Black Spiders: Think it's all over? It is now

Black Spiders fontman Pete ‘Spider’ Spiby explains why the Sheffield- and London-based hard rockers are signing off after a nine-year career.

Why are these Black Spiders’ last-ever dates?

Our situation is difficult. There’s no regular income from the band. I don’t know if we became jaded. I can’t pinpoint any one thing. It’s the culmination of everyone’s lives outside of the band. Making a ten-track album – is that something a band should even still be doing in 2017?

“Geographical differences” have been cited.

Well, yeah. But there are a lot of unanswered questions. Five years ago we hit a plateau and we can’t get over it. We’ve got a good fanbase and even some new songs, but in terms of making it a career it [the band] isn’t going anywhere.

Your farewell announcement, “We Dark Riders, for now, bid you adieu”, doesn’t sound like it’s categorically final.

We’ve discussed releasing a final EP for the tour, and it may or may not happen, but there’s no hidden meaning to the word ‘adieu’. It’s just the type of wording we always use for our posts. All five members of the Black Spiders felt that Black Spiders could not exist without the five original members.

Presumably you want these final shows to be parties and not wakes?

We hope they’ll be like a New Orleans funeral march, starting off a bit sombre but by the end people will be dancing on the tables.

The final show takes place at the Rescue Rooms in Nottingham.

Yeah. We were hoping to do another show afterwards but the diary schedules are too complicated. We’d also have liked to do our own headline show in London, where we’re playing as part of the Desertfest [headlined by Turbonegro and John Garcia], but it’s impossible. That’s a shame.

How do you think you’ll feel at the end of the tour?

I can’t say. Hopefully everyone will be putting in one hundred per cent during the shows. And afterwards.

What kind of post-Spiders plans do the band members have?

Personally speaking, I’ve played music since leaving school and will carry on. I’m sure we’ll all continue in one form or another.

No regrets?

A crack at America would have been lovely. Had we got one, then we may not have been having this conversation. But we achieved a hell of a lot as an independent band. Ozzy Osbourne chose us to support him at the iTunes Festival. We played Hellfest, Wacken, Download and Sonisphere, and we headlined our own tours. We were a bit older [than some of our rivals] and less mouldable. We know that if you don’t make it today, then you’re tomorrow’s chip paper.

The tour begins in Birmingham on April 27.

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Dave Ling was a co-founder of Classic Rock magazine. His words have appeared in a variety of music publications, including RAW, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, Prog, Rock Candy, Fireworks and Sounds. Dave’s life was shaped in 1974 through the purchase of a copy of Sweet’s album ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’, along with early gig experiences from Status Quo, Rush, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Yes and Queen. As a lifelong season ticket holder of Crystal Palace FC, he is completely incapable of uttering the word ‘Br***ton’.