Thirdface creates music in short, chaotic bursts. Imagine Bad Brains, mixed with Napalm Death, Devo, and Converge. Fusing grindcore, punk and experimental indie rock elements, this hardcore unit’s sound emanate from guitarist David Reichly, bassist Maddy Madeira, drummer Shibby Poole, and vocalist Kathyrn Edwards.
Some have called Thirdface metal, and Edwards doesn’t necessarily agree but understands the comparison. “Shibby is from a more metal background, he’s in the band called Yaujuta, and Maddy and David are also into noise rock, and power violence. One of my favorite genres is late 70s/80s post-punk. So, when you mix all those sounds together, calling us metal is reasonable. All of our influences come out in our music.”
Based in Nashville, Edwards and the rest of Thirdface have been jamming music together for several years, but all met around 2007.
“I moved to Nashville to go to college then,” said Edwards. “But the rest of the band is from here. Maddy Shibby and David have all been in bands and know a lot of people.”
`Edwards got into booking small shows in Nashville while in school, and eventually, the four musicians became friends. “I know they were starting a hardcore band,” Edwards said. “Then I remember one day they asked me to be a singer so I wrote some stuff, and the next day we practiced. It’s been a few years now, and it’s been a lot of fun.”
With a new record entitled Do It With a Smile, which came out March 5, on Indie Rock record label Exploding in Sound Edwards says she is optimistic about releasing new music during the Covid-19 Pandemic.
“Normally for a release, you’d have some shows to play, maybe even a tour, or have some sort of release gig but now everything is online there’s not a whole lot of outlets,” Edwards said. “People say now’s not the best time to release music but we actually think it’s a perfect time since so many people are looking for new forms of entertainment and are open to music they might not have been otherwise.”
Edwards said that for being a band on Exploding in Sound, Thirdface sticks out like a sore thumb, musically. “We definitely had some people tell us on social media they took interest because of the label we’re on,” she said. “People notice us since we don’t sound like the other bands on the label, and also because of the other bands Shibby, David and Maddy are associated with. Being on this label has led to new fans people who normally wouldn’t listen to us discover us.”
Like all bands, Thirdface has been unable to tour or play shows during the past year due to the shutdowns. “The last show we played before the shutdown was a house show here in town, with the Nashville band Tom Violence,” Edwards said. “But, since then, we have been able to get together and practice on a daily regular basis which is good,” Edwards said that by the time quarantine started last March, the band had already completed recording the album.
“Since we were done with the record, and couldn’t play live shows, we’ve just been writing new songs and rehearsing, and doing what we can to keep the creative output as high as possible during these times.”
Due to the lack of tours or live shows during the past year, Thirdface has done some live streaming events, some specifically for the DIY venue Edwards runs in Nashville called Drkmttr.
The DIY live music venue has a 150 capacity and is not open for shows. “Since we can’t open up with a restricted capacity and pay touring bands,” Edwards said. “If we did that, we’d have to raise the prices significantly beyond what DIY underground fans can afford, so financially it’s not viable or necessary for us to do shows again. That time will come.”
Edwards said that since the shutdown began, Drkmttr has been repurposed to be a community food store. “We have free food available for all people in need. We’ve been providing a space for an organization called Free Nashville Store, it’s all run entirely by donations. ”
Although Thirdface has no immediate plans for any shows, they keep an open mind to other online shows or events. “We have done some towards the end of last year, as part of a fundraiser for Drkmttr and a few other online festivals,” she said. “We always get asked if we’re doing any more, and we’re keeping our eyes and ears open for any,” Edwards said.
Edwards said being a band on Exploding in Sound, a label is known for Indie Rock, Thirdface sticks out like a sore thumb, musically. “We definitely had some people tell us on social media they took interest because of the label we’re on,” she said. “People notice us since we don’t sound like the other bands on the label, and also because of the other bands Shibby, David and Maddy are associated with. Being on this label has led to new fans people who normally wouldn’t listen to us discover us.”
Times are unstable, but the members of Thirdface are all making the best of it. “Once things become safer, and more restrictions are lifted we definitely plan to play shows and even go on a tour,” Edwards said. “ We’re happy for now with helping the community with the food store. We also have another pressing of our vinyl record coming out soon since it sold out. And we’re making a music video for one of our tracks on the album, and it should be released later this year.”
