When you hear the click, it’s about to drop,” advises Serena Cherry. Svalbard’s vocalist and guitarist is as cool as a cucumber when she says this, which is impressive given we’re currently ascending more than 100 feet into the air while strapped into a vertical tower ride named Detonator at Thorpe Park, 25 miles west of London.
As we reach the top of the ascent and the entirety of this theme park and a large chunk of the surrounding Surrey countryside spreads out beneath us, Hammer is struck by the view. But we’re also aware that our legs are dangling down into thin air, our stomach feels hollow and our heart is thumping. The ride clanks to a stop. Was this a good idea? Are our shoes going to fall off? What if – CLICK. Oh shiiiiiiit… This is Serena’s idea of heaven.
While some people de-stress from the rigours of life with yoga, sourdoughmaking or simply kicking up their feet and binge-watching TV until they pass out, she loves few things more than being thrown around enormous steel or wooden structures with only a safety bar between her and the air above and/or the ground below.
Svalbard have recently been out on tour supporting Cult Of Luna and Russian Circles, and playing a run of festivals from Hellfest to ArcTanGent in the build-up to their blackgaze-glazed post-hardcore wormhole
