The Double A Doom Interview : Noctum

Formerly known as Séance and starting on their journey in 2009, the last five years or so has seen a steady incline for these Swedish occultists.  Changing their name to Noctum, releasing a debut record called The Séance in 2010 and The Fiddler EP in 2011, the underground embraced the band and lauded over their output.

Not unsurprisingly, it would only be a matter of time before one of the bigger labels came knocking, enter stage right, Metal Blade Records.  Coupled with a settled line up, Noctum returned in 2013, with their next installment, entitled The Final Sacrifice.  Proof that there is more to Sweden than great death metal music, Noctum are certainly one’s to watch, so I am pleased to say, they are the first band to welcome to my new series of interviews, entitled The Double A Doom Interviews.  So let’s get started with David from Noctum

(DAD) Who are you; state your name (s) and purpose?

This is David Indelöf answering these questions. 

(DAD) Summarise your musical journey (s) this point?

The journey has been quite Intense, and productive. Recorded our first album after only playing together for about 9 months. Played some live shows mostly within Sweden, but also in Germany in 2011, aswell as in 2012. Due to lack of motivation and dedication from members, we had to let a few ones go, and recruited our current members Fredrik Jansson (drums) and Daniel Johansson (guitar) Best line up for the band so far, and fitted very good for our album Final sacrifice, recorded and released in 2013.

(DAD) What can fans look forward to from you in 2014? How is your schedule shaping up?

The schedule is not shaping up really. But hopefully will soon. I'm almost CERTAIN that we will head to the US this year. But like I said, no Firm plans. We'll see what will happen, but no album, will be released this year.

(DAD) What springs to mind when you think about the completion of your new/current record?

It's a heavy piece of work. 

(DAD) Who handles song writing duties?

Me (David) handles the musical part, with riffs and everything. Tobias does most of the lyrics. That's pretty much how it has been working since we started. 

(DAD) How long was the gestation of your new/current opus from conception to delivery?  

The gestation was quite long actually. It took a while to collect all the Noctum traits from our previous material and create something powerful, new and heavy. This reformation or what to call it, was going on from about 2011-2013.

(DAD) Reflecting on your new/current record, was your artwork designed with a particular physical format in mind? Who designed it? What are your thoughts on the finished physical product? What format is/will be available? 

Artwork cover was painted by Timo Ketola, a Finnish guy who has painted for a lot of Swedish extreme metal bands. He managed to caught a moody atmosphere that we were very pleased with. It really fitted our newer, rawer and darker sound. It was not painted with a particular physical format I think.

(DAD) The best and worst things about being in a band?

Best: Playing rock music is priceless. It can be powerful and have an impact on people. And of course very liberating.

Worst: Time consuming. Expensive to fix broken amps etc, and controversies within the band, that can get out of hand. 

(DAD) Influences and heroes, what are turn offs and turn on’s?

Turn on's: So many, hard to say. Ritchie Blackmore, Ozzy, Bobby Liebling, GG Allin etc.

Turn offs: Justin Bieber

(DAD) Any record from the past or present that springs to mind?

Black Sabbath - Paranoid, Deep Purple -  In Rock, Candlemass - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus 

(DAD) The last album that kicked your arse?

Last album that probably kicked my arse was Enforcers Death by fire

(DAD) What was your first instrument or musical experience and what do you use today?

My first instrument that I began to play was piano, but very quickly changed to guitar.  Later on I also began to sing. But that wasn't until 2009 I think.  The reason I began to play guitar was because it was cooler, and I wanted to play like Iron Maiden and Black Sabbath. 

(DAD) One item, gear or otherwise that characterises your band and one item from your set up you cannot live without?

My pedals I can not be without! Stage wise it would have to be skulls, and our backdrop. 

(DAD) Pro-tools versus old school?

It doesn't matter for me really. A combination would have to be a preference though. A retro production is not very important for me. 

(DAD) Blogs and social media vs. getting on the road and touring?

Getting on the road and touring, definitely.

(DAD) What are your survival tips for the road? 

Porno and booze. 

(DAD) What have been your band highlight (s) thus far

Highlights: record an album, it's meaningful to hear and improve a recording, and solos and stuff. To release an album and to get good responses also feels good. 

(DAD) Vinyl Junkie or Ipod flunky? Discuss   

I like both. If I'm home I prefer vinyl, but I' very glad I can listen to music when I'm on the bus. But it's a totally different atmosphere when you sit at home and listen to a Vinyl. You can listen to it properly, and not be bothered by the outside world.

(DAD) Indiegogo or creative no no?

I don't get it!

(DAD) Finally, do you have any final comments/word of wisdom you’d like to bestow upon us?

Watch out for upcoming rock madness!

