1. The band was formed around the year 1995, what memories do you have of that first period of the band? Why did you decide to create the band and why did you choose the name Agathodaimon?
It was a bit complicated at first, but when our drummer Matthias and I were searching for musicians, once I had an ad out in music magazines and we stumbled across Vlad, things went quick. He knew a bass player, so he also brought Marco to the band. We started writing songs, and then were looking out for a second guitar player which we found in Hyperion a few months later. As mentioned, I wanted to form a band as I was so excited about metal music, very passionate about everything. I was tape trader, had a small mailorder distro (for example selling demos for Anathema in Germany), was working for fanzines etc. and simply wanted to realize my own vision/version of Black Metal. The band’s name was considering a bunch of various aspects, for example I was co-editor of german Ablaze magazine, which was named after Darkthrone’s A Blaze In The Northern Sky album. There’s a chant in the beginning that starts with “Agathos daimon..”; then there’s the so-called riddle of the Agathodaimon, coming from ancient Greece, where it is said that the one who is able to solve, will be initiated to the wisdom of the gods. But it’s not possible to properly translate or solve it nowadays, so to me it was similar to striving for perfection, knowing it can’t be reached, when for example writing music. Then we wanted to differ a bit from those Black Metal bands who were trying to be as evil as possible back then; so we picked a name that actually is a bit different. Roughly translated it would be “good demon/spirit” but it’s from a time where there was no clear separation between “good” and “evil” deities, “daimones” was not having the same meaning (demon) it has nowadays. Well, just in short, there are other relations to other things important to me..
2. In the beginning of Agothadaimon you only released a couple of demos, however from 1998 your releases are counted by full albums, any reason for this change of format when offering your music?
I think the reason is simple and the same as for 99% of other bands- we had to record demos first, to attract interest of record labels. It was nearly impossible back in the nineties to go for a self-produced “Vinyl”-release for example, things are a bit different today. But back then, we released the demos to showcase the band’s material in order to be able to release music through a record label.
3. “The Seven” is your seventh studio album, which comes after a period in which Agathodaimon took a break of about eight years, why did you make the decision to split up for a while and when did you decide to come back? get together and record a new album?
I became father for a second time, and didn’t want to be a part-time dad and musician. So I decided to take a break, and to resurrect the band once it’s possible to concentrate on music again.
4. In the years that have passed since the release of your previous album “The Darkness” and the release of this new “The Seven”, the musicians of Agathodaimon have also changed. How have you faced this process of change within the band? And in what way have you had to modify your way of composing and recording the songs for this new “The Seven”?
It’s always sad, as you spend a good amount of time with your band mates of course, and it’s just about “work” but also friendship. So seeing someone go (or even worse, having to “fire” someone), it’s always a drastic change. But sometimes it can’t be avoided. Even though we don’t make a living with the band, I do treat Agathodaimon in a professional way, so there’s a good amount of time that needs to be invested. When we re-formed the band, some ex-members weren’t interested in playing this kind of music anymore, or meanwhile moved on, like our ex-drummer Manuel, who joined THE SPIRIT in the meantime. So finding new musicians is always a bit complicated. We took almost 2 years to rehearse and experiment until we felt confident to announce the reunion, as I wanted to make sure we have the proper feeling in place and musicians that feel comfortable with our style.
5. Somehow your music and lyrics have always given off an anti-religious aroma, specifically against Christian morals and customs, addressing the theme of this new work the seven deadly sins, at what point do you decide that this new album will deal with a theme related to the seven deadly sins? do you adapt the music to the theme of your lyrics or vice versa?
Mostly, music comes first, then lyrics. But we aimed for a certain concept this time, so we tried for several kinds of moods and feelings when it came to the music as well. Of course it’s a nod towards our seventh album that we picked the seven deadly sins, but it’s also a continuation of our previous album “IN DARKNESS” as the song “Favourite Sin” also dealt with one of these, and I felt very comfortable with this one in hindsight, so it was an easy choice to go for this topic.
6. In one of the songs on the album you have had the participation of Vlad Dracul, one of the vocalists present in the original formation of the band in the nineties, how did Vlad's participation in the album come about? way to vindicate yourselves as a band with a trajectory of almost three decades?
I’ve always remained in touch with Vlad, even though he’s not always active as musician. But he’s been a very important part, Agathodaimon surely wouldn’t have existed in the same way as it is now without him. So I always enjoy trying to keep a certain essence of these early days in our music, and I was happy that we agreed on working on a song together, even have his vocals on th
7. The sound of this album preserves the essence of symphonic black, however it also manages to recreate a sound with a greater weight of atmosphere and an approach to more gothic terrain. Is this a new path in your sound? What brands of instruments have you used for the composition and recording of the new album?
