There is a new band that is stirring metal foundations in the beautiful city of Corpus Christi. They were formed in 2022 and have made the live show its best advocate and letter of recommendation. They annihilate the audience with their powerful Death metal and their Gorilla moves on every stage they perform. They have three songs collected on this year's Wrapped in Rope EP, three pieces that will make you a follower. You can check it out on digital platforms and on the group's Bandcamp. TORCHERED is a band with a solid base and a very promising future ahead. Be sure to read this interview and tell us what you think. Death metal rules!
It’s killer to have the band on our pages. Let’s start very basic, since when the band has been around and how has this journey been so far? “… Well, we formed around the tail end of 2022. Guitar player Jo Contreras and drummer Brandon Salazar had already been playing together in a previous band, but ultimately decided to do something else together. We picked up our bass player Kent Mayes about a month later since we've seen him jam in his respective bands over the years and always wanted to work with him. Our vocalist Bas Garcia was the final piece a few weeks after that. Him and Jo were long-time friends, so it was an easy decision to make. So far, everything has been phenomenal, we've gotten to play with some really cool bands in what's almost been 2 years since we started. We've played in Houston a bunch, San Antonio, and our hometown Corpus Christi. Still trying to get out to Austin, but we've got a lot of shows to keep us busy…”
How did it go with the show on the INTERNAL SUFFERING tour? “… INTERNAL SUFFERING was sick! The show itself suffered from a last-minute venue change, but it still turned out to be a great show! Our homies in HORRIFIC VISIONS were doing a short run with them, and it was awesome being able to watch them jam too and then just kick it and talk afterwards. People showed up and got down. Shout out Skull Zapata for putting us on that one…”
There’s quite a lineup for the NARCOTIC WASTELAND run at Boozers Rock Bar in Corpus Christi. What will be the Gorillas preparing for this show? “…Yeah, we're excited for that. Boozerz has always been a special place for us, so we like to get ready by watching YouTube clips of Gorillas fighting…”
How and who came up with the Gorilla theme or idea and relate it to the band’s performance, merch and musical environment? “…Our vocalist has a tattoo of a Gorilla on his neck, and "BKG" which stands for Big Killa Gorilla. He would start pounding on his chest on stage like a Gorilla, while the rest of us up there aping around. It just kind of stuck, so we ran with it. Now we try and make it a point to act like a bunch of wild Gorillas on stage. Making jokes off stage and telling people to bring bananas to the shows. So far no one has brought any bananas, but the crowds seem to enjoy the Gorilla aesthetic, so we just keep doing it. Our main artwork has a Gorilla on it, as we feel it best represents our music, Gorilla Death. Just songs to beat your chest too, aint no one else using that…”
The band is very active when it comes to shows, but what about finding time to write music and record? “… When we first started, it only took us about a month or two to write a five-song set. We then used another two months tightening them up, because some of them are pretty fast. Jo had quite a few things written before he linked up with Brandon, but none of them were solid. Every song you hear sounds completely different then when it was first written. Eventually we recorded our first demo "Wrapped in Rope" which you can find on Bandcamp…”
“… Anytime we get some down time, be it between shows or a weekend to take a rest, Jo will write/record something at home and show the rest of the band for input, and Brandon will write something on drums, and then we just kind of toss the idea back and forth until it becomes something we like. Kent will write his own bass riffs to it, because he takes a different approach to writing. Instead of just playing the same notes, he'll add some flavor to it, like he's the left hand of the piano, and Jo is the right hand. Then once it feels like a complete song, we send it off to Bas. Him and Jo usually work together on the lyric writing because Jo also does back-up vocals. Currently, we are working on crafting a few new songs so that we can record a full length, and hopefully get into touring…”
There’s a lot that has been said in Death metal or Brutal Death as a genre. What's TORCHERED's approach to writing your music? “… We just kind of write whatever sounds good to us. Sure, we're all inspired by BDM and Technical Death Metal, with bands like NECROPHAGIST, PATHOLOGY, DEICIDE, CYTOTOXIN etc. but we all kind of bring something different to the table. We want to have technical riffs, but also, we want to have some groovy riffs in there too. Something people can really jam on their own. We just imagine what it would be like if a Gorilla listened to nothing but CANNIBAL CORPSE, drank beer, and played guitar. What would that Gorilla write? He'd write TORCHERED.
What’s your take on the Gulfcoast Deathfest celebrated in Corpus Christi, but, if I am not mistaken, the third edition was held in Houston? Did it meet your expectations? “… We got the chance to play it in 2023 when Edward Speer put us on, shout out to him and the boys in Womb Rot by the way. We played the pre-fest show with Trash Panda at a little venue called The Nasa. That show was so wild, and it packed in like crazy! The fest itself was so refreshing to see. Corpus Christi doesn't really have a big scene for Death Metal. Deathcore and Hardcore tend to be the dominant style being played down here, so it was amazing to see something that big with so many extreme bands come down here. Yes, this past year it did move out to Houston where it was handled by L&D productions. The venue was awesome and just the perfect thing for a fest like that. With and inside and outside it was easy for bands to just keep rotating. Met some super cool people out there too in VULNIFICUS and PUTRID WOMB. It definitely exceeded our expectations, and we hope to see and be a part of it if it comes around again.
There’s an important event coming up for TORCHERED, because you guys are opening for FALLUJAH and PERSEFONE in House of Rock this August 1st in Corpus Christi? What else does the band have in mind for 2024? “… That show we were surprised we were able to jump on. The show had been announced by House of Rock, and the comment section just got flooded by comments of people demanding TORCHERED open the show up. The guy in charge of bringing the show to House of Rock caught wind of it and emailed us about it. Big shout out to the Corpus community for that one. We got some really cool shows coming up later this year. We got one with ROSE FUNERAL on August 18th, also at House of Rock. We're headlining a show in our hometown June 23rd at The Red Rabbit, shout out Kill Crew Booking and CLOSED CASKET. We have a few more down the line with some super sick bands that we can't announce just yet, but we're staying as busy as we can…”
State some more comments for the band’s followers and for our readers. “…You can find us on FB and Insta under torcheredtxdm, or you can visit our website that has everything you need to know about us at www.torcheredtxdm.com. Want to thank Scriptorium for this interview. Come catch a show with us, and if you're a booker in Austin, let's talk. Thank you! …”
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