Doomed Confessionary: Cam Mesmer (Spell)
Photo by David P Ball
Spell is a hypnotic heavy metal band from Vancouver, Canada.
The band’s latest full-length album »Tragic Magic« was released on October 28th, 2022 via Bad Omen Records. Arriving directly from a zone between dream and waking, the fourth album from Spell is here to weave its potent magick. Established as intrepid pathfinders on the journey of classic heavy metal into the mystic, »Tragic Magic« sees the Vancouver outfit honing their approach to seductive effect.
Spell’s new 7″ split with Pøltergeist, released on March 28th, 2024 via Bad Omen Records, features The Devil’s Blood cover »A Waxing Moon Over Babylon«.
Can you say a few words about your band?
Sure. Spell was formed by two brothers, Cam & Al, in 2007. We went through a name change and a few different bandmates, but our goal has always been to create die-hard, exciting, meaningful, honest heavy metal, the best we possibly could, and to play it all over the world.
What was the biggest challenge for the band?
I guess probably living in Vancouver, to be honest. We do love it here, but it’s one of the most expensive cities in the world, so we’ve always been working at least full time, often two or three jobs each in order to afford to live, while trying to play heavy metal at the same time. It’s tough. You’re always exhausted. Plus, there’s nowhere to tour from here. You can’t go north, west is just the ocean, east it’s like a 14 hour drive to the next city, and you can’t go south across the American boarder because of insane visa requirements that you need to play music in the USA, which cost thousands of dollars and huge piles of paperwork to get. That’s why we love touring in Europe best, because we just show up and play, no bullshit.
What can you be most proud of so far?
We’re proud of all of our music, but I’m most proud to say that each of our albums has been better than the last, with no exceptions. We make this music for ourselves, first and foremost, so it’s always been a challenge to constantly improve and be better than we were before. This isn’t easy, of course, especially because of how tempting it can be to psych yourself out and just write songs that are more wanky, self-serving, or up-your-own-ass when you get to your fourth or fifth album, rather than staying honest and keeping a kind of innocence in your ears, like you’re hearing things for the first time. It’s easy to just make more and more complicated songs, rather than *better*, catchier, more emotional, more exciting songs. We try real hard to do that, without falling into the pitfalls that come along with being a band for a while!
Photo by @midnightbeastz
What was your biggest regret?
Hmmm. We had a few amazing Mexican tours lined up a few years ago with our friends in Voltax, but we ended up not doing them because of a former band member. We should have just replaced him and done the tours! They would have been SO cool, and we still haven’t played in Mexico yet! The moral of the story is, never let anyone else hold you back!
What was the best concert/tour so far and why?
We just got home from an AMAZING European tour with Green Lung. It was the best time we’ve ever had in our lives, and we played the best we’ve ever played. Luckily for us, we get to go back to Europe in a few months (July 2024) for another tour, this time with Angel Witch! We have never felt more ready!!
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
Honestly, I’ve been very pleasantly surprised by how cool and amazing the music scene has been in recent years! I recall, back before 2020, I would go to shows, and it still felt like I was amongst the youngest people there (in my early 30’s), which was a clear indicator of a big problem, if the young kids have no interest in going! But, since then, after a few years of no shows at all, the local scene here in Vancouver is currently absolutely popping off! Nearly every show I go to is sold out or packed, and there are people of ALL ages! There are also tons of new bands starting up, and the old sort of cliquey-scene thing where punks only listen to punk and metalheads only listen to metal is a thing of the past, too! Nowadays, there’s way less gatekeeping and everybody is allowed to listen to all kinds of music, so I think there’s been this huge breath of fresh air and cross-pollination within the music world, which has resulted in tons of super fresh sounding bands, new musical ideas, and a thriving scene! I love it! Also, the music scene has been way less of an “old boy’s club” – or it seems that way from my perspective, anyhow. It’s so refreshing to see tons of new bands with women, queer or trans folk, people of different ethnicities, and so on. It’s so important to have a variety of perspectives in music, or it just all becomes the same!
What is currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Let’s see, today I’ve been listening to Sunrise Patriot Motion, the new Freeways album, the new Tonnerre album, the new Zetra, the new single by Sonja, some Hellacopters, Immortal, Celtic Frost, Tyketto, Randy, Cauldron, Lizzy Borden, Killing Joke, Robin Trower, Etta James, and Burning Starr. It’s different every day!
What was the best advice you’ve ever been given as a musician?
When we were on tour with Lucifer, Nicke Andersson told me to ALWAYS immediately write down/record your musical ideas. That could mean humming a melody into your phone, scribbling down a word or phrase for a song title or lyric idea, or finding the nearest guitar or piano to hammer out some chords. If you don’t document it right away, it’ll disappear forever! Since hearing that advice, I always drop whatever I’m doing to preserve all my ideas, even if I’m not sure if it’s good or not. You can’t always tell in the moment!
What are your guilty pleasures?
I’m a huge Max Martin fan. Everything he does – Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, Lady Gaga, The Weeknd, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry – you name a pop singer, he probably wrote their best music. His list of top ten hits is insane. He’s been the ubiquitous pop-culture soundtrack to life since the 90’s. Every person growing up in the western world has had their subconscious conception of music permanently shaped and altered by Max Martin’s songcraft, whether they like it or not. He defined what a pop song is, for our generation. It’s absolutely fascinating, I’m obsessed.
Photo by @midnightbeastz
Can you say something more about the music scene in Vancouver / British Columbia?
I guess I sort of said this already, but it’s currently way better than it has ever been, in my lifetime – and I’ve been going to shows/playing shows here for more than 20 years, now!! If you’ve ever wanted to start a band, it doesn’t matter who you are, how good you are, who you have to play with – just do it, the time is NOW!
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
Spell will be on tour in Europe this July with Angel Witch:
20 Sat Germany, Weinheim, Café Central
21 Sun Belgium, Gent, Chinastraat
22 Mon Germany, Kassel, Goldgrube
23 Tue Germany, Oldenburg, MTS
24 Wed Germany, Dusseldorff, Pitcher
25 Thu Germany, Aschaffenburg, Colos-Saal
Plus, we’ll also be playing at Headbangers Open Air festival, July 19th, in Germany and, Chaos Descends festival, July 26th, in Germany.
We’ll also be playing at Candelabrum festival in Mexico, in September of 2024! Our first time in Mexico!
What are your plans for the future as a band?
We’re hard at work on our next full-length album. The bulk of it is written, and I can tell you without a doubt it’s our most exciting, original music to date. We’ve put everything we had into it. We will be recording this album as soon as we get back from our summer tours.
How can people best support your band?
The best way is to come to a show and buy something from the merch table, or buy something from our online merch store at spellofficial.bandcamp.com.
THANK YOU TO ALL THOSE WHO ENJOY OUR MUSIC ENOUGH TO SUPPORT US!
Do you have any message for your listeners?
If you love music – or any kind of art – you can’t just sit back and enjoy it passively. Love isn’t a one-way street. You HAVE to give back to it. It’s your responsibility. This could mean by booking shows, doing art for bands, or filming music videos, but I think the best and most important way is to start your own band! Again, it doesn’t matter how good you are – nobody is good when they begin. It doesn’t matter who you know – write the songs first, go to shows, and meet people as you go. It’s not about how good it is, that’s the least important thing in the world. The point is you HAVE to try! It’s an act of love. Loving something is like having a child. You might not feel qualified to take care of your child, but that doesn’t matter at all, because you just have to wake up every day and try your fucking best anyways. That’s all you can do. Doesn’t matter if you’ve never touched a guitar or drum kit or microphone before in your life. Just start. Do it. You have no choice.
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well