Wrexham band's blend of heavy rock, punk and metal

With the Leader's Next Big Thing feature, we hope to showcase some of the talent in Wrexham and Flintshire.

If you are a group of musicians or solo singer that would love a boost towards your big break, the Leader wants to hear from you.

We are looking to put the Next Big Thing on music fans' radar, just remember us when you get to the top!

To be in with the chance to feature, email a few details and contact number to claire.pierce@newsquest.co.uk

In the spotlight this week is Wrexham band Crimson Katana...

Formed in the summer of 2022, Crimson Katana has been captivating audiences with their blend of heavy rock, punk and metal.

The band is made up of Megan Williams, 25 - lead vocals; Sam Evans, 20 - lead guitar; Matt Faulks, 20 - drums; Erin Durrant, 25 - bass/backing vocals; and Paul Lee, 39 - rhythm guitar.

Wrexham band, Crimson Katana.

What are your musical influences?

MW: My influences are mainly female fronted bands/solo artists - Lzzy Hale (Halestorm), Ann Wilson (Heart), Shauna Tohill (REWS), Hayley Williams (Paramore) and Pat Benatar.

Male influences that I'm inspired by are Ronnie James Dio (Black Sabbath/Rainbow), M. Shadows (Avenged Sevenfold) and Tobias Forge (Ghost).

For the more heavier vocals I do, I'm influenced by Courtney LaPlante (Spiritbox), Morgan Lander (Kittie) and Tatiana Shmayluk (Jinjer).

I've grown up around music my whole life, my family on my dad's side are singers and musicians.

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I definitely didn't get my music taste from my dad's side though, I found most bands I love today through my uncle Noel, who's my mums older brother. He introduced me to the likes of Heart, Meatloaf, The Who, The Rolling Stones, Queen and Black Sabbath, which completely changed my life.

MF: My biggest influences for myself in terms of playing style comes mainly from the drummers for the bands Metallica, Gojira and Havok.

Lars Ulrich (Metallica) has an attitude to drive the song and give it a sense of movement which I love. Mario Duplantier (Gojira) is an incredibly innovative drummer who uses percussion and a whole range of sounds to convey a songs intent which is what I aim to do.

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Pete Webber (Havok) is a powerhouse of speed and precision with hard hitting attacks on the drums.

SE: Foo Fighters are the band that got me into music, and they're my favourite band of all time, now to be tied with Avenged Sevenfold. But I remember seeing Slash playing guitar on the TV one day when I was a kid and he's been a major influence on me ever since, and the reason I picked up the guitar in the first place.

My other influences include Synyster Gates (Avenged Sevenfold), Buckethead, Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal, Dimebag Darrell (Pantera), Guthrie Govan, but more recent influences are Richie Kotzen (Poison, The Winery Dogs), John Petrucci (Dream Theater) Marty Friedman (Ex-Megadeth) and Jason Richardson (Born Of Osiris, All That Remains).

Wrexham band, Crimson Katana.

Who do you admire in the industry?

MW: I admire Lzzy Hale from Halestorm, Chappell Roan and Delilah Bon.

Lzzy is unapologetically herself and that's really helped shape me as a person and a musician, she's definitely my biggest hero! She helped me come to terms with being neurodiverse and to not care about what others think of me

I admire Chappell Roan a lot because she came into the spotlight out of nowhere so quickly, yet has set very strong boundaries, which I admire. She's also helping other musicians speak up about how the industry treats performers, which I think is important

Delilah Bon is another musician I admire because she's a huge advocate for women and the LGBTQ+ community.

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As a queer woman, I find it inspiring because there's nothing we want more than for people to feel safe and welcome at a Crimson Katana gig.

MF: Jason Becker is the man I most admire in the whole world. Jason started playing guitar at eight-years-old, and through the 80s progressed to a point that made him play decades ahead of most players today, all while being mostly self taught.

He was diagnosed with ALS in 1991 and lost the ability to play, but through his sheer willpower to create and keep his mind sharp, he made music through special computer software using only his eyes!

Unable to even move and talk, Jason has shown the world that anything is possible, and he does it all with a smile, and that for me is the most inspiring thing in the world to carry on!

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SE: There are so many people I admire in the music industry, it's hard to just choose one! I think Dave Grohl is probably the person I admire the most, despite recent controversy. With Foo Fighters being the band who got me into music, I've always looked up to him for his high energy and level of showmanship, musicianship and dedication. There aren't many artists who will come back on stage 15 minutes later after breaking their leg! But like Matt, I also very much admire Jason Becker for all the same reasons listed. The fact he's still writing music with a devastating illness making him unable to move is just absolutely remarkable.

Are you self taught?

MW: I think I came out of the womb singing, if I'm being honest! But I've had a number of singing lessons over the years as well as guitar lessons.

