Time left its mark on the music of Draconian, Swedish masters of gothic-doom metal. They released their debut album only in 2003 after signing a contract with Napalm Records, but the band traces its roots back to long gone year 1994.
Critics and listeners appreciated the music of the band for the competent mix of doom and gothic metal, for the monumentalism of works, for never-ending search for something new and unique soundЕ too many to mention for what.
It seems little time has passed since the release of the second full-length album "Arcane Rain Fell" and the bonus album "The Burning Halo" that followed in 2006 and included re-recorded demos, covers and new songs. Nevertheless, the present sound of Draconian has gone through the quite noticeable changes.
The new album of Swedes is full of stories about lost love, dark and emotional songs where heavy yet melodic passages are supplemented with the beautiful voice of Lisa Johansson. On the threshold of the official release of "Turning Season Within" vocalist and poet of Draconian Anders Jacobsson told us about his point of view on art, the past and future of the band and, of course, about the new album of Draconian.
Some compositions from your new album "Turning Season Within" have the classic sound of your previous albums, but some of them belong not to the doom metal, but to gothic metal. How would you describe the style of new album?
I would say you are right. The new album is more Gothic Metal with a modern touch, even though we still haven't deviated from the original sound. The sound is more up-tempo, riff-oriented which makes it heavier. We needed to mix our set a bit to keep variety. I think this is the main reason; to be a bit flexible and not always the same thing over and over again. We are still a gothic doom band though.
Have the Norwegian bands like Theatre of Tragedy, Tristania, Sirenia, Dismal Euphony, who were among the first bands combining beauty & the beast vocals with doom / gothic metal, influenced the sound of your new album?
The first band that ever used the 'beauty and the beast' vocals was Paradise Lost actually, back in 1991-1992. But well, the bands you mention have not been a big influence at all on "Turning Season Within". I would say that bands like Katatonia and Opeth have been more inspiration, along with a mutation of the sound se had before, and always will have to some extent. The vocals have been arranged in Draconian style and according to the material as usual. We had no particular band in mind when we arranged this.
The main theme of the album is the theme of lost love. In your opinion, what mood and atmosphere - romantic, melancholic or depressive - is the dominant one?
I don't know. I have always felt it's very important to maintain a melancholic mood as long you deal with music like this, otherwise it wouldn't be dark or even gothic. A combination of the three is the perfect match for me. I would love an even more romantic touch on Draconian though, and by romantic I don't necessarily mean love between two individuals, but 'emotional'. On this new album I tried to balance the now heavier sound with a set of more emotional and personal lyrics. I found that this combination was a very successful one.
Is the new album conceptual one, are the songs and their lyrics connected?
In one way, yes, since the topic is mainly about hard romantic situations I have gone through in my life. But the tracks of the album don't combine a bigger story really. I tried to write these lyrics openly so without revealing too much or too little, It's important also that the listener can relate to the lyrics.
What has happened to the song "I am", that was written for "Arcane Rain Fell", but wasn't included into the tracklist?
We never got satisfied with it. We felt something was missing from the song, but hopefully we'll have the opportunity to record these lost songs some day. They are actually pretty good and I know there's allot of people who are dying to hear them.
Your new long-awaited album "Turning Season Within" will be released on February 29. Previously was planned another date, but the release was postponed; what was the reason for changing the release date?
I actually have no idea. We never got any explanation. Ask Napalm Records about this.
You have played the last shows with the session member Elena Andersson, but she didn't become the member of the band, so are you still searching for the new keyboardist?
No, she's out now. The chemistry wasn't there, and we felt that it was time to give up the search for a keyboardist and focus on the music instead. So no, we're not looking for another member at the moment, but in the future perhaps, if we find someone proper and fit the band. It's always best to have one member for each instrument.
Your fans have been discussing the possibility of making the videoclip for a long time. Is it true that you already have some ideas and plans about making it in the near future? What could be the plot of the video?
Yes, it has been planned for some time, but we haven't got to it yet. There hasn't been enough time for it, simply as that. But later this year we hope do make a video for either "Seasons Apart" or "Bloodflower". We have no script or idea how to make this video though, so we have some work to do.
Do the lyrics of Draconian reflect your personal feelings and emotions? Or do the lyrics reflect and supplement the visions and pictures, created by the music?
I think both. It's important you stand behind your lyrics and it's also important the lyrics fit the sound and structure of the songs. This time I created a paradox with the lyrics in order to maintain a balance, as I mentioned earlier. I think it's cool not to always embrace the standard way of doing things; what is expected. The violence of the music can sometimes reflect of innermost emotions. The human psyche is a turbulent sea of paradoxes and frailty. Turning Season Within deals with this, at some levels.
It is no secret that members of Draconian are connected with the magical order Dragon Rouge. Does it influence your lyrics somehow?
One of us was a member, and that was meЕ but that was ages ago. The lyrics have always dealt with things from a romantic/emotional perspective, but occult topics are nothing we use to write about anymore, but I have no idea what will happen in the future though. The dark lore is always present in my mind and in my soul and Draconian is a big part of my life. I keep my options open.
Have you thought of the idea to write for the next albums some lyrics not on English - for example, there was Latin on "Where Lovers Mourn" album; are you interested in "old" languages such as Latin, Greek, what for modern languages do you know?
