1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?
As an introduction to the concept behind Konfession, in the following our three fundamental pillars of seclusion, mysticism and tradition shall be elucidated:
Tradition = in music and content. Nourishing a fire that has been lit way before us. Looking back in history and keeping aspects of the past alive, without a servile follower mentality.
Mysticism = a genuine believe in the beyond. In realms that exceed time and space. Eternity. In a spark inside of us, that needs to be explored and developed by the unsating hunger for knowledge and cognition. In moments, where worlds overlap, where portals open. An everfloating spirit.
Seclusion = no missionaries, nothing to proof, no imposal, no economic goals, nothing but an honest offer of what we hold dear. Utmost creative independence and trust in the own perception.
The Konfessores are Mithras – Vocals, Dukkha – Bass, Umbra – Drums, Heljagr – Guitar and Lyrics.
This interview is conducted by Heljagr.
2.Recentlky you have released a new album, musically hoe does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
Even more than before, it was our aim to stress out the authenticity and forthright atmosphere created by recording a preciously kept coven playing music together. A counteract to both sterile studio productions and one-man bedroom projects with lousy drum machines. Musically we wanted to (re-)establish the vision of Black Metal being a tree of many branches, all hold together by a gnarled trunk of ancient heavy rock and metal, deeply rooted in the fertile soil of primordial mysteries. People who expect the next “raw” black metal flash in the pan will be disappointed though. The album rather serves as a simmering vessel of obscurities from the 60s, 70s and 80s enriched by our early 90s attitude.
3.According to the metal archives page the band has been around since 2008 but waited until 2019 to release any music, can you tell us a little bit more about the earlier years?
I founded Konfession in the “Rauhnächte” between 2007/2008 in the rural areas in the north-east of the Upper Austrian capital Linz, totally possessed by and devoted to anti-commercial underground metal, to which I got initiated especially by printed fanzines, such as “Bloodaxe ” from Belgium. Entering this realm sparked the flame. A burning urge to create music for devilish headbangers, with a serious interest in the beyond, like myself. From the very beginning, the concept behind Konfession was highly idealistic and strictly dedicated to its three core principles (see above). I knew a drummer from Salzburg and together we started rehearsing songs that I had already written, in a wooden shack in the mountains around Salzburg. It was an incredible inspiring phase. At evenings we would sit around a bonfire under the starlit sky, watching the alpine mountain ranges, as the nightwind blew through the treetops of the surrounding woodlands, while we were blasting the ancestral tunes of 80s Metal through a tiny tape deck into the black of night. Soon Mithras joined us as a vocalist. As the wooden shack was quite remote, we did not get to rehearse very often, but when we did, it was intense. After some years we recorded five songs live in the rehearsal shack. A modus operandi, to which we stick until this day. The five tracks later ended up on the “Blurred Rehearsals 2010”-Demo Tape, that we gave only to a selected few people.
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band has explored over the years with your music?
According to our fundamental pillar of mysticism, all our lyrics in some way derive from my personal spiritual concept, that I tend to call “gnostic paganism” and which I have developed and integrated into my life over many years now. Often I choose local historical events, personalities or the manifold folkloristic lore of my home area in Austria near the border to the Czech Republic, a ruff highland area, coined by vast forests, moors and rural settlements, where ancient customs and tales are still vivid and upheld, as parables to cloak the inlying metaphysical core.
Exemplary you will find reminiscences to the “Kaperger-Bande”. An outlaw group of devil worshippers haunting Upper Austrian soil in the 17th Century. Or a tribute to Martin Aichinger vulgo “Laimbauer”. A dedicated mystic of my home area and true Upper Austrian rebel, who got beheaded and quartered in Linz in 1636. Some selected lyrics however serve as “Zauberlieder”. Those I usually manifest in a traditional stave-rhyme meter, by which they might be identified.
5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Konfession'/
A Konfession is a group that belongs to a religious denomination, but carries its own specific beliefs and perceptions. Furthermore, the name refers to a song of a band from the 90s that I extremely admire, but I replaced the “C” with a “K”, which is another band-reference (obviously to a very sadistik Group from Australia). Thus, the name strongly reflects our pillars “tradition” and “mysticism”.
6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover/
It depicts a visual approach to the “Âventiure der Entwerdung” (roughly translated: A Knight’s Quest for Disintegration), that carries through several songs of “Im Baumdunkel des Äthers”. It is handdrawn by the great Austrian artist Konstanze K, who also drew Cover-Artworks and Illustrations for some of our previous releases.
7.Has the band done any live shows or open to the idea?
Our main driving force is the growth and development of our mutual work. Elaborating new material, writing songs and lyrics aswell as fostering our erudite coven is key to us. However, in the last years we opened our circle of four every now and then to reveal fragments of what we hold dear. In general, I have a very ambivalent notion of concerts. Although I am an excessive worshipper of Rock and Metal, I never admired the Rock’n’Roll-mentality. We do not have this childish hidden dream of many other underground Bands “to finally make it and somehow earn a living out of this”. We all are settled and grown-up men, doing well in the mundane everyday life, which gives us the ultimate spiritual and creative independence for our work with Konfession. We do not need to stand on a stage to entertain an audience with a “show”, neither for our egos nor for our wallets. But if concerts are organized and done for the right reason, they can be worth the effort.
8.So far very little is known about the band, do you prefer to keep a lower profile?
We are not apodictically silent about what we do (at least not anymore). It is simply the fact, that we believe that it is better to remain silent, and let the music and lyrics speak. However, I am always open to discuss these aforementioned matters, as they mean something to us. When it comes to social media, we believe though, that there is so much conventional and uninteresting information about bands on it, that this medium somehow lost its value for substantial content. That is why we are not actively appearing there. Thankfully, our label understands this approach and keeps the “online” promotional work on a dignified level. We do not believe in dispelling the magic we put into our creation by numb commercial overavailability. There is almost no way to lose my respect faster than to post a video of yourself sitting with your guitar in an office-chair, headphones on, in front of a huge mixing table and playing riffs into a computer, while praising your upcoming record/tour/”show” or whatever you want to sell.
9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black metal?
Especially in the early years of Konfession I wrote and received a lot of letters. Lately I got the impression though, that this tradition is unfortunately declining. Some older contacts developed into e-mail-correspondence, which is fine aswell, even if I really value the effort it takes to write something on a piece of paper, carry it to the post office and pay to send it somewhere.
10.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
The future is always blurry and hard to predict, but I have the feeling that our bond grows deep, and our work is not done yet.
11.Wat are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
We are still contributing to the tradition of sharing a carefully curated credit-list of bands inside of our albums. I would highly recommend the readers of this interview to examine them and carefully listen to the bands we put there. Hearken to those stellar tunes and potentially receive a closer understanding of why Konfession sounds as it does.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Hail to Fell Metal and the Dark Pagan Forces.
https://rebuildthetemple.bandcamp.com/
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