TWENTY BIG ONES with LEON MONACO, ORPHEUS OMEGA

TWENTY BIG ONES with LEON MONACO, ORPHEUS OMEGA
By Shane Pinnegar

With fifth studio album Emberglow impressing fans around the world, Melbourne melodic death metal quintet Orpheus Omega are heading back to Perth for Day Two of STORMRIDER FESTIVAL’s tenth anniversary on 24th August, 2024 at Amplifier band.

According to a recent press release, “With a career spanning 5 acclaimed albums, 3 EPs and countless tour cycles both domestically and abroad, Orpheus Omega has cemented themselves as one of hardest working and entertaining mainstays of the Australian Metal scene. Beginning with a sound forged along the lines of the great Gothenburg Melodeath era, the band has since grown further and further into a unique entity feeding off each member’s individual personality and lives bringing them to touring with the likes of Insomnium, Trivium, At The Gates, Fleshgod Apocalypse, Lacuna Coil and many more. The continued evolution of Orpheus Omega has kept the band relevant and ever growing and in 2024 brings with it the release of their most ambitious album yet, ‘EMBERGLOW’ through Wormhole Death Records.”

Bassist Leon Monaco sat down to tackle 20 BIG ONES with 100% ROCK MAGAZINE.

1. You’re playing Stormrider Festival in Perth! Is it a rare opportunity to get across to WA and play for fans you don’t normally get the chance to be in front of, and how do you best capitalise on a chance like that?

We like to treat these gigs with as much energy and passion that we would a hometown show. We like to fill our setlist with a mix of fan favourites and new material so that our friends and fans there can get the most out of our show. Even though we don’t get there as much, we love Perth and always love returning.

2. Tell us a little about your latest release. Are there any hidden nuggets the band put in the material that only diehard fans might pick up on?

Our new release Emberglow has been probably our favourite release yet. While written over the last few years, some of which in full lockdowns, it challenged us to write in isolation but come together with some fantastic ideas and collaborate from afar. Probably the biggest thing fans would pick up on is our range of influences broadening with this release. Previously we would have tapped into such influences as Children of Bodom and Dark Tranqulity, but now have incorporated wilder sounds from the likes of Soilwork and Fleshgod Apocalypse. We’ve also really put a lot of work into making our choruses very catchy and memorable using Dua Lipa as a pop influence for these parts.

3. What got you into music, and can you tell us about the moment you realised you wanted to be a musician?

When 13 years old friends at high school were crazy into a bunch of rock and metal bands such as Metallica, ACDC and Pantera. Once j began to deep dive into this new style of music I immediately wanted to get a guitar, which turned into my biggest passion.

4. What is it about music that makes you feel passionate?

It’s the ability to express a mood through chords, melody and groove. I’m able to bring joy and happiness with an emphatic melody then bring that crashing down I the dissonance or a breakdown. Having the ability to tell a story through music is an incredible thing and cannot recommend picking up making music as a hobby enough.

5. Who would be your main five musical influences?

For me in Orpheus Omega it is definitely Trivium, Children of Bodom, Soilwork, In Flames and Wintersun. Their takes on metal music with melodic content in mind just sings so well to me.

6. If you could call in any one collaborator to do a song with, who would it be?

As we’ve had a slew of great musicians lately to join in with us and collaborate, I would have to say someone who brings something completely new and different to the table. Probably a powerful female singer the likes of Elize Ryd of Amaranthe or Brittney Slayes from Unleash the Archers, or even an instrumentalist that can do something we cannot.

For previous collaborators such as Bjorn Strid from Soilwork, Jim Grey from Caligula’s Horse, and Andy Gillion of personal fame, see our Portraits release.

7. How would you describe your music to someone who’d never listened to you before? What is the one comparison a reviewer or fan has made that made you cringe or you disagreed with?

I would describe our music as heavy, but balanced screams, clean singing, exciting melodies and a whole lot of entertaining stage pressance all in one.

The only thing I disagree with when it comes to reviews is if someone writes us off because we use harsh vocals. I feel we have a complex sound that has many facets, and to disregard us by having one element that may be unusual to the listener with so much else to offer is a bummer.

