Metal Anarchy

Time for the next edition of Metal Anarchy’s “new music showcase,” the feature where I introduce you to bands that readers of this site may find interesting. This time I have an exclusive Q&A with Altostratus.

METAL ANARCHY: Tell me a little about your band:

ALTOSTRATUS: We are Altostratus and we play our own brand of widdly, technical, instrumental progressive metal. We’ve been a band since 2015 and started out with Jack (drums) and myself (Alex/guitar) writing/recording some Periphery inspired demos together in the north of England. With the addition of Andrew Smith on bass, those demos turned into what is the Altitude EP (2015). It’s around this time that we also recruited Jordan Harris (guitar) after discovering his guitar videos and YouTube channel. We’ve been great friends working together since and have spent the last 4 years gigging, writing, and recording our latest album Complete the Connection (2020). We’re currently based across the UK and will embarking on our headline UK tour this April.

METAL ANARCHY: Who are your main influences?

ALTOSTRATUS: I’d say we’re mostly influenced by modern progressive bands such as Meshuggah, Periphery, Intervals, TesseracT, CHON, Cloudkicker, and Animals As Leaders. We’re also somewhat influenced by the cloudy northern skies and its weather (as is suggested in our band name) and try to reflect that in the soundscape of our music. If you listen to “Zephyr” you can hear a lot of ‘airy’ layers that represent this.

METAL ANARCHY: What is your latest release and why should readers of this site check it out?

ALTOSTRATUS: We just released our debut album “Complete the Connection” which we’re very excited about as it’s been in the works for a while. We spent a large portion of the writing process making sure that the pace of the record as a whole worked from start to finish, and that every song has it’s own identity. It features our heaviest parts to date, as well as a grander, almost post-rock feel throughout. We paid close attention to what every chord says and how every section feels. It’s taken us this long to release as no compromises have been made in regards to composition, and we have spent countless hours discussing very minor details. This has accumulated to create a very nuanced, dynamic – and what we believe to be – epic piece of music.

METAL ANARCHY: What can people expect when they go to your live shows?

ALTOSTRATUS: Our live shows are very interactive and we love to get the crowd involved in one way or another. People can expect an intense musical experience from our breadth of riffs and breakdowns, but they can also expect much moshing and possibly an intimate dance with the band. In the song “Hidden in a Cloud” we will be getting three separate Walls Of Death going at certain parts of the song, so if you come see us, please be ready to be in three Walls Of Death.

METAL ANARCHY: Where do you see your band heading in 5 years?

ALTOSTRATUS: In five years time we hope to be able to make this band sustainable whilst being able to tour regularly and maintain our great relationship with our fans. We hope to be touring the USA, India, and Europe, as well as having made another couple of records.