Starseed
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Starseed

London, England, United Kingdom | INDIE

London, England, United Kingdom | INDIE
Band Rock Metal

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This band has not uploaded any videos
This band has not uploaded any videos

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"Kerrang! Introducting"

"A Stunning Collection of 12 Humungous Rock Tracks!" Katie Parsons - Kerrang! Magazine - Kerrang!


"Big Cheese Magazine Article"

"Peace Machine is quite clearly their most ambitious and accomplished work to date. This Machine is unstoppable" - Big Cheese Magazine - Big Cheese Magazine


"Alt Sounds "Peace Machine" Review"

Starseed are a London based, Hard Rock / Metal band and with their debut CD "Peace Machine" they prove that they are here to make an impression.

"Peace Machine" is an impressive debut for a young band. Big, bouncy riffs, tasty guitar solos, cracking drums and more refreshingly all clean vocals throughout. Vocalist, Russell Spence really is the bands secret weapon with his sweeping vocals that help to carry the bands instrumentation throughout the albums 12 songs without ever having to descend into generic screaming territory which we’ve come to hear on a lot of today's modern Metal releases.

"Peace Machine" features big songs with massive choruses and performances full of passion. Songs like 'Shine', ‘We Are The Way’ and ‘Broken Promise (Part 3)’ showcase Starseed perfectly and give you a hint of what the band are likely to evolve into as they mature.
Starseed have a sound very similar to that of Vacant Stare who were around on the scene a few years ago, the comparison may be slightly lazy but it is justified. Much like Vacant Stare before them Starseed have a real grasp on writing songs that are both catchy but that also pack a punch as well and with 3 guitar players in the band the possibilities are endless for them.

The only downside (and it’s a minor one) is that the band sticks to a tried and tested formula without much deviation, leaving little or no surprises for the listener. With that minor gripe aside "Peace Machine" is a confident debut from one of the undergrounds most promising acts, it will be interesting to see where Starseed go from here. - Alt Sounds


"The Beat Surrender - Peace Machine Review"

Starseed - Peace Machine

That’s the beauty of this job, not only do we get paid lots of money, get loads of free sex and all the drugs the postman can get through the letterbox, but we also get to discover brand spanking new shiny exciting rock bands that will one day rule the earth and play huge festivals in America that no one has ever heard of, oh, and become caring , sharing human beings, who we will then hate for becoming famous in the first place.

So get in there quick with your namedropping, tell all your friends about the very brilliant Starseed and ‘Peace Machine’ their sensational second album.

They have perfected the art of perfectly honed rifferama and married it to some great soulful lungbusting courtesy of their main vocalist Russell Spence, he has a huge, yet subtle way with a rock scream, reminding me at times of Dave Grohl.

The arrangements are tighter than a pair of Kylies pants, and any fans of muscular testesterone fuelled kick ass (yet curiously intelligent) rock music will love this.

Apparently they hail from South Africa, but are based the U.K., they’ve played the Download Festival...and survived!. All twelve tracks are just dandy, no individual favourites, they’re all good, but do watch out for the new single ‘Shine’...it will probably be your first exposure to Starseed, but I promise you it won’t be your last. - The Beat Surrender


"Uber Rock - "Peace Machine" Review"

Over the last twelve months we've witnessed a resurgence of hair metal, a new wave of thrash metal and now grunge has reared its head once more to possibly save the day. Now if only these different genres could all play nicely amongst themselves then the music world, or more specifically my music world, would be a much happier place to be right now.

Alice In Chains having recently returned to the UK for a full tour after a ten year hiatus, having arisen like the proverbial phoenix from the flames promoting a new groundbreaking album and in doing so proving there's plenty of life in the old dogs yet, and leaving the door open in their wake for a new wave of post grungers.

But, as we are about to discover, it's not the land of Starbucks that is currently offering any significant new talent in this genre, instead we have to look closer to home with our very own contenders to the crown in Slaves To Gravity, Zico Chain and the fast rising five piece Starseed.

South African born, Starseed relocated to the UK around a decade ago as they felt the UK offered them more musical opportunities than their homeland and, after listening to their well crafted debut album 'Peace Machine', I must commend them on this decision.

Whether it's our piss poor weather conditions, the crippled economy or just good old-fashioned fish and chips that helped them fuse together such an incredible rock album, whatever the catalysts, we should all be thankful for them.

