1.Hello, it's the beginning of the interview, so to catch the interest of our readers could you tell us more about the passionating things that occurred in the world of Desolate Awakenings lately?
Alex: There’s been a lot of thunderstorms, I like those. Got a chance to play a couple of shows with my band Ignominy on 7 string bass. There are house centipedes in the building where I live. I used to be terrified of them but now they are my buddies. I practise meditation which helps keep the demons in my head at bay.
Jon: Ditto on the thunderstorms as those can be inspiring. I’ve used that inspiration to release some solo music as well. Saving up for a sitar and will possibly use it in the next D.A. release.
2. Take us briefly through your life’s musical journey. Were either of you classically trained as a child? Musically, what were some of your early favorites?
Alex: My first favourite song ever was “Allstar” by Smashmouth. My second favourite song ever was “Fat Lip” by Sum41. Then I got into Linkin Park and Rob Zombie, they were OK but then I discovered SLIPKNOT and the last two were forgotten. That was two years ago JUST KIDDING I was 12. No musical training. I learned everything I know about musical theory by composing songs on a copy of GUITAR PRO that Kevin gave me in exchange for a gram of weed. That was in highschool. Thanks Kevin!
Jon: I grew up around alot of jazz, rock and classical music. It was when I got into metal at around age 14 that I really got interested in guitar. Around that time I was mainly listening to “the big four” I hope I dont have to write them out… And as I progressed playing metal on electric guitar I developed an interest for the classical guitar and from then on went to study classical music and got my degree.
3. Recently I’ve discovered a whole new side to the Canadian metal scene not known to me before. With the strange population density that is Canada how do you go about building a metal scene and attain followers?
Alex: Contrary to popular belief, Canada is not a snow wasteland and we do not live in Igloo tribes. The metal scene is bigger in cities like Québec, Montreal and Vancouver and maybe Ottawa. How to attain followers? Well, we suck at networking so there isn’t much we can teach you about that. People seem to like long hair that flows in the wind of a ventilator from what I can see.
Jon I’m a bit of a hermit, I don’t get out much so I share as much on social media as possible but even then I might not be doing so in all the right places.
4. Could you tell us more about the metal scene in Montreal? Is this a quite good state on a metal point of view, and were there good metal bands to check out in the past? Do you think a city’s collective attitude determines what music will emerge?
Jon: Montreal definitely has a solid metal scene and has for decades. Plenty of great bands have come and gone and are still running strong to this day. The fanbase as well is quite solid; there are alot of “connaisseurs” of the genre and its subgenres. Alex and I used to play in a band (Skeleris) and were active playing shows from 2012-2017. We had the chance to play with many amazing and talented local acts such as Beyond Creation etc..
Alex: Montreal is the capital of metal in Canada. Bands from all over the world love to come here because we give them a crowd to remember. People here are passionate metal heads. We love to mosh and we love buying merchandise. The music that emerges has to do with the influence from the bands that perform here and what is available online, basically. I’d say there isn't a very strong collective attitude in most cities in north america. Unfortunately, people often have a very individualistic mindset. As for bands to checkout, montreal is home to some big names like Cryptopsy, Gorguts and Quo Vadis.
5. Can we speak of a specific Canadian black metal sound, and what would that be?
Alex: It’s important to note that there are two different things here. There is Canadian black metal and there is Québec black metal. I am not too familiar with the Canadian scene. The Québec scene is pretty big. I’d say the more known Québec bands tend to have a cleaner production. The sound is generally more crisp than the more traditional screeching/basement recording sound of most Black Metal. There tends to be a lot of traditional instruments added to the recordings as well.
Jon: To follow up on Alex's statement, there definitely are a lot of traditional instruments used in alot of Québec black metal as it has deep roots in old Québec folk music. As for the Canadian scene as a whole and aside from that of québec, I don't really notice anything specific that would differ from most other black metal music out there, but that may be due to my living under a rock and not always exploring enough of the newer stuff.
