Welcome to my fortress of torture…
Gates To Hell is a Louisville, Kentucky based band who released their debut self-titled album in September of 2022. The band consists of vocalist Ryan Storey, bassist Dustin Cantrell, guitarists Seth Lewis, Stephen Price, and Eli Hanson, and drummer Jared Barron.
Their album was one of my top albums of 2022 and it includes nine tracks. The single “Fortress of Torture” was released back in August and was a great first look at the album and might be my favorite track from the record. “Hell’s Warrior II” kicks off the album with a cool piano sample (learn more about that in the interview if you keep reading) and is a follow up to the song “Hell’s Warrior” released in 2021.
They recently announced their joining to the Maggot Stomp label and they currently have CDs available with a second vinyl pressing on the way.
Gates To Hell had their record release show on February 11 in Louisville with Year Of The Knife, Sentenced 2 Die, Two Witnesses, and a few other bands. 250 paid attendees were at this hometown show, something to truly be proud of.
Louisville hardcore is one to watch.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Louisville scene, your first stop should be Life & Death Brigade, a record label and annual festival. They started the record label in 2016 as a way to support artists and uplift bands we think deserve more attention. Every penny spent goes right back into the label and goes towards supporting and releasing bands we represent and believe in. More info can be found here.
Gates To Hell will be heading back on the road starting March 9. They’ll visit a few spots like Richmond, Baltimore, East Haven, and Fulton, before returning to their hometown for the LDB Festival and post show on March 18 and 19.
After their LDB shows, they will head to a few other locations including Atlanta, Miami, Daytona, Hattiesburg, New Orleans, and Little Rock. Then they will travel overseas to Europe from April 12 to May 7 with Japanese hardcore band Kruelty.
Check out the full list of dates below and continue reading for a mini interview with the band.
Your debut album was released on September 5. Talk to us about this release! What does the album mean to you as a band and/or individuals?
This is our first full length we’ve put out as a band, so it’s very special to all of us. These are our most well written songs to date and we’re all very happy with how they turned out.
Describe the album in three words.
Heavy
Deathcore
Riffs
When listening to the album, something that caught my attention was the use of the piano in the first track/album introduction. Could you talk about this a little? I would love to learn more about the thought process behind using the piano.
So that piano is from a movie called Manos: The Hands of Fate. We kinda mashed it in with a couple other sound clips for that intro sample though. It just sounded eerie and we thought it would sit well before the first track.
What are some of the main topics you decided to cover on this album? Is there anything you didn’t get to cover that you might decide to focus on in future music?
Most of our songs are just about killing people along with some other horror influenced themes. Probably will keep future writing pretty consistent with this for the most part.
What are some Louisville based bands, shops, etc., that we should check out and support?
Louisville is awesome. Very happy to have so many great bands come through the city. And very thankful to have a fest like LDB in our hometown. Louisville has some great bands too. Check out 3 Poisons, Two Witnesses, Constraint, and Shitfire.
You all have played a handful of shows recently, including some shows with Constraint. What are some of your go to items for tour?
Really just like to prepare by making sure our gear will last us the whole tour and stay safe. Always bring backup instruments and plenty of strings, cables, and drumsticks.
How have these recent shows been going, especially with the new album release? What has been your favorite moment so far?
There hasn’t really been a single bad show since the album dropped. They’ve all been great. A favorite moment was definitely getting to play in Canada for the first time. All of the shows up there really stood out.
How does it feel to be included as part of the Act Like You Know Festival in Tulsa? What are you looking forward to in Tulsa outside of the festival? Any restaurants or stores you’re going to check out?
Very grateful to be included in this amazing lineup. This is a great fest. We played last year and we’re really hoping to play it again at some point. So we’re very happy for the opportunity.
Really looking forward to going to Sake2Me for sushi and trying some new coffee spots.
What other bands on the lineup are you excited about?
Really looking forward to Sentenced 2 Die, Gridiron, Raw Life, Blind to Life, and Snuffed on Sight.
If you had to share one last thing with us, what would that message be?
Shoutout Louisville Hardcore.
