HERIOT have rapidly become one of the UK’s most exciting and uncompromising forces in modern heavy music. Following the powerful reception to their debut full-length, Devoured by the Mouth of Hell, the band have continued to take their intense, boundary-pushing sound to ever-larger stages. From Bloodstock’s main stage and a US tour with Trivium to their current European trek with legendary hardcore innovators Converge. In this interview with singer and guitarist Debbie Gough, HERIOT look back on the demanding but rewarding creation of their debut, reflect on the album’s success and the expectations that come with it, and discuss the creative freedom they found while working with Loathe’s Erik Bickerstaffe on recent singles Commander of Pain and Master of Deceit. With more festivals ahead and new material beginning to take shape. The band are clearly entering their next chapter with focus, solidarity, and plenty still to say.
Welcome to Debbie Gough from HERIOT
Hi there, welcome to our website! How are you doing, and how’s life treating you these days?
Thanks for having me! Doing well thank you! Heriot have been very busy as of late and I’m grateful to be on the road.
The dubut album Devoured by the Mouth of Hell
Currently, HERIOT is touring Europe with Converge while supporting the digital deluxe edition of Devoured by the Mouth of Hell, which whose release dates back to February 2026. Originally released in 2024, what do you recall most about the album’s production?
This is the first big body of work the band has taken on. Producing an album together was a long term goal that we slowly worked towards. I think any band will tell you that being able to make an album is a huge creative privilege but it doesn’t come without its challenges. It was so important to us to get everything as perfect as possible. And that in itself is a tall order. There were definitely periods where it felt as though there was a lot of pressure, but ultimately my take away from the debut was that creating ‘Devoured by the Mouth of Hell’ made us so much stronger as a unit from every angle possible.
The feedback of Devoured by the Mouth of Hell
Considering the long and successful run that Devoured by the Mouth of Hell has had, it may sound naive to ask, but were you surprised by how well the album was received? And, overall, does that add a bit of (external) pressure for the next chapter?
We were extremely proud of the response the album received, especially given how much we all individually put into its creation. We have began writing new material recently and I’m excited to continue that process. Of course there are pressures the further along you get into being a band but at this point, I think we all view that as a healthy challenge. Despite the outside noise, it’s always important to remind yourself of the reason for wanting to take this path – and that is that we all love music and love making it together as the 4 of us.
The biggest challenge of HERIOT
I’ve been following HERIOT since the early days, and what I’ve always loved about the band is how you constantly push your sound to the limit by venturing into new sonic territories. What was the biggest challenge you faced during the recording of Devoured by the Mouth of Hell?
It’s lovely to hear that, thank you very much! Having never written a full album before, we were quite unprepared for just how much work that entails. Truthfully, the biggest challenge we faced was being able to get the most out of our creativity under a tight time constraint. Creativity shouldn’t be something that has a time pressure behind it, but unfortunately that’s the circumstances that modern bands work under. In the past, we’d been able to work at our own pace and working with deadlines definitely made things slightly tougher but having overcome those difficulties, I feel better prepared for the future.
Recording with Erik Bickerstaffe
The singles Commander of Pain and Master of Deceit were recorded with Erik Bickerstaffe of Loathe and mixed by Randy Leboeuf. I have to add that, personally, Commander of Pain really speaks to me as a song. Where do these tracks fit into the band’s journey? And what was the biggest takeaway from working with Erik?
Working with Erik has been such a rewarding experience. I feel we’ve really unlocked a new area of Heriot’s sound whilst recording with Erik. He’s an incredible musician and understands each member of Heriot’s focus whilst he sings, plays guitar and also drums. One of the best things about working together is that Erik lets every idea take its full course. There isn’t anything that is instantly dismissed and we’ve been able to explore ideas that we perhaps wouldn’t have otherwise entertained without his view point and understanding.
HERIOT in pole position for…
From Bloodstock’s main stage to touring the United States with Trivium, and now Europe with Converge, it feels likeHERIOT is in pole position to conquer the world. But how is the band holding up with such a demanding schedule?
We’re all so excited to be in this position. We all love the band so much and to be able to nurture that together and grow together is a true honour as cheesy as it may sound! The four of us are incredibly tight and I wouldn’t want to be doing this with anyone else.
Last words
Looking at the current schedule, which includes the remaining European dates with Converge and several UK festivals later in August, what does the rest of the year look like for Heriot?
We have a few more festivals left and then we’re going away to write for a little bit.