CHEKHOV'S GUN

Edinburgh doesn’t have the best reputation as a birthplace for bands. But since the mighty Chekhov’s Gun burst onto the scene in 2023, they have quickly positioned themselves as a band to watch out for with promise to make it big in the metal scene. In 2024, they made it to the final round of Scotland’s Metal 2 The Masses competition to play on the New Blood stage at Bloodstock Festival. As the youngest band on the stage, they gave bands with twenty years more experience a run for their money. Having supported Nameless Ones on their national UK tour, they have an impressive amount of live music experience under their belts for a bunch of lads in their early twenties.

I myself have attended a few of their gigs, so I can attest that any local metalhead will enjoy their material and that they should head down to their next gig at their earliest convenience. Metal as a genre is known to have a reputation as being very homogenous, especially for newer bands where it seems there isn’t much new genre territory to be explored anymore. But I reckon Chekhov’s Gun have managed to craft themselves a sound that sets them apart from other modern bands. Blending elements of progressive, death, groove and black metal, their complex riffs and unique melodies will infect your ears and intrigue the mind. Their first single released in 2023, ‘Mortonhall’ was a strong starting statement for the band, Their most recent EP ‘Eat The Rich’ builds on their already promising prowess with four gut-punching tracks that aptly crticise the failings of modern politics and capitalist society. I have heard a rumour that a second EP is in the works that will experiment with classical elements as well. These kinds of genre crossovers are sure to make their new material even more fascinating and bring an intellectual flair similar to prog titans like Opeth and Dimmu Borgir. It will also benefit from the recent addition of fifth member Shane Dudley’s contributions (more on that later!). 

As students of Edinburgh and Napier University, they have played at fresher’s gigs for the respective rock and metal societies and been hosted on the Napier ENRG podcast. This is sure to help grow their fanbase and inspire other Gen Z musicians to form their own bands. Read on to my interview with founding members and best friends, James Muir and Joshua Roberts to learn more about one of Scotland’s top emerging bands. 

How did you end up forming a band?

(James Muir) 

The band originally formed from me and Josh. This was after Josh dropped out of university in Glasgow. Basically, he was getting into more metal music and so was I and we found that we wanted to start writing metal music together. We had a band originally in high school and another briefly in Glasgow so we had already played together quite a bit but metal music was more rewarding to play for us and we both liked the technical aspect and the more experimental side of metal. So once we had come up with some demos, a couple of riffs, a few songs, I asked my mate Ruben to join who I knew from uni. We seemed to all get on quite well so that worked out and eventually we obviously needed a singer so tried a few people on Facebook and just sent out some applications online. We came to Ignas pretty quick which worked out really well. We got him to learn Slayer’s ‘Seasons In The Abyss’ and the first time we heard him it felt like he was shaking the room. He was perfect. 

What's the story behind the band name?

(Joshua Roberts) 

Prior to Ruben being in the band, he had a big list of band names which he was going to use for his and James’ previous band. I got James to also join a band I had in Glasgow and we needed a name, so we stole one that Ruben wasn’t using (with his permission). This was Chekhov’s Gun. We only stayed with that band maybe two to three months after that and then left when I dropped out of uni. We also left because we preferred writing heavier music which didn’t suit the band. Luckily for us, they weren’t even that keen on the name so we took it with us. Ironically, by the time Ruben joined I think he’d gone off it at this point but I convinced him. Chekhov’s Gun is a narrative principle that states every element of a story must be necessary (thanks Wikipedia). We could say the elements of our music have relevancy and pay offs blah blah blah. Pretentious as fuck… Really though, I think it’s quite a transferable tool to apply to your music and keep you grounded. But honestly the name just sounds interesting. 

How do you find time to rehearse, write music and play gigs around your uni work and jobs? How do you keep up the motivation?

(James Muir)

It is hard to find time for everyone, we’ve all got completely different schedules and commitments but we make it work. In terms of motivation, I don’t think that will ever disappear or at least if it does that’ll be the end of the band. We’re always inspired to write new music and we’re really proud of what we’ve done so far, of course we can always do better. And it’s that need to write the best music we possibly can that drives us forward.

(Joshua Roberts)

The stress of the band, studying and/or working definitely adds up. But we’re all invested. We all have the drive. It’s the social media, getting merch and organisation that’s the stress. The composing, the performing and the recording, that’s fun. 

Which bands are your biggest inspiration?

(James Muir)

I say at the start classic Metallica was a big influence. You can hear that a lot in our song ‘Eat The Rich’. Other classic thrash bands Megadeth, Slayer also played a roll. I would also highlight King Gizzard and The Lizzard Wizard’s two metal albums, ‘Infest The Rats’ Nest’ and ‘PetroDragonic’. After which I really got into Carcass, especially their more progressive album Necrotisicm, which is still one of my favourite albums. I like the dark sound along with the strange lyrics and word play. I find the music very creative and at points quite humorous. I think a sense of humour is very important in the metal genre. Especially when talking about ghouls, zombies and other horror tropes. In this album I was really intrigued by their true crime horror vibe. We have loads of different influences outside of metal as well we’re not just metal elitists. Personally, I grew up on ‘70s progressive rock music and I like a bit of experimental electronic too. That new album by Blood Incantation combines these worlds of ‘70s prog and death metal really well so that’s right up my street.

Do you find social media is helpful for reaching new audiences and industry connections? 

(Joshua Roberts) 

Yes and no. Its an easy way for people to get in contact with us but most connections are made at live gigs and then followed up on social media. The in-person connections and performance are much more valuable. Social media can be great for advertisement of shows and keep us on people’s minds, but it can be a full-time job and sometimes mentally unhealthy in an environment of constant comparison. For us it’s not what art is about in any way. We just try to use it to build a fan base. 

With your new CDs and merch, how has that been helping you earn more money at shows? 

(James Muir & Joshua Roberts) 

Yes it definitely helps a lot. It’s the only way of making any real profit and we’re probably still at a net loss, but that doesn’t really matter. The best part is just knowing people enjoy your music enough to wear your logo, it really means a lot and it’s a great chance to chat to people at the gig. CDs have been selling surprisingly well. It’s awesome to know people actually want to listen to you when they get home (and it pays much better than Spotify). Having these other mediums of art allows us to collaborate with friends and local artists in Edinburgh. Working with other artists and building a sense of community is a great feeling. 

With the new addition to the band Shane, what influence do you think he will bring to your sound? 

When thinking about adding a fifth member to the lineup, our only option was Shane. He’d become a really close friend after meeting him at one of our early gigs around March 2024. He already got along really well with us and he’s one of the most determined, hard-working people I’d ever met. If he’d said no, we’d still be a four piece, I thought it’d only work if it were him. When I asked him, he said that when he first saw us in March, he knew he was gonna play with us at some point. It was fate haha. Shane’s addition lets us write more complicated guitar riffs for the future, maybe even some awesome harmonies. It frees Ignas in his live performance and allows him to take his prowess back to the keys in which he is classically trained. In terms of song writing, Shane is well experienced in writing grunge with his previous band Shotlock. He’s also been writing more complex thrash and death metal riffs and solos inspired by the likes of Chuck Schuldiner and Marty Friedman. He also boasts a nice clean singing voice. Shane adds many a tool to the collection and he’s got new tunes in the bank ready for Chekhov’s Gun.