Monthly Archives: September 2016

195 Metalbands (Interviews), Interview

Rebel Wizard: Expression, spirit and the negative (interview)

3 Comments

Not often to you see a band just carving out their very own niche in a rather established genre. Maybe it’s not even a niche, but more of a return to the more pure expression that Rebel Wizard persues.

Rebel Wizard is Bob Nekrasov, in the notes of the album ‘The Triumph of Gloom’ put down as NKSV. He has been making black metal music the way he deems it to be right for a ling time now, either with Nekrasov or with Mors Sonat and in the past with Whitehorse, but Rebel Wizard is special.

When I was listening to the album, the most noteworthy element was its almost jubilant expression with old school heavy metal riffing and overwhelming approach. Just everything pouring out at you at once. All this from Melbourne in Australia. I was so excited about the record that I contacted the Rebel Wizard for a little Q&A. This is the result and it’s far more informative than I’d have expected. So thanks to Bob for taking the time to answer these.

As for you… enjoy reading!

How did you get started with your project Rebel Wizard?
I’m not sure. I’ve always written and made music like this. However ‘back in the day’ it was just guitar onto a 4 track recorder. I grew up obsessed with music, listening and creating. These days the process is all unconscious and done as a way to fill what I feel is missing.

But I guess it properly started as “Rebel Wizard” doing that first EP three years ago now. I just did and sent it to a couple of friends not really thinking anything of it apart from I enjoyed doing it and I liked the theme that was coming out of it.

bobnekrasov

What are your favourite bands? I’m assuming there actually is a combination of thrash, nwobhm and black metal there?
Cripes, that’s a huge answer. Many. All the usual however it does change. My favourite bands though are more a ‘presence’, attitude and uniqueness. Developing their own thing against trends etc. Big influences are Bolt Thrower, Mercyful Fate, Crass, My Dying Bride, Econochrist, Man is the Bastard, Bathory etc etc

There’s something really classic heavy metal in the sound of Rebel Wizard. How did you develop that, to me, rather unique sound?
That’s really nice to read as there is normally complaints about the ‘shitty production’! For me it captures an energy that got me into metal which was then the pathway into punk, anarchy, philosophy, occult and breaking the shackles of a warped and fucked up conditioning.

I just have my sounds that I like that I have been using for a long time. I just do what resonates with me that I feel doesn’t show up anywhere else. No way am I saying my sound is important or ‘fucken raw as fuck broodal BM’ or ‘pure old school’ – there’s no point to it other than this is what makes me react in certain ways. I like ‘honesty’ in production – not ‘slickness’ or sterility which is so common. I just do what I enjoy. I tried to make each release sound unique whereby the production meets the riffs. Production, for me, is ‘spirit’/ atmosphere of music. Compare Iron Maidens original production of Somewhere in Time to Book of Souls and try not to cry.

How does Rebel Wizard relate to your other bands Nekrasov and Whitehorse, what made you start a different project from Nekrasov for this new outlet?
No way related to Whitehorse, nothing I do relates to that band. Nekrasov and Rebel Wizard are both things that are completely personal. They are not attempts to fit into anything other than being various expressions coming purely from my sub conscious nonsense. I’ve always done both from a young age. Whether it was playing guitar or making horror soundtracks as a kid.

I guess I feel older now and am able to channel a life time of influence whether musically, philosophically etc into either projects. They both allow me to be free to do as I feel I need to do. To be honest I wish I was a plumber.

You’ve been quite prolific in releasing music in 2015 with five EP’s seeing the light of day. How do you get so much out? And what made you decide to go for the album format now? What’s the advantage of the EP format?
Habit mainly. I’ve just always done this kind of thing. I’ve tried to quit over and over but I just ‘need’ to do it. I don’t really think about it.
I grew up with a metal and punk background, late 80s early 90s. Mostly I bought 7”s. There were tons of bands that would come out of no-where with these fucking amazing and powerful eps that you’d play over and over. Normally the full lengths would never meet that standard. I miss that feeling so I started doing it for Rebel Wizard. I like that ‘powerful’ ep life. There’s such a big deal on albums and their mostly boring these days. I mostly don’t give a shit what modern folk are on about and can’t spend an hour on their torture. But that’s just me. I probably shouldn’t really speak of such things as I am still stuck in the past.

