Methane are a gritty hard-rocking thrash outfit formed in 2012 by American brothers, living in Sweden, Tim Scott (former bassist of Revenant and HatePlow) and Dylan Campbell together with Guitarist Jimi Masterbo and drummer Andreas Strom. Methane gained some really great recognition for their previous EP releases, ‘Southern Metal’ 2014, and ‘Spit On Your Grave‘ 2015 and 2017 saw the release of the highly anticipated debut full-length album “The Devils Own“. Methane also appeared on the soundtrack for a Scottish mini-series Metalhedz (S03E02 and S03E03) as well as the first-ever E-Novel with music “How an Atomic Fart Saved The World“. Methane has developed a solid reputation off and on stage having played in over 80 shows across two continents firing up everyone that listens with the fuel of break your neck Thrash Metal that is Methane. Towards the end of 2019 Methane released the single “Thin The Herd” and Jai took the opportunity to catch up with Co-Founder bassist and vocalist Tim Scott to find out some more about Methane and the latest single.
Tim thanks so much for taking some time and going through some questions for Crannk, Our readers and myself (Jai) and giving us all a chance to find out some more about yourself and Methane it really is appreciated.
Thank you Jai! It’s my pleasure.
Q: First off can you tell us who are Methane and how would you describe your sound?
Tim : Right now, our current line-up is a little bit of a departure from the original. My brother Dylan lost his residency in Sweden so we were forced to bring in a new guitarist in the form of Markus Grundstrom from the power metal band Cryonic Temple. We have also had a real-life ‘This is Spinal Tap’ with our drummer situation. So we have Finnish drummer Juuso Laukanen (Intact) who takes live duties and Jonas Arnberg (Fimutyr) in the studio. Along with lead Jimi Masterbo and I who are the original members.
Our sound or influences are blend of thrash metal (Overkill, Slayer,) and Southern Groove metal like (LoG, Pantera). We probably have some NYHC in there somewhere.
Q;How did Methane form?
My brother Dylan had moved here to Sweden to be with his girlfriend and we wanted to start jamming and put together a groove metal band. I knew Jimi was a shredder and wasn’t in a band , so I called him up and told him our ideas and Jimi was on direct. We both were getting tired of playing death metal and wanted to get into something closer to our thrash roots.
Q: Methane isn’t your first metal band can you tell us a little about your musical journey prior to Methane?
Right, yeah my first band that had any real success was Revenant, Revenant was signed to a small, new, independent label at the time called Nuclear Blast records, back in the beginning of the death metal explosion. Lots of history there, we toured with Morbid Angel on The Alters of Madness tour, played with Napalm Death on thier first ever U.S. gig. Great times.
After Revenant broke up , I moved to South Florida’s festering metal scene and played in a band with Rob Barret (Solstice/Cannibal Corpse) and Phil Facsianna (Maelevolent Creation) called HatePlow. I did an album with HP before moving here to Sweden.
I also have been involved in some projects here as well, most notably I recorded some bass for Volturyon on the Human Demolition EP before focusing on Methane.
Q: So what inspired the move to Sweden?
Oh man, I was tricked into it! I thought the girls were all blonde and naked here with huge boobs. I want my money back. lol
Q: How did you first get into heavy metal and what was your first metal album?
When I was around 8 or 9 years old, I was shopping with my mother in a Sears Robucks and saw 4 demons starring at me. They were calling to my already developing inner demons. I grew up around music and music enthusiasts so convincing my hippie mother to let me bring those creatures home with me was easy. It was Kiss Dynasty album. If you can call that metal, it was then.
I grew and morphed over the years to thrash while living in Northern California then to death metal after I moved to New Jersey.
Q; How and when did you first start playing bass ?
My friends and I were always reading Hit Parader and Circus magazine and dreaming of starting a band. There was an article about Motley Crue and the things they did on the tour bus. Nikki Sixx and his Jack Daniel’s habits grabbed me, plus I was a horny young teen and wanted to meet chicks. So I got to play the bass.
Q; When and how did you first get into vocals and how did this come about?
I guess I always did backups and fooled around at band practices, I really never tried seriously until Methane. I’m still studying techniques and learning how to use my voice.
