I N T E R V I E W S
Cinemartyr - Cinemartyr
"An Interesting Cocktail"
Interview with Cinemartyr on how they came to be, influences and their past, present and future.
By: Vinaya Saksena | Published: Tuesday, July 1, 2025
CINEMARTYR MEMBERS Shane Harrington - Guitar/vocals Amber Moon - Vocals/guitar David Goldman - Drums Aaron CT - Bass (Bass VI) Plenty of bands go through more than one incarnation--usually in the form of lineup changes. Since its beginnings in 2008, Cinemartyr have changed not only members, but names, genres and even continents.
Originally started under the name OST, Cinemartyr began as an exploratory musical project of guitarist and sometime vocalist Shane Harrington in Limerick, Ireland, before he crossed the Atlantic and relocated to New York City. Over the course of its existence, Cinemartyr's musical identity has gradually shifted, from a fairly mellow, sometimes shoegaze-y sound to something far more direct, energetic and consistently oriented towards a rock band-type format.
The heavy, complex, diverse and often dissonant Cinemartyr sound you will hear when seeing the band live these days began to take shape on their 2020 album, 'Death Of The First Person'. Mostly gone were the quiet soundscapes and shoegaze vibe of previous releases. In their place were insistent rhythms, cutting guitar riffs and a combination of two very different vocal styles: Harrington's semi-melodic yell and session vocalist Corinne Laurice's more polished and melodic singing.
2022's 'Opt Out' album took this direction a step further, with the arrival of Amber Watson (aka Amber Moon) as Harrington's new co-vocalist and live guitarist. Since then, drummer David Goldman (who played drums on one song from 'Death Of The First Person') has also become a permanent member of the band, with bassist Aaron CT completing the lineup that has been tearing it up with energetic shows around the country in support of 'Opt Out'.
Musically, Cinemartyr have cited a wide variety of influences, including Daughters, The Mars Volta, Fugazi, Nine Inch Nails and even John Mayer. Lyrically, the band's message is cryptic, but often feels dystopian, with song titles like "Dead Influencer," "Cancellation Policy" and "Delete Yourself" seeming to suggest a feeling of alienation in a world increasingly dependent on profit-driven technology. Maximum Metal's Vinaya Saksena caught up with the band after a show in Allston, Massachusetts to discuss their past, present and future.
Quotes:
"Stylish fucking shootouts is what guitar solos should be." -Shane Harrington
"I think one of the most interesting parts of this band is that all of us have really diverse influences. I'm coming from a jazz background. Shane is coming from a much more self-taught rock 'n' roll background. Amber is a more classically trained kind of person. Aaron's got this whole pop rock 'n' roll thing going on. So when that all comes together, I think that makes for a really interesting cocktail. I think a lot of people have trouble putting genres to our music. And I think that's a big part of it. We're just coming from very different places, but it still works." -David Goldman
"We all really wanna be The Mars Volta." -Amber Moon
"Social media is a very evil virus. It twists art. When you're thinking about the audience, that always fucks with art, but nowadays you're thinking about the world audience and like, every post you make and stuff. When you're making stuff and you're thinking about the result of the cool person in the scene reacting to it, you just make the worst shit ever, so I'm trying to not do that." -Shane Harrington
"There's so many billionaires right now trying to take art. Right in this moment, there are so many people who have so much that are trying to take it from people who are, like, just getting by and trying to be creative. They want that power to (control) the messages and make beautiful things. We have to take care of each other and create spaces that we can be ourselves in and do things that they can't own." -Aaron CT
"[Opt Out] Sometimes it's incredibly misanthropic and sometimes it celebrates human beings as like the most beautiful thing in the world...people are really rough to be around sometimes and they do really stupid fucking things and they're also amazing and life is really beautiful. At the end of the day it is a hopeful message, it's not a nihilistic message." -Shane Harrington
CINEMARTYR ONLINE: Facebook X Patreon Instagram Spotify
 Cinemartyr. Pic copyright--Vinaya Saksena
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ALL INTERVIEWS FOR: CINEMARTYR
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Cinemartyr | Vinaya Saksena | 7/1/2025 | "An Interesting Cocktail" | ALL REVIEWS FOR: CINEMARTYRCurrently no reviews.
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