Translated Duzl, thank you!
Questions prepared Jakub Asphyx.
Recenze/review - WAYWARD DAWN - All-Consuming Void (2022):
Ave WAYWARD DAWN! I have never found any interview with you in Czech language. I will ask you first to introduce the band to the readers who do not know you yet. You can start from the beginning and take us through the whole history of WAYWARD DAWN.
We are a death metal band from Denmark. We have been a band since October 2015 when we were all 15 or 16 years old. Since then we have released three full-length albums and played about 70 gigs in Denmark, Germany and Norway. Originally we didn’t plan to play death metal, but when our former vocalist Niklas Lykke (now in LIVLØS) joined he only knew how to growl, so naturally the style changed at that point.
This year, you have just released the new album „All-Consuming Void“. Again, it's a dark, harsh and honest death metal. Did you access the recording process differently than last time or did you choose verified practices?
Actually we have recorded all three records live in the studio. Only vocals and lead guitars were recorded separately. This way we think it gives it a more raw and real sound. Our music is very much live music, so we feel recording live is the best way to capture the energy of a live show.
The new album seems to me more complicated, perhaps initially less accessible, at the same time incredibly dark and evil. Was it intentional? How did the album originate and how did you compose the music?
This is somewhat intentional. This is our third album, so to keep things interesting we try to challenge ourselves in the writing process. We fx didn’t really write actual choruses this time, and the song structures were more experimenting than on the two previous records. Also on the length of the album we try to push our boundaries with a grind-ish song that lasts less than a minute as well as a mastodontic 12-minute song. Of course it’s still very much death metal and not particularly original, but in our musical universe we try to keep things a bit new and not just repeat ourselves.
I have a „All-Consuming Void“ in my MP3 player and I have to say that this album literally engulfed me. These are not just great ideas but also sound is simply devastating. I'm sitting in the tram, and suddenly I find myself shaking my legs. I have a feeling to start moshing. If I weren’t so old, I would probably start to. Where did you record and who is signed under mastering?
We recorded the album at Dead Rat Studio in Aarhus with the former Hatesphere-frontman Jacob Bredahl as the producer. He especially produces punk and hardcore and we really enjoy working with him, as he knows how to keep the sound raw and dynamic. The mastering was done by Brad Boatright from Audiosiege. He is also really great at what he is doing, and he has also worked with bands such as Full of Hell, Gatecreeper, Nails and all that stuff. We have been working with these two on all three albums. It’s quite nice to work with the same people continuously, as we get to know each other and how we work best.
Who is the author of the lyrics on „All-Consuming Void“? What are they talking about? Where do you get inspiration for themes?
We all contributed to the lyrics on this album, but the main lyricist was our drummer Lukas. The album is in a way a concept album about feelings and mental states we all experience to some extent. Fx things like anxiety, anger and addiction. It’s topics that are both important and interesting, and we feel that all people, ourselves including, are somewhat familiar with these topics.
Who is signed under the cover of „All-Consuming Void“? I like his work very much. How did you choose the motif for the cover?
The artist is called Tiit Pähnapuu. This is the first time we have worked with him, but he has done a really great job. As to the motif, we told him about the lyrical themes on the album and then he just came up with the artwork. We enjoyed the abstract and dense artwork and thought it fitted the themes quite well – in a way it can resemble the mind and all the chaos that is happening inside.
When we look back at the beginning ... What was the first impulse to found the band? And why the death metal? It's not the typical style which can would give you great "glory".
The death metal was actually something that came gradually. We founded the band when we were very young, so we just wanted to play metal in general. In the beginning we were quite inspired by thrash metal, power metal and classic heavy metal. When our former vocalist joined the band it grew to something like Lamb of God and Slipknot. Then we gradually became more and more interested in death metal and wanted to play more that style of music. Of course it’s cool to play on the big stages, but the main motifs for us is to just play the music we enjoy writing and playing. Also the energy and physicality especially at death metal live shows has always seemed quite compelling to us.
You come from Denmark and you play extreme death metal. Our readers would certainly wonder how the death metal scene works in Denmark. To tell you the truth, so lately I hear only the great bands from there. Does this mean that the scene there is so strong at the moment? What about concerts, how many people coming to them?
The scene is quite small, but there are a lot of great bands here. Especially in Copenhagen with the Killtown scene such as Undergang, Phrenelith, etc., and the Aarhus scene are booming quite a lot at the moment. How many people coming to the concerts differs a lot from time to time, but generally the attendance is pretty good at concerts.
I have to ask. You live in Denmark, which is considered a strongly Lutheran country. You play death metal. Do you have any problems with it? Do you get space in TV or in newspapers? How is life in your country affected by religion?
We don’t really write lyrics about religion, so it’s not that big a deal for us. And generally Denmark is a quite secular country, so religion does not get that much space in TV or the society as a whole. People are quite open about other people’s beliefs or non-beliefs.
From your music it is possible to feel that you are influenced by American death metal school and as well by the old European bands. How do you feel about it as a fan? Do you prefer the original death metal of the 1990s or do you get inspiration as well from the new albums? If yes so I am wondering which bands had the greatest impact on WAYWARD DAWN.
Yes, we of course are very inspired by the American death metal school such as as Morbid Angel, Obituary and Cannibal Corpse, as well as European bands like Demilich, Entombed and that stuff. At the moment there are quite a lot of new bands playing rotten old school death metal, and that wave of bands has been quite a big inspiration for us on the new album. Especially bands like Undergang, Gatecreeper, Blood Incantation, Sanguisugabogg, Outer Heaven, Frozen Soul and Of Feather And Bone. I’d say that the newer old school death metal bands have been an even greater inspiration to us on „All-Consuming Void“ than the 90’s bands.
What about you and concerts in general? Are you a band that goes for concerts anytime you can or you are picky about where you will play? Do you have a dream, maybe a group you would like to go with for a tour or festival, a city where you would like to perform?
Generally we are pretty open about where we want to play. Of course it has to make sense for us, but other than that we like to play live no matter what. As to dreams, we have a lot of these. We were supposed to go on a EU tour supporting Hideous Divinity and Terrorizer back in 2020, so a real tour all over Europe is one of the main dreams at the moment. Also to play in the US at some point could be insane. We’d love to go on a tour with both some of the old veterans as well as the new guns such as Gatecreeper or Blood Incantation.
I'm going to listen again your new album „All-Consuming Void“. I have to say that for me personally, this is basically a perfect death metal work. Totally inferno. I wish big success to your record and to get this album to as many people as possible. This album deserves it. I wish you all the best in your personal life. Whatever you do and the last words are yours. If you want to tell something to fans, labels, promoters, you have space here..... Thank you for the interview and I am looking forward to seeing you live!
Thanks a lot for the good words and time! If we should say anything to fans and listeners it would be thanks for supporting us, listening to our music and going to our gigs. It means a lot to us, and it’s one of the main reasons we do this! We’d love to come the Czech Republic to play sometime!
Recenze/review - WAYWARD DAWN - All-Consuming Void (2022):
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