Sludge/Stoner/Post-Metal
Sonic Warriors – Bloodmoon – have just released their new album –
Voidbound – and it's a stunning collection of noises and riffs to
shatter your fragile fucked-up world.
I said this about the
album -
“Voidbound features 3 tracks running for 40 mins or
so. Bloodmoon have upped their game since their last album. They have
gone slightly more crazier and insane for this excellent release. The
riffs are more epic and progressive than ever before. Bloodmoon will
take you on a sonic journey full of despair and wonder all in one
go."
The album is starting
to impress both fans and critics alike with it's daring take on
everything that is possibly heavy.
I have featured
Bloodmoon on the blog a couple of times now. I thought it was time to
feature Bloodmoon for one of our famous in-depth interviews. It's
cool this hard-rocking power trio has agreed to my request. Otherwise
they may unleash a terrifying sonic curse on me. So lets see what
Bloodmoon have to say to ourselves at Sludgelord.
Q1 – Hi guys, How are
things with you today. Thanks for doing this.
No problem Steve,
thanks for having us! Things are going well, I just put in the order
for the physical copies of Voidbound made possible by the pre-orders
so I am excited to be one step closer to what we believe to be some
killer limited editions for this release.
Q2 – Can you give a
brief history on how the band came about to where it is today.
I started a
telemarketing job a few years ago which quite fortunately had no
dress-code. I show up my first day in a Burning Witch shirt which
caught the eye of mister hot shot sales trainer Patrick who wasted no
time in picking my brain regarding music and informing me that he and
a drummer jam every Monday evening, no particular goal in mind.
This
news couldn’t come at a better time as I had just finished what at
the time I felt were my best personal demos, Come Whatever Storm and
Shallow Berth. I bring my half-stack down to Entrada Rehearsal
Studios that evening and start jamming riffs from the two
aforementioned songs. Between the fact that Jason hit hard enough to
push some volume with my amp and Pat’s ability to perform bass as
both a lead/rhythm instrument and having the rig to keep up with my
need for volume, there was an odd mutual feeling in the air of
something like “part of the search is now over”.
Q3 – How would you
describe your overall sound. Stoner, Doom, Post-Metal, Sludge or a
mixture of everything. I suppose Experimental Psych Sludge may sum up
you guys best. Or do you have your own definition.
I think you got it
right. It’s very tough, especially when utilizing music not only
for entertainment, but also as a conduit of freedom, to put it neatly
in a corner. I think at the very core, we would be Experimental as we
enjoy most forms of music, heavy or otherwise, and translate them for
ourselves. Experimental Psych Sludge leaves it open enough for me, if
that is what you and others hear that is what you hear, it is fun to
see all the different connections people draw from different music so
we try not to create any official verbiage for how we sound in an
effort to keep our listeners as well as our own understanding of
Bloodmoon infinite.
Q4 – Congrats on the
album. It's a great album you have recorded there. Are you happy with
the final version that you have released or would you change some
things.
We couldn’t be any
happier, what we set out to do with this album was to represent in a
studio setting as closely as possible what it is like to experience
us in a live setting. Nothing more. Nothing less. Now I only have a
35 watt stereo system at home...but when I crank it...it’s like
there is a miniature Bloodmoon playing live in my living room which
is the experience I enjoy most out of any album so it was quite
surreal to say the least to hear something I worked on myself on
these terms finally.
Q5 – Was it an easy
or hard album to record for. And would you change anything about it.
I wouldn’t change
anything about it. One of my biggest fascinations is “random”
chaos. All of the pieces of Voidbound were falling into place from
the moment we started jamming the first riffs...it’s incredible to
see such an amazing result at the end of just taking things as they
come. I don’t believe that recording is ever easy, even for a
seasoned professional, they have just spent a lot of time growing
accustomed to the things that are hard about it, making them seem
easy to their personal experience. If I compare it to the recording
process for Orenda, it was much easier this time around as we had
been practicing these songs a lot longer, wrote all 3 together and
had a much more knowledgeable engineer for heaviness on this one.
Q6 – How did you get
Greg Wilkinson and Billy Anderson involved with the mixing and
mastering of the album. Legendary names. They did a brilliant job on
the album. Give your sound a more terrifying edge compared to your
first album.
