Interview with Hooker Spit

What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today?

1. My Mom got me into music! She showed me Queen when I was a wee lad then got me onto Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, KISS, and ABBA. What came after that was my own doing hahaha. Probably accounting as that’s currently what puts bread on the table. Being a musician has never paid my bills, unfortunately, however, it has provided many great times. -Vlad

What do you like to do when you are not playing music and how does that influence your creativity?

1. Video games, motorsports, and traveling for metal festivals/shows. They all definitely influence in their own ways, generally when I get an idea I hum it in a voice memo then run down to my studio and bring it to life on the guitar. -Vlad

How long has your band been around?

1. We formed in 2018. However, I did not consider ourselves established until our current final lineup came to be in 2021. -Vlad

Where are you based and how did that influence your music?

1. We are based out of Red Deer, Alberta in Canada. Our location does not influence how we play our music at all. While there are many subgenres of metal in Alberta, the big hitter at the moment is hardcore music. Our influences are more so rooted in our heroes I would say. Bands like At The Gates, The Black Dahlia Murder, Lamb of God, Carcass, etc..  -Vlad

How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?

1. The name Hooker Spit came to be by our reaction to the first rough draft of our artwork that Daniel whipped up before we sent it out to our long-time artist friend PaleaRaptor. -Vlad

Tell me about your most memorable shows.

1. One that stands out to me was during a show we played with Ravenous E.H and Atavistia. I wore a complete rubber duck print outfit and threw rubber ducks out to the crowd.  Instead of applauding, the crowd then proceeded to squeak the ducks.  There are still people coming out of the woodwork messaging us about how much they love their duck. - Devin

What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?

1. Our favorite venue we’ve played so far would definitely be The Vat Pub here in Red Deer. One we are all looking forward to playing is the Loud as Hell festival coming up here on August long weekend as all of us have attended it over the years and it is a staple of the metal culture in Canada and Alberta. Our dream place to play would be Wacken Open Air as that is one of the ultimately most badass stages a band could get the opportunity to play on. -Vlad

If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?

1. Easy! The Black Dahlia Murder, At The Gates, Revocation, Blood Bath, and Carcass! -Vlad

What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?

1. Find a hive mind into what you want to do as a band. Do you want to play local shows or regional shows, or do you wanna go for the big game? All things that everyone should be on-board for. Advice to myself would be to play with thicker picks as the tone comes out way better with those things. -Vlad

If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?

1. Invest in an AXE FX! I wasted way too much time messing around with analog amps and pedals. Amp modelers have the most consistent tone when it comes to playing live and recording. -Vlad

Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?

1. The Huntsmen! This song is about living your best life, it’s about pushing through adversity and accepting that you will lose people along the way. We really wanted to write an epic song that had a wicked clean intro while taking you into a journey through some fantastic harmonies, solos, and breakdowns. -Vlad

Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most?

1. My top two faves are Krötch Splitter and Dry Fisted. Krötch Splitter is the self-titled track of this record and it's got some of my favorite passages and harmonies plus the solo is just a joy to run through. Dry Fisted is another one near and dear to my heart as it's got the longest solo in a Hooker Spit song so far. I really threw everything I had at that thing and it's a joy to share all those emotions on stage with y’all. To my surprise, most people ask me about Huntsmen and White Lighter. I really didn’t think those would be as well received as they are. -Vlad

What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?

1. Vlad creates the core riffs of the songs.  After that, the band collaborates to shape the initial rough draft into what will be the final version of the music, adding harmonies, melodies, rhythmic bass lines, and slamming drums. Finally, I create a vocal melody and lyrical content. At that point, 98% of the song is done and we just make final tweaks. -Daniel White

What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?

1. We are trying to paint a dark picture with our music and lyrical content while touching on the raw emotion, desperation, and depths of depravity contained within the human experience. -Daniel White  

Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?

1. Like every relationship, we too have our issues hahaha. Luckily there are no egos and we are all old enough to come to a reasonable solution to whatever the problem may be at the time. Sometimes we want our long weekends off but that's when some of the best shows get offered. The solution? We play some long weekends and plan ahead of time that we aren’t playing others. Compromise is important as we all sacrifice stuff to make our musical dreams come true. - Vlad

What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?

1. We are releasing our debut album on July 28 and supporting it with a Western Canadian tour. You can catch us on tour this year at the following dates:

Tour Dates:
July 21 - Edmonton, AB - Temple Room
July 28 - Red Deer, AB - Vat Pub
Aug 5 - Drumheller, AB - Loud as Hell Festival **
Aug 10 - Calgary, AB - Modern Love
Aug 12 - Stirlingville, AB - Grover Fest
Aug 25 - Vancouver, BC – Astoria ++
Aug 26 – Kelowna, BC – Dunnezies Pizza++
Aug 27 - Kamloops, BC - Blue Grotto ++
Sept 4 – Edmonton, AB - CEMR MetalFest**
Sept 15 - Medicine Hat, AB – Mainliner Pub
Sept 16 – Lethbridge, AB – The Slice
Sept 30 - Saskatoon, SK - ACT Hall
Legend: - ** Hooker Spit only, ++ Select Dates with Augurium

You can also preorder our album among other merch on our Bandcamp:

https://hookerspitofficial.bandcamp.com/

-Dan

Hookerspitofficial.com | Facebook.com/hookerspitofficial | Instagram.com/hookerspit.official | Youtube.com/@hookerspitofficial

Hookerspitofficial.bandcamp.com | Spotify

Stream - Call of The Void -

Stream - White Lighter -