“I have Marshall, Orange and Victory amps, but they just don’t have the bark I need for this project. The 5150 is what metal sounds like to me”: Meet Jaguar Throne, the UK metal big beasts following in the hoofprints of Mastodon
Steve Sears builds a bestial, musically adventurous sound with dark prog vibes, monster riffs and some serious production savvy
(Image credit: Provided/PR)
Jaguar Throne might be one of the newer names on the UK metal circuit but its members come with decades of experience, with some familiar faces from well-established bands Bossk, The Hell, Krokodil and Cognizance.
Given the mix of influences at play here, from post-metal and prog rock to hardcore and tech-metal, there’s no shortage of avenues for sonic exploration available to them…
“I met the guys by producing their records or playing shows together,” says guitarist Steve Sears. “We all bring our own thing to the table. Although I write almost everything, our other guitarist Chris Binns plays a lot of the technical parts that are completely beyond my abilities!”
So far the band have released one EP and are currently penning material for their debut full-length. Early songs like Tectonic and Chrome Goddess nod to the gargantuan heaviness typified by bands like Mastodon – weighing complexity against moments that are more atmospheric, loose and free.
“We definitely share that dark prog vibe with bands like Mastodon,” continues Steve. “A lot of heavy music can just sound like people playing scales up and down, but Mastodon have a lot of feel. I use a lot of open strings in my riffs, which can make for interesting chords.”
For their recordings thus far, Steve has mainly stuck with single-coil and P-90 models like his Telecasters and Les Paul Classic Custom, which get fed into a Peavey 5150II through an oversized Mesa/Boogie cabinet via his Tube Screamer. It’s very much the metal sound he grew up with.
“I have Marshall, Orange and Victory amps, but they just don’t have the bark I need for this project,” he shrugs. “The 5150 was the first serious amp I bought, and that’s what metal sounds like to me. I lean towards the pokier, mid-heavy tones, as opposed to anything too smooth or scooped.”
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It’s hard to be objective with your own music. My advice is: don’t buy a bunch of toys because the internet says they’re good
Given his production background, having engineered and mixed bands such as Gallows and Conjurer, as well as his own projects Gold Key and The Hell, Steve certainly knows a thing or two about capturing high-gain tones. For all the bands learning how to self-produce, he recommends a certain degree of distance.
“It’s hard to be objective with your own music. My advice is: don’t buy a bunch of toys because the internet says they’re good. It’s always tempting to use the latest miracle plugin, but it’s better to understand how your DAW’s stock compressor works than to guess blindly with more attractive tools. ‘Better’ gear doesn’t mean better recordings!”
Amit has been writing for titles like Total Guitar, MusicRadar and Guitar World for over a decade and counts Richie Kotzen, Guthrie Govan and Jeff Beck among his primary influences as a guitar player. He's worked for magazines like Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, Classic Rock, Prog, Record Collector, Planet Rock, Rhythm and Bass Player, as well as newspapers like Metro and The Independent, interviewing everyone from Ozzy Osbourne and Lemmy to Slash and Jimmy Page, and once even traded solos with a member of Slayer on a track released internationally. As a session guitarist, he's played alongside members of Judas Priest and Uriah Heep in London ensemble Metalworks, as well as handled lead guitars for legends like Glen Matlock (Sex Pistols, The Faces) and Stu Hamm (Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, G3).
