Chapter 2 [2013 – 2015]
Family
After relocating to Dublin, Santiago started looking for talented musicians able to fit Svet Kant, and with the passion that the band deserves.
The search wasn’t easy and took more than planned, but without losing hope and searching around the city, the internet, the heavy-metal pubs, and metal concerts; Svet Kant’s first official new member was incorporated: Liam Molloy.
Filling in the position of both rhythm and lead guitar, he brought in the positive vibes and attitude that kept Santiago afloat. His constant sacrifice and an unconditional passion for the band makes him a unique and key element of the family.
Liam joined Santiago in the pursuit of the remaining members to complete the line-up. The task was difficult but full of hope, and after some failed attempts and meeting some unpleasant people, the band came across the experience and maturity of a new bass player: Paul Cassidy.
Paul’s cool vibe blended in perfect harmony with Liam’s and Santiago’s personalities. Though some rehearsals were set for the band members to start sharing more than just the music, an important element was missing, the drums.
For obvious reasons, and for the scarcity of drummers in general, this quest was particularly long. However, the passion for this music was intense and the combined efforts of the three lead to finding a drummer. The position was filled by French drummer Romain West, who moved to Dublin in early 2014. Pieces started falling together and the band had its first rehearsals.
After each rehearsal, the band grew both individually and as one, and the members got to know each other and shared more than just music. The pieces blended correctly into one, but without losing their own personality.
Expanding
In addition to some fantastic reviews and comments from fans all over the world, a constantly growing fan base across the different social media platforms and the feature on a compilation CD titled “Monsters of Heavy”; Svet Kant got signed to American record label PowerbacK Productions. The band closed 2014 as a “transition and cog-tightening year”, and set 2015 as a year for live-performance enhancement with a constant series of gigs and presentations and musical ideas development.
Unexpected
After years of constant sacrifice and push, the band was set to perform live for the very first time at iconic rock/metal venue Fibber Magee’s in March 2015.
Unexpectedly, on the night prior to the band’s first gig, the drummer vanished in thin air and moved back to its country of origin with no notice or warning whatsoever.
For obvious reasons the band pulled out from the gig, but still attended the show to support the remaining acts, where a certain drummer caught Santiago’s attention.
Starting as a session drummer, for the time being, this fantastic person was motivated and constantly driven by band members and only after 3 months a new gig in August 2015 was announced. This was at The Lock-Up Festival in Dundalk, Co. Louth.
Local Scene & Final Line-Up
Opportunities for gigs and live performances rolled over and the band started performing regularly both locally and within Irish territory. Spanning from a wide variety of iconic and non-traditional rock venues, Svet Kant’s live performances expanded its scope to counties such as Dublin, Louth, Cork, Leitrim, Wicklow, Waterford, among others.
After months of presentations and small touring, finally and to the absolute delight of the band, Daragh Kenny was incorporated as a full-time drummer, consolidating the family once and for all.