Words and interview by : Aaron Pickford

For more information : 

http://www.noctumofficial.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Noctumofficial

Noctum - Final Sacrifice (Album Review)

Album Type : Full Length

Date Released : 29/10/2013

Label :  Metal Blade Records

Final Sacrifice, album tracklisting :

1). Conflagration 05:35

2). Liberty in Death 04:55

3). Resurrected in Evil 04:03

4). Deadly Connection 03:30

5). Void of Emptiness 03:47

6). The Revisit 07:25

7). A Burning Will 05:27

8). Temple of the Living Dead 05:16

9). Azoth 07:00

Bio :

Uppsala, Sweden, 2009: Tobias, David, and Gustaf form a brand new band called Séance. The band moved incredibly fast - they formed in September, recorded a two song demo after adding guitarist Per Wikström to the lineup in October, and by November had changed their name to Noctum. Within those three months, the band signed an LP deal with High-Roller Records, and a CD deal with Stormspell Records.

Noctum's debut album, The Séance, was released in September 2010 via High-Roller and in December by Stormspell. The band finally embarked on their first European tour in July of 2011, and followed that up with a new EP, The Fiddler.

By August of 2011, Noctum created enough buzz in the underground to gain the attention of Metal Blade Records, which led to a new worldwide record deal. It was also during this time that Per Wikström left the band and Daniel Johansson took his place.

With a new record deal in place with a global label, Noctum spent the majority of 2012 refining their sound and writing new songs. Their search for original and interesting material led them to a heavier and darker sound. The progression came very naturally for the band and differs from the typical 70's vibe. The new material successfully evokes a heaviness and emotion one might not expect from a "retro" sounding band.

Noctum toured Europe again in 2012, and then welcomed the addition of drummer Fredrik Jansson after Gustaf's departure. Jansson, who spent time in Witchcraft, Count Raven, and Abramis Brama, was added to the lineup in time to record Final Sacrifice in April 2013

The Band :

David Indelöf | Guitar/Vocals
Daniel Johansson | Guitar
Tobias Rosén | Bass
Fredrik Jansson | Drums

Review :

Since forming as Séance in 2009, before becoming Noctum a few months later, the band’s rise has almost written itself. A debut album, named after their original moniker, was enough to seduce Metal Blade Records into offering them a global record deal, thus beginning a new, exciting chapter in this band’s history.

Amid tours and finding a new drummer in Fredrik Jansson they holed themselves away in a bid to refine their sound, to draw dark, rain-sodden clouds over its skyline.

Listen to Final Sacrifice and you will understand just why Metal Blade found them so instantly alluring. This is retro metal, but not as you’d quite expect. While the Swedish quartet clearly draw influence from the occult, with the likes of Black Sabbath and King Diamond tinting the record’s atmospherics, coupled with bluesy guitars and the kind of swagger Iron Maiden have so effortlessly produced time and time again, they are not content in simply following the glory-day-chasing mantra so many other bands adhere to. There is something so genuinely unique about this band; a concoction of everything that has come before them, yet sounding strikingly relevant today.

The production is crisp, with a modern day freshness, leaving the retro vibes to stem solely from the music itself. There is, in all, an overriding sense of ambition to be more than just 70s-copyists. The structures of the songs take you on journeys, with the main theme of the song left far behind in a smoky haze by the time every track reaches its conclusion, each one providing the listener with a different twist and turn, a different flavour than the last. 

The Revisit for instance, while underlined by a dark, Sabbath inspired progression that growls with an inherent sense of evil, is iced with atmospheric flute work that draws upon the likes of Jethro Tull and Focus for tonality. Deadly Connection comes with a rather different curveball in its bluesy, instrumental nature meanwhile. A stomp through enough licks and riffs to fill an entire album for some bands, this is where you feel guitarists David Indelöf and Daniel Johansson can properly stretch themselves and run wild. Together, across the album their differing styles maintain interest and add a multitude of colours and textures to this album’s many long, instrumental sections.

Songs like Burning Will and Resurrected in Evil teach the Sabbath copyists out there that, if you are going to lean on the world-dominating sound of the Birmingham four-piece, then you cannot simply rely on a slow, plodding riff downtuned like there’s no tomorrow. As much as they are a key ingredient, a key component in why just so many people love them, there is much more to it than that. These songs are progressive in nature, like War Pigs, Iron Man, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Snowblind. They build brood and bewilder as they venture down unexpected avenues; breaking into gallops, more riffs, lead harmonies and breakdowns that bring to mind anything and everything from Iron Maiden and Thin Lizzy to Judas Priest and Ghost, all wrapped in a individually defining character you will not find anywhere else.

Noctum are a band to keep your eye on. With as much ingenuity and clever hooks as this, they are destined to go places.

Words by : Phil Weller

You can buy it here

For more information :

http://www.noctumofficial.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Noctumofficial