We sat down with Hywel Thomas (vocals), Mason Williams (guitar) and Daniel Bryant (drums) to dig into their self-described “controlled chaos” — where it comes from, what scares them, and why this lean three-piece version of the band might just be their most dangerous form yet 😈
No PR fluff. No therapy circle. Just honesty, sweat, and a lot of love for heavy music.
🎭 Controlled Chaos: Fear, Feelings & Flying by the Seat of the Van
For Virtue In Vain, chaos isn’t accidental — it’s curated.
Hywel puts it bluntly: opening yourself up emotionally is the risky bit. Writing raw, exposing lyrics and then unleashing them live takes guts. Real ones.
Mason zooms in on the practical terror: one broken cable, one crashed laptop, and the whole thing could collapse. Heavy music in 2026 still relies on fragile tech — and that tension keeps things sharp.
Dan? Dan smiles into the storm. For him, the chaos is the point. Writing outside the norm, constantly trying to wow, and trusting practice to kill fear before it ever reaches the stage.
Controlled chaos isn’t disorder — it’s commitment.
You describe your sound as “controlled chaos.” What part of that chaos is deliberate… and what part still scares you a bit?
Hywel: The ability to be open and raw with the emotions we put into each song. To expose yourself that openly and then still create the music we have created.
Mason: The controlled parts of our chaos are the stories we try to tell through our music and live shows and the structures we build and change over time. The parts that scare me are human and technical errors, especially when on stage. One computer crash or broken instrument could bring the show to its knees.
Dan: I would say all of the chaos is deliberate, it’s the way we write, we love branching out from the norm demonstrating unique ways to wow the crowd! We are always looking for new ways to set us apart from other bands. I don’t think anything really scares me with regards to the chaos, we are all passionate and professional about what we do and put so much practice into perfecting our live shows that I get more excited about playing it all.
You talk about shared experiences shaping the band — without turning it into a therapy session, what kind of moments forged this lineup into a proper unit?
Hywel: This is funny as on longer tours the van is a therapy session! For me it’s been the times when I have been at my lowest, the band has been there for me as well as being the reason for my most cherished memories.
Mason: The times that have solidified us as a unit in my opinion are all the times together away from the music. Spending time with your best friends who also share your love for music and creativity makes us a very strong team.
Dan: Like every band, we’ve had some highs and some lows especially playing together over the past 10 years and we’ve always stuck together having each other’s backs. What no one talks about is that week in/week out we are practising together consistently, all enjoying the music we play, sharing ideas and discussing the next plans for the band. I think that if we put all the shows to one side, I believe this is what forged us into a proper unit by working together doing what we love.
Do you write music to exorcise something, or to confront it head-on and stare it down?
Hywel: We confront it head on! Our songs are a reflection of our thoughts, feelings and stories. Write about each one and then turn it into a song.
Mason: Definitely to stare it down, we write stories that mean something to us and evoke our own emotions. We like to confront it head on and we hope people can resonate with it too.
Dan: Always head on, this is how we deal with everything, never leave anything unanswered! Same goes if anyone had a problem in the band, we would all support each other by discussing and facing the problem together.
When a track really clicks live, what do you feel first — relief, adrenaline, or pure feral joy?
Hywel: Pure happiness for me. When a song just feels right I do a cheeky look at mason and dan to see if they felt that like I did.
Mason: I feel every positive emotion at once, nothing is better than hearing an idea come to life and click in place!
Dan: Pure Joy and excitement! Of course we have a cheeky look at each other to give the nod but for me, I love talking about each show afterwards as it’s exciting to talk about the bits that went really well, as well as new ideas for the next set or what we can do better.
What’s the one misconception people make about you after hearing just one song?
Hywel: That all our songs sound the same. I can understand that some people may not like our music however I think if you listen to our songs you will be surprised at the diversity of sound and style in each song.
Mason: I agree with Hywel, being a genre of screaming vocals and distorted guitars, people who aren’t familiar with the sound will always say it all sounds the same.
Dan: I would agree with Hywel on this one. I think people love to come and watch us for our live performance but someone who just walked in for one song, might just think oh it’s another screaming band whereas actually, we put on a SHOW rather than just displaying the music.
Hywel Thomas — Vocals
Your vocals carry a lot of emotional weight — where do those lyrics usually start: personal moments, observation, or full-blown emotional implosions?
Hywel: That’s a great question! It’s a mixture of personal feelings and observations I have. I try to write lyrics as a story. I write our everything about what the song will be about and then I compress that into lyrics.
How do you balance vulnerability with aggression without tipping into self-indulgence?
Hywel: It’s difficult to balance as sometimes I do really enjoy myself. However, the topics of the songs are on the darker side, so for me I allow myself to feel the meaning of the song and from that I can be authentic to the song’s meaning in my performance.
Is there a vocal take you’ve done that left you absolutely drained afterwards?
Hywel: On our EP ‘Nothing Is All I Am’ the end of Blood Eyes ‘I am Death’ (Very metal lyric) is a long drawn out low scream and getting that right was trial and error and took all of me to get the sound I wanted out of it.
On stage, do you feel like yourself… or something else entirely?
Hywel: If I am being honest, it’s a bit of both. I truly feel comfortable on stage as myself and I love playing music, but I am what I like to call in ‘gig mode’, so I am a more dialled version of myself to entertain a crowd and feel the emotions of each song
Who taught you that emotion beats perfection every single time?
Hywel: Experience of playing in this band and shows. I used to have the mindset that being flawless meant you were good, however feeling the songs and being authentic to the music and yourself has made me that I enjoy the show more, and the audience enjoys it more.
Mason Williams — Guitar (New Role)
You’ve moved from bass to guitar — how did that shift change the way you approach writing?
