Biography

Photo by Sam Faux

"This duo from Coventry in England deserve your attention if you’re into fuzzed-up, psyched-out, occult-drenched doom n’ roll." - Metal Forces Magazine

MASSASAUGA is a 2-piece fuzz-rock / doom-metal band, who derived their name from the venomous Massasauga (pronounced mass-sa-sar-gah) rattlesnake of North America.

In January 2020, the band emerged from the Victorian terraced housing of Coventry, UK. With Conrad Lummus delivering the cutting riffs and harrowing lyrics, and Adam Stewart powering the thunderous drums, MASSASAUGA started to carve their own slice of the underground metal scene. Sharing a stage with bands such as Conan, Chained to the Bottom of the Ocean and Froglord.

With the heavy use of horror and occult imagery to accompany their hard fuzz sound, MASSASAUGA was welcomed into the stoner rock and doom metal genre.

Conrad cites stoner and doom heavyweights: Electric Wizard, Queens of the Stone Age and Clutch as his major influences in song strucure and guitar tone. While Adam refers to metalcore and nu-metal bands Motionless in White and Ice Nine Kills as his regular listening. This combination of source material shaped MASSASAUGA's sound to have the dirty, psychedelic tones of doom metal, but delivered at a faster, less bogged down pace.

While being a duo is limiting, it forces creativity. Using similar methods to other famous two-piece bands such as The White Stripes, Royal Blood and The Black Keys, MASSASAUGA implemented the use of line splitting and pitch shifters to enhance their sound. Having the bass mirror the guitar gave the tone of a full band, drew more attention to the riffs being played and forced the drums to become a more melodic part of the overall sonic space.

Occult themes are ever present in MASSASAUGA's music, with lyrics taken from cinema, folklore and true crime. A world of gory B-movies, ancient superstition and real-life horrors, brought to life.