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Solstice Rider is a metal band formed in the glorious year of 2020 in the great State of Maryland! Jeremy Bluteau, founder and keyboards/clean vocals, talks us through the origins of the band:
What are the origins of Solstice Rider, how long have you been playing together?
Solstice Rider has been around since 2020, yet many of the ideas have been around for much longer. A lot of its bandmates have joined up in the last year or so, but songs like “Game of Life” were written as far back as 2017.
What should people expect when they check the band out? How would you describe Solstice Rider?
People should expect that Solstice Rider will appeal to a large variety of audiences. They should expect that the band will have a very diverse song portfolio from the heaviest of metal to the lightest of atmospheric music.
The new music scene is bursting at the seams at the minute with fresh talent, in what ways do you feel that a band has to stand out to build a name for themselves?
Solstice Rider approaches songwriting with an emphasis on emotional experiences so the songs have time to breathe and go through various ranges and dynamics. We stand out in the way we approach songwriting and we stand out with how nuanced it is.
What are you working on at the minute that people can check out?
The band is working on a new EP and an album that will be released in 2024, so we’re super excited to share that with everyone and we hope people enjoy it when it comes out. In the meantime, we have released a new single from that upcoming EP titled “The Wildchild Rides On” Which is a tribute to the late Alexi Laiho of Children Of Bodom.
In terms of a similar audience, which band out there at the minute do you feel you would be best suited to open for?
I feel like we could open for most bands that come from Europe. It’s one of my dreams to open up for Nightwish, personally. I know right now they’re not doing so much touring but if they ever do and we could ever have that opportunity it would certainly be a dream come true for me.
Excluding yourself, which new band would you like to see break out and become a success?
I would probably like to see Sylvatica from Denmark break out since they have a pretty unique sound and I really enjoy the music they put out.
What are your first musical memories? And what was the lightbulb moment that made you go “I want to do that”?
I would say that my most foundational musical memory was seeing Sonata Arctica live at Rams Head in Baltimore back in 2008 as a 14-year-old kid. It was on my birthday that they came and played and I remember meeting their keyboard player Henkka on the streets. He wished me a happy birthday and I remember thinking to myself “Wow, I could never have imagined this would happen”.
What was the last gig that you attended as a fan?
The most recent gig I saw was Insomnium in Baltimore. Jani Liimatainen was with them which I found absolutely crazy because when I first got into metal he had already left Sonata Arctica. I believe they opened up for a band called Enslaved. Very insane live show.
What current social issue are you particularly passionate about?
I tend to stay out of politics. I was interested at one point but I was tired of this Team A vs Team B soulsucking cold war between the opposing side. My passion is to bring people together. However, there is one issue that piques my interest. I think that Spotify needs to better compensate its artists considering they are the reason they make money in the first place.
The album that you have in your album collection/Spotify playlist that would surprise most people?
I have tons of anime music in my playlists. Yuki Kajiura, and other great composers like Joe Hisaishi. I listen to a lot of that stuff outside of metal music. Game OSTs and Movie OSTs as well.
There were some amazing new albums released this year, what would be your album of the year? And, what other new music have you been enjoying so far this year?
Probably Insomnium’s “Anno 1696”. As far as other new music I’ve really liked the Tears of the Kingdom OST. I’ve put hundreds of hours into that game,
What does 2024 hold for you?
A new EP and a new LP for the fans! Lots of new songs! New lyric videos. New things we can’t even talk about yet 🙂
How active are you on social media and where can people connect with you?
Very active and we will share below:
https://www.facebook.com/solsticeriderband
https://www.instagram.com/solsticerider/
