Virtues is a five piece metalcore band from Brisbane, Australia. Combining a mixture of sounds ranging from punk to deathcore, Virtues’ sound is a fine balance between brutality and melody and provides something for every metal fan.
For starters, what bands were you guys a part of prior to Virtues? How long has the band been around?
Virtues is still in its infancy having only formed in May 2018. It’s been an insane journey in a relatively short period of time and we’re incredibly proud of everything we’ve achieved so far.
We’ve all been in other bands spanning a variety of diverse backgrounds ranging from punk and metalcore to the heavier side of Death Metal. Virtues is really the culmination of all these different influences and we really believe that these are evident in our material.
What’s the origin of that name and have you changed the band’s name before?
We honestly spent about three months trying to find a name that we liked and also suited our sound. After throwing around a tonne of different names someone dropped “Virtues” and we really just liked the simplicity of it. The meaning behind the name, being having high moral standards, was something that resonated with us. We also felt that people wouldn’t associate heavier music with a name like Virtues, so we liked the surprise element it had.
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?
Our song writing process is pretty straightforward. Generally, Alex will come up with the main concept of the song and he’ll send a recording through to the rest of the band. Zeke, Dan and Alex will fiddle with the song a bit until we have a basic outline at which point Dan will add the lead parts. Our process is fairly fluid so we tend to share ideas and roll with whatever sounds best, which in some writing sessions involves passing instruments around.
Once the guitars are sorted, for the most part, Nathan will jump onto the kit and lay down the drums. Wade writes all the lyrical content, which usually involves incredibly personal experiences and raw emotions. While the material we’re putting out at the moment is pretty dark and aggressive, it represents a snapshot in time for Wade, which makes all more real and that's what we want. None of that meaningless bollocks you hear from some artists. Writing is a journey though so our focus could change depending on where we are as a band.
What bands are currently inspiring the music that you’re making?
Ah man, where to even start?! We draw inspiration from an array of artists and genres namely Chelsea Grin, Architects, Meshuggah, Knocked Loose, After the Burial, Parkway Drive, Thy Art Is Murder, Slayer, Lamb of God, Polaris, Slipknot and Metallica to name a few. There are so many great bands out there putting out amazing music so right now is a great time for heavier genres.
Was there a particular band/artist or concert that inspired you to start a band?
It’s pretty impossible to narrow it down to a single event or artist, especially given our diverse backgrounds. But for the five of us in VIRTUES, nothing brings us more joy than a filthy, filthy breakdown. We all share fairly common inspirations but seeing bands like Parkway Drive and Lamb of God and the impact they can have is probably what has driven us as individuals to where were are today. We were just lucky to find each other and hopefully our music will have a similar impact.
What do you do to prepare for a show? Any flexing, exercises, ect …
Each member has a fairly different routine but if you stepped backstage at a Virtues show you’d probably see a fair amount of stretching, plenty guitar scales, drums being set up EVERYWHERE and just banter for days! We’re a very light-hearted bunch so there’s plenty of laughter and just having a good time as that’s genuinely what we’re all about.
What has been the biggest highlight of the band’s career so far?
Given that we've only been a band for about a year, we’re pretty amazed with everything we’ve achieved so far. The response to our music has been incredible!
Some of our biggest achievements to date would probably be having our debut single ‘When In Rome’ land at #42 on The Faction’s Hardest 100 Countdown here in Australia and lately the release of our follow-up single ‘White Willow’ just last week. We released a video for ‘White Willow’ as well which was all done in-house (Our Bassist, Zeke is a Wizard!) but the reaction has been amazing so we can’t wait to see what comes of it all.
If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Top of our list would probably be Lamb of God, Parkway, Architects and Chelsea Grin. It would also be amazing to tour with some other amazing Aussie acts like Void of Vision, Alpha Wolf and Crave Death. If you haven’t heard their music you need to check them out ASAP!
All these bands make such dope music and seem like genuinely good people.
Is there anything else you would like to add?
Our second release ‘White Willow’ is out now on all major platforms (Bandcamp, Spotify, Apple Music, Google Play and YouTube).