The album opens with the band's lead off single 'Shine', an exemplary number that ticks all the boxes of any rock quality inspector's checklist of quality, opening with an almost Layne Staley style vocal melody before metamorphosing into an impressive show of musicianship from the other four band members.

The album keeps its momentum over the next twelve tracks, each number being an incredible tour de force of musical excellence; from the complex drumming patterns of Andrew Spence to the dual guitar excellence of Gerald Gill and Peter Wicker, all being held together by the four finger masterwork of Dale Anderson.

The icing on the grunge cake for Starseed is the warm, soulful voice of frontman Russell Spence, a man with great abilities. Admittedly there are a few moments during the album that may remind you of your favourite vocalists, but Russell pulls this off whilst always remaining true to himself.

It's during 'Falling' and more specifically the two minute splendour of 'Pills' - a more punked up affair than the rest of the album helped by some clever use of distortion on the vocals - that the album steers itself well away from being just another run of the mill radio friendly rock album and into an album of quality, variety and depth.

'Peace Machine' ends in fine style with 'Broken Promises', an interesting number that opens with a drum pattern reminiscent of the Guns N' Roses hit 'You Could Be Mine', before developing into a more modern sounding number, not too dissimilar to Welsh wonders The Blackout or Lostprophets, before ending in a fantastic show of dual guitar wizardry that would even have the Dragonforce boys worried.

This is a compelling, well-produced debut album featuring twelve monstrous rock tracks that deserves to be listened to.

If you are a fan of the post grunge, arena sounding rock and you can only afford to buy one album this month, then I suggest you return the new Creed album to the shelf immediately and do yourself a well deserved favour and pick up a copy of 'Peace Machine' instead.

www.myspace.com/starseedrock - Uber Rock


"Room Thirteen - Interview with Andrew Spence"

R13 sat down with Andrew ‘Animal Andy’ Spence from Starseed to chat about the drama’s of touring, the tiring process of making a music video, moving from South Africa to London and why it is all very, very worth it.

R13:Firstly, hello!
AS:Hello!

R13:You're on tour at the moment, how's it going?
AS: It's been a pretty hectic start, we started off in Leicester. We rocked up to play a little bikers bar, which was a bit of a different show! But it was pretty cool and not a bad gig.
Rockers at Glasgow was just awesome, they must have packed that place out. Everyone really responded well to the stuff and they wouldn't let us off after our 45 minute set, so we played an extra 15 minutes after.

R13:Have you amassed any horror tour stories yet?
AS:Every time we tour it's been the most diabolical weather. It's like mother nature's just actually watching for the band. We’ve had 75 mile an hour winds and good fun like that. Scotland was the same thing, we hired a van, the van was completely wrecked, we hired it from a company that really shouldn't be hiring vans, but it was our last option. This thing leaked, it didn't have a dashboard light, the cigarette lighter part didn't even have a charger, so our sat nav ran out. Which is not cool when you're trying to tour the UK!! It was… interesting.

R13:Are you looking forward to being home and playing The 100 Club in London tonight then?
AS:Oh yeah. It's a bit crappy on my part but every time I said we're playing the 100 Club everyone's like "WHOA you're playing the 100 club" and I'm thinking should I know the 100 Club, why don't I know the 100 Club. So I researched, it's got such a renowned history!
We're really looking forward to playing here and just the excitement of other people is making me really excited.

R13:For those that don't know you yet - sum up Starseed in one sentence.
AS:Hard melodic passion, the lyrics are particularly emotional and positive and we just like to rock behind it.

R13:Starseed originated in South Africa, how's the rock scene there compared to the UK?
AS: It's a very different scene, it's a lot smaller. The majority of people who would listen to our style of music would probably be members of the white population which is very small crowd, and then about 80% of them are in to dance music or house music or very poppy stuff. So then you've got 20% of that tiny little market. It's very hard to make it in there, and when you do there's not much further you can go. There's only a certain amount of rock clubs per main town and there's not a lot of main towns.

R13:So you made the move to London
AS: You have a sense of the world here. The States are easy to dash across to and you've got Europe right there. Germany's got a big rock scene, actually a lot of Europe does like Belgium and Holland. It's a big market to tap.

R13:And it’s the right move?
AS:Even just being a slightly successful drop in the ocean over here is more than being a big band in SA. That's just personally the way I feel.