Oakland is about 2
hours North of us and I have always been a fan of Greg’s
work...actually I was pulled more into the Sludgy/Blackened side of
music away from straight black and death which I was quickly growing
bored with by catching a Stormcrow show at Gilman. I obtained a copy
of their Earhammer produced “Enslaved In Darkness” CD and was
blown away by the heaviness. As we had saved up some money to put a
bit more into production this time and an album we wanted to be
represented as best as possible, I sent Greg an email and we booked
some dates. Greg is the perfect engineer for us, no frills, no
bullshit, no wasting time. We spent a total of 28 hours over 3 days
Anderson of course was
involved with yet another game changing album not only for myself but
thousands everywhere. After Greg had let me know he was going to be
too swamped to handle the Mastering of the album, I sent Billy an
email to no avail. A couple weeks later just as we were about to send
our Master elsewhere, we met him at a show we opened for Agalloch and
were informed we were using the email address he never checks and to
get in touch at the right one and he’d be happy to work on it. I
emailed him the mixes Greg had finished at 8pm on a Monday evening
with the simple instructions of mastering it to be as full and
surrounding as possible without sacrificing dynamics...the next
morning I have an email time stamped 6:30am with the completed
Masters.
Q7 – What is the
albums overall themes. Or would you like the listeners to find this
out for themselves.
I believe we can
discuss themes just a bit while still leaving it up to the listeners
as well. We like to leave things with open meanings as there are so
many different ways that different minds like to process information.
For instance: the word Voidbound. One might think that A) One is
bound to the void, a hidden dimension inherent in us all, B) One or
many, are en route to the void, a tangible destination, or C) One
wears garb pieced together by the very fabric of the Void, a spectre
sent as a messenger from the void itself. There are many of these
“choose your own perception” moments lyrically on the album as we
don’t perceive anything as absolute, but at the very core, the
album is an allegory recounting a journey we 3 have taken, and
continue to take through the void.
Q8 – Who came up with
the excellent album cover. It fits the album's mood brilliantly. Did
you have much input into the album cover.
This was done by our
good friend Shelby Ulibarri who has deep rooted connections in one
way or another with all three of us and has always been an incredible
artist that we have felt represents the darkness and light of the
world very well in visual form. We sent him some early live demos
which he started conceptualizing from. After that we started sending
him the full production files as they were updated until it was
complete. So yes we did in a way have an immeasurable amount of input
on the artwork, but at the same time had no input in the verbal
sense.
Q9 – Where did the
name Bloodmoon come from. Any specific meaning.
I much like many metal
musicians am quite fascinated by the book of Revelation in the bible.
It appears to me that the author “John” had quite a vivid vision
of things to come. My interest in this is pure allegory, but after
warning of the moon turning to blood a few times prior in this great
work of fiction, in the final chapter it warns that:
“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood”
I too, had a dream very much like this, so the fascination always stuck. I enjoy pondering the different allegories these stories might be portraying especially in light of our age and time, to me the Bloodmoon is a symbol that signifies the end of organized religion...a time when logic and fact reign supreme over fear and fiction and the illusions of this world lie bleeding on the floor. These themes can be applied to the music industry, and while we would never be so audacious as to believe that we are catalyzing a change, we strive to conduct ourselves in a manner that represents the changes that are both happening and need to happen."
Q10 – Which bands and
artists influenced you as musicians.
We are pretty diverse
individually, mutually we usually dig on stuff like Boris, Russian
Circles, Yob, Sleep, Nine Inch Nails, Floor, Neurosis, Tool, Om and
Grails. Staples like that will always remain a huge rooted influence
in our music, but everything we hear along the way, all the killer
local and touring bands we have had the honor to share bills with,
all the stuff our friends share with us or we dig up on the way find
their way into things subconsciously.
The biggest influences
on my playing in Bloodmoon would have to be Chuck Shuldiner of Death
and Mike Scheidt of the almighty Yob. I respect absolutely every
aspect and decision these men have made in their musical delivery and
the way the bands conduct(ed) their business.
Q11 – How big of a
help has BandCamp and the Sludge/Doom/Stoner Metal community been in
getting your music across to fans.
