The night before Halloween is known traditionally as Devil’s Night, so how better to spend it than in the company of the gothic alliance of British theatrical vampire-rockers Creeper and their American cousins Black Veil Brides? Creeper vocalist William Von Ghould previews the co-headliner at London’s Wembley Arena.
It’s a shame the co-headliner at Wembley isn’t on Halloween, but Creeper have a date in Manchester on October 31, followed by gigs in Whitby and Glasgow.
Doing that show on Halloween would have been amazing, but there’s something about Devil’s Night that appeals to me. It makes me think of that movie The Crow. It’s the calm before the storm.
Creeper have toured extensively with Black Veil Brides. What is it that makes the two bands complementary?
From the moment we met there were numerous shared views. Andy [Bierksack, BVB lead singer] is a big fan of rock records and conceptual pieces, but like us he also grew up on The Misfits and The Damned. Our touring history in America hasn’t always been great, but their audience understood us.
Presumably Halloween is a big thing with you?
When I was young we lived near a wood, and it was the holiday that my parents went all-out for. One of my earliest memories of Halloween was making a Corey Taylor mask.
Growing up as a goth in Southampton, were you laughed often?
[Laughs] Yeah. For a while we lived in Waterlooville, close to Portsmouth, and there’s a rivalry with Southampton, so I got beaten up a lot. Back then even wearing the wrong hoodie could get you into trouble.
Last October Creeper released their third album, Sanguivore, a conceptual piece based on the tale of two vampire lovers.
That’s something we’d planned to do for quite some time. Also, right from our inception we had teased about going down the Jim Steinman route, and Sanguivore was our opportunity to try to do something on that scale.
Its nine-minute opener, Further Than Forever, drew widespread comparisons to Steinman.
Among the very first albums I fell in love with was Bat Out Of Hell [which Steinman wrote]. I had never before heard music like that. Its scale and scope completely blew me away.
The tour’s press release describes Creeper as being among “the most unlikely success stories in British music”.
[Laughs] We have always been the token weirdos at the table. It feels strange that we are allowed there.
But the stats speak for themselves – you’ve got a shelf full of awards, and each of the band’s three albums made the UK Top 30.
Creeper’s mission statement was always to put the thrills and pomp back into the punk rock scene that we came from. The public needs fantasy and escapism.
So, at Wembley should we expect fangs, coffins and buckets of fake blood?
Those are my three favourite things. Dammit, you’ve just ruined the show.
'Devil’s Night' takes place at London’s Wembley Arena on October 30. Tickets are on sale now.