8. What is your favourite activity or hobby outside of music – what do you like to do to unwind?

Definitely rock climbing, primarily bouldering. Singer/guitarist Chris in the band and I tend to do this outside of the band quite a lot. It’s a great form of exercise but mentally doesn’t feel like it, instead it feels like you’re solving a particular puzzle with your body, and after an hour or two you find yourself tired and sore cause you moved so much.

9. Do you have a best and/or worst performance anecdote you’d like to share, and if things do go awry during a show, how do you try to turn things around?

If something is going wrong, focus on still trying to put on the best performance ever. All of the people that have come to see you have paid and set their night aside for an entertaining experience. If you proceed to show how annoyed you are, it will translate to fans only noticing the negatives of your show. If you continue to act positively and visually put on a great show while, for example, there’s no guitar coming out the front of house, then the crowd will focus in on all of the elements that are still going on and have a great time.

 

10. What’s the best piece of advice another musician ever gave you?

Have fun. If it’s not fun, it may not be worth doing.

 

11. Do you follow a process or ritual before a performance to get rid of nerves or performance anxiety?

Nothing really for anxiety or nerves beyond the fear I’ll accidentally pull a muscle or something out there. That’s why beforehand I stretch and put on a bunch of deep heat in all areas I’ll be moving lots – mostly the neck for all of that headbanging.

 

12. When was the last time you were starstruck and who was it?

I got to meet Alexi Laiho of Children of Bodom a few years ago, about a year or so before he passed away. Being in the presence of my guitar idol was fascinating, but I enjoyed bringing the conversation with him back to earth and chatting about regular things like relationships and what to do on the weekends.

13. What’s the best thing about being a musician? If you could no longer be a musician for whatever reason, what would be your dream job?

Giving people a positive experience while listening to music is the goal. If it’s through a record or at a gig, if someone is made happy by listening to me/us then that is truly the best.

If I could no longer be a musician I would try to find some new art form to work on and try to achieve the same export of positive experience. If that fails, then maybe going into the industry of putting on gigs and events for others to take the stage.

 

14. When the band are all hanging out together, who cooks; who gets the drinks in; and who is first to crack out the acoustic guitars for a singalong?

Myself and Luke (guitars) would definitely be considered the party animals, always ready for a good time. Chris (vocals/guitar) and Campbell (keyboard) would definitely be talking music and in the next room jamming away. Matt (drums) would be off finding new pokémon to catch on Pokemon Go! Then we’d all come together for poker or some shared video games and enjoy each other’s company.

 

15. Looking back over your career, is there a single moment or situation you feel was a misstep, or you would like to be able to “do over” even if it didn’t change your current situation??

Definitely not. Every opportunity we’ve been given has come off the back of previous hard work and smaller opportunities, so to do over anything would possibly result in us not being here today. We got to return to Japan earlier this year, and if we weren’t on the path we’re currently on we may not have had that great experience.

 

16. If you were made ruler of the world, what would your first orders be?

Find way to provide food and clean drinking water enough for everyone, shelter and universal health care. Once people have the basic necessities to live, I’d step away then they can figure out what else they’d like to do with their lives.

But a bit more selfishly, you know how years ago U2’s latest album was automatically loaded onto the new shipment of ipods that went out? I’d like to do something like that with Emberglow with say the latest smart phone release. Give everyone out there a chance to listen to it and love or hate it, get it in front of as many people as possible.

 

17. What is your favourite rock n’ roll movie, and why?

Scott Pilgrim VS. the World, amazing music, art style and so so so much fun!

 

18. Talking about songwriting, where do you think the magic comes from?

I find my magic comes from just sitting down and fluffing around until a melody or riff stands out. Once that pops, that gets written and the rest emerges like flowers from the seed.

 

19. If you could magically go back in time and be a part of the recording sessions for any one record in history, which would you choose – and what does that record mean to you?

Avenged Sevenfold’s City of Evil. This masterpiece of an album was one of the first things I got into in metal, and the guitar layering, inclusion of orchestration in small parts, and incredible drumming would be an absolute pleasure to witness.

 

20. What, for you, is the meaning of life??

Have fun.

 

Stormrider Festival tickets:

https://stormridertouring.com/events 

Linktree
https://linktr.ee/OrpheusOmega

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/orpheusofficial

Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/orpheusomega

Stream the new album Emberglow here:
https://orcd.co/emberglow

 

Category: Interviews