I'm currently with vocal coach Graham Fryearson, who's been a massive help for me and my voice.

MF: Mostly, yeah! I learned the basics from the guitarist of a Wrexham band called The Swillers, where Toddy Jones gave me the tools I needed to really run off into the sunset playing!

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SE: Not at the beginning, my uncle taught me the basics and then I started getting lessons from a guitar teacher and then for a bit at school but those were for mainly learning how to play songs. In terms of technique, scales and theory, I am completely self taught.

ED: I had piano lessons at 12 but I'd already been playing piano a few years before that. I'm self taught on guitar and bass as well as other instruments

Why the name Crimson Katana?

MW: This will probably be the most boring answer, but we came up with the name randomly after not being happy with any of our previous names. We were known as Cutloose for a while, but changed it to Crimson Katana as we didn't think the name fitted our evolving sound. I really like the name Crimson Katana as it gives people the impression that we are SUPER heavy but when we pull out one of our softer songs, it's fun to see the crowd's reaction.

How did you all meet?

MW: Sam and I met via Facebook and it's the same with Paul. Matt is a friend of Sam's, so Sam introduced him to us and he's been the backbeat of us ever since

Erin joined us just before we played TribeFestWales last year and was the final addition to our line-up. I'm so glad she joined because it means I'm not the only girl in the band!

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SE: Matt and I met through college, we weren't in the same class but we were doing the same course. I met Megan through my mum's cousin recommending me after Megan had put out an ad for a new guitarist on Facebook.

ED: Megan introduced me to the band in 2023 and I ended up joining in 2024.

What do you enjoy about performing?

MW: I love how high energy our shows are and the adrenaline I get when performing.

Crowd interaction and participation is a big thing at our shows, especially now more so because I'm not stuck behind the mic stand playing guitar.

Nothing beats jumping into a crowd during a song or giving myself whiplash from headbanging!

I also love annoying my bandmates with unplanned dancing that involves them when they're not expecting it! Sam is definitely the best to do it to, his reactions are priceless and it usually ends up with him shoving me out the way to perform a solo, which makes people laugh and is very entertaining.

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MF: I love giving people the adrenaline rush I would feel while playing. Going to shows and seeing the drummer go crazy always made me burst out in laughter because of how amazing it feels, so I do my very best to give people that sensation of wanting to dance!

SE: Getting the crowd involved for sure. I'm not the best at it but Megan is amazing, I like getting on the mic whenever I can, but the bigger the crowd the more confident I am, but we give it our all for every gig we do and it's the best feeling in the world.

ED: I enjoy seeing the reactions of the crowd and showcasing our music. I also really like hearing our projects come together.

Wrexham band, Crimson Katana.

Is performing a full-time job?

MW: No it's not, and I'm happy with that. I think if I had to perform full-time I'd end up falling out of love with it and it would just become like any other job which is something I don't want because music is an escape from the stresses of life.

SE: Not really, I would love to perform more often and for bigger audiences and at some point I'd love to tour, even though we're very far from that stage yet, but if it was like a full-time job then it would probably get a bit tiring.

Thoughts on the Wrexham music scene?

MW: Wrexham's scene is great for cover bands, but for original bands it's quite hard to get music out there.

People are content with songs they already know and can sing along to. That doesn't mean original bands should just give up though, because it's amazing to be able to create something so special with your friends and share it with the world.

MF: The music scene in Wrexham is growing for sure. From my own understanding, it seems to mostly be indie rock bands or pop punk bands (for our age demographic) and it's a nice thing to see some growth! I won't lie in saying I wish there were more metal acts in Wrexham.

Favourite song?

MW: This is so hard! But if I have to choose, it would be Respite On The Spitalfields by Ghost because the guitar solo makes me feel so emotional and the vocal harmonies are angelic, especially when it's performed live.

SE: If I was asked that years ago I would've said Sweet Child O' Mine by Guns N' Roses, but now it's a tie between Times Like These and My Hero, both songs by Foo Fighters.

Anything else we should know?

That we are truly grateful for everyone who takes the time to listen to our music, share our posts and come to our shows.

We'd like to thank Ceri and Mike from The Premier Rock Show, Sebastien Allemand for helping bring our music to life, Graham Fryearson for helping Megan with her vocal journey, Fozzy and his team at XS and everyone at The Saith Seren for their support.

We look forward to jumping back into live shows in the future and we hope to see some new faces!

Where can people catch you live in the coming months?

We've got nothing lined up at the moment gig wise, as Paul will be going off in May as his partner is having a baby.

• You can follow Crimson Katana on their social media sites, including Facebook and Instagram (crimsonkatanaofficial) to keep up to date with future gigs and other news.