Arkhaeon Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?

Many things have been achieved, as we are individuals that can’t rest in one place for a very long time. We have been researching consciously and unconsciously the abyss in ourselves. Some of us turned mad others faced a more mundane life after Deathprayer Evangelium. Musically there has been no activity for a long time. Initially Arkhaeon was laid to rest for an indefinite amount of time as it was told what had to be said. How can we speak if there are no words left?

Around the end of 2015 the idea caught fire to create something new with Arkhaeon but it took several months of empty thoughts until finally the lightning struck our hearts. Out of nowhere a single word appeared and everything suddenly made sense. The concept was created along with the musical idea in just a single moment after he whispered the term “Beyond”.

Everything following this epiphany was mere manual labour. It is by far not our first recording so we could proceed very fast with setting the groundwork for the second album. Everything fell in place and we didn’t have to waste many thoughts in what is right or wrong. Beyond was born in just a couple of weeks.



2.So far you have released 2 albums, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on both of the recordings and also how do they differ from each other?

The songwriting for both albums was completely different. The goal of Deathprayer Evangelium was to gain an experience based on the creation of the album itself. With Beyond it was the other way around. The idea of the concept and how it should sound in the end came to us in a second. We were struggling to find a proper lyrical concept for an upcoming recording for a few months and suddenly it was here while Deathprayer Evangelium was written over several years and always modified during this time.

Musically the first record is more „Black Metal“ as all tracks have typical Black Metal instruments. On Beyond about half of the album is based on experimental ambient and ritualistic soundscapes. We already fused both styles on Deathprayer Evangelium but this time we took it to the next level. That is also one of the reasons Beyond only has one track. We wanted to do that on the first album as well but it was naturally separated into different tracks. Beyond is one, from the beginning to the end just like it was supposed to be. Disrupting the natural flow of the music would have torn the whole purpose apart.


3.Your lyrics are in more of an occult and left hand path tradition, can you tell us a little bit more about your interest in the dark arts?

We can't agree to that statement. We may be influenced by occult and LHP teachings but so are we by Catholicism. Does that make us a Christian band? We consume everything that allows us to gain a clearer sight. Be it art, music, books, events, history, crimes, discussions, and sometimes even concerts. The output in form of an album is the result of all that. We never felt attracted to a predefined doctrine but rather wanted to create an ideology on our own. All in all we could agree to the fact that Deathprayer Evangelium was influenced by occult teachings but Beyond is different. Of course there still are parts of this influence, as well as for example traditional Hindu worship. But the lyrical concept is based on thoughts that are independent from any particular spiritual current. Why should we confine ourselves to one ideology when all paths lead to God?

Anyway back to your question. Beyond deals with the inner struggle of a human that is aware of the rules of life and is trying to break them to achieve spiritual and personal growth. If you read the lyrics you might notice contradictions and many questions. The thought was to create a confrontation between a rational, modern worldview clashing with a spiritual, religious ideology. Both can be very much alike but are also extremely different. Arkhaeon raises questions rather than providing answers. We are not seeing ourselves as priests or occult teachers as our truth is only applicable to us. We know that one can truly find salvation on the inside or in words already spoken: „Who looks outside, dreams: who looks inside, awakes“. We believe that this sums up appropriately what we want to say and it shows some of our influences. 


4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Arkaeon'?

First of all the name is Arkhaeon and it is a combination of different words that together form a bigger meaning. We don’t think talking about names is of any importance. Despite the similarity we were not aware of the first Mitochondrion album back when we created it, so it doesn’t come from there.



5.So far the line up has not been announced publicly,do you feel this adds more of a dark atmosphere to the music?

It may do that but in the end that doesn't matter for us. We don't see egomaniac fame collecting as the goal of our existence. People that want to be rockstars can pursue this dream, but without us. The important things in art are content, intention, vision and devotion. Why should it matter in the bigger context who played what instrument at some random point in time?


6.Are any of the band members open to doing any life shows?

Yes almost all of them are regularly playing live or are active in other bands and some of them even proposed the idea of an Arkhaeon gig. This won't happen.


7.According to the fb page the band refers to itself as a religious organization, can you tell us a little bit more about it?

As mentioned before the idea behind Arkhaeon is not to have fun playing in a band or achieve worldwide success to fuck groupies and eat caviar from golden plates at some huge open air with an idiotic Heavy Metal crowd.

We don't see Arkhaeon as traditional band that meets once a week to rehearse and drink. Some of the contributors don't even know each other, but they all create according to their strength. Doing so they add their input to the greater goal in their very own way. The core of the band sets the course and invites others to participate if they wish. In this sense we think that the category of a religious „organization“ fits much better than that of a band.


8.Both of the albums have been released by 'BergStolz', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

It is the only Black Metal label in Switzerland worthy of releasing music. Many here can't seem to appreciate the things BergStolz did during the last 10 years because of differences in opinion regarding mundane political worldviews. This does not concern us and everyone that thinks to attack or ignore us because of that may very well do so. It won't change anything. We were looking for an underground label that doesn't want to involve itself in the creative process and that's what we got.

On a sidenote: The tape versions of both albums have been released on different labels. Deathprayer Evangelium by Sinister Stench and Beyond by Auric Records.


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

It was good and it shows that you only have to have a certain design, symbolism and the tag of „Occult Black Metal“ to get some attention. But as mentioned several times before, this is of no value to us.


10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

We don't have any particular plans for now. If we feel the need to create for Arkhaeon we will do so. If not, we will do so with our other projects. Ours lives would be worthless without art.

The only thing certain is that we won't be recording the same album over and over again. Creativity needs to grow constantly and we will always incorporate change in Arkhaeon.



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

Many, but almost none of them would be classified as Black Metal. A project that we would like to mention is Zero Kama. It was very inspiring to us. Not just because of the vision and the output but also because of the circumstances how this vision was achieved back then. Besides that we can't see the necessity of a list of bands. People will hear that in our music and if not, they'll surely find enough Facebook addicts that tell them what they are supposed to be listening right now.


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

Find our beyond...

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