Can you say a bit about your album ‘Triumph of Gloom’. What is the story that you are telling on the album and how much work went into it?
I’d prefer not to say too much. I like that it’s kept completely open for the listener as I hope it spanks various sized buttocks. Lots and lots and lots and lots of work, and then lots more. Then I spend way more harder work.

You’re releasing the music on a very limited run of physical formats, what is the reason for that?
Again habits from the past. Everything was done handmade. It makes it personal/ special. I still like doing that. I find that insane glossy inverted cross digipak nonsense is what Disney would do. I have a small audience so it’s easy to do and I enjoyed making something unique for those sad cunts who are hurting themselves with my stupidity.

What is the concept of negative (Wizard) metal? What is the idea you’re conveying with your music? Does it feel right that it’s received as such a positive, vibrant and energetic bit of music that it actually is?
‘Negative’ metal is lots of things: golden shower on bro metal, resurrection of anarchic mysticism on contemporary energy drink sub cultures, emphasis on negative concepts however not the ‘depression’ format and the use of the ‘negative’ to move away from what’s being told is ‘something’ to returning to ‘not this’ etc..

What’s your writing and recording process like, how do you actually get those great records into being? What are the things that inspire you or that you need to make music?
I literally do not know how to answer but it just comes out. There’s no trying. I just do what I need to do. I’m not trying to be anything. It covers all that I resonate with in all life matters. It’s habit.

My life has been long, rough and epic in so many ways. Like everyone who feels that ‘thing’ with the kind of music we do, it is a life line. I try not to let too many outside influences in. Of course they are imbedded. I would say that it comes from doing things I feel are missing for me. In so many scenes there’s a strong sense of replication, this exists is ALL scenes these days. There’s just shit I need to do that I feel is missing, for me. I don’t bother with marketing or labels as I feel it’s not what ‘the people’ want. I am a particular type of ass. I would not release anything if I felt like it was jumping on a band wagon but I also don’t think my way is the way, it’s just what works for me and what helps me process the multi levelled, super layered elements without jumping naked off a plane into a glass roof restaurant.

Since you do all by yourself, I was surprised to read on your Facebook page you’re putting together a live set. How is that working out?
It’s going very slowly and painfully. I am almost thinking it’s a stupid idea.haha.

Where did you get the samples on Triumph of Gloom from? Is it important to you to have these samples to invoke a spirit or convey a message?
That’s for me to know and you to do whatever you do with it all. Haha.

What would you like that people take from your music?
That’s completely up to them.

11044494_764660970310200_8987793864671748303_n

 As I understand it, you have little love for contemporary metal music. If you had to name some bands that do get the spirit of what it is you’re doing, which ones would that be and why.
I have little love for all things ‘contemporary’! haha. I’m not aware of anyone doing a Rebel Wizard type thing. Now, this sounds like an asshole thing to say! Haha. But what I mean is that I make the Rebel Wizard stuff as I feel no one else is doing it and I enjoy it. It simply entertains me and offers me some therapy for this completely absurd and increasingly idiotic/ conservative world. That’s what bands of my early years did for me. If there was someone else capturing the ‘spirit’ of RW I wouldn’t do it so it’s best I stay ignorant. There’s tons of projects I have huge respect for. There’s just too many to name.

What future plans do you have?
None at all however I would really like that Triumph of Gloom on LP. That would be nice. But there’s no plans on anything.

Finally, if you had to describe Rebel Wizard as a dish (food), what would it be?
Urine soaked unicorn steak.

Personal, Uncategorized

I say Dillinger Escape Plan? She says let’s go

12 Comments

Marriage, that’s old fashioned… Well, it’s just one of the things I heard when I told people I was getting married. Not in a negative sense, but as in surprise that someone still does this archaic stuff. Marriage is massively uncool but I’m nervous and excited for it anyways.

People that don’t feel positive about marriage usually associate it with the casual manner in which relationships are handled these days, and I can’t blame them. I see the cycle around me of people getting together, moving in, getting a pet, getting married, getting kids… and getting horribly fed up with eachother.

But sometimes you get to win, sometimes you find that person that you want to stay with. Yeah, sure, sometimes you’ll think that you’ve made the biggest mistake, sometimes you’ll be annoyed by everything. Relationships are hard work, they’re never easy and the work only keeps coming. You might feel that this is not what you signed up for. Not what you want.

