Ice Nine Kills have made a name for themselves thanks to an encyclopaedic knowledge of horror and a flair for the theatrics (move over, Phantom Of The Opera). Now, they have one of the most dedicated – and bloodthirsty fan bases around.
It might’ve started in Salem, home of the infamous witch trials, but frontman Spencer Charnas is currently in the decidedly-less-spooky setting of an airport departure lounge to talk to Hammer about the key things he’s learned about life (and death) so far, as he heads to yet another horror convention in North Carolina.
THERE’S NO SUCH THING AS A GUILTY PLEASURE
“Fuck anyone who looks down on a genre of music, especially punk, ska, stuff like that. Anyone who judges or says it’s a guilty pleasure is an asshole. I’d like to see them write a song that good! Ska and punk bands are still some of my favourite music. That’s the music that I listen to, even more so than heavy music. Bands like Goldfinger, Reel Big Fish, Less Than Jake, NOFX all informed everything from my sense of melody to my songwriting; they really crafted that.”
MEET YOUR HEROES
“Getting to collaborate with those bands has given me some of my greatest moments of my career. To have these bands that really influenced me, to get their stamp of approval, and for them to think Ice Nine Kills is cool – I can’t begin to fathom it, really!”
MUSIC IS IN MY BLOOD
“My Grandma’s turning 101 years old! The last time we played in New York City, about a year ago, she came to the show and was rocking out. So I’ve got a really cool Grandma. My parents are music lovers, although they weren’t musical themselves. My dad loved Queen, my mom introduced me to musical theatre, so Phantom Of The Opera, Les Misérables and more had a big influence.”
IT’S ALL ABOUT BALANCE
“It’s really difficult to balance being in a band with being there for everyone. I try and call them on the way to the airport each time, family is so important. They’re not always going to be there. Making sure that the people you love know that you love them is vital. Things happen, tell people that you care about them. Nothing else matters.”
DON’T MONETISE OR PROFIT FROM REAL MISERY
“There are so many fictional horror stories that you can work from; you don’t need to touch real tragedies. There has to be nuance. It’s like these true crime podcasts, I think, when it starts to sound exploitative, or disrespectful to the families that lost people, you have to put yourself in the shoes of the people who have this horrifying tragedy in their family.
"How would you feel if people were exploiting that? At the same time, though, history is history. Bad things happen, and sometimes those stories can be told in a way that are cautionary tales or they’re tributes to the victims.”
AVOID PIGEONHOLES
“You really have to carve your own path. Don’t worry about trends or what everybody else is doing. There are a lot of bands that just follow the pack; they look at what’s popular, and they want to sound exactly like what’s popular now. That’s a recipe for either no success or very short success. Go with what your passion is. Keep people on their toes!
"Everyone thinks we only do horror, but we just did a video based on The Matrix for The Great Unknown, and people loved it. People are asking us to do more action-themed ones, like Terminator. The possibilities are endless, but of course, horror is our first love. Our fans trust us. We’re not going to sell out, but you always have to evolve.”
EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED
“One of the wildest things ever happened at one of our shows, way back in the day we were playing shitty clubs, and we were in Panama City, Florida, which is kind of a ghost town. It wasn’t even a dive bar, it was just like a little community centre, and while we were playing, a vehicle drove into the middle of the venue. I think the guy was trying to kill his girlfriend or something, and the whole show just erupted into chaos. I mean, a pickup truck just drove through the fucking venue?! That was scary.”
YOU’RE NEVER TOO SUCCESSFUL TO BE KIND
“Getting to support and meet Metallica… whenever I think about it, it feels like I’m going to wake up from a dream! I know it’s a cliché and sounds lame, but it’s the truth. They liked that we were a little different, a little bold, going out with chainsaws in the middle of the day.
"James Hetfield said when they started, people thought they were too metal for the punk kids and too punk for the metalheads. I think they respected our chutzpah, that we went out there and didn’t give a fuck if all these bearded dudes in Slayer t-shirts didn’t have a clue who we were. All of Metallica and their crew couldn’t have been more accommodating.”
![Ice Nine Kills - The Laugh Track (Official Music Video) [Part 1] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2fbVUmH6mY0/maxresdefault.jpg)
WATCH WHERE YOU STAND…
“I was at an invite-only Grammy party two years ago for Bon Jovi – I didn’t get to meet them, that’s not the story! – But I went over to say hello to Bob Kraft, he’s the owner of the Patriots team in New England. He’s THE guy, right? I was talking to him for a while, and then as I’m walking away towards the front of the auditorium, I feel this hand on my back, kind of pushing me. I hear this British accent, telling me ‘Move along now, boys, move along!’, I turn around, assuming it’s somebody’s security guard, but no… it was Sir Paul McCartney pushing me out of the way! I hope he passed on his Midas touch.”
CELEBRATE THE NEXT GENERATION
“I watched some of that Back To The Beginning concert, and man, Yungblud is a fucking star. I didn’t really know anything about him before besides his Travis Barker and Machine Gun Kelly collab. He’s got the look, he’s got the voice, he’s got the charisma. We’re really excited about the support bands coming with us on the tour as well. I’ve always wanted to bring Creeper on the road with us.
"I just think they write great songs. I love their aesthetic, I love their melodies. It reminds me of a throwback to the good old days of that horror kind of punk vibe. I love the other band Will had, too, called Salem, and not just because of the name!”
THERE WAS NEVER A BACKUP PLAN
"I always wanted to be a rockstar, I just loved it. The only other thing I wanted to do was either be an actor, a director, or a writer, so it’s nice that with our cinematic music videos, I get to live out that other passion of mine. We’re making these high-concept videos that are like movies, and we’re tying in the storyline. It’s all connective tissue. You just have to go for it.”
BE YOUR OWN BIGGEST FAN
“As an artist, it’s so easy to be a perfectionist, but I’m genuinely very proud of what we’ve done, particularly of the last two albums. I think they’re far and away the best material we’ve ever made! It is always surprising to me when someone says, ‘Oh, this other album was the best.’ I’m like, ‘Have you //heard// that album?’ I don’t want to denigrate our older stuff, and obviously I don’t want to offend people that love it… but just listening back to what we were doing 10 years ago, compared to now, to me, it’s night and day. The musicianship has improved. The lyrics are better. I just think we found our own niche.”
YOU CAN’T DO IT ALONE
“I’m very, very grateful and thankful that I get to do what I love for a living, and I can’t thank our team enough who are really helping to realize our vision. You know, I’m only one guy, things start with me, and nothing gets past the release without my stamp of approval, but there are just so many talented people that work for us, and I’m very lucky that the fans seem to always have our back. You have to please yourself and love what you’re doing first and foremost.”
KNOW HOW TO HIDE THE BODIES…
“The best advice I could give anybody, or my younger self, is this: don’t dig a shallow grave in order to dispose of a body. It’s not the best idea if you’re trying to evade the authorities. You always want to dissolve the body in some sort of chemical first, or you could eat it. Obviously Jeffrey Dahmer had a taste for the meat, but it’s not for me. That’s the best advice I can give anyone, that and don’t get caught.”
The Great Unknown is out now. Ice Nine Kills tour the UK with Creeper from December 8. Silver Scream Con UK takes place December 13-14, 2025 at The Cumberland Hotel in London
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