Woland is a Melodic Black metal band from Finland which released their first debut album ‘’Hyperion’’ in 2014. I had an interview with W, the vocalist of the band who told some things about the band. More interesting the band has a slogan in latin: ‘’Fax Mentis Incendium Gloriae’’ (Passion For Glory Is The Torch Of The Mind).
Hi W, how things are going?
Hello, hello. I’m good thank you. We are just in the middle of some rehearsals for Incineration Festival in London next month and looking in to some new material as well.
Tell me some words about Woland, when the band was founded.
Woland was formed in 2010, when I was on tour supporting Mayhem with my other band. LXIV who is our guitarist, was then our sound engineer and after a terribly intoxicated night I started to talk to him about a new band with a new approach to music compared to our previous work. We’ve all been involved in the classic, lo-fi black metal thingy since our teens and I was in the mood to push the envelope a bit both musically and philosophically.
Before releasing the first album, you guys released 2 singles, one in 2011 and one in 2014.
Yes and no. The first songs we did and recorded were Conquer All & Live Forever. These we published ourselves as a kind of double single for promotional use in 2011. Then we started working on a full length album from which we then released a re-recorded Conquer All and the song Living Water after we got signed with Indie Recordings.
”Hyperion” is the band’s first debut album released in 2014. How the recordings were going on it?
LXIV owns his own studio in the middle of nowhere where he frolics around with his horses and wolf dogs, so he recorded and mixed most of everything there. Most of the album was actually done quite fast, but I took quite a long time writing lyrics and recording the vocals so everything got dragged out a bit. We also ended up cutting a song totally to pieces and re-recording it. It was over 18 minutes in the beginning and then later it turned out to be the last song of the album, which is now only 7:20 or something. There’s good and bad sides to working like this, without a hurry. The good side is that you get to play around with things endlessly, and the bad side is that you play around with things endlessly.
Are you planning to record a new album soon?
We are working on new songs yes. At the moment we’re planning on recording an EP, like a prequel of sorts for the next album. But we will see how it turns out, if we get a overflow of songs I don’t see any reason why the EP could not be developed in to a album. On Hyperion it was basically myself and LXIV who wrote everything, but now we have a new steady and superbly talented bass and drum section that will surely bring their own new spice to Woland as well.
What are the lyrical themes for this band?
The lyrics on Hyperion combines a lot of modern philosophers and writers like Albert Camus, Austin Osman Spare, Friedrich Nietzsche, Oscar Wilde etc. and blends them with old mythos like them of Prometheus and Dionysus. The concept is very much about empowerment and apotheosis, the elevation of a person to a godlike existence. A magazine from the UK described Woland as ”refusals and raptures against the arms of destruction” which got stuck in my head. It sounds quite fancy when described like this, but I would say that anyone who reads or listens to them will understand what I talk about here. Just imagine a Luciferian figure slowly arising from a mountain of cocaine.
There were some shows/tours you had along?
We have been privileged in some ways, getting to play really good events and festivals during the last year. We played Blastfest and the legendary Inferno Festival in Norway, some really nice summer festivals here and there and a whole lot of venue events supporting bands like Arcturus and Deathstars among others.
There will be more shows confirmed for this year?
The only show booked at the moment is Incineration Festival the 9th of May. After that we will probably spend the summer working on the new material, but as it looks now we will at least do some gigging with Shining later in the autumn.
Beside Woland, you are the vocalist of the band Cavus too, right?
Yes that is true. I’m the one to blame for that horrible plague.
Is Cavus on hold?
We’ve actually recorded a new album with Cavus, or at least drafted one. It was originally meant to be released lready but we put it on hold since we were not really happy with the recording and the way it was turning out. Of course my focus on Woland has taken some momentum from it too, but I don’t think that would be the main issue. We still have a record contract that obliges us to produce an album, but what will be on it and when it will be released, I can’t say.
What do you think about Woland’s fans?
I think very highly of people that has shown us support and/or overall enjoyed the products of our labour. Even if this started out as a very personal project it is energizing to see how other people react to it. I think that in essence is what the whole live performance relies on too, the energy and the feedback of other people, and it’s that is what makes us shine as brightly as possible in return.
Do you have a message for the fans?
Be passionate about your life and your beliefs. Don’t be afraid to walk roads less traveled by, because those are the ones that make all the difference.
Thank you W, all the best!
https://www.facebook.com/wolandofficial
http://wolandmusic.com/
(c) Carla Morton
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