Latin is very cool and it works well in doomy music, but English is the best way to reach out to people. I've had some ideas to write a couple of Swedish lyrics but it's hard to make it sound good in the context.
I guess I am more interested in old English than Latin, Greek or whatever. Old English is something I will use again in the future, for sure. I have lots of ideas for a concept with more poetic tones.
What bands and artists inspire your nowadays, have some of them influenced you during the work on "Turning Season Within"?
Seriously, I don't know. I guess it the same as usual, but I think the Scandinavian sound was more inspiring this time, since you can hear some vibes from Opeth and Katatonia. And I think Fascination Street studios added allot to it as well. The sound is very heavy, raw and bombastic and suits us well.
Let's return to the band's history for a while. What helped you not to lose hope for releasing a full-length album and to continue playing after 8 years passed since the release of your first demo?
I guess we had a high aim, regardless what happened. You should know that there were long periods of time we weren't very active. We figured that we must aim for a record-deal since we had been around for so long, so nothing would be in vain. And since some of our demorecording suffered for such a bad production we were eager to prove ourselves on the bigger market.
For "The Burning Halo" which was released last year, were re-recorded some of your demo songs; don't you plan to re-record and release some more songs from the demos in the near future?
Maybe, I don't know for sure, but I don't think we will add them to an album in that case. We have talked about a few songs that would be cool to bring back to life and polish, but right now we are focusing on other stuff. So no, not in the near future, but you can never know what happen.
Are you satisfied with your record label Napalm Records and the distribution of your albums over the world?
Yes, we are very satisfied actually. Napalm has a very good distro and we couldn't be happier. Too bad the license selling doesn't work as well as we would like to in South America though, but wellЕ I hope that will sort itself out.
How the things are going in the side-projects of Johan and other band members? Do they plan any new releases soon?
Johan is about to finish the second album of his Doom:vs project and Daniel is soon out with the second Scorched album. Besides from this there are projects ever flowing, but nothing will see the light of day any time soon.
What sorts of art besides music are you interested in?
I am interested in moviemaking, which I consider an artform as well. Also allot of poetry, but I wrote more than I read. Of course I like some painters and stuff, but my life usually evolves around other things. Movies, music and writing are constant in my life and I need to deal with myself and this world.
If it's not a secret, what do you think about the reviews, opinions and wishes about your works that your fans write in the Internet? Do you read them?
Yeah, I sometimes surf around and read opinions and comments in forums and similar. I read most of the reviews and also some of the interviews after they are published. It's always nice to see how the interviews you make look when they are put into perspective. I have no opinion about all this reallyЕ most often people are saying really nice things and that helps me nurture the cause I think I have with Draconian and why I do this in the first place. It's nice when ones expressive nature tend to reflect other peoples thoughts and emotions.
What are your plans for the future? Is it possible that you will change your music style and direction?
No, not as long I am in the band anyways. We might try out some different things, but we would never deviate from the original sound we have. I actually hate that in a band.
Right now we are trying to get as many liveshows as possible to promote the new album, and we are dealing with some booking agencies in order to set up tours and festivalgigs. This is the most important thing right now.
Are you planning to have a tour after the release of the new album? If yes, what bands would you like to tour together?
We are planning to, yes, but nothing is confirmed yet. Keep an eye on the website for updates in a near future.
What cities and countries would you like to visit with the concert most of all? Do you prefer to play on festivals or in smaller clubs?
I think Europe is something which we must deal with before we move on elsewhere. Since we never had any tour yet, I think this is the most reasonable way. There is a lot of feedback and we need to meet the fans and give them what they have wanted for so longЕ and we need to get that experience as well.
Personally I think festivals are the best gigs. Allot of people, press and allot of motion everywhere.
In October you have performed in Belgium on the festival Metal Female Voices V, the festival fir the bands which use female vocals in their music. Did you like it? Are there any differences to the "usual" festivals?
I think it was a nice little festival with allot of good vibes all over. It was a bit of an underground feeling to it all but still professional and rewarding. We'd love to go back there sometime.
I think there was a big difference. MFVF felt more intimate and personal. Most people are there because they love gothic metal and it was very easy to feel at home there.
Could your Russian fans expect that you will come to our country in the near future?
We got a request from some kind of agency a while ago, but we never heard anything back from them. Since then it has been quiet, but we surely hope we will see Russia soon. Russia is a big nation with a lot of dark souls ;)
And finally, some words for your Russian fans:
Please support Draconian and we will support you by coming and perform for you. We'd love see play in your great nation and I hope to see you soon. Thank you!
P. S. Please make 2 tops: one of your all-time favorite albums, the second - of your favorite albums at the moment.
I don't understand really, so I'll give you 3 of my all-time fave and 3 faves right now:
All-time:
Elend - Les Tenebres Du Dehors (1996)
My Dying Bride - Turn Lose the Swans (1993)
Theatre of Tragedy - Velvet Darkness They Fear (1996)
Right now:
Isole - Bliss of Solitude (2008)
Graveyard - Graveyard (2007)
Dark the Suns - In Darkness Comes Beauty (2007)
Translation and part of the questions was prepared by Runa
I thank Alexei Kuzovlev & Irond ltd. for the help in arranging this interview.
In the lay-out of the interview are used promo photos for "Turning Season Within" album. |
