Hi! Congratulations on your upcoming album “Global Worming”! Could you share more about the creative process behind this record, especially considering the challenges posed by the pandemic and the world events you mentioned in your statement?
Thank you very much! Well, the pandemic definitely had a much bigger impact on the writing process of our previous record “Mount Carcass” than on “Global Worming” but it definitely changed the world and especially certain dynamics in our society. And it definitely didn’t change things for the better. The world is facing multiple threats – economical, political and ecological. Of course some of those things influenced us during the writing process but I guess that goes for every band since we’re not living in an isolated bubble but are very aware of the things going on in the world. So when we’re looking for lyrical inspiration for our songs, sometimes the daily news is a very inspiring source for gruesome death metal lyrics.
“Global Worming” explores a dystopian future where zombie worms overrun the planet. What inspired this unique concept, and how did it influence the songwriting and overall atmosphere of the album?
The truth is that one day I just woke up and had this title in mind. So I sat down and wrote the lyrics for this song because I thought it’s a quite funny phrase. I showed it to the others and everyone thought it was great. Zombie worms are just an entertaining placeholder for any global threat that eventually leads to the death of us all. It basically could be anything but we really like to fool around with wordplays. But it didn’t have a significant influence on the rest of the album. Each song stands for its own. This is not a concept album or anything.
You mentioned wanting the songs on “Global Worming” to have real depth and atmosphere. Can you elaborate on the musical and lyrical techniques you used to achieve this depth while staying true to the death metal genre?
First of all we try to give our songs some sort of dynamic evolution because that’s what we like to hear in songs. We try to keep it interesting throughout the whole song so we vary the beats, breaks and riffs a bit or throw in a part that might be unexpected. The same goes for the lyrics. We try to not write the same song twice.
How did you approach balancing the brutality with the atmospheric elements in each song?
For the most part that’s just a very natural thing for us. It’s very rare that we write a song which is just brutal without any turn or breakdown in the beats or riffing. The music and the lyrics have to melt together in the best possible way to create an atmosphere that reflects the lyrics. It’s just the way we write. There’s no special ingredient or secret sauce – we just evolved to a style of songwriting that we feel appeals the most to us.
“Global Worming” is described as your darkest and heaviest album. How did you challenge yourselves musically and lyrically to create this intense atmosphere, and what kind of emotions do you hope listeners experience while listening to the album?
We didn’t plan it out to be especially dark or heavy, that’s just something that happened. The world is a dark place and we’re dealing with heavy shit on a daily basis so I guess our music just reflects the state of the world during the last 2 years. We hope the listeners find whatever they expect from a record like this. Joy, sadness, anger, relief… whatever it is. Everyone is looking for different stuff on different days and we hope “Global Worming” is diverse enough to deliver a wide range of emotional experiences. It’s up to each listener to interpret it in their own way.
How do you see the role of music, particularly death metal, in addressing and reflecting upon the socio-political climate?
Death metal originates basically from punk music which is absolutely political and so I think death metal still has a political touch to a certain degree. That doesn’t necessarily mean to be as much in your face like Rage Against The Machine or something but it still exists on some sort of layer. And since music is art it can reflect or address anything the way the artist wants it to. Freedom of art is absolutely key. If fans don’t want bands to be political – well, it’s just not their choice. In most cases people complain about artists being political just because they’re not proclaiming the listeners opinion. They only have the choice to either ignore the political elements or to not listen to such bands at all. But artists are people like anyone else with views, opinions, worries and whatnot. How and how much this goes into their art differs a lot. We try to pick up some shit from the real world, political or not, that bothers us and try to make it entertaining. We say what we wanna say it the way we wanna say it and it’s fine to disagree but we won’t allow anyone to silence us. But still I won’t consider us a political band. We’re pretty far from that. Don’t over-interpret our lyrics please^^
Can you tell us about the concept behind the album artwork for “Global Worming” and how it connects with the album’s themes?
Ben: Well, I guess the relation between the title and the artwork is quite obvious. Old school black and white drawing of zombie worms feasting on human remains. That’s exactly what the album title asks for. But it only relates to the title track since there’s no plot or concept running through this record. We thought it looks great and people know pretty much what kind of music to expect when they see the cover. It’s classic death metal imagery.
