INTERVIEW: IN CONVERSATION WITH KINGDOM OF GIANTS
Interview by Cecilia Pattison-Levi
Photo Credit: Alex Bemis
It’s been a big year for Sacramento, Californian-based metalcore outfit, Kingdom Of Giants, and it’s going to get bigger. They will be touring Australia with Welsh rockers Holding Absence, they have released new music, and they will be embarking on their first headline tour of the United States in nine years, starting in November.
“We are looking forward to it,” mused Dana Willax. “It’s been nine years and a lot will have changed. When we were younger, we didn’t have a following. Even when we went on the road, we would end up just playing for other bands. But we got to prove ourselves. And we are still doing that.”
For the Australian tour, Kingdom Of Giants, comprising of Dana Willax, Max Bremer, Julian Perez, new bassist and vocalist JT Gutierrez, and Truman Berlin, will be playing a supporting role.
“We are super excited to come back,” stated Dana Willax. The band were last here in 2023 with Bury Tomorrow. “When we were in Australia last time, we had a driver who took us around and did cool stuff. We drove between the cities, so we never got to Perth. I am really looking forward to sharing the best energy with everyone every night. It will surely be an unforgettable tour”.
“We are lucky. We have a 45-minute time slot on this tour, which is a good amount of time,” quipped frontman Dana Willax (dark vocals/songwriter). “The decision for us is what to play. Yes. We will play the new songs, and songs from ‘Burning Chrome’ and ‘Bleeding Star’, and the older songs, but what?”
“There will be a mix of heavy, new mixes, and super old stuff for the long-time fans. We have been talking about the old songs,” JT Gutierrez (clean vocals/bass) cut in. “We need to play some old songs – ‘Guns & Girls’ and ‘No Faith, No Space’ – has come up. We want to play songs that fans will go – yes – they played that”.
Kingdom Of Giants formed as a band in 2010 in Sacramento, California. Ever since the band released their first EP, ‘Abominable’, in 2011, they have been unafraid to experiment with darkwave electronica and marry that sonic soundscape to cyberpunk sounds and feverish metalcore riffs with commanding clean and dark vocals. Kingdom Of Giants’ soundscape has a strong sense of melody and a narrative lyrical core in their new Eps, 2024’s ‘Bleeding Star’ and the brilliant 2025 ‘Burning Chrome’.
“We have been heading on this musical path,” explained Dana Willax. “The instrumentation and vocals are tools in our box, like colours of paint, that give us an unlimited workspace. The songs have changed over time – we even had a pop bridge in ‘The Edge Of A Dream’ for the first time – just before the second chorus to see what it did”.
Dana Willax continued, “Having meaning in our lyrics is definitely something that has always been important to us. I sometimes re-use lyrics that were like so good but might have got lost in older songs…but they were so good. I really have always liked to let our fans feel out the meaning of our songs for themselves because they end up having a more meaningful connection to the song by letting it speak directly to them”.
Kingdom Of Giants’ new songs, the stand-alone singles, the harder ‘Respawn’ and the chugging metallic synths in the melodic ‘The Edge Of A Dream’, use gorgeous, crunching synths throughout to frame the heavy metal music, and the interplay between the two vocalists, JT Gutierrez and Dana Willax, proves why the band remain so distinctive and innovative in their sound.
“When we write songs, the songs are collaborative with the instrumentation,” explained Dana Willax. “A song can start with a word or a melody. Our guitarist, Max, starts the riff, and from there, Julian adds ideas. The bass and ideas come next, especially with our new band member, JT. I add my own ideas or adjust the arrangements. After that, we sometimes create the vocal parts together as a group, or we work on them individually. Finally, Truman finishes up the drum parts”.
“It’s been a dream for me,” stated JT Gutierrez. “I have been working for this my whole life. I am touring with the band. I am in the band! It’s surreal. I am grateful to the band for trusting in me to fill the space”.
From the development in Kingdom Of Giant’s sound, their hard-working touring ethic and diverse catalogue of songs, the band are ready to break through to new audiences here in Australia and take their older fans along on their journey into the wider modern metalcore scene.
Holding Absence (Wales) and Kingdom Of Giants (US) Australian Tour 2026 will be performing at these venues:
Friday, 14 August 2026 at the Princess Theatre in Brisbane
Saturday, 15 August 2026 at Liberty Hall in Sydney
Sunday, 16 August 2026 at 170 Russell Street in Melbourne
Wednesday, 19 August 2026 at the Lion Arts Factory in Adelaide
Thursday, 20 August 2026 at Magnet House in Perth
