1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?
Recording and publishing a new album is a long process with lots of things to take into consideration. It's not just about going into the studio and recording your part. We are constantly keeping busy excitedly looking for collabs, concerts, interviews... whatever can help push the release of the new album. We continue to add shows to present the album in Spain and also to the upcoming European tour.
2.In November you have a new album coming out, musically how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
We think this work is more mature and you can hear it in the sound, the overall quality is much better. We've improved a lot since our first experience in the studio. We believe all these things definitely make the new album more attractive to the general listener.
On the other hand, every member has participated much more in each song and in every decision. This helps to enrich the new material but, to be honest the concept hasn't changed very much from Pvtrefactio, our first album. We think the spirit of the band keeps true to itself.
3.The lyrics on the new recording are a concept album, can you tell us a little bit more about the story you covered with this release?
This time we chose to talk about our hometown places and the stories behind them. It's just a small city but everything we talk about could be extrapolated from our country's history and culture. The name Red Hill comes from the Spanish name 'Cerro Rojo', which is suposed to be the geographical centre of Spain. This is a place with a long and rich history that gained a lot of importance during the civil war.
But this album doesn't just focus about this chapter, it also covers what this land was before, and what it means for us in present times. History and personal experience joins in one concept, this is how Red Hill was born, an amicable place for us, full of feelings like grief or resentment.
4.A lot of your lyrics also cover occult themes, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?
Well, we are curious people, we are always investigating and learning new things. Our interest in politics and history made us further our knowledge on these topics. In fact, our past album was very occultist, all the concept focused around alchemy. We find it beautiful and it's the kind of knowledge that only resonates with a handful of people, because the masses don't care for these ancient and exclusive things.
These themes are also very useful to create an intimate live atmosphere. Of course, we like to make everything to make sense, not just adopting or displaying occult sybolism just because it's nice. We perform a ritual at every live show, and everything responds to a real meaning for us and our songs.
5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Murmur'/
There are a lot of meanings around our band name. We could tell you about a joke, a role game we used to play when we were teenagers, but we finally opted for the demon listed on the ancient grimoire Ars Goetia. What it says about the demon Murmur is that he is a duke who taught philosophy. We want to somehow imitate him, to try to teach aspects of philosophy through our music.
6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?
This album cover is full of meaning. It's actually the real reference to Red Hill, you can see the monument which overlooks the hill and which was built by catholic church under dictatorship collaboration. However, on our cover it appears inverted. This is the point of view we are trying to show in Red Hill, a different perspective on the civil war and the following history.
It also follows the concept of the previous album Pvtrefactio, where we introduced deep content about alchemy. With that cover we kept the essence alive under the Hermetic knowledge "as above so below".
7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
We've been lucky to play at some very cool festivals around Spain: Arcanxo Festival, Palacio Metal Fest, Rock en Femenino Festival... along with many venues sharing the stage with amazing bands.
As I mentioned before, our show is based on a ritual. Of course, the concept has changed from Pvtrefactio to Red Hill. But our intention is not only to perform our songs for the audience, we also try to offer something else. We think this captures the audience's attention much more, and contributes to building the atmosphere we look for. We usually display an altar and Beatriz, our singer, takes the initiative to express a lot of feelings and hidden meaning through her performance.
Everything is worked on previously through research and reading a lot. Here is another part of this "occultism" you were asking about before. But I hope people don't misinterpret us after reading this, we are far from many clichés like blood, corpsepaint and sacrifices.
8.Do you have any touring or show plans once the new album is released?
Yes, we do. We're currently negotiating shows for the European tour and we're looking to add some more shows in Spain if possible. As it stands we will be premiering the new album at Menhir Fest in Barcelona. For next year we'll be playing some shows with the Italian band Ponte del Diavolo and we are very excited to be able to announce soon our first European tour dates. For the time being, we continue to work hard on adding more dates, in Spain or wherever it may be. We are certain that 2026 is going to be a very important year for us.
9.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?
We did receive some interest but coordinating dates and conditions resulted nearly impossible so that's why decided to continue unsigned, but we don't discard it for the future. At this moment in time we are closing some co-edition and collaborations.
It's also necessary to say that most labels make loads of requests and sometimes it's very hard to reach their expectations or schedule the dates for working together.
10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?
Even though we take influence from black metal, in our music we mix a lot of other genres, so we think our fans are probably more diverse. Black metal has evolved a lot since the boom in the 90s. We come from a modern variant with others genres like doom metal, stoner metal or even proggresive music, we think this is our place.
We still haven't experience any rejection from "true blackers" for not being true enough.
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
We have a lot of ideas and material for new music. There always has to be an evolution, but we hope we can keep our identity and our intentions of creating something original. We don't care too much if people will understand or like our music, we just do what we feel we want to do.
For the near future we have some clear ideas and if everything keeps going well we want to keep growing and explore new horizons, then we will see, nobody knows.
12.What are some of the bands or musical styles the band members are currently listening to nowadays?
We have very different tastes of music in the band, and not everything we listen to is metal. Some members are closer to gothic style (Tribulation, Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy...) others more modern and alternative (Deftones, Nine Inch Nails...), and some more experimental (Imperial Trimphant, Deathspell Omega...).
Of course we have some common artists such as Deafheaven, Gaerea or Amenra. Lately we're also keeping an eye on the eruption of Far East Asian artists and bands too.
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
First of all, we're incredibly thankful to Occult Black Metal Zine for dedicating this space to us. It's important to have collaborations that help to expand and understand our music better. And of course congratulate you for your work. I hope we can both keep growing and transmitting our passion that is music.
We want to take this opportunity to recommend all metal fans to listen to our upcoming album - Red Hill, to support us and comment with us every aspect about the album or the band they are interested in. Thank you very much.
Thanks, cheers.
No comments:
Post a Comment