SARKE – The Way of Old

 At the beginning a one-off project, Sarke became a regular band with the release of their second longplay ”Oldarhian” in 2011. The full line-up is packed with members of such extraordinary Norwegian hordes as Spiral Architect, Ihsahn, Susperia, and Satyricon, which gives all the right to say that this time it’s serious. The band is led by Thomas ”Sarke” Bergli, previously better known as a drummer in both Khold and Tulus, and completed with the unique figure of Nocturno Culto. It takes the cold and raw Scandinavian sound to its deepest roots. Mixing all that is best in thrash, heavy and black metal classics, Sarke offers records which are simply a joy to listen to. Primitively and straightforwardly, they strike with old school passion, distance and humour. Sarke himself explains matters in a telegraphic manner.

“Oldarhian” is a more complex record in a structure than “Vorunah”. Is this because there are now more people involved in the band beside just Nocturno and yourself?
Yes, I think so. On the first album I did everything by myself and worked a lot on my own. On the second release there were more people involved. We rehearsed a little bit and spent more time in the studio.

“Oldarhian” was released almost exactly two years after “Vorunah”. What were you up to during that time?
Sarke was supposed to release only one album. It did well and more and more people were asking for it, both live and new stuff. So me and Nocturno agreed to put a band together and do some live shows and release a second album.

How did the release party of “Oldarhian” go? Did you do any extra songs like surprise covers or other stuff?
It went very well and there was a lot of people coming from different countries. Great sound and a great crowd. We only did songs from our two albums.

You recorded the whole “Vorunah” album by yourself except the vocals and keyboards. How challenging is it to complete guitars, bass and drums tracks alone from scratch?
It’s very ok. I can do everything my way. With Khold and Tulus I have to explain to the guitarist how I want them to play the riffs. With Sarke I could just do it myself. And also it was great to do it at my tempo. That’s fast. Often just one take and move on.

Your lyrics on the first album, especially ones like the title-track “Vorunah” or “Old” are very striking and to the point, pure brilliance. Did you want to keep them simple to emphasise the old-school classic heavy metal style of the record?
Yes, you could say that. Direct and primitive, just like the music.

In the interview for Lordsofmetal.nl you said: “Vorunah is someone living inside you that you hate and can’t control”. Is it actually possible to play loud metal music and to live it without having such a demon?
Maybe not. Metal people are something for themselves. Metal music is always best loud and of course with demons.

Could you tell me what was the reason to start Sarke? You play in Khold and Tulus as well, so you shouldn’t be lacking metal.
The reason is I want to release a solo album with music that has inspired me since I got into the metal scene. I think I did that very well.

Did you want Sarke to be a live band from the beginning or did that idea came later on?
It was going to be one record only and that’s it. But here I am with a second album, full line up and several live shows.

Was Nocturno Culto the first and only choice for the vocalist of Sarke, or did you try any other guys too?
He was my first choice and the vocalist I wanted very much for my record. Of course if he had said no, I would have had to look for someone else, but luckily, he said yes.

Does the fact that there is a lot going on around Sarke right now mean a hiatus for Khold and Tulus?
No, Khold had a break long before that. We are doing four festivals with Khold this year. Tulus is on and off depending on what we feel about it.

Was the photo on the cover of “Oldarhian” taken especially for Sarke or did you pick it up from Bahrin Diana’s portfolio? And what the hell is it? A dragon sleeping beneath the snow? Maybe Vorunah himself?
It was not made exclusively for us. It’s something dark, that’s for sure.

Now with six creative people in the band, can we expect another record sooner than in two years?
Maybe, we have to take one at the time. I’m not sure when the next will be out.

THE GATES OF SLUMBER – Iron Hammer of Doom

Doom heavy metal would be the best term to describe what Indianapolis-based trio The Gates of Slumber is about. Mixing the classic vibe and groove of timeless mammoths such as Saint Vitus, Pentagram or Trouble, they have added a fresh touch and actually reinvented the sub-genre once again. Since their 2004 debut “…The Awakening” they have released another four records with the “Suffer No Guilt”, “Conqueror” and “Hymns of Blood and Thunder” albums all being huge steps forward. May 2011 saw the premiere of their fifth and strongest full-length so far, ”The Wretch”, which is out on Rise Above. Karl Simon, the band’s leader, vocalist and guitar player, told We Wither about the opportunity of recording in Europe, his inspirations and the difference between doom and occult metal.

Your music doesn’t sound like you only started the band in 2000. Are The Gates of Slumber a response to modern trends in metal?
No, not at all. The Gates of Slumber is music that we want to make. Music we want to hear and that’s all. I don’t follow much that happens in the modern metal scene. So I can’t react to it.

