How can we justify this?
I recently met Moonteeth’s merch guy at a Silent Planet show a few days ago and we hit it off, shooting the shit. Moonteeth’s guitarist, Jay, came out and we spoke a bit. I showed up too late to catch their set unfortunately, but I took down their Instagram and headed to the pit. Strangely, when checking their Instagram, they're followed by another band we know, Recalibrater. I figured this was some sort of serendipitous fate. A day or two later I shot them a message to get in touch. They ended up emailing over an unreleased song, ‘King In Yellow’, and I was locked in.
After letting them know I got the song in my mailbox, I was hit with “Be honest about the song, straight up tell us if you’re not into it.” This made me laugh because it absolutely slaps, but I appreciated the humbleness of it all. Their sound is reminiscent of bands like Convictions, The Wise Man’s Fears, and Erra. Right up my alley. The first thing that stuck out to me immediately was the production value. When I asked about it, turns out it was two dudes they know from other local bands that recorded it. That in and of itself makes me happy. I’m super jazzed to hear that Salt Lake City has a good local music scene. And that everyone is willing to help create something bigger than themselves.
An issue that tends to plague a lot of metal bands is not utilizing the power of silence, and empty spaces. There’s plenty of bands that are a nuclear blast to your face that never relents. Surely, there’s a time and place, but I prefer clever use of dynamics. At first glance at the waveform, before even hitting play, I knew I was in for a treat. The first 30 seconds of ‘King In Yellow’ opens up heavy. Leading up to a full break, nothing but vocals, ready to slam you back in. After that, it’s a heavy stroll up to a lush chorus of clean vocals, dropping into a dirt nasty dissonant bridge. Like I said: slaps.
At the time of writing this, Moonteeth hasn’t officially released any music online. I am one of the lucky few to hear this track before anyone else. Jay let me know they have an EP fully recorded. And I am absolutely going to attempt to pry some more songs out of them before this interview is over.
So, let’s start with introductions, who are you guys?
Moonteeth is a 5-piece metalcore band based out of Salt Lake City, UT. We're just a bunch of California kids, plus Jake the native, who all moved here and started playing music together.
Your Instagram is only 4 months old at this point, how long have you guys been playing together?
The idea of Moonteeth started in California but we started forming in 2017. After a few lineup changes, we finally have our full-time members and we have been playing since February of 2021.
Were any of you in other bands before Moonteeth?
All of us have played in other bands and have stage experience. We all have played similar music which is what drew us together.
What is the metal scene like in Utah?
There are so many good bands here in Utah. Since most of us are from California, we know what the metal scene used to be like and what it is now (dead). But it seems to be alive and well here with extremely loyal fans and super friendly bands - which is not really something we're used to.
How have you been promoting the band without any music online?
We have been trying to play as many shows as we can and just trying to spread our name by word of mouth, which has seemed to work better than expected.
What’s the reception been like at shows?
AWESOME! We're lucky that the fans have been as awesome as they have been and we're excited to see that we have a rowdy crowd when we play.
You have an EP releasing soon, titled ‘The Host’, can you give us any insight into that?
We started writing these songs in 2017 so we're excited to finally have them released. We think that the songs have a good balance of everything you look for in metalcore. Pretty cleans, and heavy breakdowns.
What is the writing process like, where do you guys find inspiration for subject matter?
Our lyrics take a lot from our own personal lives and we try to convey how we are feeling in those moments without being super direct. We do this specifically to let the listener have their own interpretation of what they hear. Regarding instruments, we take a lot of influence from the bands we listened to growing up and try to translate that to today's version of metalcore.
What was the recording process like?
Long and fraught with peril. Haha.. JK
We were lucky that we found Hector and Baylor. They took us in as their first project and they have been nothing but super helpful and patient.
They work at our speed and make sure they push us when they know we can do better.
What do you want fans to find in your music?
We just want people to listen to us have a good time doing it... while also punching their friends in the face.
Now let’s get a little personal here. What advice would you give to someone reading this who may be depressed or suicidal right now?
This hits home for us because we all have experienced serious situations that have put us through the ringer. All we can say is don't stay quiet. Reach out. make yourself heard because bottling up emotions is dangerous.
Always remember that you do matter. As hard as it is to believe sometimes. We know it's hard to see the positives in such a dark place.
Whatever you're going through - let yourself suffer and feel the pain so that you can heal and move forward stronger. YOU. GOT. THIS!
How has depression or suicidal ideation directly affected your guys’ lives?
Everyone in the band has someone close who has either tried to commit suicide or has succeeded. It's a hard feeling. You always find yourself on the fence of being angry, sad, and understanding.
it sucks to see your friends take their own lives and it sucks to see your friends suffer... you almost feel hopeless because you just want to be there for them and it's hard to feel that sometimes it's not always enough.
What’s next for Moonteeth? You’re building a lot of momentum right now, any big projects coming up?
We're planning on releasing The Host EP and play as many shows as we can. We want to make a big dent in this Utah metalcore scene so keep an eye out for us!
Lastly, can you send me more music?? It’ll be our secret, scout’s honor.
We’ll send you a song that we don’t plan on releasing in the near future. We'll link it to your email ;)
You can find more Moonteeth at the links below! Thank you for hanging out with us for this interview. And a big thank you to Moonteeth for taking the time to speak with us. If you would like to get featured, or know someone who does, reach us on our social media. Or email us directly at: Contact@therduneclothing.com to share!