Kickin’ back with NYC’s Castle Black

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Kickin’ back with NYC’s Castle Black

Another Q&A with Scott Belzer | July 3rd, 2024

New York City, baby! The city so nice they named it twice! The Big Apple! Ayyyy, I’m walking here!

I’ve never met them, but I’d be willing to bet New York’s Castle Black uses these phrases every day. And that includes every day in the studio. How else could you craft such raw, visceral yet beautiful soundscapes on their debut LP, The Highway at Night?

Castle Black is a band for everyone. They’re kinda punk, kinda post punk, kinda stoner doom, kinda prog. It’s good ol’ fashioned rock’n’roll baby. As such, I couldn’t wait to ask vocalist/guitarist Leigh Celent a barrage of questions, including the influence of George R.R. Martin, the five NYC boroughs and the secret to a good interlude.

Enjoy!

  1. Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions! What is Castle Black? What’s the origin story?

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us! Very simply, Castle Black released its first EP back in 2015 and has gone through some twists and turns since then to arrive at who we are today. 

  1. Castle Black, eh? Are you Game of Thrones fans? Does George R.R. Martin or HBO’s hit television show play any role in how you craft music or lyrics?

The band name absolutely came from my personal love of the A Song of Ice and Fire books by George R.R. Martin and the Game of Thrones series on HBO. There are lots of good band names in the story!

Joey (drummer) joined the band in 2018 and had not watched the series or read the books. He’d often get asked at shows about the name, so he became interested, I think. He watched the last season with me in 2019 and I had to fill him in during it, which as you can imagine, lead to a lot of pauses and long explanations. At some point after that, he went back and watched the whole series and is now a committed fan. We’re currently absorbed in House of the Dragon. 

It is just a band name so we don’t go around singing about Westeros. However, there was one line that did actually influence a song – Nan says to Bran something about how he was born in summer, “Oh my sweet summer child, what do you know of fear?” This conversation had me thinking a lot about what it means to be born in a certain season or with certain circumstances around one’s birth.  Those thoughts lead to our song “Dead in a Dream” off the 2019 EP Take Her My Life. 

  1. I’d say Castle Black’s sound has ingredients of everything in it, including doomy stoner rock, post-punk, regular punk and prog rock, among others. Other than George and HBO, what are Castle Black’s major influences? Where does that sound come from? How long has it been in the making?

Thank you! We are influenced by everything around us, really, and I think that comes through in our music. As I was mentioning before, sometimes just hearing a conversation that is thought-provoking to us, can lead to the birth of a song. 

Our sound from the beginning tried to push different elements within the parameters of rock music – in the earlier EPs, there were a decent number of tempo shifts and key changes and eventually some time signature changes. Our sound has definitely changed over the years, but I think the current sound still goes back to the overall concept of trying something maybe unexpected while still in the framework of a catchy rock song. Our goal isn’t to have anyone notice these elements necessarily, but rather to work these elements seamlessly into a song that the listener then feels or experiences in a certain way. 

Adding Joey Russo to the band on drums in 2018 also contributed to the sound you hear today. His drum parts are unique, powerful, and interesting and they make up a layer of the songs that absolutely craft the sound. He is insanely fun to watch live as well. 

  1. Does New York City’s never-ending well of art and performance play a role in crafting that sound? There’s always plenty going on – do you throw it all in the blender and see what comes out/works, or is it more nuanced than that?

It’s hard to say because I have been living in NYC the entire time that I have been making music, so I don’t really have a reference point for making music in any other environment. The atmosphere here certainly lends itself to opportunities – when you are starting out, there are tons of people you can connect with and tons of places to explore for inspiration. Then when you are an actual band there are countless ways to fit yourself into the music scene and there are a ton of excellent bands who inspire you every day. Of course, being in NYC can also be a tough and isolating experience, trying to find where you fit in, figuring out how to build a fan base in a city with so many options etc. Both of those extremes, I’d say, contribute to how we make music. 

Our song writing process is more like making a five-course meal, as opposed to making a smoothie. We think about every part of the song, every instrument, every beat really and how they interact. We have most of the nuances worked out before we ever start to record. If one of those elements is off, the dish will be off, which could throw the whole meal off, whereas with a smoothie, the process is more forgiving.   

  1. I love the interlude out of nowhere on track six, complete with some recited poetry before really breaking it down, man. What’s the backstory on that? Is that a favorite or original poem? What’s the key to inserting the perfect interlude, and what are its ingredients?

Joey and I both like interludes on albums and so we absolutely wanted one on our first full-length. The Highway at Night is already a story and so the interlude naturally breaks the musical sections up and gives some more insight into what the album is about. 

