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1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
Jauhien: We are currently rehearsing the setlist for the live shows. We are working on organizing future concerts. We started working on a new album. The music is there, the concept is there, the sources of information are there. All that's left is to put it all together and record it. But we're not in a hurry. In general, there's a lot to do.
2.Recently you have released a new album, musically how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Jauhien: This album was written around the same time as the previous one. It's around 2016-2017. And musically the new album continues the ideas of the previous one. But the new album is more heavy and angry. For example, there are faster tracks with blastbeat. But also saved slower tracks with a lot of melodic inserts. Also the album is characterized by the use of more musical instruments. We used saxophones, accordion, cello, fretless bass. We recorded the real bells of a village burned down during World War II. We also used more vocal techniques, children's choir and children's vocals, guest vocalist on one of the tracks. This allowed to diversify the arrangements. All this allows the album to sound more interesting and diverse.
3.This is also your first full length in 6 years, can you tell us a little bit more about the long wait in between releases?
Jauhien: A lot of different factors came together at different times. At the beginning, it was difficult to find the time and energy to record. Later there was a covid and some guest musicians couldn't record their parts. In 2020 the events in Belarus happened and we had to change the concept of the album a bit. After that, the Belarusian authorities started to persecute us. At the end of 2021 Nokt had to flee the country, but by that time the album was already recorded. But the question of the graphic design of the album remained open. In 2022 the full-scale invasion of russia into Ukraine began. Nokt had to go to Poland during the war. And already in 2022 we were able to finish the visuals of the album. That's roughly the story.
4.A lot of your lyrics cover true tales from your home country of Belarus, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in this topic?
Nokt: Previously, there was no interest, it was rather disgust. In Belarus, the propaganda of the Lukashenka regime made the theme of the Second World War a fundament of their ideology. There is too much of this topic around, especially when you are a child - school excursions to war monuments, military parades, there are many books about the war in literature lessons, many hours are devoted to all these battles in history lessons, etc. As a result, those who are not mentally damaged by propaganda develop something like immunity. All you feel at the mention of the terrible events of World War II, which claimed more than a quarter of the population of Belarus, is fatigue. But is that how it should be?
Secondly, the dictator's regime allegedly appropriated this part of our history. Anyone who opposes them (or just doesn't love enough) they call a Nazi, a descendant of the Nazis, and so on. At the same time, these same people arrange magnificent celebrations at the places of mass executions, for example. In general, complete crap.
So we decided to dig into the topic ourselves, rethink and get the most important.
These 13 songs are the result.
5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?
Nokt: this is young Belarus in the hands of the War.
By the way, the composition deliberately repeats ‘The Unconquered Man’ monument from Belarusian Khatyn Memorial Complex. In fact, I can talk about the cover for an incredibly long time, so now I will only add the fact that after the shooting my left hand did not work for a week.
6.Currently there are only 2 members in the band but you have worked with other musicians in the past, are you open to expanding the line up again in the future or do you prefer to remain a duo?
Jauhien: The lineup has already been expanded. We have new musicians and we hope to stay with them for a long time. In any case, we don't plan to stay as a duo. At least because it's hard to play gigs as a duo. And we love it.
7.Recently the band moved away from Belarus to political persecution, can you tell us a little bit more about the lack of freedoms in your home country that you dont encounter in a lot of western countries?
Jauhien: For example, in Belarus there is a lot of censorship in music. Organizers and musicians had to submit lyrics to officials from the Ministry of Culture for verification. It was necessary to obtain special permits to hold concerts - the so-called "concert certificate". We faced politically motivated concert cancelations. In 2021 we released the song "To Freedom" with Lesley Knife, the vocalist of the Belarusian band Gods Tower. He was suspected of insulting an official. Lesley later received a politically motivated sentence for it. The next day all our planned concerts were canceled. And this was done in the format of a threat to the organizers by officials: "If you do not remove Dymna Lotva from the concert, we will close your club". Now we are based in Poland, and, of course, this is impossible here.
And that's just one example directly related to music.
8.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Jauhien: We've had almost all the concerts that have been great. But probably some of the coolest ones were in Kiev. Ukrainian fans received us very warmly. In some reports from our concerts there were expressions like "theatrical suicidal performance" or "lesson of Belarusian literature in post metal format". And in general it is not far from the truth. We try to make a show: makeup, costumes, stage design, emotional output. We also try to change the setlist for each separate concert. I think our concerts are not boring.
9.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?
Jauhien: We've been announced to perform at Prophecy Fest 2023. We are also working on organizing a tour in Europe. Nothing more to say for now.
10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your newer music by fans of post black metal?
Jauhien: Honestly, I haven't seen any negative reviews yet. The fans accept our music warmly. The reviews I've been able to read are also positive about our music. And that motivates us to keep making music!
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
Jauhien: Musically, we will keep our style within the planned trilogy. But we will release albums outside the trilogy that will be musically different. There will be experiments in both music and sound. There's a margin for experimentation in our music. We can painlessly add more black metal, or on the contrary make the album more folk. But overall, we plan to keep our style.
12.What are some of the bands or musical styles the band members are currently listening to nowadays?
Jauhien: I have been listening to generally post metal, post black metal, progressive metal, stoner metal lately. Some of my favorite artists are Amenra, Cult of Luna, Mastodon, Leprous, Psychonaut and Queens of the Stone Age.
Nokt: I am black metal fan. But of course I listen to other genres - mainly dark folk, doom metal, sometimes punk rock. Currently in my playlist: Carpathian Forest, Heilung, Darkher, Marduk, Lisa Gerrard, The Exploited, Zeal&Ardor, Brujeria, Zmarłym, Blackbraid. I’ve just checked my latest on Spotify for you.
13.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Nokt: None of us are "little people". Everyone is capable of changing something around them. Be brave.
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