Interview to the Wall of the Eyeless!

Hi guys, here you are the interview to the Wall of the Eyeless, a promising extreme progressive metal band from Sweden! These guys have really a great enthusiasm for their work!

ENJOY THE FUCKIN' READ!

1)      Hail guys! How are you? Do you want to introduce your band to the readers of this blog, maybe explaining the reasons about your double nationality?

Hey there, SL here! All is fine, thanks! We’re Wall Of The Eyeless from Sweden, but I am Russian, actually, which explains the band’s “double nationality”. I met Simon, the drummer, when I was studying in Sweden during the autumn semester of 2011. We started playing together and both of us thought that it went quite well, so we want to take it all even further.

2)      “Wimfolsfessta” is a really strange title. What’s its meaning?

      Actually, Wimfolsfestta is a made-up word, a sort of a riddle. I just couldn’t find the fitting and right sounding title for the record, so I ended up creating this word, which sort of mirrors the concept of the full release. The hints on the word’s meaning are everywhere – in lyrics, music and in the artwork. So it’s quite possible to guess.

3)      Behind this second demo there was a great work. You seems to be very ambitious. How was recording with Magnus “Devo” Andersson? And why you wanted just him?

Yeah, we really do our best to be, thank you! I had a dream to work with Devo and record in Endarker even before I started Wall Of The Eyeless in 2011 – since 2007, when Marduk released the Rom 5:12 album. I really love this record and the atmospheric production of it.

It was a huge pleasure to work with Devo, he made us feel very welcome and comfortable and explained us how to do stuff when recording – we really needed this, as it was our very first time in the professional, real deal studio.

4)      Despite your genre, the production of this demo is very dirty and “true”. Is it like you wanted you?

Yeah, that’s exactly how we wanted it. Maybe “dirty” is not the right word here, we aimed it to be alive and atmospheric. We also didn’t want to overuse the studio gadgets and technology and keep the recording as live as possible and without any cheating and hundreds of re-recorded takes.

5)      Some questions to SL: how was very hard recording (plus designing the cover artwork) many instruments in a so short time? Above all, where’s the hell the harmonica into the demo?

You’re right, it’s quite tough at times to keep all the ideas and arrangements in one head, but I had no major problems recording all this stuff, I’d say. And I’m really happy about that! As for the harmonica, it’s present in only one of the four songs – in “Revulsion Fever” - and is more of an atmosphere creator element. I mean, I could have easily played that harmonica melody on the guitar, but harmonica fits just right in there, in my opinion. There’s something disturbing about its sound, to my mind. Listen carefully and you’ll hear it.

6)      For me, you play an extreme progressive metal with crepuscular tunes, but ultimately you added to your music some black/death metal outbursts and clean vocals. So, I imagine that the musical evolution is very important for you. At this point, what are your influences?

I have no idea what the influences are, man J I guess I have the same answer for you, which I had after we released “Through Emptiness” in the very end of 2011 – I really believe that all music I ever listened to or heard influenced me in one way or another, even the music I didn’t like at all.

7)      I perceived a significant thing as regards the vocals: they are more present into the musical discourse than the recent past. Why?

It just felt right this way this time, I guess.

8)      Do you want to talk about the lyrics? What’s their importance?

The lyrics are really important for the overall picture, I’d say. We’re trying to make the music, lyrics and the artwork equally important - all the 3 components should fit and complement each other. It’s sort of the concept for Wall Of The Eyeless and I’d really like to keep it this way.

 

9)      What are your opinions about the splatter/satanic et similia bands? I advise that my band, the Barbaric War Terror, enjoys with nuclear themes hehe!

All the best to your band, man! As for Wall Of The Eyeless, we have no connection with any religion or subculture and I guess we won’t ever have. We just don’t want to limit ourselves in anything. What’s my opinion about such bands? Well, I’d say that I’m totally ok with such bands as long as they just express themselves this way without limiting the personal freedom and rights of people who are around them.

10)  Do you would like to play on stage in the future? In this way, you could be a real band!

Yeah, of course, we plan to play live as much as possible in the future. I’m itching to finalize the line - up and hit the road. Hopefully it won’t be long.

