“Prog date? Very much no! You didn’t get too much romance at The Peel, unless you made a financial investment”: The Fierce And The Dead’s Matt Stevens recalls his favourite venue

The Fierce And The Dead drew much acclaim for 2023 album News From The Invisible World. When they were still working on 2018’s The Euphoric, guitarist Matt Stevens told Prog about his musical world.

Where’s home?

North London. Remember that burning police car on the news during the 2011 riots? That was the top of my road. That aside, it’s a fine place to live.

Earliest prog memory?

When I was 14, I was into Guns N’ Roses and Iron Maiden, but then my guitar teacher gave me Bruford’s Feels Good To Me and Mahavishnu’s Birds Of Fire. It had such an impact on me, it changed my attitude to music forever.

First prog record you bought?

King Crimson’s Red from the old Tower Records on Piccadilly, in about 1992.

First prog gig?

Radiohead on their OK Computer tour, Birmingham NEC, in 1997. They were really good – they’re a really special band.

Favourite gadget?

My Eventide H9 guitar pedal. I’ve been spending my life trying to make a guitar not sound like a guitar, and it lets you really stretch your sound. Other than that, my iPhone – it’s essential for all our social media stuff.

Guilty musical pleasures?

All sorts – Joe Meek, Napalm Death, The Shadows. Taylor Swift’s album 1989 is a brilliant pop record. It’s so well done, you can’t help but admire it.

What would your specialist subject on Mastermind be?

Celtic Frost. Into The Pandemonium is one of my favourite records. Either that or SNES video games of the early 90s.

Biggest prog extravagance?

I just bought a Dave Smith Mopho x4 synth. You can do all those swirly Hawkwind sounds on it. It was about a grand, but I could’ve bought a Prophet-5 and they’re two-and-a-half grand, so it was a bargain really.

Favourite prog venue?

The Peel, Kingston upon Thames. It’s where the prog music revival started in the UK. The promoter, Twang, put on Galahad, Twelfth Night and the likes of us and Knifeworld. It’s demolished now, sadly, but it was such a cool venue to play.

Outside of prog, what are you into?

Nothing remotely cool. Comics, old computer games and science fiction films. My favourite is Silent Running – hippies in space, so sad and out there.

What do you collect?

Apart from guitar pedals, I’ve got some weird esoteric occult books. Robert Ramsay bought me a few recently.

The last prog album you bought?

Ozric Tentacles’ Jurassic Shift. I had it years ago, lost it and re-bought it. A great, spacey prog record. I absolutely love it.

Your prog hero?

I don’t really have heroes, but Robert Fripp has retained his honesty and integrity, and constantly reinvents himself.

Last prog gig?

I went to see Voivod a few months ago with Kavus Torabi. They were one of my favourites as a kid, and their guitar player Dan Mongrain is amazing.

Ever had a prog date?

Very much no! You didn’t get too much romance at The Peel, unless you were prepared to make a financial investment...

Who do you call in the prog community for a good night out?

Prog’s own Jo Kendall, the Knifeworld guys, the boys in my band, Rob Ramsay. I’m lucky to have a good bunch of people to go out for a beer with.

Pick us a good proggy read.

Paul Stump’s The Music’s All That Matters. It’s really in-depth and taught me loads about prog – helped me really get into it in the 90s. It’s not like you could look it up online back then...

Your favourite prog album cover?

Mahavishnu Orchestra’s The Inner Mounting Flame. Like those great 70s jazz rock covers it’s got an eerie atmosphere – it’s genuinely strange, spiritual and mysterious. I was obsessed with it.