Q; Do you remember what your first bass was?
The same hippie mother who let me take home those 4 demons earlier in my childhood, took me to 2 Street Music in Eureka California, where we were living at the time. I saw the sexiest sorceress hanging on the wall there, a brand new Ibanez X series Destroyer. It was black with ivory trim, with sharp curves, a body of a goddess, the first year Ibanez released that model as a bass, 1983. She let me take her home and I was enchanted for the rest of my life. I had to pay it off myself from my weekly allowance, I think it was around 1000 USD.
Q; What bass guitar’s are you using now?
The same Ibanez X Destroyer! That is my go-to bass.
Q; The Devil’s Own is a great debut album and really got some great feedback for you guys what was it like making that first album?
A lot of fun! Writing and jamming together to put the songs together is always fun. Going into the studio is always stressful and it’s so final, almost like a funeral. Then releasing it for other people to hear and criticize is humbling.
We are still developing Methane and our style, but we had an amazing time making TDO.
Q; And if you had to pick a track you are most proud of which one would it be and why?
Hmm to chose a favorite child.. well if I had to, probably Hang Me High or 72 , only because I wrote most of the music those songs. The songs The Devil’s Own and Stone Garden were finished in the studio. I am proud of the lot of them.
Q: Thin The Herd is the latest single from Methane and was released late September and is from the forthcoming album “Kill It With Fire” can you tell us first what this track means for you?
The lyrics for Thin came while I was cleaning out my Facebook “friends”. A list of people some of who I actually know and lots drama queens and attention whores, creepers and trolls. Its really a reflection on social media and the hold it has over us, how it is infecting people’s perception of reality. A modern plague. Thinning the herd is, in reality, cutting out the week and diseased from the flock and that’s what I was doing at the time.
Q: How did you approach the songwriting and song composition for this forthcoming album?
Musically the new stuff like Thin The Herd has gotten more defined I think, with a more honest heavy production. I can’t say we have a special formula. We all have our ideas, we mesh them together, build a song, play it change it, rebuild it until we are happy with it. Everyone contributes, there are no egos in it, that’s the fun in being a band, creating it together.
Q: Can you tell us a little about the recording and production process as well?
We are recording 2 releases at the same time “Kill It With Fire” and another surprise EP that I can’t say too much about yet. Jonas Arnberg, who has also been doing the studio drumming has his own recording studio, Sellnoise Studio, here. He is a killer drummer and a talented music producer which really helps a great deal. He is not afraid to tell you ” no that sucks, do something else” or “let’s try this instead: I really appreciate that, sometimes, you can get tunnel vision and that kind of input improves the outcome.
Q: I’m looking forward to the forthcoming album now after hearing the “Thin The Herd” when can we roughly expect the next album from Methane?
We have no release date yet, as soon as possible and as soon as we have the best avenue to release it. There is a plan now to put out a new song and video sometime in March for a song called Down In The Gutter also from “Kill It With Fire”. We are still waiting for an exact release date for that as well.
Down I The Gutter is a more versatile song, it has that heavy thrash punch and a good mouthful of that southern groove from The Devil’s Own, I’m really excited to get that out.
Q: Tim it has been a huge year for heavy metal I was just keen to hear your biggest musical highlight or highlights for 2019?
Personal, Methane, highlight was our U.S. tour and seeing Draghoria and Incarnit.
I was really surprised by Flotsam and Jetsam’s album and even got to see them. That’s always a highlight to be caught off guard happily surprised like that.
I’ve been to some great festivals as a music fan as well, and the Gefle Metal Festival here in Sweden was a great expierence with awesome underground bands.
Tim & Methane thank you so much for taking some time for Crannk we really appreciate and all the best to you and yours in this holiday season and heading into new years Massive Horns Raised and cheers, beers legends talk soon
Jai Anderson & Crannk
Links
Methane Facebook https://www.facebook.com/methaneband/
Methane webpagehttps://methanemetal.wordpress.com/music/?fbclid=IwAR3VUVbYFRtfmpbLv45MTanuOT3oja654JcRFqXXPG7lZs1KJeu8dxyUKYc