I wrote the poem for the interlude, which kind of sums up the themes of the album. On our last EP, 2021’s Get Up Dancer, I also wrote a poem for the album (used on the artwork only, not recorded for the album). We later did record the poem so that we could cut it up and use the clips in our live set. So, we basically took that idea one step further on The Highway at Night and included it as an actual track. 

  1. Similarly, I’d love to know the writing process on “Bright-Eyed” – a track that really blends aggression with a melancholic desperation. How do you even begin to write an empowering, make-you-wanna-deadlift-a-MACK-truck.. ballad?

Thank you for the kind words! Our general writing process is that I’ll write the song outline on guitar and vocals and then share it with Joey, who will add drums. We usually write the bass and any other parts after we have the guitar/drum/vocal version solid. 

For “Bright-Eyed” this was the process, but the wild card factor was that I had just obtained a Danelectro baritone guitar and I wanted to write the song on the baritone. From the start, I think that choice just lent itself to creating that kind of melancholic empowerment, as you have so poetically described. I usually write the lyrics/vocal melody first, and “Bright-Eyed” was no exception. Then I kind of fit the guitar in around the lyrics/vocal melody. I popped onto a regular guitar too during the writing process as there is a layer of regular guitar on the recording, but it was also to be sure that I was indeed writing the song on the right instrument. 

  1. There’s a raw, visceral edge to the music despite it being very well-produced. It seems like a lot of bands sacrifice one for the other (i.e. something is very nice-sounding, but lacking some raw emotion, or vice versa). How do you guys ensure emotion and expression stay front and center? What’s the secret?

We’ll chalk that up to working with great engineers and producers – Oliver Strauss at Mission Sound in Brooklyn recorded the instruments. His drum room is one of the best that we have seen in NYC – it really makes things sound alive and booming. He also gets the guitar sound that I’m going for. I record vocals with Mark Plati here in NYC (and he mixed the songs) – Mark is really good at getting an emotional vocal performance and not losing that performance in the mix. With Mark, I feel totally comfortable trying things out and making mistakes and that’s really important when recording vocals that sound natural and emotive. 

  1. What’s one thing you hope people take away from Castle Black’s live show?

The one thing I hope people take away from the Castle Black live show is that it’s an authentic and powerful expression of the music, one I hope that they wish to experience again. 

  1. Castle Black has played several popular festivals, including Cuch Fest, Lady Bug, MacRock, Mondo, Northside, PRFBBQLOU, FemmeFest, FierceFemme, NJ Shore, Elephant Talk, and Staten Island’s PrideFest. Any stories to share? Which has been the best or most enlightening experience?

Our best festival experience has been in Montreal for Cuch Fest (2023) and Equinox Fest (2024). Both are small festivals local to Montreal. They are so well run and a strong demonstration of community in music. We have met and played with some really incredible bands at those festivals and the people who came out to the shows were really energetic and brought such good energy. The shows felt like cohesive events attended by people who loved music. Both of these festivals take good care of the artists too, especially if you are coming from far away, which makes them stand out. 

  1. You’ve also opened for some notable names. Any stories to share in that regard? What’s one thing most people don’t know about Big D & the Kids Table?

Haha, well I didn’t know who Big D & the Kids Table were until we played that show so maybe people will also just be learning who they are. It was a long time ago, I barely remember that show, other than I think my old guitar teacher filled in on bass! 

The show with Richard Lloyd from Television was interesting because he was upset that another band on the bill played over their time and I was in this small green room talking with him about it. He would never remember this interaction I’m sure and I don’t even think he saw our set that night, but that conversation sticks out in my mind for whatever reason. 

  1. Any advice for younger bands just getting their start that may see your set and think, “I love this. I want to do this shit.”

Just do it? I’d also say don’t abandon other things that you might like or love because you never know when it might be helpful to your music, either directly or indirectly. For example, I danced as a kid and recently brought that into our music (see the official “Heart Can’t Feel” video)!

  1. To close us out, a bit more fun – what’s the best of the five New York boroughs and why? Which has the best slice?

All of the five boroughs have unique personalities and something interesting about them. Living in Brooklyn, I am a bit biased for favorites. Brooklyn has a lot going on, with a lot of peaceful areas too. I’ll take the non-controversial route and say that I’m sure you can get an excellent slice in any of the boroughs. 

-Scott Belzer

Castle Black appear in Atlanta this Sunday, July 7th on a stacked lineup with Hensleys, Black Cat Rising, and Smoochface at Boggs Social. Tickets are on sale here.