Martin Stewart of Terror, God's Hate, Donnybrook!, L.I.O.N. Crew, Sound and Fury fest and more...

Hey guys! We had the absolute honor and privilege of catching up with Martín Stewart, guitarist of Terror, God’s Hate, part of Sound and Fury festival masterminds, and pretty much every other dope ass band you’ve ever listened to. We discuss his influences, touring, state of the scene, IE favorites, imo and more!

ECZ: What’s your name and what do you do?

MARTÍN: My name is Martín and I exist as a force of pure will in this universe

ECZ: What was your gateway into the hardcore scene?

MARTÍN: Growing up in Los Angeles and getting into the local punk scene at the time, which gradually lead me to hometown HC heroes like Strife, Eyelid, etc.

ECZ: What album changed your life and why?

MARTÍN: So, so many to choose from for a multitude of different reasons, but for this I’ll go with Eighteen Visions “Lifeless”. That was a record that really made me realize what it truly meant to be a part of a local DIY scene. To witness your peers that you see at all the same shows you attend, doing the work to create their own zines, start their own labels, record their friends’ bands, book their own shows… it was one of my first truly grounded inspirations for where I’m at today.

ECZ: What is a piece of gear that you own currently that you wish you would’ve discovered sooner?

MARTÍN: I’m assuming you mean guitar gear?!… If so, I just recently finally started messing with a 7-band EQ and I love it

ECZ: What is the writing process like for each of your bands and how do they differentiate from one another?

MARTÍN: Oh man, they’re all so wildly different. Terror for me has always been the most “professional” experience where we often get into a room, jam things out, bounce ideas, make countless demos where everyone gives input. It’s usually a longer process. With other projects I’ve done throughout the years it’s been much more of a personal scenario. A lot of times I just have a ton of ideas in my head and by the time I bring something to the rest of the band, the song is about 95% ready to go, lyrics and all

ECZ: What was the first song you ever wrote and what inspired it?

MARTÍN: The first song I remember having a hand in writing was for my first band in middle school called The Bandit. The song was called “Chaw” and it was literally about chewing tobacco. The first song I remember writing the riffs for was with the second band I was in called No Allegiance. Nothing really came of the song in that time with that band but the riffs ended up being used for one of the first Donnybrook songs called “There’s No Love Here”

ECZ: How do you handle a creative block or creative differences within the bands?

MARTÍN: Just do a hard reset. Stop what’s being done, do something completely unrelated and come back to it later

ECZ: What is your biggest pet peeve?

MARTÍN: From life in general? Probably ignorant people with no sense of empathy. People with the inability to put themselves in other’s shoes. Also people with bad etiquette, like not returning your shopping cart or leaving your empty bin on the belt at TSA screening

ECZ: What accomplishments are you most proud of in and outside the music industry?

MARTÍN: Just being able to play music around the entire world for this long. Never in a million years did I think it would’ve been possible

ECZ: How do you handle external pressures and expectations from both the music industry and fans?

MARTÍN: I don’t succumb to pressure too easily when it comes to those sorts of things. Just gotta push through and do what you feel is right

ECZ: What are your top five travel/touring essentials?

MARTÍN:

iPhone (for fun)
MacBook (for work)
iPad (for drawing)
Kindle / Book
Deodorant / Cologne

ECZ: What food/beverage places do you look forward to the most while on tour? Any hidden gems?

MARTÍN: I look most forward to getting back home from tour and getting a burrito from El Atacor but there’s definitely stuff I love all over this world. BBQ in the south, pizza and delis in the northeast, Indian food in the UK… the list is too crazy. One bit of advice… if you love Taco Bell, don’t try it anywhere else outside of the U.S.

ECZ: What does your tour routine consist of and how do you prepare emotionally and physically?

MARTÍN: It can really depend on where I’m at in the world… but generally I try to wake up early-ish provided that I was able to get a good night’s sleep. Do some stretching so I don’t feel like a total mess. Find some good coffee in the area… do some research on whether or not there’s some local landmarks, museums, etc. Suss out some good wifi so I can get on my laptop and work for a bit. Check the cameras at home to see if I can see my cat. I just try my best to be balanced and keep things in somewhat of a moderation

ECZ: Which band that you’ve toured with has had the biggest Influence on you? What elements did you take from them that you have personally implemented?

MARTÍN: One of the first tours I went on as a member of Terror back in 2006 was a traveling festival called Sounds of the Underground. There was a ton of really cool bands on it. Behemoth was one of those bands and I had already been listening to them for a while at that point, so I was excited to have the opportunity to see them play every day. We ended up meshing with them personally pretty well and had an awesome experience getting to know them. I had several long conversations with their singer Nergal throughout the tour and he opened me up to a lot of new ways of thinking. He also recommended some reading material that helped shaped me into the person that I am today

ECZ: What music is on heavy rotation for you at the moment?

MARTÍN: Right now is a mix between a lot of Mongrel, Giveon, some Wallachian Cobwebs and always some Hole Dweller and Grandma’s Cottage as my general life soundtrack. The new Sargeist and Kūka’ilimoku go really hard too

ECZ: Name three underrated bands?

MARTÍN: I’ll up the stakes here and just give you one that I think is the most underrated of all-time: CANDIRIA

ECZ: What are your top five hardcore EP’s?