Luckily, I get to think… but would any other just say ‘Yes!’  if I suggested going to see Dillinger Escape Plan?  She just says ‘when?’. Not because she loves the band, but because she knows it matters to me. And then I know that I’ve found the bestest bestie in the world… And I can’t wait to put that ring on her finger.

how do you top that?

Music

Underground Sounds: Summit – The Winds That Forestall Thy Return

Leave a comment

Label: I, Voidhanger Records
Band: Summit
Origin: Italy

Metal can be a weird thing, which is definitely what these Italians are delivering on their debut album. It looks and feels like an ambient or electronic record, but it really has some harrowing passages and pounding sections that prove differently. It’s out for you to listen now and definitely for the more experienced ear a lust to witness.

Gabriele Gramaglia is the sole bandmember of Summit. His other project is the more bleak and heavy The Clearing Path, which plays more of an introverted, grim black metal. On this album he does everything by himself, offering something that he describes as progressive sludge that paints vistas of mountains and valleys, creating an overall overwhelming feel. There’s definitely something picturesque about the sound of Summit.

A sense of foreboding looms over the opening tones of ‘Hymn of the Forlorn Wayfarer’, which jangling guitars and a continuous pulsing build up by the rhythm section. It somehow disconnects you from reality and allows you to dream and imagine, but also pummels you relentlessly here and there. The artwork is also significantly different and evokes a more trancendental imagery.

Now, there’s something particular to the sound of the band, that really puts them in that post-metal corner of a Pelican. The languid passages more or less feel very postrocky, even bringing up a bit of Godspeed! You Black Emperor in their early days, like on ‘The Winds That Forestall Thy Return, Pt. I: A Gleaming Aurora In The Northern Skies’ (yeah, quite the title). Onwards then goes the album with gritty sludge, that is a bit like Neurosis for sure, but there’s more strangeness to offer.

‘Aeons Pass, Memories Don’t Fade’ is a repetitive ambient track, that may sound similar to the Burzum prison albums. Reverberating synthesizer tones, with drums on the background. It is a sound exemplary for the whole album, which features a a production that feels blunted in a sense, lacking the sharp edges. It’s so produced that it feels like an overall ambient-like album. It does truly help with that cosmic, cinematic feel as described by the bio, by stripping the sound from its earthy connotations. I think it’s a great record.

Interview

Gilded Lily: Fenced Dogs and Creating Beauty (interview)

2 Comments

Gilded Lily released one of those albums that pushes the boundaries of the genre. The group from Barrie in Canada just released ‘Mongrel’s Light’ and it blew me away. It sure as hell is not casual listening.

There was a little bit of info to be found, but I was keen to find out more about this band and Andrew Helinski was keen to share, so I asked them a few questions about their band, the urban environment and Canadian metal (not referring to the hilarious Darkthrone song).

Check the album review HERE.

Who are Gilded Lily and how did you guys get together as a band? What other projects have you been involved in (musical or non-musical related to your art)?
Gilded Lily began in 2014 mostly out of an itch to create some in-your-face music. Don’t all young guys who aren’t good at sports want to be in a band? Jordi and I had both been in Swarms together before this, which had a more long-winded approach to song writing, and we wanted to try something that felt more immediate. Once we recruited Cameron we realized that the approach was different enough that it warranted another moniker- a clean slate entirely.

I wanted to ask about the name of the band, since it sounds rather different from the more conventional names. How did you come up with this name?
I came up with it, though it wasn’t my first choice. I had actually settled on the name Mongrel for a long while and about 2 months before the demo came out I saw a flyer for a show in New York for Yellow Eyes, and a new band was playing it called Mongrel. So I had to scramble a bit to come up with something new. We ended up going in the opposite direction, instead of trying to convey the ugliness of the band, I went with a name that means “to make something beautiful that is already beautiful.”
In the end, it may have helped inadvertently from a branding standpoint, it’s certainly more memorable for a metal band then a lot of other choices.

What are your musical influences for the ‘Mongrel’s Light’ record, how would you describe the unique sound of this album?
We pulled from so many different places on this album. Some influences are almost bizarrely disconnected from the final product. Just to rattle off some bands, HEALTH, Black Anvil, Prurient, Cobalt, A Pregnant Light, Cattle Decapitation, La Dispute.
We had some trouble knowing exactly how to bill this album; blackened grind, blackened hardcore, post black… they all seem a disingenuous and at least a little inaccurate.
It makes sense why people want genres as a point of reference- but we were pretty happy feeling like the end result wasn’t something that could be easily slotted into anything other than “extreme” metal.

