EMQ’s With TOXICON
Hi Everyone! Welcome to another EMQs interview, this time with Australian Hybrid Metal band, Toxicon. Huge thanks to their drummer, Tom, for taking part.
What is your name, what do you play, and can you tell us a little bit about the history of the band?
Hi, my name is Tom and I’m the drummer for Australian hybrid metal band Toxicon. It started with my best friend, Paul, and his friend from high school, Adam, sharing a love for old school thrash and 8 years later and 100+ shows later we’re on the verge of releasing our second studio album!
How did you come up with your band name?
The name of the band is actually a combination of the two words “Toxic” and “Icon” which is what our original guitarist had in mind when he started the band. We slapped the two together and BAM, Toxicon was the name.
What Country/Region are you from and what is the Metal/Rock scene like there?
We hail from Australia, and the Metal scene here is a little up and down. We have a few of the older genres that thrive in certain areas, Thrash, Death and Metalcore all do quite well. There’s a bit of a void for much else though, Traditional Heavy Metal or people blending styles don’t have as many bands to play with these days, and the crowd for it definitely isn’t here.
What is your latest release? (Album, EP, Single, Video)
Our latest release is called “Parallelysis” and it’s about the struggles musicians experience every day while trying to maintain their relationships and a high level of commitment and creativity to their bands.
Who have been your greatest influences?
We all have various different influences as we all contribute to the song writing. The band’s main influences in the past have been Metallica, Megadeth, Trivium, Pantera, Black Label Society, Mastodon etc, but for the more recent stuff we’ve shifted to more Progressive Metal and Rock bands like Symphony X, Unleash The Archers, Alter Bridge, Coheed And Cambria, Opeth and the like.
What first got you into music?
I started playing drums when I was about 8, because my dad had some friends who played music, and he was always playing as well, and drums just came naturally. As I’ve grown older, I’ve learnt other instruments and I think it’s a great way to express inner feeling.
If you could collaborate with a current band or musician, who would it be?
Snoop Dogg. Because who the hell doesn’t want to do a song with the D O Double G
If you could play any festival in the world, which would you choose and why?
Wacken. I’ve been watching those concerts online for years now and it just seems like the most accepting crowd, and I think we would really be able to put on our best shows to those fans.
What’s the weirdest gift you have ever received from a fan?
A 12” vinyl of the Guardians of the Galaxy Soundtrack. And a table runner… Shout out to Stevie.
If you had one message for your fans, what would it be?
Buy your music. The music industry has been going downhill for a long time and the only way to save it is to start working together to get off the streaming and back onto the charts. Music is art worth paying the price for.
If you could bring one rock star back from the dead, who would it be?
Eddie Van Halen. They were a band I never got to see live and truly appreciate them for the powerhouse they were. I’ve played full Van Halen cover shows before and that dude deserved to live forever for what he gave music.
What do you enjoy the most about being a musician? And what do you hate?
Love – I love being on stage. Drums are so much fun to play and when you’re firing on all cylinders with your friends it’s a really wonderful thing.
Hate – Streaming. Spotify is almost single handedly killing the music by being the most popular service and paying its artists the least. If the trend continues bands won’t be able to afford to put out quality music anymore.
If you could change one thing about the music industry, what would it be?
Streaming. I’ve downloaded songs plenty of times before, but it’s never stopped me from actually going out and buying my music. I think most people are under the impression that the artists they listen to are getting the money from their subs which just ain’t the case. Support your local scene. Buy music from the bands you like.
Name one of your all-time favourite albums?
Coheed and Cambria – “Good Apollo I’m Burning Star IV – From Fear Through The Eyes Of Madness”. Long title, long songs, pure brilliance. This thing is masterful Progressive Rock song writing. And I got to discover it more than once. You can’t say that about many albums.
What’s best? Vinyl, Cassettes, CDs, or Downloads?
All have their place. I’m still a CD guy myself, but with technology moving forward they are pretty much only good to play in your car. Vinyl and Cassette are great collectors’ items (Keep an eye out for some of those on our merch page) and digital downloads are great for the modern music listener.
What’s the best gig that you have played to date?
We opened a show in Sydney for Prog/Fusion band Twelve Foot Ninja a few years ago. Really shouldn’t have been on the bill, but due to scheduling problems our organised show got canned for the ninja one, and we played to a crowd that was very much not ours. Blew everyone out of the water that night and won the whole crowd over! Funny what a bit of adversity does to a band.
If you weren’t a musician, what else would you be doing?
I ask myself this question almost every day. School teacher? Electrician? Retail Worker? I’ve had a few jobs in my time but none as fulfilling as being in a band.
Which five people would you invite to a dinner party?
Arnold Shwarzenegger, Hangman Adam Page, Claudio Sanchez, Thomas Lang & Dave Filoni.
What’s next for the band?
We’ve got several more singles to release and then a whole album, as well as countless other supporting content, videos, playthroughs, covers and host of other stuff in the works. So I’m probably not gonna stop working hard for 2 years!
What Social Media/Website links do you use to get your music out to people?
Our main platform is the YouTube Channel and generally we contact people on our Facebook but that’s been trash for us for a while so feel free to hit us up on whatever platform you like most cause we’re on em all.
YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdIa6fhwCOUzvPyGndw-vLg
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/Toxiconband
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/toxiconau
Twitter – https://twitter.com/ToxiconAU
TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@tiktoxiconau
Website – www.toxicon.com.au
Jaffa Cakes? Are they a cake or a biscuit?
They are actually a bizkit
Thank you for your time. Is there anything else that you would like to add?
Thanks for the time. Nice to see people are still happy to spread the word about new music with good intentions. Hope you like the songs (Horns Up)
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