R13: You've just released a video for your next single 'Shine'. What's the response to that been like?
AS: Pretty good considering our very tiny budget!
We liked it and ever since we showed it off to people, people are really impressed. Scuzz TV have accepted it!

R13: What was it like making it?
AS: It’s our first proper music video we've done. On set with a whole bunch of crew and make up people. It was a cool experience, but I think the novelty wears off when you're about 10 takes into the same song, trying to pull it off with the same tenacity and energy. It's a grueling experience to say the least.

R13:Lots of repetition then? AS:You play over and over and over again and you have to give it your all as though it's the first time and you're playing it in a massive stadium, particularly if that's the energy you want to pull off. 40 takes down the line, I tell you what, you’ve lost about 10 kgs and you're not liking that song anymore!
But then suddenly he [the producer] pops around and goes what do you think of this - and it's all paid off. It was so worth it.

R13:You worked with a well established team to produce the video, what did you think of them?
AS:The guys we found were a really good bunch of guys. Ben Thornley up in Manchester, he's got a company called Sitcom Soldiers. They've done some cool videos for bands like Therapy? and Fightstar, bands like that. We'll definitely be working with those guys again.

R13:You had your album launch party a few months back for 'Peace Machine'. What was the writing process like for that?
AS:It's actually been our longest one.
We’d been planning to do an album for quite some time, ever since Pete [Wicker, guitars] joined the band and we became a five piece. At the beginning of this year we decided, right, let's get in there. From the 2nd of January we went to Pete's house - he lives out in Essex and has a little recording setup. We very carefully wrote this album together.
We wrote about 18 tracks and slowly whittled it down to 15. We took them to the studio and during that recording dropped it down to 12. It was a longer process than our first album, but a more dedicated.

R13:How did it compare to writing/recording your first album?
AS:We did an album back in 2004. We wrote that with myself, my brother Russell[Spence, vocalist] and Gerald [Gill, guitar] who'd just joined the band. We had session bassists and Gerald played the bass on some tracks. Listening to it now you can hear the disjointedness of it all. This current line up of Starseed is the longest we've been a set unit. Five piece, everyone together, writing for an album. You can hear the difference.

R13: You have an enormous presence live, what's been your most memorable gig so far?
AS: Indigo2 [album launch], it was by far one of the biggest shows we've played, not only was the venue just sterling and fantastic, the promoters were awesome and we had a tight set as a unit. Everything fell in to place that night, we had a good turnout a good bunch of fans came, we made a whole load of new fans that night. Everyone just really got in to it.
In saying that, we just played Rockers in Glasgow, the response from that show was just immense. Actually on the way back down we were going "was Indig02 better, was Rockers better". I guess from the scale of it all Indig02 was probably it, but to be honest the atmosphere and intimacy of Rockers really stands out so it's close.

R13:Your fan base is growing constantly, area they a fun bunch?
AS: Our fans are still a bit timid at the minute Although we're getting one or two decent responses from some interesting members of the fan base.
We've got to sign a lot more albums at our last few shows which has been a good sign, and we're selling a lot more albums. They're slowing taking to us, we're an American style rock band coming in to London and trying to make it and I think they're starting to like us
R13: - so fans, get talking and show Starseed your love!

R13:2009’s been a big year for you, any particular stand outs?
AS: The progression of the band this year has been immense for us. While we were recording the album we had one of our biggest opportunities. A band called Run Through the Desert came out [Chris Cornell's touring band]. They'd got our music and asked us to come support them for their show.
Then we finished the album and the response to the album's been so immense. We got an article in Kerrang! which is huge for us, ever since I was a 13 year old boy I've been reading Kerrang! so it's quite a surreal thing for me and the guys. And just in the last few weeks' we've been played on a number of stations, and reviews are coming, we've articles in magazines and of course Scuzz, we're going to be on Scuzz tv! To me, this year, as far as the bands gone, has been the most successful year so far.

R13:What’s 2009 taught you as a band?
AS: One thing we've learnt in the last few months is how you don't need a traditional record label. Everything we've done has been self financed; we've done exactly what a record company would have done for you. We've got all the pieces that a record company would setup for you.
We would like a distribution deal.. and sponsorships or loans!
R13:So for those reading this.... Starseed would like you to sponsor them!!
AS: We've got the team in place - sponsor us!

