Can you give a brief introduction to Uberbyte?

We're the Iron Czars of Steel city. Or something like that.

Before starting Uberbyte you were singing in Killing Miranda, a band that build a good name in the underground scene, why did you stop with it?

Because we stopped being friends. Because the others seemed to have no ambition. Because I didn't really like rock music as much anymore.


How do you look back now on the Killing Miranda period?

Unfulfilled promise. I made mistakes allowing my affection for people who obviously didn't reciprocate spoil my judgement. We hit the ground running and gradually came to a halt. Right now I cant see what we ever had in common or why I thought those guys were my friends. I feel pretty bitter to be honest. Plus I thought there were some poisonous people we allowed into our circle. I should have known the game was up when I first had my suspicions about them.


Did you had Uberbyte in mind when you stopped or did you take a break first?

It really goes back to 2001 when I first wanted to do an "industrial side project" and in fact I did do an album of material. But KM's manager at the time persuaded me to abandon it as the band were getting some exposure in the metal crowd and he thought we'd confused people.

Starting Uberbyte, was it for you like starting from point zero or could you use the experiences you had gained with Killing Miranda?

I've definitely benefited from the experience. It's helped me come up with a game plan for Uberbyte that so far appears to have worked. I didn't try and play on the "ex killing Miranda thing" personally though. It's kinda come out but for a while I tried to play it down. Mainly because I want to show I don't need that kinda thing.

How would you describe the music of Uberbyte and what are influences?

We're strongly rooted in old school EBM and industrial but we're equally aware of developments that have happened in terms of production and making your music accessible. I've a tradition in everything I do of open, diverse and accessible songwriting and that’s really my hallmark as a musician. I don't want us to get tied down too far because there are lots of different areas I want to explore with Uberbyte.

Alfa Matrix had obviously heard the demos and they wanted that specific track for EBIII. It does seem to be our best known track at the moment. There was nothing much beyond that, they just seemed to really like the track. To me it was the first vindication of what we were doing and I do recall there were shockwaves from some parts of the UK scene. That made me smile.

Who are the other members of Uberbyte and what is their background?

Chars had some background as a guitarist and keyboardist and had lots of ideas for the band in a broader sense. Plus we wanted to work together on this. I guess it’s part of our marriage I don’t know how else to put it. The other guys were picked because I felt they would be right for the spirit of the band, for the look and the energy and the kind of  vibe I wanted.

Can we say Uberbyte is you and Char and the other members are live members?

Musically its almost 100% me, although chars vocal role is there on record too. Her role though goes a bit beyond that. She provides framework for the image and imagery and the conceptual side.

Do other members have a part in the creative process as well or are you the song writer?

The music is pretty much entirely me. I'm afraid I do like being in absolute control. I felt I surrendered too much of that with Killing Miranda so this time I’m like. Well. this is me. My ideas. My musical concepts. No compromise.

What inspires you in writing music and lyrics, do you have in a certain mood to create music because the lyrics aren’t that happy but straight in your face?

I work almost every day so I guess I must be miserable most of the time ? Nah. I just need concentration and commitment...everything flows from that. Im dedicated to this music way beyond 100% and its bringing that to bear that enables me to write and keep writing.

That’s really Chars big area. She's visual as I’m auditory. She showed me some images from a manga called D Gray Man as inspiration for the look and the uniforms and she pretty much picked Al and James as our surdo guys partly because  they're real tattoo and piercing nuts. We wanted this image that was unified, direct, slick and had this nasty edge. And she's come good on that. I think we really stand out in terms of an identifiable band.

What can people expect of an Uberbyte show, aren’t you afraid you have to start for the length of time with “stand up (for Uberbyte)”?

I think that'll probably be forever ! Haha ! I don’t know. I like playing the song live. It’s the cheesiest song from our repertoire and I couldn't say it’s our best but people seem to love it especially live. It ties in well as part of what we're about.


You already played in Mexico, how did you experience this, it seems the Mexican audience is really great?

Yeah they do have this reputation don't they ? Dada X was a great show I think that was when we really came to grips with the live show for this band and the audience played their part in that. It was great to come out to a packed room. Really heaving.

Your debut album Sic is released now on Crunch Pod, how did you get in contact with them?

It was just like we talked a bit. Ben heard the demo's. Apparently Matt from caustic and Christian (CP's promo guy) had already been talking about us as a potential signing. We had several possibilities on the table but Crunch Pod were the most enthusiastic and to me had the roster we most wanted to be part of . They seemed the out and out industrial choice so to speak. And as such I think we made the right choice because being alongside artists who inspire you is a powerful thing. I think that drives you to excel.

The album has several songs on it that were already on the demo’s you made, why did you decide to use these as well as new ones instead of an album with only new tracks?

Well we wanted to give the songs the production they deserved I guess. All the demo's were very very limited runs. So I didn't see it as likely that many people would have the tracks. They were all reworked and tightened up substantially for SIC which to me put the cap on the first year or so of our existence. DOS will be the next album and that’s all new material.

It seems to be selling really well compared to what we expected. And judging by last FM and the like its getting plenty of people who really are getting into it. I've felt pretty vindicated by the reaction of a lot of people and we've had many comments to the effect that people think it’s a fresh sounding release in a scene where there are many bands who sound very very similar to each other. The funniest ? There's one review from the states where the guy said he enjoyed the album when intoxicated. Makes us sound like a real party band.

Char sings some parts as well, mostly in Spanish, why the use of Spanish language?

That’s part of our identity I guess. We are in a way a Mexican / English band with elements of both heritages. Plus I kinda wanted to do it because other than Hocico not too many bands on this scene do.
On the whole though. it seemed a great way to express who we are. Where we come from.

One of the strongest points of the album, in my mind is all album tracks deviate from each other but all have catchy hooklines, is that something you always have in mind when writing a track? People should remember them and have the possibility to sing along?

I'm a songwriter first and foremost. There's a tendency in parts of the scene to care more about the groove of the song that whether it’s actually a good song. Whatever music I do I don't do business like that. The technique services the song not the other way round. I should translate that into Latin and have it as our motto.

What is next for Uberbyte?

We've just finished DOS (our second album) and that will hit the shops in march 2009. I think it's where we've really crystallized our sound and become "pure Uberbyte" so to speak. We're also starting to get good offers for gigs abroad. I wanted to wait until we got money offers and were in demand rather than trying to convince people to put us on and that’s now starting to come to fruition. It’s my strong opinion that promoters will work hard to get people in if they stand to lost money if they don't. Plus we're now working closely with agencies so we can do this thing properly rather than do half baked random foreign gigs which are financed by our own pockets.

Any last words for the readers?

SIC is just the beggining. We've got something to say. A new edge to this music. So check us out.

www.vampirefreaks.com/uberbyte
www.myspace.com/uberbyte

We also did a review on their CD called [SIC] click here to read it...