PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Spellgrinder is set to release its next album on July 4th. We got to sit down with Spooky Von Amduat for an interview. As a bonus, you can find the title track on their album here as an exclusive! Find out all about the band here with Spooky Von Amduat.
Read on to hear an awesome exclusive song from their upcoming album, Planet of the Vampires.
PopHorror: How did the group come about?
Spooky Von Amduat: It started in my mind conceptually around 2019. I had wanted to do something heavy, and Horror themed. I grew up liking ’77 Punk Rock like Sex Pistols and Ramones. That morphed into bands like Stooges and New York Dolls. Always sexy and dangerous stuff.
I listened to a little Metal, but the image and sound didn’t grab me as much as other things. Spellgrinder was designed to be the band that would have gotten me into metal. It was to have all the heaviness, and dark imagery, mixed with the sex appeal, image, and danger that I responded to in the Rock n’ Roll I was drawn to.
PopHorror: I think you are the glam metal from hell and I love it! What inspires your sound the most?
Spooky Von Amduat: On the most basic level, the first album was supposed to be a blend of the razor-sharp heaviness of Pantera and the sexy bluesy darkness of the first three Danzig albums. Then to spice things up from song to song, I would consciously inject a little Anthrax, Megadeth, Judas Priest, and Black Sabbath for color. Always with a Horror theme and moral tale, like little episodes of Tales From The Crypt. The funny thing is that the audience that was discovering Spellgrinder would tell us that we sound like W.A.S.P, Alice Cooper, Motley Crue, and RATT.
Aside from Alice Cooper, who I was raised on, I wasn’t super familiar with those other groups. The thing is, I checked out those bands and the fans weren’t wrong. I ended up owning it and incorporating those elements which seemed to be coming out naturally. I think the comparison is because those bands and Spellgrinder all listen to the same music. We all like the Beatles and AC/DC, We all want to shock. We all want chicks at the shows as well as dudes.
PopHorror: Where did you come up with the name?
Spooky Von Amduat: I recorded a demo of Grimoire in 2020 and was excited about it. I wanted to start building the brand and needed a name. I wanted the name to sound like a normal Metal band name. haha. There are all these “This Thatter” kinda names these days. Like Dog Kicker, Butt Scratcher… not really, but you know?
I wanted the name to be a Trojan Horse for the band so it can get past a Metal Head’s first line of defense and they’ll listen. Something that sounded like a normal average metal band because I knew I was going to take some chances with the image and subject matter.
My wife Nephthys, the band’s Go Go Dancer, is a Witch and I wanted to include some Witchy imagery. Something with spells… Spell..binder? Nah… Spell….. GRINDER!!!! SPELLGRINDER was born. I came up with a font and a goat head in a pentagram logo and trademarked everything. Peeing on it so I could have sovereignty. Then I made a Facebook page and Instagram profile and started building the band/brand.
Scroll down for an exclusive title track!
PopHorror: Your music seems inspired by bands like Acid Witch, were they a small influence?
Spooky Von Amduat: Aside from the bands already listed as inspiration, tons of other undercover influences are part of my musical DNA. I try to keep our songs on the shorter side and keep them tight. I like minimalism over anything else, I like it primal. Spellgrinder doesn’t improve things by adding more notes. We do so by subtraction, much like T Rex, Velvet Underground, and the Ramones. We are inspired by stripping the music to its bare bones to get back to the true spirit of dangerous Rock and Roll.
PopHorror: Are any of your songs dedicated to horror movies?
Spooky Von Amduat: Many are on the new album but all the songs on the first album are just original stories that I’m coming up with, or it’s allegory for something. “Gryla” and “Even Wolves Get Lonely” have themes and imagery from folk tales, which are horrible in their way. On the new album, there are a lot. “Planet Of The Vampires” is based on a movie. “Sin Eater” is based on an episode of Night Gallery called “Sins Of The Father.” “Bride Of Frankenstein” is based on The Mummy. haha!
PopHorror: When did you first fall in love with metal?
Spooky Von Amduat: I got into Dio and Black Sabbath when I was in high school. When The Darkness came out they were cool to me. At the same time, I was listening to Guns ‘N Roses, who ain’t Metal, but they’ve got the heaviness in there sometimes. I got a tape of “To Hell With The Devil” by Stryper and I used to crank it in the car ironically… until I started liking it. haha!
PopHorror: Are there only two members of the band? if not, do you play multiple instruments in a recording?
Spooky Von Amduat: We are a full 4 piece band, but Nephthys and I lead. We’re out front like Lux and Ivy in The Cramps. My dude Stone Wolfgang has been holding down the low end for a few years and he’s great. Because of his reputation among the heads, he brings lots of Bay Area Thrash cred to the band, even though that’s not necessarily what we do.
We’ve gone through a few drummers. First was Rat Flash and then another dude named Tragic. They did ok but things happened. My man E.Z. Mysterio has been an assassin in the studio and brings authority to the recordings. I do play multiple instruments, and have a recording studio. I write, record, and produce everything.
PopHorror: You have a new album dropping just a few months, how long did it take to write and mix?
Spooky Von Amduat: We wrapped up the first album with the final single O.F.D. in February 2023. From then we went straight into promotion for the album, but also, started writing and recording immediately for the next album. It took about a year to do all the work for the 2nd album. Some of the riffs and lyrics were left over from the writing of the first album, but for one reason or another, they didn’t fit.
With the first album, we released a single at a time over a year. With “Planet Of The Vampires” we are releasing it all at once. It was nerve-wracking doing the new one because I wanted to advance the band. We lean more into our Glam and Punk roots. We use different gear to get a different vibe. The first album was all Randall amps. Now I’m favoring a Wizard W800 and Soldano SLO 100 for guitar work.
PopHorror: What is your favorite style of horror movies?
Spooky Von Amduat: The OG Universal Monster movies are my favorite. I’ve got a pretty big collection with lots of summer camp slashers, found footage, possessions, and beyond.
PopHorror: I was able to hear your title track off of the new album and it’s bonkers. Do you feel like you can see a progression in your writing and sound?
Spooky Von Amduat: Thank you! I think it’s a progression. I already listed the building blocks for the first album. With the 2nd, I wanted it to live in this Ozzy Ultimate Sin meets Crue Shout At The Devil zone. Tight songs, big choruses, big production, and radio-ready.
PopHorror: How do you see the future of Spellgrinder?
Spooky Von Amduat: Spellgrinder was built to last. Lots of democratic bands fold when somebody gets a job, or somebody gets pregnant. Life happens, and bands are fucking unnatural relationships. I’ve been in the game long enough that I’ve learned how to navigate that. I write, record, produce, and own everything. Members can come and go, but the band will go on thriving. I’ve already got the next album double-written lyrically.
I just gotta thin the narrative and build the riffs. Our trick is pacing ourselves so we can effectively market our current albums and build our audience. That’s just as important as writing and recording. We will continue to favor music videos over touring because that’s way for affordable and less wear and tear on us.
Just a little more to go to the exclusive track!
PopHorror: What advice would you give to someone who finds their passion and is scared to take the jump?
A life lived in fear is a life half lived. Embrace the fear, challenge yourself, and challenge people around you. It’s not for the faint of heart and success is never guaranteed. I think that I’m an artist, and I’m driven to do this because it’s in me and needs to come out.
Spooky Von Amduat: I’m more afraid not to take the jump than I am to take the jump. Making art is not for everyone. It magnifies failure. It alienates your friends and family. Most true blue artists that I know are fucking insane and that’s what keeps us going.
Thanks for giving SPELLGRINDER a shot!
An exclusive look at the title track for Planet of the Vampires…
