Anyone can become disabled at any point in their life. That’s a fact, and yet it’s never spoken about. Some people are born with a disability, and therefore don’t know any different. Others acquire a disability throughout their life. Some people might have multiple disabilities, whereas others might just have one. Regardless of this, society dictates that disabled people should be seen as ‘inspirational’, ‘brave’ or ‘a warrior’. Whilst some people with disabilities might wear these like a badge of honour – and there’s no reason why they shouldn’t – others might find this a very narrow way of viewing things, as if their feelings are being dismissed. The truth is, even people who feel as if they are a warrior or brave can feel frustrated, embarrassed, angry, or any number of different feelings. It is a part of being human. Very slowly, the narrative around disability is changing, and at the forefront of this conversation are MALLAVORA, a metalcore quartet from Bristol whose EP, Echoes, deals with these feelings of being disabled head on.
Vocalist Jessica Douek lives with fibromyalgia and is disabled and guitarist Larry Sobieraj sit down with us to discuss Echoes, how the band got together, and why they’re campaigning for music venues to have more accessibility.
“Me, [drummer] Jack [Pederson], and Ellis [James, bass] all met at the University of Birmingham,” Larry explains. “We all started jamming together for quite a number of years and it took us a little while to get to somewhere where we making the music we thought we should make. In 2019, Jessica joined the band for one show, and from then onwards, that’s when MALLAVORA that is today was born.”
Jessica says that it was weird joining the band at first because although she had been in a band before, it was a cover band in school that they didn’t take seriously. “I did really struggle to put my own stamp on things. When we’d recorded the Paradise EP, the songs were already written, but that helped me find my feet. Imposter is the first song I wrote and screamed on, and I’ve slowly grown in confidence over the years. You can see the difference in the music videos.”
The name MALLAVORA doesn’t have a meaning, but it has origins in the genus for honey badger, which is mellivora. “The boys liked the idea of a honey badger because it’s small and unassuming, but also super vicious. They tweaked the word to make it sound more like a music project,” Jessica explains. She laughs as she remembers how in the early days, the band tried out a honey badger logo, but it ended up looking like a sports brand.
Their latest EP, Echoes, has come from the heart as it deals with their experiences living with disabilities. “The conversation around disability and chronic illness can feel quite detached from the humanity and that person’s experience, and we hope that people can listen to it and get a glimpse of how it feels and the real range and roller coaster of things that you deal with,” Jessica explains.
Earlier this year, MALLAVORA won a record deal with Marshall Records through Kerrang! Radio. “We entered the competition about a year ago, and we found out in January this year that we were in the semi-finals, which is when we started writing songs. In February, we had to get as many votes as we can from the public as possible, so we made about ten TikToks a day for a week and we put posters up in Bristol. We found it really heart-warming to see the support. We got to the final where we were judged by ten music industry heavyweights and we came out on top, which is crazy,” Larry explains.
He goes on to explain how insane it was that their EP was produced by SKINDRED guitarist Mikey Demus, as he’s been a hero of the band for their entire lives. The prize also included performing at Download Festival, which they describe as a ‘whirlwind’, especially stepping out onto the stage, as well as being backstage with some of the biggest names in rock music.
When it comes to live shows, MALLAVORA are keen to shine a spotlight on accessible venues, which is helpful not just for the band themselves, but for their fans. People with disabilities should be able to go to concerts, just like anyone else. Yet a lot of venues – especially small and independent ones – aren’t accessible for people. Furthermore, whilst there are a lot of venues in cities such as London, the journey can be difficult for people with disabilities.
“We have a lot of disabled fans and we feel very strongly that no matter who you are, you should be able to access live music and go to gigs. At the moment, in the small and medium-sized gigs, there is an accessibility problem. We don’t think it’s fair that wheelchair users can’t go to a lot of small gigs and that is even more of a problem if you’re an artist. A lot of the times, they can’t get into the venues, so we’re blocking off potential future talent. We just think that’s not okay. We want to change things,” Jessica explains.
To make their shows accessible, MALLAVORA play wheelchair-friendly venues, hand out lyric sheets, get sign language interpreters, play venues that have accessible toilets, and have a fifteen minute break to help the band and audience keep the energy up, as well as not using strobe lighting. Whilst these changes seem obvious on paper, MALLAVORA have just provided the drop in the ocean that will have a ripple effect on accessibility in the entire music industry.
Echoes is out now via Marshall Records.
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