Doomed Confessionary: Jason Craig (Sun Below)
Photos by Matt Dalton Photography
Sun Below is a heavy stoner/doom power trio hailing Toronto, Canada.
The band seek to spread their infectious, rollicking sound to the masses and their mission remains to create riff heavy rock fused with the sonic weight of crushing doom. The current lineup of Jason Craig (guitars, vocals), Liam “Acid Goblin” Gray (bass) and Will Adams (drums) blend these elements into long burning jams that worship at the altar of tone, riffs, and smoke.
Sun Below teamed up with Earth Altar for split album »Inter Terra Solis«, release on September 15th, 2023 via Black Throne Productions.
Can you say a few words about your band?
Sun Below is a stoner/doom “sativa” rock power trio, a combination of big riffs, fuzzed out guitars, crushing drums and driving, groove laden bass. Encapsulated within our sound are spaced-out psych vibes, the up-tempo groove of stoner rock, and the unyielding heaviness of doom metal.
What was the biggest challenge for the band last year?
I’m not sure I would call it a challenge necessarily but in agreeing to do the split record »Inter Terra Solis«, it was the first time that we had any outside parties involved with a release by the band, which took some coordinating and cooperation with our split mates Earth Altar and the label Black Throne Productions. Previously, we had only ever self-released material. It was a very smooth and enjoyable process however; the challenge was just making sure we raised our efforts to the level of the other parties involved.
What can you be most proud of last year?
Undoubtedly our biggest achievement from 2023 was the release of our split record with Earth Altar through Black Productions, »Inter Terra Solis«. As noted above, it was a new experience to collaborate on a release with another band, as well as having label involvement, and we couldn’t be happier with how everything turned out. Earth Altar’s meditative groove and our brand of Sabbath inspired stoner doom, weaved together with complimentary concepts, made this a special experience. Seeing the record in physical form, with the outstanding artwork courtesy of Adam C Design, in Ruby Flare Red, Emerald Valley Green and Black Hole vinyl, was super rewarding. Seeing the almost universally positive reception to the record from publications such as Stoner Hive, the Doom Charts and BangerTV has been great as well.
What was your biggest regret?
Truthfully, 2023 was a very successful year for Sun Below and probably our most active to date, certainly since Covid. You always wish you could play more shows and expand to more areas, but I don’t think we have any substantial regrets from this past year.
What was the best concert/tour last year and why?
We had the opportunity to do a run of three dates with Earth Altar in September this year in Quebec (Montreal, Quebec City and Mirabel), as well as a fourth date on our own in Ottawa, in immediate support of the »Inter Terra Solis« release, which was a massive highlight for us. Including the album release show in Toronto on September 15, we played 5 shows in 10 days to capitalize on the release. After not having seen the guys in Earth Altar for over a year, but having had many Zoom calls and messenger chats, it was great to spend some time with them in person and reflect on our collaborative achievement. Getting to play the entire split between both bands live and seeing the reaction to the record was a blast.
An honourable mention goes to the Cursed Tour from the summer which was headlined by Tumble (our drummer Will plays with them as well) and Occult Witches from Sherbrooke, QC; we were fortunate to jump on two dates of that tour in Toronto and Hamilton with an outstanding lineup of bands.
What was the biggest surprise on the music scene for you?
Over the past few years, there has been a trending momentum in the southern Ontario doom/stoner/heavy rock scene, but the sheer number of impressive bands, tours and releases this year took the scene to a surprising new level. Black Throne Productions has helped to cultivate an expanding scene and released music from outstanding bands such as Aawks, Ethereal Tomb, Occult Witches, Sons Of Arrakis and Nova Doll. We look forward to participating in the continued expansion of the Ontario/Quebec “Doomunity” in 2024!
Where can we see you live this year (concerts/tours)?
We will be going on another short run of shows with our split mates Earth Altar from March 14 – 16. The run will start in Ottawa at Avant-Garde Bar, then to Toronto at Bar Orwell (where we originally met Earth Altar and agreed to do a split record back in September 2022) and a hometown show at Doors Pub in Hamilton. There will of course be other gigs to be announced; please follow our socials to keep up to date!
What are your plans for this year as a band? What do you personally want the most?
We have some material recorded and banked that we will look to release in the Spring/Summer and are just working on the details for that. We also have a cover related project we are considering that will involve some Sabbath Worship. We are also currently in a writing phase to prepare for our next major release. Overall, we want to continue the momentum from 2023 created by »Inter Terra Solis«.
How can people best support your band?
You can check out our Bandcamp to purchase copies of »Inter Terra Solis« and merch and you can follow us on all of our social media platforms.
Do you have any message for your listeners?
Thank you for all your support in 2023 and we look forward to spreading sativa rock and green visions into 2024 and beyond. Tune down, smoke up, play loud, burnout.
Links:
Facebook | Instagram | Bandcamp | Spotify |Apple Music | YouTube
Bojan Bidovc // music enthusiast, promoter, misanthrop and sometimes a journalist as well