The album feels like a very bleak expression that must have been fed by something of the surroundings or such. What inspired this album? Is there an element of dislike for the urban environment to it?
There certainly is, ha. When we started Gilded Lily, Jordi and I had both just moved back to our hometown of Barrie, it’s an exceedingly average, midsize, conservative Canadian city. The real motivator for me when writing was of course, my personal life- but also the city’s relentless banality, its dumb contentment, the petty criminality.
I don’t necessarily dislike the urban environment itself. I can’t claim some close affinity to nature after being born and raised in the city, but this album at least stays focused on the malaise and ugly aspects of suburban life.
As with anything that’s an artistic statement, the viewpoint is entirely the artists- perhaps someone else could write an album about the same city and it would be a sunny-sounding affair praising it. As it stands however, negativity and specific visions of Barrie and fenced dogs are the main motivators behind the album’s themes.

I was curious how you craft your songs, since the amazing lyrics seem to be at the core of things. How do you go about making and recording the music, who has which role?
The writing process generally begins with my lyrics, the themes being established and the album being sketched out conceptually. After we have the “tone” of each song established, Jordi just hammers out riffs and ideas and begins to piece them together. After the whole album was demoed out we each took two weeks to just listen to the album over and over and draft up a bunch of notebooks, and then just edited out every piece of the album that didn’t 100% hold its own to put ears.
We’re both very respectful of each other’s talents and process, and this album was the most we’ve ever challenged each other or vetoed anything the other has done. I revised my lyrics dozens of times and Jordi had me cut some entirely. And I made Jordi go through four different version of Glass In St. Mary’s Lot until it was at a place where I was happy with it as well.
Pushing each other’s creativity seems to be a big part of why this album felt so successful to us.

Your approach to black metal (if we can call the style of music that) seems to be very eclectic and I feel a kinship with groups like Sun Worship who’ve approached BM from a more artistic and aesthetic viewpoint. Is that the case for Gilded Lily?
I’m not sure we have any kinship with anyone based on style. There are so many bands out there that it would be hard to feel a based solely on the merit of looking or sounding similar. There’s a kinship with other artists or bands we have a working relationship or mutual respect with- Terzij de Horde, It Only Gets Worse, A Pregnant Light, Cara Neir. People who write and create similarly and seem to take the same approach to music’s importance.
That said, not to be too dismissive, Sun Worship are an excellent band and we all really enjoyed their last two records.

Can you tell me about Lion’s Jawbone? Why did you start your own label?
Vanity mostly. We really believe in what we do, and even if no one else did- we both wanted a little platform on which we would be able to display our work and projects on our own terms. To be frank neither of us really wants the hassle that is inherent with a label, so we keep things extremely barebones. It’s essentially just to give a voice to our stuff and retain control of how it’s presented.

13509136_1078372762233449_4806275199099028505_n

Why are there so many good bm bands coming from Canada? And is it me or is there some abject to civilization, society and the urban environment to it? What do you think are the unique ingredients your surroundings offer that influence that sound.
It seems Canadian bands have a wide swath of influences and space to grow themselves. A band in Calgary is a day and a half of non stop driving away from us, so it’s very removed and disconnected. As such, aside from hearing the records and catching an occasional show, there’s no communal mentality to influence our stuff. The mentality is just do your own thing and own it.
We’re left to our own devices and to pursue our ideas down rabbit holes as far as we can.
Of course there’s exceptions, Quebec has an incredible and incestuous black metal scene and inversely, a lot of Canadian acts seems to have a goofy proclivity to folkish / melodic stuff that we can’t get down with. At the end of the day though, a lot of the gems that shine through seem to exemplify that aforementioned mentality.

What does the future hold for Gilded Lily?
Currently we’re recording a new EP, we have a split and a collaborative release with two different bands in the early stages as well. Eventually writing for a new full length I suppose too; we spread ourselves thin and work slowly as a result. Lots of moving pieces.

Finally, if you had to describe your band as a dish, what would it be and why?
Damn, this is a odd one to answer. Musically we’re a hodgepodge of elements kind of thrown together that only make sense as a whole. So maybe a soup? A burrito? A pierogi? Salad’s probably too boring. Would have to be a jazzed ass salad.

