In a world increasingly connected by technology, INTERCONTINEN7AL stands out as a shining example of what can happen when creativity knows no bounds. Formed in 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, this groundbreaking band has brought together over 30 musicians from 15 different countries, spanning every continent on Earth—including percussion and guitar from research stations in Antarctica. With their unique blend of genres and a mission to unite cultures through music, INTERCONTINEN7AL is more than just a band; it”s a global movement. We had the privilege of speaking with Matt Smith, the founder of this one-of-a-kind group, to delve into the story behind their formation, their creative process, and their vision for the future. All proceeds from streams go towards various humanitarian causes and non-profit charities. Learn more about the group here.
Q1: Where do you come from? What brought you together?
Matt Smith (Band Founder): It all started a few years ago, back in 2020. I was living in Maryland and performing guitar in a local band called Toast. Once COVID happened, we looked for creative ways to continue collaborating together in a remote environment. I discovered this app, BandLab, which lets musicians record and share different musical ideas. After a few months, we decided to post some draft song concepts to the whole BandLab public community, to see if folks outside the band would add anything of interest. Our small group quickly made connections with various future bandmates, including Argentina’s Gustavo Prida, San Francisco’s Hope Gray, Australia’s Robert James Shoveller, Rieneke from the Netherlands, and Marcin Nawrocki from Poland.
After realizing we were accidentally creating a musical supergroup, we borrowed the Foo Fighters’ Sonic Highways concept of creating music with artists from various cities in the United States and expanded it to instead record globally with folks on all of the seven continents! To recruit the remaining members, I reached out to friends and family who were musicians (ex – Alex Burke, Devin Heritage) and utilized Explore and Creator Connect tools in BandLab. The hardest part was finding musicians in Antarctica, which required Google searches for active research stations in Antarctica and many, many emails. We were able to get Belgium’s Aymar de Lichtervelde, stationed at Princess Elisabeth Station, and Stijn Thoolen from the Netherlands, stationed at Concordia, to join the project! With these connections and many more musicians we have met over the years, we have released five albums, including four songs that have instrumentation recorded on all seven continents—the only band in the world to ever achieve this feat.
Q2: Tell us about one of your tracks, the process behind it, how did it come together, why did you write this song?
Matt Smith: For our song “Apothecary,” which is the lead single from our latest record Volume 5, the music was written by me in the United States and was influenced by ’90s alternative rock and grunge—particularly Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mad Season, and Pearl Jam. I then reached out to bandmate Kelly Wandless from the UK to add her distinct vocals to the track, and the rest is history. Alex Burke from the USA provides bass, while I programmed drums, piano, and synth midis.
Listen to “Apothecary” here: Apothecary – INTERCONTINEN7AL
Q3: Why did you choose this artist name? Is there a meaning, a secret, or a twisted side?
Matt Smith: Because of the seven-continent theme, we felt that INTERCONTINEN7AL, with the “7” in the name, was a perfect fit—it’s inspired by the song “7empest” by Tool.
Q4: What is your band known for?
Matt Smith: As stated previously, our band is incredibly unique in that we are the only band in history to record original compositions that have instrumentation from all seven continents, including Antarctica.
Q5: What type of musician would you prefer to collaborate with?
Matt Smith: We love to collaborate with musicians who are open-minded, have a diverse range of musical interests when it comes to genres, and have a deep love for writing music and trading ideas.
Q6: What is it you would like people to do while listening to your song?
Matt Smith: I picture our listeners putting on our album in a quiet space, with headphones on and eyes closed—zeroing in on all the textures and nuances that our songs provide. Imagine the musicians from our songs recording in one communal space together, even though all of our recordings were done fully remote!
Q7: Do you create for yourself or for your fans?
Matt Smith: We create our songs for our own personal motivations and gravitate to those styles and genres that we prefer rather than chase the latest trends, but we do hope that our passion for the music is infectious and carries over to the listeners.
Q8: What accomplishments do you see yourself achieving in the next 5 to 10 years?
Matt Smith: Our future objectives are to record a couple more albums and to continue to raise charity for other non-profit, humanitarian, and philanthropic organizations, to showcase how people of varying cultural backgrounds can unite and come together for one common goal.
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Bio
INTERCONTINEN7AL is the first rock band in history to record music across all 7 continents, and is comprised of over 30 musicians from 15 different countries. Our songs “Manor Hill”, “Puerto Aisen”, “Night Shift”, and “The Chamber” are the only original compositions to ever include instrumentation recorded on 7 continents – to include percussion and/or guitar from research stations in Antarctica. Founded in 2020, the band’s music spans a multitude of genres, including alternative & hard rock, folk, pop, blues, jazz, Latin, funk, metal, gospel, prog, classical, reggae, bluegrass, bossa nova and even showtunes.