R13:What's on the cards for next year?
AS:Bigger and better things we hope. We've got a UK tour coming up in February. Hopefully some European shows and we're really pushing for the festivals.

R13:For those that are just being introduced to Starseed, what message would you like to send to them?
AS: I guess it's been pretty down and negative times for the last god knows how long, our CD is a very positive message. We're trying to kick start a bit of a positive vibe going on into the next few years.
Come and feel the Starseed love at our shows and we'll entertain you.
You want to be entertained, get some hard rock, a positive message come and see us, no more doom and gloom!

And with that Andy went off to prepare for their 13/13 headlining set.
Starseed’s album ‘Peace Machine’ is available now on iTunes and in stores November 30. Catch Starseed on tour around the UK in February/March 2010. - Room Thirteen


"100 Club Live Review"

Starseed take to the stage at the 100 Club in London with smiles on their faces and a desire to rock the room. Returning to London after a few shows up north, they're clearly glad to be home and in a place where they don't have to deal with dodgy vans and crazy weather!

The four South Africans, and fifth member, Peter Wicker, the token Essex boy, that make up this heavy rock band are firm believers in what they do. It is all about standing up on that stage and affecting the crowd in a positive way. They do exactly that tonight. The room filled with their sound and energy with bodies moving and people cheering from start to end.

Drummer Andrew Spence couldn't contain his passion, his sticks flew through the intricate beats generating fist pumping excitement. Guitarists Gerald Gill and Peter Wicker are almost complete opposites on stage, Gill a blur of movement while Wicker exudes a quiet passion. Bassist Dale Anderson brought a funky solid beat to the proceedings and a composed presence clearly feeling the vibe

But tonight the focus was front and slightly off centre. Singer Russell Spence was on top form, every word out of his mouth perfectly crafted. On a stage filled with big personalities and presence, he still stands out and you quickly get caught up in the powerful songs.

Starseed have a sleek powerful sound. Their melodic hard rock is perfectly suited to a live performance and the boys give it everything and then some. Highly talented and perfectly attuned to each other, once again, they blew the crowd away. - Room Thirteen


""Peace Machine" Album Launch Review"

With a sound that is big enough to fill the arena next door, Starseed took over the Indigo2, filling the room with their soaring melodies, dramatic undertones and rhythmic beats. Sound flowing from the stage, through the crowd, and into every nook and cranny creating a lightening bolt of energy around the room.

The buzz in the crowd indicated that this was the first time that many of them had seen Starseed live, or indeed heard their music, but it's unlikely to be the last. From the moment the lights dimmed and the intro music started everyone's focus was glued tightly to the stage. Each song designed to capture your attention, from start to end the entire room was dancing, jumping and swaying. The fans singing along word for word and the faster songs even drawing some minor pit action. With music like this the crowd didn't really have a choice, they couldn't help but move.

Mixing slow, fast and spaced melodies with unexpected time changes their songs twist and turn, constantly surprising you. There are not many bands that could pull off this constant changing but clearly it's what Starseed is all about.
Fusing sounds from various genres from the spacey towering vocals, the heavy riff driven melodies and even some post-hardcore style dulling growls on occasion, the sound is colossal and all in a good way.

Andrew Spence's masterful drumming style has the rhythms constantly changing but at the same time remaining stable and with Dale Anderson's steady bass they keep the beat solid and moving. Russell Spence's lyrics provide a powerful counterpoint to the guitars of Gerald Gill and Pete Wicker and with all five members contributing vocal harmonies their voices and instruments blend seamlessly to produce a truly epic sound.

Each individual is highly talented and together they are a force to be reckoned with. The Indigo2 set was the launch of their latest album, Peace Machine, and based on tonight's performance, if they've managed to capture a fraction of their immense sound on it, then it should be amazing.

