1. Shores of Null begins its journey in 2013, apparently the name Shores of Null has connotations related to water currents, why did you choose this name for the band? What meaning and importance does it have for you?
Matteo: Davide came up with the name when he was visiting Budapest. It is a combination between the natural beauty of the river Danube and the 0-km statue, which is a monument taken as reference to measure distances to Budapest in Hungary. In general we always look for connections to the natural world, and water especially, for song/album names. It is something that fascinates us.
2. To a greater or lesser extent, the members of Shores of Null are part of other bands related in some way to metal, why did they decide to create a new band? What does Shores of Null bring you with respect to your other bands of origin?
Emiliano: The strength of the band lies precisely in the numerous experiences previously made by each of us with previous bands.
To this we must add that precisely these experiences helped us to mix immediately in the live venue, giving us the opportunity to grow very quickly and to offer the public more and better live performances. In general, we wanted to do something different to what we were doing in our other bands. This kind of dark atmospheres was a common denominator for every member of the band.
3. You did not hide from your beginnings your taste for the more melancholic side of metal, whether in the form of gothic or doom, however in your first two albums there were many more influences from styles such as death, black or progressive, however for this “Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying)” you have been carried away by that more gothic aspect in a single track album, how was the composition and recording process of this new album? What did you want to do for this new album? How would you define the sound of the album?
Emiliano: Beyond The Shores was kind of a "leap in the dark" for the band.
With this song we decided to explore our darker musical side.
If you think about it, already in songs like 'Quiescent' and 'Black Drapes For Tomorrow' we had highlighted this aspect, without however giving it the right space, so, in what we could define as a moment of transition, we have chosen to put all our emotions "black on white" by merging them all into a single song.
We didn't know what the audience response would be, but today, seeing how things turned out, we can only thank from the bottom of our hearts all the people who supported 'Beyond The Shores'.
4. What brands of instruments have you used to compose and record the album? Is there a big difference with the instruments you use to give a concert? How did the possibility of working at the Kick Recording Studio in Rome come about?
Emiliano: With the Kick Recording Studio we are a very close-knit team, it is no coincidence that Marco Mastrobuono, boss of the studio, is close to being the sixth member of the band. He has followed all our productions and thanks to the high quality equipment that the studio offers and his skills, we were able to give our albums the sound we wanted.
The instrumentation we used in the studio was a bit different to the one we play live, as Marco provides a lot of choice. To make some examples, guitars were recorded with a Gibson Les Paul custom while bass with a combination of Warwick and Zon.
5. Before I was referring to the somewhat different sound of this work, which without going any further is accompanied by a theme centered on the five stages of mourning formulated by the psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, well, how did the idea of covering this theme arise , Was it something that the sound of "Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying) asked of you as something inseparable from the musical part to finish shaping it? Was this theme something that was already decided in advance or did it arise when all the ready music? and why this theme?
Matteo: The theme was decided very early in the composition phase. Davide and Gabbo were interested in the work of Kubler-Ross, and when we started realizing how dark and heavy the music was coming out, we thought it would have been the perfect match. Now we definitely see the theme and the music as a whole, unique thing.
6. Another aspect to highlight of this album is the number of collaborators of the same to highlight on the one hand the section of the female voices of Elisabetta Marchetti and Martina Lesley as well as Paolo Campitelli the piano and Valentina Gabbianelli al violin, I highlight these because they are perhaps those that give a differentiating touch to the sound of “Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying)”. How did the possibility of making these collaborations come about? Was it something already closed or were the musicians able to contribute their own ideas? What do you think they have contributed to the final result of the album?
Emiliano: The idea of having guests made its way in us as the album took shape.
As soon as a new part of the song was shaping up, we were used to think “Oh this would be really awesome if interpreted by this artist”. That is how Mikko from Swallow The Sun and Thomas from Saturnus came on board. But at the same time it was really a collective effort, we wanted them to be part of the composition so that you could really feel their touch in the music. For this reason we gave them a lot of freedom regarding their featurings. Martina and Elisabetta also did an awesome job. It was easier to have them involved in the project, as they are wifes of our guitarist Gabbo and producer Marco, respectively.
In the end they were all incredible, each of them made a great contribution, a contribution that made the album even more engaging and exciting.
7. The cover of “Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying)”, even though it is quite minimalist, manages to convey loneliness and cold, who took care of the cover design? How is it related to the content of the album? do you intend to transmit with her?
Matteo: the photographs that make the artwork are a product of the super-talented Sabrina Caramanico. We all like her art and Davide was able to involve her in the project. There are a few reasons why we chose this particular art: first, obviously, it communicates a great sense of loneliness, hollowness, but also peace. Moreover, we wanted to represent the different sound of this album. We wanted that the people watching the cover would immediately feel, even subconsciously, that this album represents something different, both in terms of its structure, that in terms of Shores of Null’s atmospheres. A completely white cover is really capable of standing out among other metal records, which usually tend to darker colours.