Personal

Contemplations while listening to Rush on Train

Leave a comment

Getting anywhere with public transport is rather expensive. That’s unfortunate, because not only do I like to do my part for the environment, it also allows me the great liberty of listening to records.

Something about the rhythm of the train that takes me to uni is calming, soothing almost. I’m on my way, I am actually moving forward today and towards new goals. It feels similarly when I’m clmbing, that moment when you reach the top, the moment just before when you leap. A moment of clarity and security.

Though ofcourse that one with climbing is way more intense and a short burst, not even lasting for a second. It’s soon replaced by the sense of completion, but isn’t completion the lesser of the feeling that comes just before? That desperate grasp for the ultimate, the leap of faith in a Kierkegaardian (and literal) sense?

But the train just rolls on, steadily and calmly, it takes me to that goal at its own pace and unlike the leap on the wall. That leap is my own doing, the train is just helping me get from A to B. Regardless, its a moment of contemplation and introspection. In the meantime Rush is filling my ears, I listen to ‘Moving Pictures’.

Though his mind is not for rent
Don’t put him down as arrogant
His reserve a quiet defense
Riding out the day’s events

– Rush ‘Tom Sawyer’.

Review

Underground Sounds: Ade – Carthago Delenda Est

1 Comment

Label: Xtreem Records
Band: Ade
Country: Italy

Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam
– Cato

Ancient Rome has spoken to the imagination of many artists. The fine arts as well as the popular arts. With films filled with brave warriors, great battles and the grandeur and decadence of old. The theme has been sorely under exposed in metal though with rare bands like Ex Deo (featuring Kataklysm members) or the mild influence on others Alea Jacta Est (a French hardcore band).

In fact I wrote about this already once.

Ade is a breath of fresh air in this little niche with a death metal album that will rattle the Collosseum. Think Nile or Behemoth, but definitely also a bit of that approach of Ex Deo and you have an inkling of the sheer brutallity of this technically endowed band. The group puts the sheer grandeur of the Roman empire in their sound and like with others, it really works.

Ofcourse the result is a bit theatrical and reeks of Bolt Thrower, but how else can you make a song about the most warlike nation ever? That must have been what this group from the eternal city of Rome thought themselves too. The trick is putting those female vocals and strange sounds into your music, but it works smoothy and balanced on this record that features a lot of Carthaginian themes. The title tells you enough, but a song like ‘Annibalem’ obviously refers to the famed general.

The music is complex, but clean sounding and therefor a lot of fun to listen to. It carries the vibe of battle, of intensity and frantic riffing. The vocals are brutal, either deep grunts or guttural barks, even more so setting the vibe that you want on a record like this. The stop-go bursts of guitar work are razor sharp, but so is the build up in some songs, all praising Mars. Blistering and dazzling, but always heavy as fuck, with those martial pounding rhythms and mighty horns. You can imagine the stamped of the war elephants, atleast I can.

You really don’t need to be a tech-head to set your teeth into this recording of fine, catchy death metal. Sure, it packs a punch, but due to the clean production and highly entertaining variety, it’s a fun record to really get into for pretty much anyone who digs the heavy hitters.

Review

Underground Sounds: Numenorean – Home

Leave a comment

Label: Seasons of Mist
Band: Numenorean
Origin: Canada

The whole post-blackmetal thing hasn’t got the best rep, but that is really a shame if you look at the larger thing. The genre is pushing the boundaries of black metal to a more poppy sound, thus allowing the genre some more connection, thus input and growth. Now, if every label needs some post BM bands to bolster their roster (and sales), that’s a different question. Not everything is as good as you’d hope, but these guys really are some fine song smiths.

Canadians Numenorean are one of those bands, pushing the sound into that more blackgaze direction of smooth sonic tapestries and emotional vocals. In 2014 the band dropped  demo and now there’s the full lenght from the duo. Byron Lemley and Brandon Lemley are the guys responsible for the music of Numenorean. The name is a fleeting reference to the Atlantis-like myth of the island of Numenor and its inhabitants in Middle-Earth, in Tolkien’s mythology.

Filled with long, emotional sounding songs with strange, unnerving samples, like on opener ‘Home’, the band evokes an instant reaction. Blistering speed and hyperfast guitar riffs, that create a feeling of static standstill are exchanged with languid passages of mild, reverberating playfulness. Roaring vocals and eerie screams are woven into the complete tapestry, which is much akin to a warm sonic blanket that smoothly enters your ears.