Tonight though, the focus was on their live act, which is visually and aurally everything you could ask for. Passionately energizing the room and sonically feeding your soul, expect big things from them very soon. - Room Thirteen


Discography

LP:

Peace Machine (2009)
All The Things They Can't Take Away (2005)

EP:

Love's War (2008)

Photos

Bio

'A stunning collection of 12 humungous rock tracks' KERRANG! Magazine

‘Packed with growling, anthemic mosh-alongs, this album is proof that real men wear plaid!’ Total Guitar

‘…sounding truly gargantuan. This machine is unstoppable.’ Big Cheese

‘…soulful vocals, crunching guitars and savage drumming’ Rock Sound

“A winning combination of a perfect hard rock and soulful voice confronted by riffs resembling the work of Queens Of The Stone Age and Alice In Chains. We’ve finally found a band that can really compete with the big boys.”
BBC Introducing

“a great new British band...really, REALLY good stuff...Look out for the album (Peace Machine)...Get it if you can... Believe me, they're hotly tipped for 2010!” Ian Camfield (XFM)

“For fans of Live, Our Lady Peace, Alice In Chains, Soundgarden – Peace Machine has plenty to savour”
Bruce Dickinson (Iron Maiden and BBC Radio 6 Rock Show)

"They are a really big gutsy kinda rock 'n roll band. Huge soaring vocals, big chunky guitars. Sounds like a punch in the face.
I like it!" Alex Baker, Kerrang! Radio

STARSEED:

Russell Spence – Vocals, Guitars
Gerald Gill – Guitar, Vocals
Pete Wicker – Guitar
Andrew Spence – Drums, Vocals

Starseed deliver the kind of onslaught that leaves punters moshing, cart-wheeling, screaming and dry-heaving with sheer excitement. In reality, it's some of the most satisfying melodic hard rock you're likely to hear, infused with soaring melodies and epic energy. Powerful, riff driven rock with electrifying stage shows. Their music grasps many elements of the grunge scene drawing influences from early Pearl Jam and Alice in Chains to the power and torment found in hard rock stalwarts like Soil infusing the tenacity and energy of Cancer Bats and Alexisonfire.

Since 2000, Starseed have grown from strength to strength with significant achievements in 2007 and 2008 including performing at Download Festival 07, supporting 80’s Matchbox B-Line Disaster for a blow-up New Years show in London and being nominated for Best Live Band at the Indy Music Awards 2008 all off the back of their EP Release “Love’s War”.

However, 2009 was to be the biggest turning point for the band with the recording and release of their highly acclaimed new album “Peace Machine”.

“Peace Machine” was produced by Jason Wilcock of Stakeout Studios (Reuben, Fightstar, The Ghost Of A Thousand) in London. The album launch was held at a packed headline show at IndigO2 at The O2 which led to a full page feature in Kerrang! Magazine in August 2009, extensive national media and radio play including BBC Introducing and TotalRock Radio interviews and show bookings all over the UK. Starseed’s music video for single “Shine” [directed by Ben Thornley of Sitcom Soldiers (Therapy?, Fightstar)] has also been very well received and was accepted for rotation on Scuzz TV and Lava TV. “Shine” has regular play on Ian Camfield’s Rock Show (XFM), Bruce Dickinson’s Rock Show (BBC Radio 6) and Alex Bakers New Music Show (Kerrang! Radio) to name a few. Starseed completed a successful UK Tour in Nov/Dec 2009.

2010 continues to bring success for the band with Starseed being asked to record live studio sessions on XFM Radio and Rock Radio in Scotland. Single “Shine” has been featured on BBC Radio 6, XFM, Planet Rock, Music Choice and being A-Listed on Totalrock Radio as well as featured on numerous national FM and University Radio stations. The band completed another UK tour in March ending off with an epic headlining show at Kick Out The Jams Festival in London.

Some well-deserved down time in May was brought to an abrupt end by the news that Starseed were asked to play the Jagermeister Acoustic Stage at Download Festival 2010. Reluctantly putting down their weapons of choice, they rose to the challenge of re-working their songs to suit an acoustic set. With a mixed bag of nerves and excitement they took to the stage to be rewarded with an overwhelmingly positive crowd. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DBZSZ8pQ2F8

Descending from cloud 9, the band quickly set aside their acoustic instruments, to once again head out on the road as the support act for the UK’s hardy perennials, Senser http://www.senser.co.uk, encompassing a successful five date 02 Academy UK tour.

With more gigs up and down the country, an up and coming slot at the London Tattoo Convention in September and their much anticipated appearance, sharing the stage with the likes of Skid Row and Airbourne, at the Hard Rock Hell IV Festival in December, the band still find the time to hint at the possibility of releasing a second single off the Peace Machine album before the year closes!

Along with their UK success, “Shine” has also received high acclaim further afield by signing a distribution deal with Electromode, reaching No.1 in the Tuks FM SA Charts and the video of Shine http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI-w_wjhAFM is set to appear on TV station across their homeland of South Afr