Nothing but the Night is a Post hardcore/Metal band from Ayrshire made up of Ryan McDougall on Vocals, Kieran Orr on Vocals, George Burt on Bass, Jordan McDowall on Guitar, Paul summers on Guitar and Gabon wells on Drums.
So first of how did you all meet?
The original line-up all went to school together, albeit we’re all different ages. After our original guitarist left we got Paul and Kieran in. I’d known them for years and years! Introduced them to the rest of the guys and the rest is history!
Where are you all from?
I’m from Stewarton, Paul’s from Kilmarnock, Kieran’s from Springside, Jordan is from Fenwick, Gav’s from Kilmaurs and George is a Stewartonian like myself.
How long have you been playing your respective instruments?
Most of the guys have been playing for years and years. I actually only learned to scream a few months before joining the band, though.
What genre of music do you consider your work to be?
Good question. We definitely fit somewhere in the “core” bracket. Though I’m not really sure which part of it specifically. We all have different tastes in Metal, and we all take turns at songwriting. The stuff Paul and I write is quite choppy and technical. Whereas the stuff Jordan and George write has more of a traditional Metalcore sound. So I guess it’s open to debate. Could say we’re a mix of Post-hardcore, Metalcore, Tech-metal with tons of other bits thrown in amongst.
What are your influences?
As I say, we all like different types of heavy music. Melodic Hardcore’s a big one for me. Although it’s not really apparent in our sound, I’m really influenced by bands like Defeater, La Dispute etc. The passion and emotion behind the music and lyrics is something any lyricist should appreciate. George is into bands like Trivium and stuff. Paul is into stuff like A Day To Remember, Gavin and Jo are into everything from really heavy stuff like Parkway Drive to Hard Rock such as Alter Bridge, and Kieran’s into a lot of Alternative rock, and Yashin’s a huge influence for him.
Do you do covers and if so what’s your go to?
We used to play covers a lot back in our earlier days. My favorite one to play was A Boy Brushed Red Living in Black and White by Under oath. We’ve covered Trivium before, and briefly covered Lionheart by Bury Tomorrow. Nowadays we just play our own stuff, though!
What if anything does your name mean/why are you called that?
When we were about to play our first gig, we still hadn’t thought of a name. We had a matter of days to come up with one so that we could be mentioned on the poster, so we looked at old Horror movie titles and stumbled upon Nothing But The Night. I really didn’t like it at first, but it’s grown on me and it’s a bit different I guess.
Do you have a process for writing your songs? /Which of you writes the songs?
As I say, we all contribute and take turns. Basically, we’ll write a riff, put drums to it, then Kieran and I will work on lyrics afterwards.
What are your rehearsals generally like?
Our rehearsals consist of Kieran ripping into Gavin, me ripping into Kieran, George telling us to shut up, Paul playing riffs over the top of people talking, and Jordan looking liked Sheeran. Sometimes we play songs.
Do you have any interesting/funny stories about gigging or touring?
Well, our tour was a bit wild. Kieran put Bonjela on his arse once for a start. I went for a shower and the pricks barged into the toilet, took a photo of me and put it on Facebook. Gavin whitied in Jo’s sink as well.
What has been your biggest challenge as a band? Have you been able to overcome that challenge? If so, how?
Putting up with Kieran’s dire patter. A barrier we’ll never get over.
How can fans-to-be gain access to your music? Do you have a website with sample songs or a demo CD?
We’ve got a Bandcamp account where everything we’ve released to date can be found. Obviously most of it can be found on the likes of YouTube.
Have you released anything yet/if they have how has it gone down and are you planning anything for the near future?
We’ve released an EP, 3 singles, a split single with Mechanical Smile, and a live music video. Most of it had mixed reviews to be honest! We’re grateful for any feedback though, positive or negative. I reckon we’re going to try and record some new material soon, it’s been a while.
Where have you performed? What are your favourite and least favourite venues? Do you have any upcoming shows?
We’ve performed in Glasgow, Kilmarnock, Stewarton, Dundee, Ayr, Kircaldy and Edinburgh. We’re quiet at the moment, though we’ll likely have a few over summer!
What do you think about downloading music online?
I’d be a hypocrite if I said it was wrong, as I do it myself. I generally pay for it though!
What’s your outlook on the record industry today?
I think it’s good! Plenty of good opportunities for young bands. There’s a good local scene in Kilmarnock. A lot of promoters who work their backsides off to give bands like us opportunities to do something in music. Can’t complain!
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