Mason: Before playing bass for Virtue in Vain I used to play guitar for a previous project. So moving from bass to guitar after around 10 years on bass was a huge change for me, myself and Hywel write a lot of the guitars together so it has been nice to bounce ideas off each other while both being on a guitar!
Did stepping into guitar duties feel natural, or like learning to fight with a new weapon?
Mason: I’d say both, it felt like going back to an old friend, very nostalgic and great fun but also hard to see how much things have changed over the years of not playing.
How much of the low-end mindset have you carried over into your guitar playing?
Mason: I’ve always thought that guitar and bass are one and the same. I’ve never been a ‘root note bassist’, I’ve always tried to write bass lines that keep up with the guitar so the guitar and bass can have their own time in the spotlight. I’ve taken this mindset back to guitar now, each instrument needs to shine.
Has taking on this role changed your sense of responsibility within the band?
Mason: Slightly, other than the actual role of playing the guitar as well as bass while recording, we have a clear delegation of tasks within the band so I have been trying to keep the plates spinning while playing guitar too .
What kind of guitarist are you becoming now, compared to who you were before?
Mason: A much different one! Definitely a more well-sounded one too, it’d been about 10 years of playing bass and I’d definitely fallen out of touch with what it takes to be a good guitarist these days. When I first moved back to guitar I felt like I’d changed from a good bassist to an okay guitarist, but with time and practice I am getting better!
Daniel Bryant — Drums
With fewer moving parts, does the rhythm section feel more exposed or more powerful?
Dan: The rhythm sections feels the same to me as it is always powerful, I think when people see just 3 people on stage they think the music won’t be as powerful or portrayed as what it should be on the track, which is fine because we love turning heads creating the unexpected and putting on a show that sticks with people as a show to remember.
How do you lock in with guitar now that the dynamic has changed?
Dan: Nothing has really changed in terms of how we lock in with each other, Mason was the bassist before going on guitar so we have always had a good connection with each other so it just felt really natural when he changed.
Do you feel like the drums are driving the chaos more than ever?
Dan: I do, the drums get more technical on every EP that we create and the newest EP is by far the most technical especially with all the different footwork patterns meaning I’ve had to lock in more than ever as it would be very obvious if it was played incorrectly.
What’s the biggest challenge of keeping things tight during a transitional phase?
Dan: I’m not completely sure to be honest, I’ve played to a click for the past 10 years so it’s become second nature keeping the timing neat, I suppose the challenge is making sure each note is hit accurately and to not get too excited. Always stay calm.
Which track best represents where the band is right now?
Dan: I think Between Reflections And Silence represents where we are now, we are constantly experimenting with new ideas which we have experimented with clean vocals on this track doing it in a way where it interlinks with the harsh vocal of Hywel seamlessly. This was a new chapter for us exploring ways to give a fresh take on what we can do and I’m sure there will be more things to come not just on the singing but technicality!
The Missing Piece (Bass Position)
What qualities are you looking for in a future bassist — technical skill, mindset, or chemistry?
Hywel: Mainly Chemistry for us as I think what we have learnt from being a band is that we work really well together and so that is hugely important for us.
Mason: Loyalty and personality. I really want someone who I can call a brother (or sister) rather than just ‘the bassist of my band’.
Dan: Someone who is like minded and is as passionate about playing music as we are. We are looking for someone who is willing to help push our band forward who is loyal, consistent and has the dedication that we do.
Would you rather bring in someone who adapts to your sound, or someone who challenges it?
Hywel: I would say adapts to our sounds as we have found what makes Virtue In Vain, and we want someone who helps escalate that.
Mason: I would prefer someone who can adapt to our sound and see out vision, but I also appreciate someone who can challenge what we do and see things differently sometimes. As long as we end up with something we are proud of.
Dan: I prefer someone who can adapt to our sound as well as providing fresh ideas for performances not just musically.
How important is personality versus playing ability in completing the lineup?
Hywel: Personality 100%
Mason: Very important! I’d much rather be in a band with someone I love who is an okay musician rather than a very talented member who I can’t connect with.
Dan: Personality and building a connection is more important, people can grow and learn new things with the right dedication.
Until that slot is filled, how are you adapting your sound to stay heavy and grounded?
Hywel: Truth be told, we haven’t compromised on the sound at all. Luckily mason used to be the bassist, so writing bass is easy and live we are just running it in the backing track.
Mason: Exactly what Hywel has said, the bass is all written and recorded by myself on the tracks, and those stems are played through our tracks live.
Dan: We don’t compromise. We found the solution by running the bass through a backing track which is a temporary solution.
Closing Chaos
What does this version of the band stand for that previous versions didn’t?
Hywel: We are an evolved version, learning from ourselves and developing to the Virtue In Vain we are today
Mason: This version is the new era of who we are, our sound and new lineup has changed over the years and we’re now comfortable with what we are
Dan: We have all grown in different ways bringing a variety of ideas and listening to each other and agreeing on what’s best for the band’s sound.
What keeps you pushing forward when things get uncertain?
Hywel: Each other and our love for music. With that at the core of this band, we can accomplish anything
Mason: Our loyalty to ourselves as friends and our music. We do what we love even through the harder times.
Dan: Yeah definitely each other and the passion we have for playing our most loved music genre. We’ve been through our ups and downs but we stick together.
Finish this sentence: This band exists because….
Hywel: This band exists because our love for music has no end
Mason: This band exists because we do what we love, and we love what we do.
Dan: This band exists because we are brothers and love playing shows.
If you fancy diving in:
👉 https://www.virtueinvain.com
Stick them on loud, preferably with a brew going cold because you forgot about it while nodding along.
This is the sort of band that feels destined for sweat-soaked support slots, festival stages, and that moment when someone turns to you mid-set and shouts, “WHO ARE THESE?!” 🔥🎸