You worked with engineer and mixing maestro Eike Freese once again for this album. How did his collaboration contribute to the overall sound and vision you had for “Global Worming”?
Eike is our brother! We truly love this guy. Not only is he a very good friend but he’s also a freakin’ recording genius. He gives you the best possible working atmosphere to get the best out of you and also originates from the same kind of death metal we all do. Working on 5 records now with him it’s all a very well running machine. We know each other so well – it’s just great. And also he’s an absolutely mixing wizard! When we went into the studio we said “we want the sound of Mount Carcass but a bit more aggressive. So that’s pretty much exactly what we got. We couldn’t be any happier.
Are there any specific stories or themes within the album that hold personal significance to you or the band?
Of course. A lot actually. I would like to keep it up to the listeners to find their own relation to our songs but just to name a few examples: The song “Hanging Gardens” is about depression and suicide and we have experienced that in our environment ourselves like probably a lot of other people. “Hell Is Here” deals with the horrors of war which is very present these days and affects everyone. Just to mention two of the songs. I guess most people find their own thing in some of our songs which is what music is about.
With the world being in such a state of turmoil, how do you believe the themes and messages in “Global Worming” can resonate with your audience and perhaps even spark meaningful conversations about the issues presented in the album?
At the end of the day “Global Worming” is just a death metal record and I wouldn’t try to put too much weight on its shoulders. It’s supposed to entertain people and not to change the world. If it gives people a good time while spinning or at our shows, we’re totally happy. If it leads to discussions – fine. But that’s definitely not our intention!
The album balances serious themes with elements of humor and horror, as seen in the song “C.B.V.” How do you strike a balance between the serious and lighthearted aspects of your music, and how does it reflect your band’s personality?
It’s exactly like you said it – it simply reflects the band’s personality. We laugh a lot, we goof around. We like the hilarious stuff as much as the deeper and more serious elements. We enjoy how a very dark and sinister song like “Wheel Of Torture” drags you down into a hole just to let a party banger like “C.B.V.” make you smile. It’s all about contrast.
How do you anticipate translating the energy and intensity of “Global Worming” into your live performances?
We just go on stage and play. We don’t think about it too much. We’re a quite simple live band. Just us, amps, drums, the audience and we play our heart out. No backing Tracks or anything. The songs are written in a way that we can play them live without losing anything compared to the album version. I think most of the songs will work out just great in a live set.
Reflecting on your journey from your first full-length album, “Flesh Hammer Prophecy,” to “Global Worming,” how do you think Endseeker’s musical style and lyrical themes have evolved, and what aspects have remained constant throughout your discography?
Oh man, a lot has changed since back then. I guess we just evolved as individuals as well as a band. In the beginning 95% of the music was written by Jury and almost all of the lyrics by Lenny. Nowadays we have more teamwork going on. I got more involved into songwriting and lyrics so our style includes more elements now since more of us are directly involved. Those are things that just came over time and we found a rhythm of workflow that works best for us. That’s probably the biggest difference between our first and our latest albums. We’re more of a unit now.
Incorporating various elements into your music, including old school brutality and atmospheric depth, what do you believe sets Endseeker apart from other bands within the death metal genre, and how do you envision the future of your sound progressing?
That’s a tough one. I guess it’s up to the listener to tell what sets us apart from other bands if so. Of course we feel super unique and we think our songs are very catchy and all this shit but doesn’t every band think that way? I mean, if we don’t believe our songs are great how can we expect anyone else to like them? I try to avoid to compare us too much to others. Each band has its own thing going on and the fans decide what appeals to them the most. And we’re not thinking about any future sounds at this point. Our record isn’t even released yet. Let us celebrate this baby for a while and then we start thinking about new music but right now it’s not the time for stuff like that.
Lastly, as “Global Worming” is set for release on October 27th, what message do you have for your fans who have eagerly awaited this album, and what do you hope they take away from the listening experience? Thank you for your time!
Thanks for your support and thanks to everyone who checks our new album out! We hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we do. Support the scene, support the underground, go to shows, buy records, buy merch, that’s what keeps bands running! Let us know what you think about our album and we hope to see you all soon!
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