8. How do you see the health of metal in Italy and more specifically in the Lazio region? How do you think the scene has evolved in these years that you have been active?
Emiliano: The local metal scene, as well as the Italian one, is full of very good and deserving bands.
Let's say that if there was more collaboration, surely the scene would be even more united with the various local concerts and festivals, we could see a greater turnout and participation from the public, but you know, envy and jealousy often tend to corrode the beautiful things.
Obviously it is a generic discourse, luckily for us we have always found ourselves collaborating with very nice bands, valid and with a sincere desire to do and change things.
9. Your previous albums were released by Candlelight Records, however for this “Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying)” you have obtained by making the edition through the Spikerot Records label which you belong to, why is this change? Is this a way to maintain more control over your music? Will you continue to edit your music in the future with Spikerot Records?
Emiliano: Candlelight was certainly fundamental for the launch of the band, the problem is that with time things changed, and in a way that is not exactly advantageous for the band.
This was an important lesson for us, a lesson that led us to decide to have total control of our music, hence the decision to release 'Beyond The Shores' with Spikerot Records.
Thanks to Spikerot we were able to create a vinyl in five different versions, an even more captivating merchandise, all things that obviously have made the happiness of those who have followed us for years. The results in terms of response from the fans have been uncomparable to the previous albums (in a positive way!).
For the future we have not yet decided what to do, but we are already thinking about it, so in the future we will let you know, stay tuned.
10. For the promotion of “Beyond the Shores (On Death and Dying)” you have edited a video that Sanda Movies has made, why did you decide to make this video? Is this video a way to keep in touch with your fans and give them something different, since the concerts are canceled, during this period of Covid-19? How have the restrictions due to Covid-19 affected you as a band?
Emiliano: Never change a winning team!
Just like Kick Studio, Sanda Movies has always been our first and only choice for our videos.
There was already the idea of making a single video, a kind of "movie", if we want to call it like that, something that could tell and convey to our fans all the emotions and sensations already expressed in the album. We think that this incredible video clip really is an essential part of the whole album: listening to the song while watching the video is such an enhanced experience, we really recommend checking it out on our Youtube. Sanda Movies did something incredible!
Regarding the pandemic, unfortunately, the Covid emergency has seriously damaged the whole world of the music business. This situation has put us in front of a choice, do nothing or work hard to properly promote our new job.
We therefore focused on being very present on social networks through facebook direct and other promotional activities that have helped us to stay in touch with old and new fans.
11. How were your beginnings in music: the first albums you bought, the first concerts you attended? What happened in your lives made you want to be musicians?
Emiliano: The first albums I bought were 'Fear of The Dark' and 'The Number Of The Beast' by Iron Maiden and 'Master Of Puppets' by Metallica. With these albums a world opened up to me and from that day, I started to buy specialized magazines in order to know as many bands as possible.
I chose to play the drums because I was fascinated by the gigantic drum sets of drummers like Nicko McBrain, Lars Ulrich, Mike Portnoy, etc... this thing still amuses me today, because after a period spent using a drumkit with a lot of pieces, now it’s been years that I use only minimal set!
As for music in general, I can only say that music has given me experiences that I will carry in my heart for a lifetime.
Matteo: My first album was ‘Powerslave’ by Iron Maiden (as you can see there is a recurring theme in this band!). When the intro of “Aces High” started, it was a revelation for me: in just a few notes I understood that there was some music, somewhere in the world, able to convey such incredible emotions. It is not an underestimation to say that it changed my life completely, and it is still my favourite album of all time. In general all the members of the band started with Iron Maiden and similar cornerstones of metal.
12. Which album defines for you the essence of black metal? What last albums have you bought?
Emiliano:
Immortal ‘Sons Of Northern Darkness’
Dimmu Borgir ‘Enthrone Darkness Triumphant’
Emperor ‘In The Nightside Eclipse’
Matteo: The first three albums of Ulver, ‘Hvis Lyset Tar Oss’ by Burzum and ‘Sons Of Northern Darkness’ by Immortal. I bought the vinyl version of the latest album by Wayfarer, ‘A Romance With Violence”. A very different take on black metal, but so creative, and such a great album.
13. What future plans do you have for Shores of Null, in terms of concerts, reissues, upcoming releases? Is the release of your next album well advanced?
Matteo: it is a bit difficult to make plans in a moment like this, but we already started thinking of what to do in the next one or two years. We have a few festivals participation postponed (Metal Days, for example), and we are looking for tours to really display our latest work as it deserves. The next album has been written and recorded before ‘Beyond The Shores’, funnily enough, but it is still not time to release it.
14. Thank you very much for the time dedicated to Black Metal Spirit, if you want to add something for Shores of Null fans this is the place. I hope the questions have been to your liking
Matteo: we can’t wait to play live again and feel the love of all the people who enjoy metal music. We hope to see you all soon!
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