ForestMuse Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before can you tell us a little bit about the band?

Kage: ForestMuse is a black metal band from Santa Cruz, California, started by Taserof and myself in 2012. At the time of formation we had been playing music together already for about 6 years on and off, and now ForestMuse is around 2 years old. We play black metal inspired by bands such as Bathory, Emperor, Immortal, Moonsorrow, as well as history, particularly of Europe/Scandinavia and the Americas.

Our first release, “The Land of Tall Trees,” was self-recorded and self-produced and released through Bandcamp. Our new album, “Moonlit Shadows,” is complete and awaiting artwork before becoming available. It was recorded at Parade Outrageous Studios by Max Zigman.

2.A few year you released your first demo, can you tell us a little bit more about your musical sound?

Kage: Our style falls into the classic black metal tradition, but we also use ambient and folk elements in our music. Our first album had several keyboard pieces, and our latest album features a Finnish instrument called the Kantele.

Taserof: As well as the Lithuanian Kankles.

3.Your lyrics cover Nature, Atavism and Ancestors, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in these topics?

Taserof: My interest is in all things that made us humans the way we are. It is more than something so narrow as a “topic” they are the very reasons we are alive today. Anyone who does not appreciate nature, their ancestors, or the past is completely lost in the artificial world it’s became.

The lyrics of ForestMuse are imaginary. I personally am a very visual person, I see a story or landscape unfold from music. So when I write lyrics I try to make them match what I see from the music. ForestMuse lyrics are generally literal and take the listener to a place and describe the setting. It’s sometimes hard for me to write lyrics that don’t delve into my hate for greed and the many things that still continue to utterly destroy our already shattered cultures and dwindling nature. I let the music be the hate while the lyrics focus on the epicness of what was (and can still be).

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name ForestMuse?

Taserof: The name is self-explanatory. I have been asked if the word muse has anything to do with the old Greek religion and no it does not. However, I think anything that reminds people of the past and of a forgotten religion fits ForestMuse.

5.Currently there are only 2 members in the band, are you planning on expanding the line up in the future or do you choose to remain a duo?

Kage: We added our bass player, Senun, last year. He is an accomplished musician who also plays in Fiends at Feast. Senun definitely adds a missing element to the band, as is evident both live and on our second album, and we are lucky to have him.

6.Has the band done any live shows or is this strictly a studio project?

Kage: We have played half a dozen live shows so far, mostly in Santa Cruz, but we have begun to play neighboring cities. In June we will perform at Festum Carnis, a forest metal festival in Soda Springs, CA.

Taserof: We are looking to play as many live shows as possible. We will hopefully organize and play a show somewhere in the forest in Santa Cruz sometime in the spring.

7.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

Kage: We are not currently seeking a label; however, if there is enough interest in our second album, we will consider finding a distributor.

8.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of black metal?

Kage: We have gotten positive feedback on our first album by fans worldwide, from France to Italy to Chile, Russia, and so on. It has been very humbling to have good response to a record that was recorded and produced entirely for free, and we are looking forward to hearing what people have to think of the second album. It is all-around a much stronger record and we expect more people to hear it and enjoy it!

9.When can we expect new material and also what musical direction do you see the band heading into during the future?

Kage: As said before, the new album, “Moonlit Shadows,” is recorded and awaiting artwork before its release. Here is a video for one of the songs from the album: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ-KTFp2ucQ

Taserof is currently writing new material and we will hopefully record again this year.

Taserof: Yes, new material is constantly developing. Future releases will have more Kantele and Kankles.

10.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Kage: As I mentioned earlier, the bands that have influenced us the most stylistically are classic black metal bands such as Bathory, Emperor, Enslaved, and Immortal. In addition to black metal, I listen to a lot of death metal like At the Gates, Morbid Angel, and Death, although I don’t know how much that style influences ForestMuse’s music.

Taserof: As Kage already mentioned most of the second wave Norwegian black metal bands from the early 90’s as well as various underground Slavic black metal bands from the mid 90’s. The keyboard songs on “The Land Of Tall Trees” were inspired by Burzum’s “Hliðskjálf” and “Daudi Baldrs”, Mortiis’s “Keiser Av En Dimension Ukjent” and “Ånden Som Gjorde Opprør”, and various ambient artists especially Klaus Schulze. There are too many bands to name but Slayer must be mentioned. Non- metal (but still metal) Martti Pokela and various other kantele and zither music.

11.What are some of your non musical interests?

Kage: All of the band members love spending time in nature, whether it be hiking, camping, mountain biking, etc. I am a graduate student, so when I am not playing or listening to music I am almost always reading or writing. Senun is also a student finishing up his degree in music.

Taserof: Nature admiring. All the education I need comes from the forest and deep recollecting.