Ah, I don’t care about “Gothic”. We do use Keys/Synths, to create a darker atmosphere, but it’s not about gothic vibes, I guess that label is often picked as soon as some clean vocals start. I do rather see this as our most aggressive album so far, even though there are some doom-oriented parts as well. About brands, well, I think there were Ibanez, Fender, BC Rich and Jackson guitars involved, about drums I don’t remember, as we used one that is often used by our producer Kohle in his “Room of Boom” that was specifically designed for drum recordings.
8. The new album has been released through Napalm Records, it is true that a not inconsiderable period of time has passed with respect to “The Darkness”, but at what point was the decision made to change the record label for the release? of the new album? And what advantages have you found when working with Napalm Records?
Well, our record deal did end after “In Darkness” anyhow, so we were looking for a new partner. And Napalm were interested in us, and we felt they’d deliver a good job, had some talks... plus some of those guys I knew from my times while I was working at Nuclear Blast, so it wasn’t a hard decision in trusting them doing good work.
9. Something you have remained faithful to over the years is working at Kohlekeller Studio, do you feel comfortable working at Kohlekeller? What do you think has been set aside over the years? when defining your sound, working in these studios?
We’ve been working with him since more than 20 years, so he’s someone that we can easily work with, and be open and honest to each other. It’s more than a professional relationship, so there’s no polite bullshit just because we pay him working with us. He also knows our sound, and we take time to discuss every new album, plus he knows how to deal with us of course. So, no reason to go to a different studio.
10. Who has designed the album cover and how does it relate to the theme of the seven deadly sins present in your lyrics?
It’s an artist team called CREDO QUIA ABSURDUM, you should check their work out- they typically do a lot of artwork/merchandise, I’ve met them at a festival some years ago and loved their designs. We’ve stayed in touch and I asked them if they’d be interested in working on this topic, and when the album artwork was done, we extended the coop to also included separate artworks for each individual song etc., I can highly recommend the vinyl or digipack-version as the artwork really is awesome.
11. Something you have never given up is the live presentation of your music, except in cases of force majeure such as the situation experienced in the confinement of covid-19, have you recovered a certain normality when it comes to offering concerts? Does it give you as a band the possibility of being able to offer concerts?
Honestly, playing live is the best aspect of having a band. I always suffer during songwriting periods, I find it challenging and partially torturing to write songs, as it’s a lengthy process, and I’m rarely happy with the first drafts. It’s different once the songs are recorded, then I’m typically proud of it, but the process to get there is hard for me, so many doubts and complicated decisions to take...
12. Active since the mid-nineties, how do you think the sound of black metal and more specifically the symphonic sound has evolved over the years? What do you miss most from the old days?
I miss the non-calculated approach, the music back then was “fresh” and it was easy to get inspired, there were less subgenres and the markets weren’t flooded with hundreds of similar releases. I doubt anyone starting out listening to black metal nowadays will experience the same feeling we did, during the early nineties. No internet, but tapetrading, discovering new music was an adventure, experiencing new fanzines exciting. Today, much has become exchangeable, and I hardly discover new albums that blow me away.
13. How were your beginnings in music: first concerts you attend, first albums you buy? What happened in your lives pushed you to want to be musicians?
My first “real” gig was Overkill, 12.2.1990 at Frankfurt, first time my parents allowed me to visit a concert. I guess they regretted this quickly. Best experience ever. I started out with Iron Maiden and also saw them the same year, but this first gig was something special. I never thought live music could be so massive. This was a whole new experience. Show, sound, light, so awesome. So I went and bought a guitar, took lessons.
14. What album represents for you the essence of black metal? What recent albums have you bought?
Hm, I’d probably pick “In The Nightside Eclipse” of Emperor. This is the quintessence of Black Metal, and a true milestone, just for the music, not for drama. I also loved “Blood Ritual” of Samael and of course “Ceremony Of The Opposites” who both were released earlier and important influence for me, but I think Emperor’s proper debut album is the most important album for Black Metal in my opinion.
15. What future plans do you have for Agathodaimon in terms of upcoming releases, concerts or reissues?
For now, play some more gigs. Then start working on more songs, to aim for the next album. I’d love to re-issue old stuff, but I don’t think we have sales potential to justify this and the negotiations with our old label. But let’s see.
16. Thank you very much for taking the time to answer these questions for Black Metal Spirit, if you want to add something for Agathodaimon's followers, this is the place. I hope the questions are to your liking.
Thanks for the support. Check us out, in case you didn’t listen to Agathodaimon yet- we also enjoy getting feedback, you should find us on social media.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wulkanaz – HaglaNaudizEisaz 16,99 €
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario