Generally when you think of solo artists - particularly in heavy metal - you automatic reaction is that a solo artist couldn't possibly possess all of the necessary skills and attributes to fully flesh out what is required to make a splash on the metal scene.
If, like me, you think that way then take a listen to The Overcoming Project, the solo effort from Melbourne solo artist Doctor Mike Trubetskov and your mind will be blown.
Trubestskov has recently released the closing chapter to his 'Determination Trilogy' of music with the brutally crushing 'Victory'.
Inspired by an ominous mix of death and doom inspired riffs, spine crushing breakdowns and fast paced grooves, 'Victory' is just that for The Overcoming Project.
Not that Trubetskov has done this alone. He has enlisted the skills of drummer Mike Heller (Fear Factory) and vocalist Jon Howard (Threat Signal) to expand his personal vision with the help of world class musicians who have bought into his vision.
HEAVY caught up with Trubetskov to find out more, starting with just what The Overcoming Project is.
"It's a solo...," he measured, "it's an interesting one. Because I've been in a band called Gift Of Madness in Moscow and when I moved here to Australia years ago I had no band. I had no-one, and I knew no-one, but I kept writing some music and I kept refining some ideas and they were just sitting there. Then I had some doctorate challenges and visa challenges and life challenges in general and I kept putting them into those riffs and that musical direction and still they were just sitting there. In 2020- I think it was 2019 - I decided that I wanted to publish them. I started with the track 'Anxiety', which we published at HEAVY, and I hired some session musicians - Mike Heller from Fear Factory and Jon Howard from Threat Signal - and we also collaborated with my mate Sergie, who is from Moscow and he is my old friend and we did some stuff on the Russian music scene. That's how it came together."
Solo projects have their obvious advantages and disadvantages, so we press Trubetskov on whether The Overcoming Project is a solo outfit because he couldn't find like minder people to work with in a band environment or whether he didn't want to relinquish creative control.
"It's just easier and it worked that way," he shrugged. "I wanted a very high quality studio recording and a bit of a challenge in terms of production and how things were put together rather than played. There were really particular ideas about the guitar tone and the guitar performance, stuff like that. About drums, about bass, and that's why it primarily existed as a studio project."
In the full interview, Mike talks about the new single 'Victory', the heaviness of the song, working with Heller and Howard, how 'Victory' wraps up the trilogy of songs, how he feels about the journey now it is over, future music and more.