MARTÍN:

Strife “Grey”

Infest “S/T”

Dystopia “Backstabber” (not really “hc” but oh well)

Warzone “Lower East Side”

Wide Awake “CT Hardcore”

ECZ: What do you think holds more value in a song- message conveyed, heaviness, or potential longevity of structure?

MARTÍN: Absolutely, without a doubt, “message conveyed”

ECZ: What are some crazy and funny tour stories that you can share? What about fan interactions?

MARTÍN: There’s so many that Terror is literally in the process of trying to get a book together about the 20+ years of the band hahaha

ECZ: What keeps you inspired and motivated?

MARTÍN: Seeing all of my peers do cool and creative things has always been my motivation

ECZ: Terror has and always will be a pivotal imprint in hardcore, how do you feel your sound has both impacted and influenced the industry and other respective artists?

MARTÍN: Not really sure how to answer that! I mean, whatever the impact may be, I’m hoping it’s a positive one. You don’t hear too many bands sounding like Terror these days, imo. Most of the stuff at the moment is so many tiers heavier than what we do so it’s hard to tell if the “sound” has had an impact. Hopefully the love & reverence we have for HC holds some sort of influence!

ECZ: We can’t wait for Sound and Fury! Can you tell us how your involvement came about and what are you looking forward to the most this year?

MARTÍN: We can’t wait either! Sean Riley, who is one of the original 3 that started the festival, is one of my oldest and closest friends. We’ve done a lot of projects together in the past, mostly all relating to furthering our local scene. The festival had been inactive for a couple of years at one point and back in 2015 I basically just hounded him enough and convinced him to bring it back with me on board, so we did exactly that in 2016

ECZ: What would be your dream music festival lineup and why?

MARTÍN: Every year we do Sound And Fury is my dream music festival lineup. The only thing that could personally make it better for me is if Layne Staley rose from his grave and Alice In Chains played

ECZ: How do you feel about the current state of hardcore? What changes (positive and negative) do you feel need to be addressed?

MARTÍN: I think the current state of HC is beautiful. There always has been and always will be complaints and I’ll just continue to do the things that move and fulfill me personally

ECZ: What genuinely makes you happy?

MARTÍN: For one, having a hand in creating spaces where people feel comfortable, and that can mean so many different things. Music and all other forms of “art” is another… consuming and creating. Doing whatever it is that I want…“May my will forever be unrestrained!”

ECZ: What is one thing about you that fans would be surprised to learn?

MARTÍN: Hmmm… good question. Maybe that the word “fan” has always made me feel uncomfortable? I have such a hard time viewing anyone as a fan when it comes to HC. Fan makes me think of someone that doesn’t have a hand in whatever it is they’re enjoying. We’re all in this together!

ECZ: What are some your hobbies/interests outside of hardcore?

MARTÍN: I love to collect books and read… non-fiction only for the most part. Lots of stuff about the occult, metaphysics, ancient civilizations. I love watching sports, live and at home, especially MMA. I love traveling more than most things and luckily HC has provided endless opportunities for me to do that. Chilling is one of my favorite pastimes though, especially if my cat is involved. I could chill and watch movies for the rest of my life and be happy

ECZ: What is your most prized merch possession?

MARTÍN: I guess off the top of my head it would be my Warzone polo tee from The Sound of Revolution tour. My brother and I got to see them at the Showcase Theater on this tour and it will always stick out as one of the coolest shows we’ve both ever seen

ECZ: What are your favorite venues to play at and watch shows at?

MARTÍN: There’s been many over the years, like the Showcase Theater, but that will always change with the times… I think right now one of them would be The Belasco in LA because it’s a super cool room with a lot of history, but it’s also really nice and accommodating. The sound there is really great and it’s awesome to watch someone play there. I also really love 1st Street Billiards in Boyle Heights because it reminds me of being a kid and going to my first shows and feeling that element of danger that I haven’t felt in a very long time. There’s so many venues all over the world that are really cool. SO36 in Berlin, Antiknock in Tokyo, Crowbar in Sydney (and Brisbane), Katacombes in Montreal (RIP)… I love them all

ECZ: What has been the most memorable show you’ve attended?

MARTÍN: I’d probably either go with the last time I saw Dystopia (in Signal Hill, Long Beach at the Foothill Club with Capitalist Casualties, Man Is The Bastard, Final Conflict and more) or the first time I saw Candiria, which was at the Glasshouse in Pomona with Vision of Disorder, Buried Alive and Skarhead. Also any of the early Throwdown shows at Showcase / Chain Reaction / Koo’s Cafe / anywhere else

ECZ: When are you coming to the IE?!

MARTÍN: No idea! I’m sure it’ll happen sometime soon though. Been coming to the IE to see and play shows for decades now!

ECZ: Speaking of the IE, any bands that are currently on your radar?

MARTÍN: Obviously gotta mention Big Ass Truck. It’s insane to see what they’ve done in such a short period of time. Playing Riot Fest is crazy! Firestarter is another one… they got a new record coming out soon on Hardlore Records. Always love to Soul Search also. Smoked909, Harsh Reality, Face Facts… I know there’s tons of bands at the moment

ECZ: Any new projects or future plans? What’s next?

MARTÍN: I’m currently answering this questions on my laptop sitting at the Paris airport about to fly to Vienna to start tour there with Terror. That’s what’s up next for me. Sound And Fury coming up real soon and that’s basically what I’m focusing on most at the moment. There’s a million other things as well, but I gotta focus on the present and make it count. Thanks for the interview!