They have been
amazingly helpful. It’s great being a part of such an open-minded,
non-competive and ultimately supportive music community. I have been
calling it the “Doomunity” lately as I think there are certain
levels of ethics, empathy and honesty that drive the core of this
overall genre that are incomparable to any other form of music,
people just want to share the heaviest stuff they can find and as a
result a good doom album has the potential to reach every continent
save for Anatarctica within hours. BandCamp is incredible as well, a
critical part of the change I was referencing in the band name
question. Such simplicity, the possibilities are all up to who you
are as a band/musician. It would be much, much harder for us to
spread our music as well as offering mail-order without this
incredible service.
Q12 – The album is
receiving a lot of praise from fans and critics alike. Are you please
with the responses so far. And did you know you had something special
when you were recording the album.
We knew we had
something special...to ourselves...things had finally come together
as a whole and we had a cohesive tone and timbre to deliver them
with, this was the album all 3 of us had been working our whole lives
as musicians to work up to. Not only does it represent full well who
we are as people, but also as musicians and listeners which is all I
could ever, and I know Pat and Jason have expressed similar
sentiments, hope for. The response we have received has been
awesome...a couple of people have compared us to Floor...a band I
myself hesitate to compare anyone to...so that was pretty cool. While
these are enjoyable, I am really waiting for the person smart enough
to take this album with a side of LSD, DMT or Psilocybe and see what
they think.
Q13 – What is the
songwriting process in the band? Is it a group collective or is just
down to one individual
It changes a lot
depending on what is going on in our personal lives, but for
Voidbound, mainly the process was that I wrote a single riff for each
of the songs, then after bringing those riffs to practice, we all
elaborated and shaped the rest of the compositions around together.
Vocals are always last where Jason and I start experimenting with
where we are able to split our focus between them and our primary
instruments. Everyone is left to their own for their individual
parts, we all know that in order to fully experience the freedom we
are allotted in music such as this, limiting or pushing a part in any
direction other than the one that naturally occurs to its conduit is
not within our best interest.
Q14 – Do you perform
many gigs in your home-town or do you have to travel further away to
perform live regularly.
We are split pretty
even. We usually play a few shows within a 100 mile radius, then
branch out and do a few in about a 300 mile radius, then we usually
take a month or two to plan a tour covering greater distances. This
has been working out really well for us, here we are at the tour
planning phase yet again and have one ready to go for early January
with North from Arizona where we will be covering California from
South to North, then we are planning another one extending beyond our
home state for later in 2014.
Q15 – Are you all
full time musicians or do you all have full time jobs.
We all have full time
jobs but do other various things involving music and are slowly
utilizing the funds we receive from these full-time jobs to source
the equipment and experience needed to be immersed in some aspect of
what we love doing most full time. I believe it is fairly hard to be
a full-time musician in this day and age, but at the same time I
believe that if you are creative it is also fairly easy to find a way
to support yourself in any of the other aspects involved in the
production, performance and curation of music.
Q16 – In 5 words or
less describe the Bloodmoon live experience.
Vision blurs while
skeletons vibrate.
Q17 – The album is
being released on limited edition CD and Cassette Tape. How did that
idea came about to release it as a limited edition CD and Cassette
Tape. Also any plans to release the new album on vinyl.
We would love to
release this album on vinyl and are currently looking for a label
that might be interested in helping us press this in wax, while those
that have shown interest are already booked up through 2015, there
are a few that have expressed some interest that are waiting on their
physical copies to make a final analysis.
The idea to release limited
edition CD and Cassette came about when I found a failed CD sleeve
template design an old friend had tried using for his graphic design
portfolio, he explained why it failed and how to fix and I thought
that it was just perfect for this album to be presented in, this is a
sleeve design nobody in the music world has seen just yet, so we
figured it would be a good reason to make limited CDs. We decided to
release limited editions of both formats for all the people that have
been supporting us the past few years in whatever way, something that
proves to them that their support is not only appreciated, but also
bears fruit. There will be further editions of these formats, but we
are putting much care and effort into making sure that these editions
will remain totally unique in comparison.
Q18 – What are your
views of bands using websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo to fund
their new album releases. Some people and bands are for it. Some are
not. Would you consider doing some thing like that yourselves.
