Lately we've interviewed a few international bands, but this time we're taking things a little bit closer to home! Eryka Fir, bassist and vocalist of psychedelic doom duo Coma Hole, talked with Metalhead Money in advance of the band's album Hand of Severance, due out November 1st, 2024.
Known for haunting vocal layers, filthy riffs, and energetic percussion, Coma Hole is making a name for themselves wherever they play. Look out for them coming to a festival near you!
Tell our readers all about your band! Where are you from and when did you get started? What is your music like?
We are a grunge-inspired, stoner metal bass & drums duo based out of southern Rhode Island. Steve and I have known each other at this point over ten years now and had a huge group of mutual friends where everyone was tied together by their love for music. After years of on and off trying to make something work, by the end of 2018 we had finally gotten together and started hashing stuff out. Our common ground is we both have an affinity for 90s bands, such as QOTSA, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains. We definitely differ in our tastes and what influences us but I think it only diversifies the sound. I’d say our music is characterized by super fuzzy, chunky bass riffage and energetic percussion. We crank out a lot of sound, so we’ve been told.
What are your goals for your band?
We’d love to get on a label for our next release and I really want to tour. A lot. I’d love for us to play some bigger festivals and I know we’d both love to play Europe and Canada. Really anywhere, I just want a career as a musician and have a life full of crazy experiences and making relationships and I know Steve would like the same for himself.
What do you do for a living?
I currently part-time bartend at a coffee & martini bar and I’m a freelance artist. I enjoy making weird t-shirts that I do launches of and I enjoy working with bands to make art for their records/ merch and whatnot. Steve currently juggles a couple different jobs in the service industry, one of which is bar-backing and kitchen help at the place I also work.
How do you balance your work and personal life with the band?
They often get super intertwined which can be difficult. When you try and make a career out of things you love, there’s typically no down time. I tend to take breaks though, usually involving shipping myself up to the mountains and into nature, away from being able to guilt myself into working (which I inevitably still do) but I try to keep it mundane.
What do you consider to be the best investment you've made, music-wise?
Picking up a bass. I started out playing acoustic guitar at 11, and when I started to get serious about forming a band in my early twenties I tried to make the switch to electric. I jammed with a handful of people and quickly realized I hated playing lead guitar and singing, and got the random idea to try bass. I noticed that (with) a lot of people I either knew or musical influences I had, the lead singer often played bass and it was something I never considered before. I think it really helped point me in the right direction.
What's the worst or least helpful thing you've ever spent money on as a musician/band?
You know, I honestly can’t say we’ve had that experience yet. But there’s still time.
What kind of merch sells the best for your band? And what do you purchase most often as a music listener?
Shirts. I design all the merch for the band and do all the artwork, it’s sort of part of the entire creation process for me and it’s super fun. It’s super rewarding to always be able to sell merchandise at shows and it makes me stoked to see people wearing the designs I made. I am a shirt hoarder so that’s usually what I go for at gigs.
Can you share some tour budgeting tips?
Our first long tour we went on was last summer. I did a lot of saving leading up to the tour so I wasn’t burning into the band fund. We don’t individually pocket any of the money we make from shows and put it all in a box so we can use it for “band” expenses (which the definition of that can vary) so we don’t have to use our personal money. Just be realistic about what you actually need on the road and slowly save leading up to it.
Which online music or social media platforms are most helpful to your band?
Our IG seems to do pretty well, and since the release of our single "Alphaholics" our monthly listeners have tripled on Spotify so that’s kinda cool. Still figuring out how to run ads and market ourselves on all platforms.
What does "making it" mean to you, and what do you think a band needs to make it in 2024?
Personally for me, “making it” means I feel confident and secure in the music I’m making and how I’m performing it. I want to truly feel everything I’m singing and playing on stage and love and believe it. To express myself in a way that feels organic and have people relate to that the way other musicians have done that for me. Combining that with touring often and making some income off it, I’d be happy.
Connect with Coma Hole here.
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