Forming in 2019 and starting as the solo endeavor of Nottingham, England's Maxwell Jeffries (previously of Rage Cave), Underking enlisted the vocal talents of Dustin Burmeister from Arizona, U.S. Underking just released their debut project, an ambitious duel album featuring two distinct styles.

Please list all of your band members and their roles in the band.

Underking is Maxwell Jeffries (Guitar, clean vocals, drum programming and bass) and Dustin Burmeister (Screamed vocals).

For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Underking? How long has the band been around?

I (Max) was a part of two bands prior to Underking, one was Wakestone (a high school indie band) and the other was Rage Cave (a NWOBHM trio). Rage Cave were around long enough to record two releases that did fairly well in my local town and we were able to play some sold out club shows. Underking has been around for about a year now, although I started writing for the project about a year before that. When  I was writing, I really wanted to include some screamed vocals in the songs but knew that I couldn’t do them myself, so I started looking for a vocalist who I thought would fit the sound – that’s when Dustin came along! Although he lives in Arizona and I live in England, we managed to make it work and we got the two albums done in just over 6 months I think! It was a really fun process and I think we managed to release two really solid albums!

What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?

The name Underking came about when me and the bass player from Rage Cave (Kieron Shore) were talking about a possible name for my solo project. I originally wanted to call the project ‘Witch King’ but the name just didn’t seem right for some reason and Kieron suggested that I change it. So I changed it to Underking to reference one of my favourite game franchises - the Elder Scrolls!

Who writes your songs? What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs and do you think these topics will change over time?

I am the primary songwriter for Underking and write all the music except the lyrics on ‘Amongst the Dead’ which Dustin wrote! I like quite a lot of fantasy in my music, being a fan of Iron Maiden and Ghost, and classic metal in general! That’s why a lot of my lyrics surround fantasy elements, religion and history. Since I began writing for the project though, my focus has shifted to more personal lyrical content – so you may hear more of that in the future!

What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?

Currently, I’d say bands like Judas Priest, Kvelertak and Megadeth are influencing my writing at the moment. With ‘Amongst the Dead’ and ‘Ghosts of the Past’, these bands were really important in forming the musical basis for the songs and provided some great inspiration.

Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?

A moment that sparked my true love for music was when I saw Rammstein in 2012. It was such a big moment for me and I’ve never looked back since!

What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …

Unfortunately, because of the distance between the two of us, we haven’t managed to play a show as of yet. Although when I used to play shows with Rage Cave, I used to get extremely nervous! I used to pace up and down the green room before going on and yawn a lot – weird! But once I got on stage, I used to love it so much – so if there’s any opportunities in the future for Underking to play – you can bet I’ll be taking them!

What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?

Considering the band’s short life so far, I’d say that the highlight was definitely releasing the records. It was such a relief after all that hard work we’d put in to finally release something we’re both very proud of!

If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?

Personally, if I could tour with any band, it’d have to be Ghost! I’ve seen them a number of times now and they always put on an amazing show. It’d be great to tour with Tobias Forge and his crew and I think some of their fans might like some of our music to! That’d be the dream!

Is there anything else you would like to add?

Our two debut LP’s: ‘Amongst the Dead’ and ‘Ghosts of the Past’ are out now on all platforms and you can look forward to more music in the future! There’s absolutely no plans to slow down!  

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