We would not consider
Kickstarter or any of the crowd-fund purposed sites for our own
projects, this is why we have Pre-Orders. I think there are cases
where these sites are used for good purpose and the people using them
still have a sense of ethics involved. In the end I think that in the
case of established bands, it is a clear sign of poor management
detailing bad decision making when it comes to how money is handled
by both the band and label. For independent as well as signed bands,
I think it is absolutely unacceptable to beg for money to fully
produce your new and/or first album, again this is why we have
Pre-Orders.
I am less averse to Kickstarters that are structured as
pre-orders, but there are other ways this can be handled just as
easily. I believe that bands should put in the work taken to record
the audio for an album, get all design and print groundwork laid, and
put up a pre-order of what you will be offering shortly before
ordering to help ease up front costs. Basically what Kickstarter says
is “Without you, we would not, and could not do music.”
These are
the people that wanted to start bands back in the 70s, 80s and 90s
but didn’t want to waste any blood or sweat to make it happen. In
short, I don’t think you should publically be asking for others to
help fund your album unless you have already put in a significant
amount from your own band fund that you should be amassing as soon as
your band starts making any money, as well as the equivalent of how
much effort it took the person that is spending 8 dollars to buy it
to earn it. If you are doing things right, you do not need these
forms of crowd-funding. Never forget, nothing spent, nothing
earned...and this runs much deeper than just economically. Making
things too easy on yourself does indeed have a visible/audible effect
on the outcome.
Q19 - What are the most
and least rewarding aspects of participating with the band?
Obviously, the reality of how expensive it is being in a band could
be considered as a negative aspect.
Most rewarding is all
the cool people we get to meet, and then even further all the cool
people we get to meet that end up knowing each other before hand, or
will end up knowing each other soon. We have met so many interesting
fans all over the west coast in person, and all over the world via
internet, it is the most rewarding thing to me to see that all of
these varying people from varying cultures and tastes in music can
find enjoyment in a project I helped through to fruition. We have
also shared the stage with some of our favorite bands as well as been
given the opportunity to help a few out while on the road giving us a
small peek into “life on the other side” which is not very much
different at all from life on any side.
The Knowledge to be earned,
the friends to be made, the times to be had, these are what it’s
all about. The least rewarding is all of the competition and ego
involved in music. Mind you, we rarely come across these types in the
Doomunity, but I think it must be something about the saturation of
bands in California...a lot of people are involved for their own
selfish reasons and some it seems have never even seen the big
picture to forget it. That’s all bullshit though, and very easy to
ignore when you realize these types will probably always be a part of
the scheme spinning themselves in circles trying, while the rest of
us kick back contented with just being.
Q20 - What pisses you
off most in music. Or do you not let the bad things in music stop you
from performing and writing songs
There are a lot of
things that piss me off in music, but when it really comes down to it
I think it’s mainly dishonesty. People becoming products of their
ego’s, having a false sense of creativity, confusing arrangement
with creation, trying to be perceived as something they are not. This
creates a competition out of music, a passive aggressive shit world
that does nothing but abuse and exclude for fear of illusions being
crumbled by reason. It is all dishonesty to me, I hold extreme
reverence to the ebb and flow of dimensions we don’t understand
that influences the presence of music in our world, and I believe
those that abuse this power are being punished all the way by forces
unknown. We would never let anything like that come between us and
performing/writing, I don’t think anyone that truly values the
freedom that being a musician provides ever really would.
Q21 - If you could
provide words to wisdom for people wanting to start a band – What
would they be.
Stop wasting time
trying to force things, you want a blast-beat but your drummer plays
a D-beat? Too bad, now you are blackened D-beat, and whats more, you
are blackened D-beat that is unique to the understanding of you and
that drummer combined. Time is more precious than money, yet bands
seem to throw a lot more of it away, especially on things like
getting over things being exactly the way your little whiny self
wants them. The only person in your way is you, nobody is special,
nobody cares just plug in and play what you play as long as you play
it as well as you possibly can.
Q22 - Finally do you
have anything to say to your fans.
You all are the
absolute best and we are quite lucky to have found a spot in your
mind’s capacity for music appreciation, we hope to supply it with
many more offerings like Voidbound in the years to come.
Well guys, thanks for
doing this. Best of luck with your new album. Hope to hear more from
you in the future. Keep up with the epic riffs. Thanks.
Check The Band From Links Below.
Facebook
BandCamp
metal-archives.com
YouTube
Blogger
ReverbNation