11)  Ok, this interview is finishing. Now, you can say everything you want.

Thank you very much for checking us out and for the interest in our new record! Your support means a lot to us.

You can check the entire new record out for free on our Bandcamp page (www.walloftheeyeless.bandcamp.com). Cheers and please spread the word if you dig what we do!

Wall of the Eyeless - "Wimfolsfessta" (2013)

Self – released demo (8^th April 2013)

Line – up (2011):     SL – vocals/guitars/bass/harmonica;

                                 Simon – drums and percussions.

Location:                  Pskov/Helsjön (Russia/Sweden).

Better song of the demo:

“Piercing Mist”.

Better feature of the music:

Its good ability to create dramatic tension.

 

Cover artwork: SL

After few months from the review (in Italian) concerning their first demo, the Wall of the Eyeless returns with this new assault titled curiously “Wimfolsfessta”. I say already that it’s decisively better than the first one, also because it has been produced (along with the omnipresent SL) even by Magnus “Devo” Andersson (former bassist of Marduk) at the Endarker Studios of Norrkoping. Hence, many things are changed in the musicality of this dynamic duo, able to sharpen gradually their own style.

Wall of the Eyeless plays an extreme progressive metal with crepuscular tunes, so you must expect many melodies and creative mid – tempos. Obviously, the soloist guitar has always a significant role in the music of these guys, and it is able to disembroil itself through well – invented and long solos, and they are present above all during the last minutes of every song, I wonder why. There are the atmospheric and acoustical breaks also this time, creating a good suspense for the next moments. Besides all this, the band still prefers the long tracks, also if this time they’ve radicalized this feature with even 9 – minutes tour de force of “Flicker”. Hence, this demo lasted for 27 minutes per only 4 tracks.

One of the perfected aspects is the vocal sector, that is more present into the musical discourse than the recent past. It is based on a classic but strong growl. In addiction, now there is also a clean voice, it is melodic, really effective and absent in “The Longest Winter” only.

Instead, the songs’ structure is very free and emotional but without exaggeration of any kind, because there are some main musical solutions into every song. Now, these ones contains always a furious black/death metal outburst full of blast – beats and angry tupa – tupas, so to create a dramatic tension that there wasn’t in the first demo. An excellent example of this feature comes from the last track, that is “Piercing Mist”.

It is a synthesis of the Wall of the Eyeless’ music, being also a big surprise throughout. In fact:

1)      “Piercing Mist” has a very dark and acoustical beginning complete with a gloomy clean voice that is helped by a catacomb echo;

2)      Then, the band explodes with a chaotic outburst, while a crazy soloist guitar that erupts itself completely at last;

3)      The song has an open finale introduced by a long acoustical parenthesis;

4)      It is the song with more fast passages than the usual, also if they are alternated with some doomish moments.

But, if “Piercing Mist” is the climax of the demo, “Flicker” represents its weak point because this song has a very abrupt tempo shift during the long solo, almost at the end. I think the band must found a real connection  between the different moments to makes the tempo shift in a more fluid and natural way. Fortunately, this is a little detail.

Despite the dark production of the first demo, that one of “Wimfolsfessta” is more clear but also dirty and full of life at the same time.

 

Summarizing this demo, Wall of the Eyeless are all grown up very much during these 2 years. Hence, I hope that they’ll find a label able to support them. At this point, it shouldn’t be a bad idea if the band works on the debut album, considering the remarkable length of this second demo. Do you like the idea, guys? But a thing: where’s the harmonica?

Vote: 81

Flavio “Claustrofobia” Adducci

Tracklist:

1 – Flicker/ 2 – The Longest Winter/ 3 – Revulsion Fever/ 4 – Piercing Mist

BandCamp:

http://walloftheeyeless.bandcamp.com/

FaceBook:

http://www.facebook.com/walloftheeyeless

Wall of the Eyeless - "Through Emptiness" (2011)

Demo autoprodotto (31 Dicembre 2011)

Formazione (2010):       SL – voce/chitarre/basso;

                                       Simon – batteria.

