What started as a project to maintain some semblance of sanity in the pandemic, Spitting Teeth quickly became a labour of love for vocalist Joel Heywood.
The UK band quickly picked up steam in the local scene, playing numerous shows and dropping a number of singles and EPs before going dormant whilst the other members explored other avenues (most notably Joel and drummer Chris Turner both play in the metalcore band Oceans Ate Alaska).
Now in 2025, Spitting Teeth are back and ready to pick up where they left off with new music in the works and a performance this weekend at the world famous Bloodstock Open Air Festival at Catton Hall in Walton-on-Trent, Derbyshire. I caught up with guitarist Matt Benson.
You guys have all played/still play in previous bands before How did Spitting Teeth come to be?
During lockdown Joel wanted to start something a little different, so he and our friend Kubes wrote some stuff, and it went from there, over the years we’ve spent time developing a good line up and it finally feels like we’re all fully in it now.
It's been a while since you released the track "Live Execution." What have you been up to in the time away from Spitting Teeth?
It’s been a quiet few years, we’ve had a few decent shows, we played with Dying Wish, Heavy Hitter, and did some headline shows. But mostly we’ve just been doing little bits of writing, Joel’s other band, Oceans Ate Alaska, have been busy which has given the rest of us time to spend writing some riffs.
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How does a Spitting Teeth song come about? Do you follow a particular process?
In the past, the music would be written by our friend Kubes and Joel would write the lyrics and record the vocals. Now we’re trying to make it a full band process of writing, it’s taking time due to having jobs and other commitments, but I believe it will be worth it when it all comes together.
Can you tell me a little about your upcoming release? What's its title, and what at can we expect on a musical level?
Our next release is (in my opinion) the most energetic and heavy song we have. It’s got the fast riffs, the slow heavy beatdowns mixed with the deep gutturals Joel does best. We can’t wait to put it out. The name will be revealed shortly.
You're playing Bloodstock Open Air Festival this weekend. Are you excited? Nervous? Both?
Very excited, I think we’re more nervous about making sure everything runs smoothly, but we are very excited and honoured to play such a fest.
What else have you got in the pipeline? What does the rest of the year look like for Spitting Teeth?
New music, that’s the main thing. It’s been a while, and we need to get some new stuff out. We are also in the process of sorting some tours so that is something to look forward to.
Do you have a message for the people reading this?
Thank you. We appreciate the fact we haven’t done much recently, and we are still lucky enough to have a committed fanbase as well as often get great show opportunities. We appreciate you and everything we get to do.
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Spitting Teeth on social media: Instagram
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