What originally began as a side-project, Andrew Godfrey has made Transylvania Stud his primary vehicle for creativity. But rock music is in a strange transition period. Despite the renaissance of heavy metal, there isn’t a proper platform for heavy music of the melodic variety. Newer acts have either adopted pop sensibilities or dropped anything remotely resembling a hook. For White Witch, Transylvania has found a satisfying middle-ground.
Combining elements of metal, psyche, and punk, White Witch is a whirlwind of grinding guitars and explosive percussion.
But beneath the layers of chaos lies a certain kind of groove often under-utilized in hard rock. With his debut EP Red Queen and a series of Soundgarden covers, Godfrey has up his game with his second release. White Witch expands upon what he started in Red Queen, but also feels like a soft reboot. The vibe is less experimental and puts an emphasis on the darker elements.
Ahead of the Halloween release of White Witch, I had the opportunity to speak with Godfrey. We discuss his new release, teaming up with some of Nashville’s finest, as well as the importance of actually paying for indie music.
What was it that made you want to start Transylvania Stud?
I wanted to write heavy music and explore different sounds separate from what I had always done which was more in the vein of early 90’s pop-rock.
We’ve covered your releases from the start (including the premiere of “Burn“!) How has Transylvania Stud evolved in the short time you’ve been releasing music?
I took a few chances on this new record. I started writing drums first and took it from there. I don’t consider myself a drummer but I do love writing and playing drums.
The previous release, Red Queen was more spacey and experimental. Was it a conscious decision to make White Witch heavier?
I started writing this record 2 years ago and I was in a pretty dark place. There were personal things happening in my life that were causing a lot of depression and anxiety, and that led to a lot of self-medication. I think that’s why the record feels darker and more aggressive.
Speaking of Red Queen and White Witch, am I sensing a theme here? Who is the model on the cover art?
My buddy Jake, who runs Workhorse Photography and did the Red Queen’s photography, hooked me up with Milenci Kouzlo. She’s a Suicide Girl as well. They did a few shoots to get a continuing theme as well as some extra stuff to use with other merch. I think it turned out perfect and I was super excited to work with Jake again and with Milenci for the first time.
Since putting out music on an indie label as well as yourself, what have you learned about how the indie music industry works when it comes to album releases?
The music industry is no longer what it was even in the short amount of time that I’ve been in it. I know more people creating and pumping out content for free than I ever would have thought possible. Music is no longer “worth something” generally speaking. We’ve created an entire population who thinks we shouldn’t be paid for our creation and that we should be lucky that they even want to listen to it. Again, not everyone is this way, just speaking generally.
You’re pretty vocal about not being a fan of streaming services. Can you school the kids out there on how they hurt DIY artists?
Currently, there are some streaming services that are actively trying to overturn the MMA (music modernization act) in court because they don’t feel like paying me $0.004 a spin vs $0.001 is “fair”. Never mind that these “services” don’t exist without the artist. Pay for your music kids.
In addition to George Pauly of The By Gods producing White Witch, he and Natalie Pauly appear on the album. You know I’m a Nashville fanboy. What did they bring to the table on this go around?
The opening track I wanted to have George play a cool melodic guitar solo and have Natalie sing the background vocals during the first verse. It worked out beautifully and made the song one of my favorites from the record.
And of course, our favorite Nashville personality Andy Herrin lends his percussion talents too yeah?
Andy is such a good drummer, I wanted him to play drums on a few tunes. He smashed it out of the park and gave me a break during recording. He also brought some really cool ideas that ended up sounding a little cooler than I had originally written.
It seems like hard rock has buried itself in a certain butt-rock market like Five Finger Death Punch or whatever, is there a shortage of hard rock out there? What can we do to convince listeners, hard rock isn’t about Monster Energy and truck nuts?
All I can do is keep putting out music that people like you will write about.
What did you set out to do with White Witch? Has the Transylvania Stud mission changed since your first release?
The only mission is to play rock and roll. When that changes that means it’s time to hang it up.
Why should we listen to the White Witch? What’s the take away you’re hoping for?
I hope that people will take away that heavy guitars and big ass drums are still the best way to make rock music.
White Witch will be available for download on Bandcamp.