Interview with Ethereal (UK)

Lachryma Christi came across two gigs of this great band from UK Ethereal. They are definitely a very good band, you can find the reviews for the gig on links that will be linked after the interview. Ethereal have a very strong presence, their music is very powerful and full of aggressiveness but good aggressiveness. They have their bit of rawness but also their bit of melody, everything very well combined. Plus, they are working on their debut album, keep an eye open.
So, Lachryma Christi had the pleasure to interview them and you can now read what the vocalist Naut has to say about this and more.



Why Ethereal as a name for a band? What is it that is "ethereal" for you?

On the surface, it is true that the name Ethereal is something of a misnomer for this band. The heavenly and celestial connotations of the word are in direct opposition to the darkness of our music and our message. However the term also refers to something that is not of this world, and in that respect, the name is actually rather appropriate in relation to some of the themes in our lyrics. It also allows us room to progress into different musical territories without feeling trapped by a more 'typical' black metal band name. Besides, we quite like the contrast between the name and our music. 

Ethereal has been around for many years now, more than ten, why only two EP's so far?

This band has existed for many years, and like many bands has a tumultuous past. Finding the right personnel for a project like Ethereal can be challenging, and so it would be fair to say that the early days of this band were what we would now consider to be an embryonic form of what was to come. Ethereal really got into their stride with the release of 'Revelation Beast', and now having solidified a new lineup, the band is unified by its vision and intent. We share the same goals, and we are all active in working towards them. Ethereal does have a long history, and it is one that we are proud of, however the release of our album 'Opus Aethereum' marks a new beginning for this band, and we are now completely focused on its future.

You are currently working on a debut album, when is it supposed to come out? What can your followers expect of it?

We cannot yet give any specific release date, but it will be available before the end of this year, probably towards the end of autumn or early winter. The album itself is very diverse and dynamic, it draws upon a vast array of influences to form something that is exciting and unique. We have already debuted some of the new material live across this past year, and the response from our audience has been very positive, and so there is no doubt in my mind that fans of Ethereal will love this record. Our live performances with this lineup have been very well received, and on this album our main goal was to capture that same level of aggression and intensity in our recorded performances. 

The album is being mixed by the Wieslawscy brothers at Hertz studios in Poland, we love the productions that come from this studio, and so we are 100% confident that we have chosen the right people for the job, and that this album will sound monumental. Fans of Ethereal can expect our most accomplished and aggressive material to date. 'Opus Aethereum' is dark, extreme and uncompromising.

Regarding playing live, what was your most remarkable show so far? Why?

Ethereal really comes into its own in the live setting, and I can honestly say that personally I have found every live performance remarkable in it's own right. I particularly enjoyed playing in Manchester with Gorgoroth and Vital Remains in April, its hard to know what to expect from an audience when you are the opening band, but to see that so many of our supporters had made it down to watch us perform was an unforgettable experience, and proved to me that all the hard work this band has put into it's performances across the UK was paying off. The aim of each show is to captivate a new audience, and with each Ethereal performance we win over new supporters, so in many ways for me each show is remarkable in it's own right.

Can you tell the name of a band or artist you would like to share a stage with?

There are so many bands we would love to perform with, and I am sure that each member of Ethereal would give you a very different answer to that question. Playing with like-minded bands is the ideal way to reach the right audience for Ethereal, so any bands that have been influential for us such as 1349, Mayhem or Vesania would be great. The list of bands that inspire us is so long that it would impossible for me to name just one, but I am glad that Ethereal has already performed with a variety of inspirational artists, and we look forward to doing so again in the future.

What are your lyrics usually about? Where do you get your inspiration?

My lyrics for Ethereal are utterly misanthropic. They have been perceived as anti-christian or anti-religious but I don't necessarily see them as such, religion is simply another symptom of the disease that is humanity, another needless system of control moving us along the pathway to nothing. Armageddon is a common theme in our lyrics because it is all around us, our world is falling apart and we are powerless to stop it, instead we seem only capable of perpetuating and accelarating it. This is our nature. Humanity is too absorbed in it's own self-importance and revolting ignorance that it fails to see it's complete insignificance. No-one belongs anywhere, nothing means anything and we are all going to die. If we realise that nothing matters, then we can begin to exist on our own terms. There is no need any system of control when there is no direction to anything. Our only possession is our own futile existence. This is what I am putting across in our lyrics, the acceptance of the meaninglessness of existence is a step towards liberation. We belong to ourselves and nothing else, so do as you will.

Do you have any spiritual or religious beliefs?

We are opposed to all religion. Religion is a form of control, it is the root cause of innumerate atrocities across the world and throughout our history, and for what? Spirituality is different, and for me it is something completely personal. Organised religion is the standardization of spirituality, and as such it works against it. I do have spiritual beliefs, and I do not align them with any organisation or any named ways of thinking, because doing so is limiting. Spirituality is something inside us all that should not be defined under any given label, it is something to be explored on your own terms and not something to be dictated, and so I will not align my own spiritual beliefs with any established spiritual or religious systems, they are what they are and they are my own. We are free to think for ourselves and do not need others to think for us.

You have been playing some gigs recently, any new upcoming gig you would like to advertise here?

We have a lot of exciting stuff in the pipeline that we cannot announce yet unfortunately. We have a one-off show in our hometown of Liverpool on June the 28th, and we are playing London on July the 26th and Birmingham on the 27th. We have many more dates in the pipeline at the moment and so the best way to find out when and where we are performing is through our social media outlets, where we will keep our followers up to date on all of our live performances.

Any special message you would like to leave to your fans and/or in general to the people who are reading this interview?

I would like to extend our thanks to all of our fans and supporters, we will see you all very soon. As for everyone else, I'm sure you'll keep working to get this festering planet cracked in two, just try not to be such a piece of shit while your at it.

Line up:

NAUT : Vocals -
IYAAN : Rytham Guitars - 
M-Inanz : Lead Guitars - 
VOLF : Bass - 
MORDRATH : Drums

Latest release:

EP Revelation Beast (2011)

You can find more information and music of Ethereal in:

https://www.facebook.com/EtherealDarknessUK

Review GIG Gorgoroth + Vital Remains plus guests @ The Garage, London, UK, 6th April:

http://lachrymachristizine.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/review-gig-gorgoroth-vital-remains-plus.html

Review GIG Saille + Ethereal + Vehement + Premature Birth @ The Unicorn, London, UK, 19th April:

http://lachrymachristizine.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/review-gig-saille-ethereal-vehement.html