Hi! Congratulations on your upcoming album, ‘The Gates Beyond Mortality.’ Can you share the inspiration behind the album title and how it reflects the themes explored in your music?
Well the album title is taken from the second track of the album that’s also called “The Gates Beyond Mortality”, this was a very easy choice since James Campbell who did our album cover based his painting on the lyrics for that song, nothing more to it.
Your new album is described as having a blend of mid-80s thrash metal brutality and the essence of Scandinavian black metal. How did you manage to merge these two distinctive sounds, and what challenges did you face during the creative process?
During the songwriting process of this record we as a band decided to not let any rules or boundaries get in the way for our creativity, this was an issue that happened a lot during the first formation of the band. We just let the music flow without thinking of any other bands and that’s how this record came to sound like it does. The only challenge we faced during this creative process is time, this is the first time we actually had to write an album, because with the first album you have your entire life to write it. But the stress of having to write an album in the span of 4 months only helped us actually, its amazing what kind of stuff you can come up with under pressure.
The band’s early influences include thrash metal royalty like Dark Angel and Slayer. How have these influences evolved over the years, and in what ways do they manifest in your new album?
I would say that those 2 legendary bands helped us get started if you know what I mean, we worshiped them and wanted to be like them, that helped us alot discovering how music actually works. Now we have the knowledge and ability so we are on another path right now to make our own destructive sound. Inspirations are a thing that we don’t think about anymore, it is very rarely that a thought of another band comes during songwriting. We let our musical knowledge guide and take us to a black abyss.
‘The Warriors Awakening… Brings The Unholy Slaughter’ was your full-length debut. How do you feel your sound has progressed from that album to ‘The Gates Beyond Mortality’?
Those are 2 very different albums if you would ask us. I see “The Warriors Awakening” more like a tribute album than a band’s album haha! We were extremely influenced by 80s Slayer, at some times you could think that it is a cover band. But I’m no Tom Araya, neither Tobias is no Kerry King so our own sound and our own touch is on that record, kind of like Kill Em All if I would say so.
The pandemic created a challenging time for musicians worldwide. How did this period impact your creativity, and did it influence the themes explored in your new album?
If I’m gonna be honest I think that the pandemic actually helped the band. When the Covid laws took effect in Sweden back in March of 2020 the band had only lived for some months, the band I would say started seriously during the summer of 2019. So we only managed to do about 2-3 gigs until the pandemic hit like a bomb. By that time with no shows or any public gathering, we had no choice but to lock ourselves in the rehearsing room and write new material for what would be “The Warriors Awakening… Brings The Unholy Slaughter!”. Then during late 2021 when the pandemic laws started to fade away little by little, we were back on the stage better, tighter and fucking louder than ever before.
You introduced new members during the pandemic. How did their inclusion change the dynamics of the band, and how did it influence the direction of the new album?
No we did not if I may correct you, the only “new” member that joined during the pandemic was our lead guitarist Tobias Lindström. But I will explain this anyway regarding the wrong in your question. In January of this year our last drummer and bassist Left/Dismissed from the band, reasons I will not discuss to not disrespect any of them. The first new member that came up was our now bassist Niklas Saari, me and Niklas have been friends for many years now and I have seen him play live with his other band Atonement before, he offered to be the new bass player when our last bassist left, I was already very aware of Niklas style of playing and I knew it would fit perfectly in Eternal Evil. Finding a drummer was more difficult actually, I scouted through a couple of very talented drummers that had played in other local metal bands but none of them worked out. One drummer that we tried couldn’t play because he was going to start studying in university and the other one couldn’t because he started playing jazz and sold his metal drum kit. Then after some time I was reminded that my good friend Adam Schmidt was a drummer as well. I didn’t think of him at first since a couple of years ago he was quite absent with his drumming, first he damaged his nerves that prevented him from drumming for some time and he also went and studied abroad in the US. I asked him if he wanted to join the band and he was extremely dedicated and absolutely said yes.
The lyrical themes of your new album range from occult practices to the violent nature of warfare. Can you delve deeper into the inspiration behind these themes and how they are reflected in the album’s music and lyrics?
There is very little to discuss regarding this question, themes like that just fit the music very well. That’s all there’s to it.
The band’s demo, ‘Rise of Death,’ quickly sold out and was later reissued. How did this early success shape your approach to creating music, especially considering the DIY spirit of its creation?
We thought it was a no brainer to make cassettes of such an old school like demo, and it went really well if I’m gonna be honest. The tapes sold out within a day or something, some weeks later we were approached by labels to make the demo professionally.
Recording at Studio Humbucker with Robert Pehrsson must have been an exciting experience. Can you share any memorable moments from the recording sessions of ‘The Gates Beyond Mortality’?
We recorded our first album with Robert Pehrsson so we already got to know each other pretty well, he knew how I worked and the rest of the band so recording with him was quite a no brainer. Nothing really memorable happened, but what I remember working with Robert is that everything is always creative and productive. He was also involved in the producing of this album which helped the music alot.
Your album is said to have broken the rules and standards from previous times. Can you elaborate on the creative risks you took and how these innovations contribute to the overall atmosphere of the album?
The main rule that we have broken is taking the melody to a whole new other level. And with that I think that we have created a sound of our own, i haven’t heard any band that sounds or are like this new album, and with that in mind I think we have succeeded pretty well.
Can you explain the concept behind the album artwork for ‘The Gates Beyond Mortality’ and how it complements the music?
The artwork, like I said in the first question, is based on the lyrics for the song “The Gates Beyond Mortality”. When we were planning the artwork for this album we wanted that the artwork would strongly resemble the music, so I sent James Campbell (the artist) the songs we had and the lyrics and he did an absolutely fantastic job of it.
You mentioned the band’s “indestructible enthusiasm” in your description. How do you sustain this level of energy and passion for your music, especially considering the challenges that musicians face in the industry today?
Its is very simple, we are 4 guys with only one goal in mind, taking over the world with our destructive music. That is what gives us our drive and our aggression. Because we are not here for a hobby or because it is something fun, Eternal Evil is our lives, thats what we breathe, eat and drink. So there’s only 1 goal, taking over the world.
The new album is set to release on October 27, 2023. Are there any special plans or events lined up for the album launch?
We are now booking our Scandinavian tour which will take place during January-March next year. After that we want to do Europe but we don’t have a European booker, so if you’re a European booker contact us!
How do you balance paying homage to the classics while also pushing the boundaries of your sound to create something fresh and innovative?
I think that we pay homage to the classics by playing our instruments, all of our musical knowledge comes from these bands and their sound resembles while we are playing. They are the ones that made us pick up our instruments and make something of our own.
Lastly, what do you hope listeners will take away from ‘The Gates Beyond Mortality’? Is there a specific message or emotion you aim to evoke through your music, particularly with this album? Thank you for your time!
Listen to the album NOW!! Or Die In Fire
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