12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Kage: Thank you for the kind words and for helping us put our music out there. We are excited to continue performing and writing original black metal, and we hope that people give us a listen and enjoy it!

Taserof: Never forget who you are. Feel your blood. Smell the Night-Air!

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ForestMuse/The Land Of Tall Trees/2012 Demo Review

  ForestMuse  are  a  band  from  Santa  Cruz,  California  that  plays  an  atmospheric  form  of  forest  black  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  self  released  2012  demo  "The  Land  Of  Tall  Trees".

  "Intro"  starts  off  the  album  with  nature  sounds  and  ritualistic  chanting  and  towards  the  end  you  can  hear  some  tribal  sounding  percussion  being  utilized.

  "The  End  of  The  Ohlone"  which  is  also  the  first  real  song  on  the  album  opens  up  with  soft  folk  music  style  acoustic  guitars  and  a  few  seconds  alter  heavy  guitar  riffs  along  with  drums  and  grim  black  metal  vocals  kick  in  and  after  awhile  the  guitar  riffing  starts  utilizing  some  raw  and  melodic  elements  which  takes  the  music  into  an  atmospheric  black  metal  direction  and  towards  the  end  you  can  hear  bass  guitars  in  certain  sections  of  the  song  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  and  faster  riffing  towards  the  end.

  "Old  Ways"  begins  with  heavy  and  melodic  guitar  riffs  along  with  drums  and  bass  guitars  a  few  seconds  alter  which  also  leads  to  the  music  getting  faster  along  with  grim  sounding  black  metal  screams  as  well  as  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  before  going  into  a  more  mid  paced  direction  as  well  as  a  few  seconds  of  acoustic  guitar  playing  being  used  for  a  few  seconds and  halfway  through  the  song  there  is  also  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts.  

  "The  Smell  Of  Night  Air"  opens  up  with  ambient  sounding  synths  and  the  song  is  all  instrumental  with  no  other  instruments  being  utilized.

  "Schlacht  Im  Teutoberger  Weld"  returns  the  demo  back  to  black  metal  with  raw  guitar  riffing  and  blast  beats  from  the  drums  before  going  into  a  more  mid  paced  and  melodic  direction  and  you  can  also  hear  bass  guitars  in  the  background  as  well  as  the  drums  using  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats.

  "Nachmenschen"  kicks  in  with  raw  and  distorted  sounding  black  metal  guitar  riffing  and  a  few  seconds  later  drums  kick  in  and  a  minute  later  grim  black  metal  screams  start  to  kick  in  as  well  as  the  guitar  riffing  utilizing  more  melody  and  halfway  through  the  song  there  is  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  before  the  music  speeds  up  and  then  alternating  between  slow  and  fast  parts.

  "View  Overlooking  The  Ancestral  Forest"  comes  in  with  dark  atmospheric  sounding  ambient  synths  and  the  song  is  all  instrumental.

  "Night  Before  the  Slaughter"  is  introduced  with  heavy  and  atmospheric  sounding  guitar  riffs  and  drums  and  a  few  seconds  later  grim  screams  start  to  kick  in  along  with  some  powerful  bass  guitars  and  melodic  leads  shortly  after  that  which  also  leads  to  the  music  speeding  up  in  certain  sections  of  the  song  and  you  can  hear  synths  in  the  background.

  "The  Crimson  Light"  hits  it  off  with  acoustic  guitar  playing  and  a  few  seconds  later  drums  and  heavy  guitar  riffs  start  making  their  way  into  the  song  and  after  a  couple  of  minutes  the music  goes  into  a  more  mid  paced  direction  and  you  can  hear  bass  guitars  in  the  background   along  with  synths  and  melodic  chanting  which  also  leads  up  to  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  and  after  awhile  there  is  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  as  well  as  the  guitar  riffing  getting  more  melodic.

  "Leid  Van  De  Mist"  is  brought  in  with  atmospheric  sounding  synths  and  the  song  is  an  over  15  minute  long  instrumental.

  "Outro"  closes  the  demo  with  nature  sounds  and  tribal  style  percussion  as  well  as  some  melodic  shamanistic  chanting.

  Song  lyrics  cover  nature,  ancestry  and  atavism  themes,  while  the  production  has  a  very  strong,  powerful  and  heavy  sound  for  being  a  self  released  recording  where  you  can  hear  all  of  the  musical  instruments  that  are  present  on  the  recording  along  with  most  of  the  songs  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  In  my  opinion ForestMuse  are  a  very  great  sounding  atmospheric,  forest  black  metal  band  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  this  musical  genre,  you  should  check  out  this  demo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  End  of  The  Ohlone"  "Nachmenschen"  and  "The  Crimson  Light".  RECOMMENDED  BUY.

Bandcamp