player. I find that writing also makes for really good practice, as it gives you a chance to push yourself technically!
How are your band’s songs conceived? From jamming ideas at practice, working individually, music first then words, etc…?
For Remission, usually myself and Curt (our other guitarist) will come up with ideas at home – whether it be a full song or just a bunch of riff ideas – and bring them to the band to arrange/work out together at practice or someone’s place. We do a fair bit of collaboration in that sense. For Suneater, it’s a similar process, but the songs are predominantly crafted and arranged whilst in the rehearsal space together. For Pincer, our guitarist writes almost all of the music and we just learn it. I enjoy the differing approaches of each band.
Do you write and/or record your own music that isn’t for the bands? Are their any Jacson Robb solo
tracks recorded?
Yes, actually! I wrote a bunch of my own songs during Covid, but only really released one of them on Bandcamp. You can find it by searching my name on Bandcamp, and the song is called “Timeburn”.
What artists, old or new, are you listening to currently?
I’m listening to a lot of new music lately. The new Sylosis tracks rip, the new Cattle Decapitation, Enforced, Drain, and Implore albums have been getting a lot of ear time. I’ve also been revisiting albums from the last decade or so, like Infernus by Hate Eternal, Retrogore by Aborted, and Teratogenesis by Revocation.
What have been some of your most memorable shows to date?
First one that comes to mind is Remission supporting Arch Enemy in Perth. Playing to a packed room at one of the bigger club venues at home was definitely a highlight. We got an awesome response from the crowd that night and it was a bit of a “pinch me” moment. Also, getting the chance to tour Japan with Cattle Decapitation, and Revocation (Revo being one of my favourite bands ever) was something I’ll never forget or stop being grateful for.
photo : JV Photo & Film
What is your ‘day job’?
I work in a storeroom processing stock. Not quite the rockstar lifestyle, but you gotta pay the bills.
Who’s your bucket list artist to tour with?
Feeling pretty lucky to have ticked Revocation off that list, so it’s hard for me to single out any one artist. I’d say probably The Black Dahlia Murder.
Any pre-show rituals?
Get a beer, relax for a bit before the show, grab my guitar and warm up and a shot or two of whisky before stage time!
Favourite venues to play, and why?
Playing Metropolis Fremantle was amazing, just cause the stage was so huge and the crowd was killer. Outside of that, I like Badlands Bar, which is another home favourite. We were lucky enough to play Frankies, in Sydney, twice in the year it got shut down, those were wild shows.
What’s the last show you saw that you weren’t playing at?
I went to see my friends Nicolas Cage Fighter and Xenobiotic play when they came through Perth a couple of weeks ago. Always support your mates!
Favourite show you’ve been to?
There’s been a few really awesome ones, but the one that sticks in my mind was when I went to see Parkway Drive on their Horizons 10-year anniversary tour. The setlist that night was the stuff of dreams, I lost my phone whilst crowd surfing but I couldn’t have cared less, haha.
What do you do in your free time? Any other hobbies outside of music?
I just like to hang out with mates, bbq, go to the pub, and listen to music, really. I don’t have much other time to spare outside of music, but it’s my main interest in life.
Favourite holiday destination?
Damn, so many! I really love Spain, the food and culture there is amazing. Croatia was also a favourite of mine for the coastline and just how beautiful the landscape is. I’m very much itching to go back to Vietnam though. I love the food and general atmosphere of being over there.
What new bands should people check out that deserve some recognition?
Check out Melancolia! A great new blackened deathcore band from Melbourne, featuring some of my good pals. They just signed to Nuclear Blast and Greyscale Records – and you’ll see why when you listen to the album they just dropped!
photo : JV Photo & Film
Specifically, what gear do you play? Guitars, amps, pedals, pickups, strings/gauges, picks? Any endorsements?
No endorsements here. My main squeeze at the moment is my ESP standard SV. Made in Japan, quilt maple top with a purple burst finish with custom shop Seymour Duncan pickups (JB and Custom Custom). The thing plays like a dream. For amps, I’ve just switched over to a powered Kemper, and I don’t regret a thing about it. Easily one of the best and most convenient purchases I’ve ever made for touring/playing/home recording. That also takes care of my pedal situation, although I’ll use a Precision Drive from time to time just to sharpen and tighten things up. I use D’addario 10-52 strings on all of my guitars, basically. I use a Fender Player Jazz bass for Suneater, and usually use the Kemper for my bass tones too.
Where did the love of pointy guitars come from?
I was always attracted to their more extreme look from the moment I saw one. Alexi had a huge influence on that for me. The Rhoads/SV shape is unquestionably my favourite guitar shape. They just make you play different and more aggressively, I feel.
Which of your guitars gets the most playing time?
I’d say overall, my Gibson Flying V has had the most hand time – but currently it’s my ESP standard SV.
What’s your dream gear?
I’ve pretty much got it all at the moment to be honest. Although, I’d love to have a Gibson Les Paul Custom Black Beauty, and one of Alexi’s original Jackson RR24 Wildchild guitars.
What would a Jacson Robb signature guitar look like? Model, shape, headstock orientation, pickups, bridge, wood or paint finish, etc…?
It would definitely be a Rhoads shape, reverse 6 in-line headstock, ebony fretboard, custom abalone inlays, bevelled body with access neck and gut-cuts, single Seymour Duncan custom custom in the bridge, Floyd Rose tremelo, probably in a black beauty style colour scheme with gloss black and gold hardware.
Thoughts on U18 venues/gigs?
Super important and very much under-utilised these days! Those venues and gigs are where the next generation of talent will pop up from, and it’s important to be able to feed inspiration into and support that demographic as much as possible.
Cats – lovable family members or Satan’s spawn?
I’m a dog person, so Satan’s spawn for me, haha.
What does the rest of 2023 have in store for Remission, Pincer+, Suneater, and Jacson Robb?
Lots of new music being released by all bands, touring and writing. The train rolls on, always!
Jacson Robb : @shredbvndy_
Remission : @remission-metal
Pincer+ : @pincerplus
Suneater : @suneaterband