6. Explain to us what went into developing the concept, music and album cover for your new debut album, “Music for the End of the Fucking World”?
Jon: The idea for the project came to us early in april 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic.
There was a strong foreboding sense of an apocalypse as I am sure many remember, so the theme and title for the album came very quickly. We were each recording our parts at home separately and sending tracks back and forth at first until we were allowed to hang out and work together again. The uncertainty and general despair of the time was a big influence on our compositions and lyrics. The cover photo, was actually taken sometime in 2018 during one of my many adventures in an old abandoned factory.
Alex: I think that sums it up.
7. Was their a specific goal in mind when writing the new album? How do you guys write such complex yet memorable music? Is it tough to do?
Alex: The idea at first was to start a Progressive black metal project with DSBM influence where we would only release music. We decided that we would’nt bring the project to the stage. This way, we could focus on composition and recording without the constraint of arranging the songs to be played live or having to deal with finding members and rehearsing and the whole shabang . This gives way for full creative freedom. In Avarice there are sections with some 9 different guitar tracks. Impossible to recreate live.
Jon: One of the main goals was especially to make the perfect soundtrack to the end of the world. I think years of practice, learning, trial and error as well as an intense love of music have made us more patient and selective in our composition process. I think diversity is key for any music composer. Listen to a bit of everything and it seeps into your writing process which can lead to your work sounding more original.
8. How much of your work is the result of conscious deliberation and how much is spontaneous inspiration?
Alex: Well I can give you an example for both! In the song Inspirer & Périmer, the opening chords were a result of me free jamming by myself after smoking weed, as well as for the clean guitar lead in the second section. That is an example of spontaneous inspiration. As for conscious deliberation, I decided to buy a field recorder(A battery powered device with XLR inputs and a built-in room Mic) to record vocals outside. Some of the vocal tracks in Abusing the Amygdala were recorded in an abandoned sorta barn type of building. The guest vocals by friend Alex Sticcboi (Singer from my band Ignominy) were recorded in the basement of an abandoned church! That took a lot of planning. For me, composing is more spontaneous and mixing/mastering is more conscious work. Work that I enjoy!
Jon: A lot of tracks were born of spontaneous inspiration for me..for example;
The opening keyboard part for Acute Despondency came to me during a long walk in the forest near my home. I just started humming the melody as I was strolling then repeated it obsessively until I got back home to my keyboard…the vocals of that track are literally just me blowing off a lot of steam as well as an epic growl by Alex.
9. What kind of role do the lyrics play in the concept of Desolate Awakenings? How important are they?
Alex: The lyrics are the last layer of creative manifestation upon the fabric of the songs. My house centipedes helped me come up with some sick rhymes. Fun fact : the lyrics in the second part of Avarice and in Inspirer & Périmer are in french.
Jon: The song Desolate Awakenings was pretty much a one taker (for all separate parts)..it's just how I felt that night…Desolate Awakenings is the entire lyric for the track…because that's all it is…it doesnt need more. However, all other songs with lyrics actually tell a story in their way.
10. Do you think a genre of unpopular “popular music” like black metal can be a form of art?
Jon: It is art.
Alex: It is art.
11. Regarding promotion, what ways has been the best for you in order to promote the band? What do you do to reach as many interest as possible?
Alex: We got the channel “Only Black Metal” on Youtube to put our album in their playlists. By far, that has been our biggest source of recognition. Other than that we occasionally post songs on different facebook pages and we encourage our friends and family to give it a listen.
Jon: That is pretty much it. The youtube playlist has helped build our fanbase and we continue to share the playlist as well as bandcamp page on social media.
12. If you had to highlight one important message behind your music, what would it be?
Alex: Stay on your meds.
Jon: We are going to die, and it will be beautiful
13. Thanks for taking the time out for this and all the best for the future! What would your last words be before the end of the world?
Alex: Oussé jai mit mes fucking clés tabarnak!
Jon: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGG!!!
Comments