A Bit About Deadwinter:

When we think of a “band,” we tend to form some familiar ideas in our heads: a group of musicians writing music together and jamming it out in their basement or in a garage before performing it live in front of a crowd. Or we might think of a group that supports a solo artist, either live or in the studio. Hardly ever, though, do we tend to think of a band as a collection of musicians who write, record and release their music remotely from different parts of the continent without ever having met.

Yet, such is the case with Deadwinter.

The band’s origins can be traced back to its guitarist/engineer Mike Tompa, who began writing songs on his own that would eventually form the basis for the band’s first EP, Destinations. While working at Merriam Studios in Oakville, Ontario, Tompa was introduced through a colleague to a drummer named Michael Cisterna. The two of them shared a mutual appreciation for a wide variety of melodic and aggressive sounds and music, and the two soon began writing and recording songs together. Shortly thereafter, Cisterna moved to Los Angeles as he was already on course to study music at Musicians Institute and the progress of these recordings was halted.

Luckily, it did not take long for Tompa’s friend, Months & Years frontman Adam Perks, to begin writing lyrics and recording vocals on some of Tompa’s original recordings, thus solidifying the first incarnation of Deadwinter. The group soon welcomed a second guitarist, Justin Wotherspoon, into the band and they began to find their own unique way of writing and recording material that they implement to this day: the two guitarists and the frontman will write and record their musical ideas back home in Ontario, send the ideas to their drummer in California who will then write and record drum tracks and send any other ideas back to the rest of the band, who will then finish the song back home.

While this may seem like an arduous process to many, this proved to be an efficient method for the band, who managed to write and record their first few EPs this way before even really getting to know each other. In fact, it wasn’t until a few weeks before the release of the band’s debut EP, Destinations, that all four members of the band had finally met each other in person and played their songs live together for the first time. Despite three of the four members having only just met, the compatibility between the band’s members was instantaneous, as each member’s thriving passion for the music they created was what drew them together in the first place – and what continues to allow them to create such raw and powerful music under such unusual circumstances.

Indeed, Deadwinter is carving their own path with regards to what it means to be a “band” in the digital age. They are proving that the music is not simply a means to an end, but it is in fact the message and the main attraction. They would not be doing what they do if they did not believe in the powerful music that they are creating, and they will continue to go to great lengths to make original music that pushes boundaries for as long as they believe in what they are doing.