Provenienza:                   Pskov/Helsjon (Russia/Svezia)

Canzone migliore del disco:

“Wall of the Eyeless”.

Punto di forza dell’opera:

la sua imprevedibile eleganza.

La primissima opera di questo giovanissimo duo è stata per me una vera e propria sorpresa, anche perché è stata in grado di riportare su queste stesse pagine un filone che mancava da fin troppo tempo, cioè da quando i romani Disease mi distrussero le orecchie con un assalto potente ma raffinato: il metal estremo progressivo. Solo che i Wall of the Eyeless, pur possedendo tutte le caratteristiche basilari di questo particolare genere (melodia, tecnica, commistione di più stili musicali…), lo interpretano in maniera sufficientemente personale. Però certo, essendo molto giovani, la loro musica è ancora da affinare meglio, ma quello che importa è che siamo già a un più che ottimo punto di partenza.

Prima di tutto, le melodie del duo sono spesso crepuscolari, specialmente lungo la parte centrale del disco. E ciò permette ai nostri di abbracciare le soluzioni più imprevedibili e i climax più strani (notevole quello al contrario del brano autointitolato, introdotto da un passaggio così groovy e aggressivo da promettere chissà quale distruzione… e invece…), così da implementare addirittura un assolo di chitarra pulita in un discorso elettrico. E le influenze sono tantissime: si passa infatti dal thrash ignorante di “The Hands” e “The Rain Song”, al black venato persino di NWOBHM di “Wall of the Eyeless”, ma per quanto riguarda il death, così decantato dai nostri, lo si trova più che altro nei classici grugniti di SL, mentre in “We Do Belong Here” si becca, in un passaggio particolarmente rilassato, una psichedelica voce pulita – che consiglio di usare di più la volta prossima perché molto d’effetto.

Un’altra caratteristica molto interessante viene dalla struttura – tipo dei pezzi. I quali si muovono, spesso in un tappeto ritmico medio – lento ai limiti del doom, seppur non manchino semi – blast – beats/tupa – tupa (“The Hands” e “The Rain Song” in special modo), entro uno schema molto istintivo, quindi preferibilmente libero da qualsiasi tipo di vincolo. In pratica, viene qui estremizzato un aspetto occasionale di molti dei gruppi del genere, riuscendo fra l’altro a legare, in un modo naturalissimo, i più diversi passaggi sia dal punto di vista musicale che emozionale. In più, i brani vivono anche di pause che sono in non poche occasioni poetiche aperture acustiche o tastieristiche (“The Hands”), che arricchiscono ancor di più un discorso musicale già bello consistente.

In sostanza, le uniche mancanze di tale demo riguardano:

1)      il cantato che, oltre a essere poco incisivo (e questo è strano visto il genere di appartenenza) è anche poco partecipativo e prevedibile, dato che, passato un certo punto, le canzoni diventano delle vere e proprie strumentali (specie “The Rain Song” e i suoi intensi 8 minuti);

2)      gli assoli elettrici, i quali partono molte volte più o meno nella stessa prevedibile, frenetica ma passionale maniera, per poi svilupparsi comunque ottimamente.

Ma non è da considerarsi assolutamente un difetto la produzione, visto che è sì bella sporca e cupa ma tutti gli strumenti sono più o meno bene in evidenza, con il basso che costruisce buone linee in “Wall of the Eyeless”. Poi oh, sarò abituato io ma a ogni modo un suono così è perfetto per una musica del genere.

Per il resto, bisogna sottolineare la professionalità del booklet, curato ed elegante. Insomma, se volete un disco variopinto, imprevedibile e lontano dalle facili catalogazioni, questo è ciò che fa per voi. E quindi fregatevene del tipo di produzione che c’è decisamente di “peggio” in giro!

Voto: 75

Claustrofobia

Scaletta:

1 – The Hands/ 2 – We Do Belong Here/ 3 – Wall of the Eyeless/ 4 – The Rain Song

FaceBook:

http://www.facebook.com/walloftheeyeless

MySpace:

http://www.myspace.com/walloftheeyeless

BandCamp:

http://walloftheeyless.bandcamp.com