Formed back in 2013 Michigan metallers Conquer Divide have always had the sort of edge to their music to set them apart. Fast forward to 2025 and they are now well established and after a few line-up changes looking settled and ready to take on the world. Gary Trueman chatted to singer Kia and guitarist Izzy ahead of their show in London supporting New Years Day. The international flavour of the band, touring and a look ahead to possible new material were among the topics up for discussion.
How good is it to be back touring the UK and Europe again?
Kia: “It’s really cool. Every day you wake up and you forget you’re in a different country. When we tour the States we might be in a different state but everyone is still speaking English. Sometimes when you wake up in Europe you are like, wait, what language are you speaking.”
Izzy: “Especially gas stations, or service stations when we’re not sure where we are. You go in and it’s like, what should I say?”
You’re supporting New Years Day on this run. Have you got a plan to return later in the year at all, maybe as headliners?
Kia: “We don’t have anything planned yet. We are hoping to come back, it’s really fun over here. We have had a couple of people asking about a headline tour which would be really cool but I’m not sure if we have the fan base over here for that. But if anyone wants to bring us over we’d be happy to join.”
Would you consider a co-headline tour with maybe a band based in the UK?
Kia: “Yes, definitely.”
Izzy, specifically for you, this is a bit of a homecoming for you isn’t it?
Izzy: “It is and it’s kinda nice because when we came here with The Warning all the shows were already sold out before we announced it. Now with this run we’re seeing more of our fans here, and some of my friends were able to get tickets.”
Presumably you’re based in the US?
Izzy: “I live in Michigan now but I’m from Merseyside.”
You’re no doubt seeing a few old friends you’ve not seen for a while.
Izzy: “Yes, it’s really nice. One of my good friends is coming tonight. It’s always cool to show them what I’ve got going on.”
It is very much an international band. You’ve got members from the US, the UK and Canada. How did that come about and how does it work in terms of writing and practicing etc?
Kia: “When we first started out it was online looking for likeminded individuals to do this project. Then there was a while when we all lived together in Michigan, so that made things a lot easier. Then we took a bit of a break which is when I moved away from Michigan, so now we’re a little bit more spread out. But the internet makes everything super easy. Long distance writing is really easy when you have things like Zoom. We’ve always been doing it that way so we’re good at it now.”
It does give you a bigger pool to find people that are likeminded doesn’t it?
Izzy: “Yes, and the intention was to form an all female group. It was just easier to use the world!”
There’s been quite a thing in the UK that has been coming from women artists, that they shouldn’t be described as female fronted, or all girl, it should just be the band doing this sort of music or that. It is still happening though. Do you think there will be a time when gender isn’t used as a part of a description of an act?
Kia: “I think it depends on the band. As Izzy said we did form our band intentionally with the goal of being all women. At the same time I don’t believe ‘female fronted’ is a genre. So I do hope there’s a time when it’s not described that way. I think until it becomes more normalised and less of a wow factor you may have to describe it that way, just to make it more present in the scene. Eventually we will get to the point where it’s just a band.”
Izzy: “It’s tricky. I’m on both sides of the fence about it. On one hand it shouldn’t define you as a band, but, there is a distinct difference in sound, having a female voice. Unless it’s some of the screamo stuff, where it can be difficult to tell. But it should not define us.”
We’ve got both an American here and someone from the UK. You both speak English, but do you still have moments with maybe certain words or phrases, slang, where it gets lost in translation?
Kia: “Definitely in the beginning but Izzy and I have been friends for ten years, so now we’re so close we just have each other’s mannerisms. It’s very rare now that we say something and the other one is huh?”
Izzy: “I do feel like my slang has crept in by being over here. Our driver is British and so are my friends here so like being around other Brits I’m starting to say things again. I said skint today and Kia was like what’s that?”
Kia, you do the clean vocals in Conquer Divide. Do you do anything to look after you voice to make sure you can get through a tour or a recording session?
Kia: “Yeah, normally for warming up before a set I have what’s called a DoctorVox which is essentially a water bottle with a straw in it and you kind of hum into it and it massages your vocal chords. I try to not yell or talk too much which is really hard for me. The biggest thing which has helped me on tour is not yelling over the music if I’m maybe talking to people at the merch table. I’m such a yapper, I love to just chat, and usually that’s the hardest thing for vocals. On tour drinking a lot of water and getting enough rest is a big help.”
Do you find regular singing helps, like a few dates in on a tour your singing comes easier?
Kia: “Yes I do. The first night of any tour is really scary. With singing it’s not just about keeping your voice healthy, it’s your mind as well. If I think too much about whether I’m going to hit this note or that, I’m more likely to not hit them. I’m holding back and tensing up. So as you go through the tour it does become easier and you’re a bit more relaxed.”
You’re on tour crammed into a sprinter. Being on the road is legendary for all kinds of weird and funny stuff happening. Has anything like that happened to you that you’d care to divulge?
Kia: “On our last tour in the States with Avatar, keeping in mind we’ve been a band for ten years, we got our first bra thrown on stage. At first I was like this is so cool, then I was like actually this is so weird, maybe you should keep your clothes on while you’re in the pit.”
It could have been worse though, it could have been some guy’s boxers.
Kia: “Oh, if it was boxers I’d be like you’re disgusting.”
You’d have to just poke them away with the microphone stand.
Both: “haha, yes!”
With touring it’s not just about being on stage. There are loads of jobs that need to be done off it too such as merch, social media, driving etc. Do you all muck in and do a bit of everything or do each of you have designated jobs?
Kia: “We do have designated jobs for sure. Izzy and I are in charge of doing merch. In the States where we don’t have a driver we take turns. Kristen usually does the TMing (tour manager) and manages stuff and Sam does a lot of the content handling.”
Last album ‘Slow Burn’ came out in 2023 and we’re just into 2025 now, so are you going to be writing new material at some point soon?
Kia: “Yeah, we are writing. I would say we have enough material to do an EP but we’re holding out to do a full length album with the intention of maybe releasing a couple of singles in between. I personally have been tossing around the idea of doing an acoustic EP. I think a lot of people would really enjoy that. It’s a good thing that we work extremely hard on our music to make sure that it’s exactly how we like it, but it’s a bad thing too because it takes us a little bit longer.”
Izzy: “We tend to have two moods, touring and writing, and when we are touring like we are now we’re not even thinking about writing. There’s a lot of preparation that goes into touring, it’s almost like we need a clear schedule to get into writing mode.”
The tour here is pretty much sold out and you’re doing well in the US too. So is there anything that you’d like to say to your fans, those that have been with you for ages and those just discovering you?
Kia: “To everyone in general thank you for listening to us. I get just as excited when I hear someone say I never heard of you before tonight as I do when I hear someone say I’ve been listening to you for ten years. Either way it’s so sick. Like seven people doesn’t seem like a lot but when you’re in Glasgow and you can see seven people in the crowd know every word to every song it is an amazing feeling. Every person we appreciate so much.”
Interview by Gary Trueman
Photo by Jim Louvau