Nomadic Rituals is a three piece band from
Belfast , Northern Ireland
The overall tone of the recording is massive and
thunderous. The vocals range from being predominantly harsh and scornful to
clean and ethereal in a couple of small doses. Indeed this is the heaviest
thing we’ve heard in a while. Hopeless, ugly, vicious, and pissed off slabs of
soul destroying death-doom is what Nomadic
Rituals deliver and today I pleased to welcome Craig Carson, front
man for this soul crushing trio to talk us through the history of the band,
their influences and the recording of their latest record. Check it out below.
Can you give us an insight into how you started playing music,
leading up to the formation of Nomadic Rituals?
I guess it began in secondary school. I was
discovering music and that eventually made me attempt to learn the guitar. I soon
wanted to really play the bass as I enjoyed the heavy rhythm and grounding that
the instrument provided. Years later, a friend who studied music in the same
college invited me to play bass in his prog rock band. The learning curve was
steep and I was essentially the least qualified, however it did not last past
college and over later years my interest in playing music fluctuated. Then
throughout my later teens/20’s I attempted to construct my own bands to reflect
my current musical tastes but none of these ever left the practice room. Again my music taste kept widening more until
I encountered bands like Iron Monkey, Rabies
Caste, and EyeHateGod. This
really satisfied my need for heavy music. This was the direction I wanted my next
band to go in. Again I spent time searching for the right people before I eventually
found two who seemed to get it. Through different friends I met Frodo and Mark.
Frodo says that I had forced him to play guitar, but I don’t recall this level
of coercion. Mark on the other hand turned out to be a drummer without a band.
From my experience this was unheard of as most drummers seemed to have multiple
bands and absolutely no time. He thankfully needed little persuasion. After much
discussion we hit the practice room, began on some ideas and things just
started to come together.
For folks unfamiliar with your band, is there any bands on the scene past and present that
you would use as a reference point bands to describe your band, and who or what
continues to inspire you and push you to try new things?
If I had to name a few that
really began as a starting point for the band, I would probably pick Conan for the sheer weight and Yob for unbelievable songs that convey great
emotion. From a live perspective I wanted it to feel like Sunn O))), a challenge for sure. As for a maybe
more realistic reference, someone once said we were like Winter. I’d say we possibly have similarities to
bands like IRN, Ramesses or maybe even Warhorse.
As for my current interests,
bands like Usnea, Buried at Sea, Fange,
Love Sex Machine, and Herscher all come to mind. We all can agree on
bands like Amebix, Hawkwind, High
on Fire and Mastodon as
being somewhat inspiring to us. Even Genesis’
“Foxtrot” had some subtle form of influence on the most recent album if
you’d believe it.
What can you tell us about “Marking
the Day” and where do you feel it sits within the context of current metal scene
‘Marking the Day’ in
its simplest form follows a timeline through our universe. Each part narrates
from a different perspective. As a whole, it is a journey through time and
space, yet it is ultimately a loose reflection of our own reality. I suppose it will sit over on the Doom/
Sludge side of things. Possibly for people who like heavy, sprawling albums and
a bit of narrative.
Does anything spring to mind when you
think about the completion of your upcoming record?
The mood I’d say is one
of relief and elation at seeing this album come to fruition. Nothing makes me
happier than having something solid to show for it and people willing to listen
to it. I also perhaps think we are just glad that it went a lot smoother this
time round.
What
stands out as your overarching memory from the recording sessions?
Honestly I’d say the
whole thing. We again recorded with Niall Doran at Start
Together in Belfast
Finally, do you have any final
comments/word of wisdom you’d like to bestow upon us?
As
a final note, I would like to comment on what I personally see as the underside
of ‘Marking the Day’. Ultimately, it
is a message of warning to anyone in the present as to what may lie ahead in
the future if we blindly proceed in certain actions today. In terms of this
album, humanity as we know it is currently playing out the fifth track, only
minutes away from entering the sixth and final track. My own view is one of discontent
at a planet ruled by a short term, profit orientated mentality. We seem
blindsided to other possibilities. In the context of this album I like to think
that ‘Marking the Day’ does not dictate a specific world, but
rather presents one to enter and reflect upon.