No raw bludgeoning assaults and piercing screams, this is a production that is ment to please. There’s a deep melancholy or despair to the songs. ‘Devour’ for example is a song that touches something, stirs long lost feelings and memories, thanks to that right tone and timbre of the music.

Now and then the music feels very postrocky, innocent and blissful. The continuous cycle of building up and then exploding into frenziend bursts of guitarplay and blast beats is also akin to the genre. It makes for a rather pleasant listen to this pleasant and strirring record.

Interview, Music

Ice Dale speaks: interview with Arve from Enslaved & Audrey Horne

4 Comments

I’ve had the pleasure of encountering quite some of the people who make the music I love. One of them was Ice Dale, legendary guitarist for Enslaved and Audrey Horne. Also known for the project I with Abbath, Demonaz, Ov Hell and many, many more.

I ran into Arve Isdal, which is the real name, after Dynamo Metal Fest 2016 at the Blue Collar Hotel and for the very first time in a long while I bravely asked for a photo. Later I got in touch and asked if he’d answer some questions for on here.

Now, Ice Dale is an interesting guitar player, coming from the black metal scene. He’s also a producer and works with many smaller bands. His stage presentation is unlike most black metal musicians and much more inspired by the great rock guitar gods. Legs spread, hair waving in the air and just chugging out mighty riffs. It was very esciting for me to do this article and to have it on here.

Interview with Arve Isdal

Since you are involved in quite some projects, what are the bands you’re currently working with and what is happening there?
I´m only involved in 2 bands now and that is Enslaved and Audrey Horne. Both bands are working on new albums at the moment and playing gigs in between. Enslaved will do a European tour starting late September and also Australia and a festival in Japan this autumn. Audrey Horne will play some shows in Norway and focus on writing new material.

How do you decide what projects to say yes to and which to say no to. In other words, what are you looking for in a new musical project in order to join it?
-As a musician I haven’t really had time to do much else then Audrey Horne and Enslaved for the last years. Both bands are touring and putting out albums every other year so it keeps me busy. As a producer it of course has to be a band or music I like for some reason or something I feel I can contribute to. I haven’t really produced recently but I have been teaching about music production at a school here in Bergen and that’s a lot of fun.

Audrey Horne-1
Arve performing with Audrey Horne at Dynamo Metal Fest 2016 @Paul Verhagen

Next to being a musician, you’re also a producer. Do you find that you’re a diffferent producer than a musician outputwise? Or how has it influenced your musicianship?
You always learn things from every session you do in the studio cause they are all different. What works in some sessions might not work at all on the next one, so that keeps it interesting and you cant just do the same every time. You learn a lot from working with other musicians and also producers and sometimes they are doing something that just sounds really cool and you can adopt that into your own playing and producing.
I also have recorded a lot of demos with younger, local bands and that’s very inspiring too. They got the spirit and enthusiasm you had when you started playing and its such a big deal for them to get their own demo and you can see how proud they are when its done. That makes me appreciate more what i´m doing and to remember that in the end this is all about having fun and the love of music in between all the hard work.

What is the most rewarding to do for you nowadays? Producing or making music?
Definitely making music! Its fun to record other bands and artist too and be a part of making and maybe forming their albums, but it will always be more personal to write your own music. At least for me. I like to do both though cause if you have been writing a lot for a period, its nice to just be the “ears” to someone´s songs and help them get where they want musically and production wise.

Enslaved has been your band for a long time, all the way from the pagan black metal days to the more progressive times now. How did you get into black metal in the first place? What did you listen to?
I grew up listening to more Rock n roll/ Hard rock and progressive music and bands like Kiss, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Guns n Roses, Faith No More, King Crimson, Yes, Pink Floyd and those kind of bands. I didn’t play extreme metal before I started playing with some friends of mine in a band called Malignant Eternal in the mid 90´s and it went on from there.

enslaved-1
Arve Isdal performing with Enslaved at Roadburn 2016 @013, Tilburg @Paul Verhagen

