The Bad Penny (beta)

Doom/black metal band Ponte del Diavolo are about to gift the world with their second full-length, De Venom Natura, a week from tomorrow. But perhaps even more meaningful to the Italian crew is their beloved English Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Spettro. As a spokesperson for the band who is part of the Season of Mist family, Spettro’s hobbies include sleeping in bed with his human parents, running in the mountains, shaking his butt, eating cat food, Harry Potter, cooking and supervising Ponte del Diavolo’s load-ins at venues.

We caught up with Krhura Abro, one of the band’s bassists, to discuss the big bugger.

How did Ponte del Diavolo cross paths with Spettro?

Spettro (translated “Ghost”) came into our lives about 10 years ago. He belonged to a guitarist friend of ours (who currently plays with the metal band Strega) and is part of a litter of six. He was adopted by our singer Erba del diavolo, who I was living with at the time. After almost five years, when I moved into another flat, he came to live with me. Shortly after, we formed the band and from the very beginning Spettro became our rightful mascot.

Given Spettro’s human-esque hobbies and preoccupations, does he pay rent?

Absolutely yes, payment in kisses.

How many “steps” do you estimate Spettro gets in each day?

Very few now; he’s 13 years old and is starting to get tired.

What was Spettro’s most adorable moment that you can recall?

When he fell asleep inside Hellripper’s merch during one of their live shows here in Turin, filling all the black t-shirts with his fur.

Please relay the anecdote of Spettro’s most terrifying moment.

He once got scared and ran away in the middle of the night, ending up in the city center of our hometown, Turin. Erba del Diavolo and I spent the entire night searching for him. Fortunately, someone found him and contacted the animal shelter. Erba del Diavolo went to pick him up the following day. He was absolutely terrified and had run so much that he had sprained one of his paws.

What are Spettro’s vices?

Staring at me while I eat and peeing on my pillow if I’m away from home more than usual.

What are his virtues?

He is particularly sweet and sensitive.

Does he get along well with others?

Only with his pack and a small circle; he’s very, very shy and highly selective. He has some great friends, but few and carefully chosen.

What’s Spettro’s favorite food?

Jessica’s food, the cat that lives with him.

Does Spettro snore? And, if so, how loudly?

Yes, he snores quite loudly. More than that, he moves around a lot, doing martial arts-like moves in his sleep, and often kicks me.

Head to Ponte del Diavolo’s Bandcamp page to learn more (and do some shopping).

For more editions of Pet Sounds, check out our extensive archive.

This entry was posted on 02/05/2026 at 6:55 am and is filed under Features, Interviews, Pet Sounds with tags Erba del diavolo, Krhura Abro, Pet Sounds, Ponte del Diavolo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.