Nowadays you combine work in Enslaved with Audrey Horne, two completely different bands. Are you experiencing a difference as a member and in the way you perform?
I have always played a lot of different music and in different bands, so I´m used to changing my playing and feeling a bit. Its more like a psychological thing I think. In extreme metal you usually have a more aggressive approach and that attitude and that “feeling” musically can be just as important as what you play technically. If you play for example punk and are supposed to have a chaotic and “fuck off” attitude, you cant all play in perfect time and play all the notes and chords perfect cause that wouldn’t sound chaotic at all. That said I have always had a more rock n roll approach to my playing in Enslaved and other metal bands I played with, so its really not that different. Its another style and another way of riffing and building up the arrangement but both bands are practicing a lot and try to play as good together as possible so its kind of the same only a little different;) Sometimes the most straightforward riffs and music can be the hardest to play cause then all the notes you play count more and there are no room for mistakes or being a little of rhythmically.

What was it like to play in the band I and how did you get involved with it? Will there ever be more work from that group of people joined?
– I met Olve (Abbath) at a local pub called Garage, which was the bar all the musicians hang out in Bergen at that time. We started hanging out and became friends. I had a homestudio and after Immortal took a break, he asked if I could help him record and work on some ideas he had. We didn’t have a band or album in mind at that time so we just hung out and played and recorded stuff for a year or two before we decided to put together a band and make an album. I already played with King in Audrey Horne so I suggested him on the Bass and Abbath wanted to try Armagedda, who was the first drummer in Immortal, on drums and it worked out great. Of course Demonaz had to write the lyrics so suddenly we had a band. We all became close friends and we had a lot of fun making the album. I don’t think there will be another “I” album, or at least I cant see that happening right now.

Of all the music you’ve made, what would you like to be the production or album to be remembered for?
I hope that album is yet to come! I´m proud of everything I have done cause it reflects the time and period in my life when I did it. After every album you do, it always feels like the best you have done so far. Its natural cause its fresh and you have worked on making it as good as you can for a long time. When the album is finished and “borned”, you are very proud and its impossible to have an objective opinion on it. Its supposed to be that way. After a while you start getting inspired again and think that you can make even better songs and an even better sounding album and the circle continues. I think that the day you feel that you have made the perfect album and cant possibly do it any better, that’s the day you should find something else to do.

I’ve heard you mention in an interview that you need a guitar that feels right. What makes a guitar the right one for you?
I found my guitar a long time ago and it’s the “Black beauty” Gibson Les Paul Custom. I use a lot of different guitars in the studio and for writing but live that will always be my main guitar. Its more about the shape and the way it looks and feels than the sound really.

What does the future hold for you and what plans do you have?
Writing more songs, playing more gigs and making more albums. Basically doing more of the same

All pictures provided by Paul Verhagen, check out his website. 

Music, Review

Underground Sounds: Possessor – Dead By Dawn

4 Comments

Label: Graven Earth Records/Anvileater Records
Band: Possessor
Origin: United Kingdom

London always has some great bands brewing something unique and fun. I stumbled across the new Possessor album, number two from the three piece and I tell you, this is awesome! The album is right now only available through bandcamp and well worth your moneys.
Oh, check out the interview here too.

Call it doom, stoner, sludge or as I’ve read somewhere ‘thrash boogie’ and you get the message. It’s fun, dirty and has that jacked up feel of energy, speed and kick-ass riffing. The band seems to be mostly about the fun and just having good times, while lacing their music with some horror themes and grimy distortion.

Opener ‘Afterburner’ has the screaming guitars and the bad-ass bass lines to make you want to start moving (or put that pedal down while driving in your car). It overall has the groove and swagger of a Kyuss but more grungy. The guys like to spice things up with some horror movie samples, like on ‘Scorpion Swamp’, which has these characteristic high paced drums that keep you sharp.

The sound of these guys is heavy and full of groove, with vocals seemingly far away under a sonic blanket. They know how to create that carpet of woolly distortion, but sharp and catchy riffing is also in the book for Possessor. They remind you a little of Electric Wizard playing in the desert with John Garcia on vocals, but there’s something more to it here thanks to that southern swagger. It still feels remarkably British.

For some reason this band makes me think of Motörhead, because of that obvious lack of care for sticking to one genre and just bringing you something that is rock’n’roll as fuck, but just a lot more heavy. Check for example the punked out ‘Terror Tripping’ or the wild ride that is ‘The Curse of the Hearse’, there’s no way to put this band in one corner apart from that. The raw, unpolished sound is fun and catchy, that’s why I make that comparison. This might be one of the coolest things I’ve heard in months.