You’re on the label run by the guy from Cathedral and the roster includes Electric Wizard and Church of Misery. Can things get any better for you?
Well, that’s a loaded question, isn’t it? Things could always be better... but with regards to our label, we are very happy to be on Rise Above. They have taken a lot of interest in us and treated us with a great deal of consideration. Both Lee and Will are awesome guys.

What was the direct inspiration which lead you to form the band?
Saint Vitus. Back in high school, I sang in punk bands, cover bands, whatever... you know? Just to make music. But my first love has always been Black Sabbath. I could never find a suitable group of people to do a band along those lines, so me and Chuck Brown from Apostle of Solitude formed The Keep... things kind of ground to a halt after a couple of years because we couldn’t keep a guitarist. I was playing bass at the time. We also had different ideas as to what we wanted to do. I went off, bought a guitar and started working on The Gates of Slumber.

People usually say there’s no way you can beat the classics. In this situation, it would be bands such as Saint Vitus, Pentagram and Trouble. You took the challenge and you have succeeded. Is it difficult to find something fresh in the sub-genre so exploited and worn-out?
I don’t know if we’ve bested Saint Vitus, Trouble or Pentagram, but thank you! I also don’t know if doom metal is exploited and worn-out. To me it’s actually less worn than any other style of metal. Certainly black, death, and true metal are all way more exploited than doom! Coming up with something fresh is just a matter of time and work. You have to write a lot of bad songs to come up with a good one, at least that’s my theory. Write ten songs throw nine away and that one is as good as it’s going to get.

“The Wretch” is unquestionably your best effort to date. Was the writing process the same as with the four previous records or was something different this time?
There was actually a lot less stress on this one. Jason and I decided that we were going to go back to the more doom laden style that was represented on “The Awakening” and to an extent “Suffer No Guilt”. It was a very simple thing to do. The kinds of riffs that are all over “The Wretch” are like second nature to me. It was much harder to do things like you’ve heard on “Conqueror” or “Hymns of Blood and Thunder”. And thank you by the way. I really like “The Wretch” as well. I think it’s our best record too.

You’ve been on Rise Above since “Hymns of Blood and Thunder”, so it’s no real surprise that you recorded “The Wretch” in London in Orgone Studios, but still it’s a significant fact. Why did you decide to travel so far for the session?
Well, Rise Above was into the idea of us doing the record in England, and it wasn’t too hard to convince us to do that. Let’s see, do a record in Chicago, or Indianapolis... or go to London, one of the most exciting cities in the world and record. And get to see Saint Vitus live at the Underworld, check out the Cathedral 25th anniversary gig (we missed the “Forest of Equilibrium” set though... damn).

The third song from the new album “To the Rack with Them” offers a similar groove and drive to the Vitus piece “Living Backwards”. Doesn’t every proper old-school doom record demand a banger like that?
I think so. We’ve always tried to vary our tempos. Like Vitus or Trouble, or Sabbath did. A one dimensional record is a one dimensional record... no good.

How much fun is it to play enormous anthems such as “God Wills It”, “Descent into Madness” or “Dark Valley Suite” live? These songs are more than 10-minutes-long. Do people dig them or rather prefer shorter tracks?
We very rarely play these long songs live really. “Descent Into Madness” is the only one of the three we’ve ever done. I doubt we’ll ever do any of them again, really... maybe “Descent into Madness”. Really for the most part a 10-12 minutes song is going to eat up a big chunk of a 45-minutes-long set, which is what we mostly get to play on tour. With the rest of our songs being mainly between 5 and 8 minutes that is a big chunk of time. Who knows though, if we decide to throw one in we decide to throw one in. One never knows.

Are you into checking out younger bands or do you only worship the old stuff?
Me personally, I mostly listen to the old stuff. Though there are younger bands that I get turned on to, like Orchid. I love those guys. Good stuff. Jason is way more in touch with the newer bands than I am.

What do you think about the new bands which sound like they’re lost in time – Ghost, The Devil’s Blood, Blood Ceremony or Jex Thoth? Aren’t they doing the same thing as The Gates of Slumber, but that you’ve been doing for more than ten years now?
Nah man, I don’t think we have too much in common with any of those bands, really. That’s all a bunch of occult stuff. We don’t do that. I mean people might mistake “The Castle of The Devil” for some satanic shit, but it’s a Solomon Kane story! Musically they are all on a different and more retro bend than we are, for them it’s more a thing to be vintage sounding I think. We don’t get hung up on that vintage gear stuff. We just play doom metal, you know?

Your cover arts are stylish. Could you tell me more about the artists you have been working with?
The covers for “Conqueror” and “Hymns of Blood and Thunder” were both done by Vebjorn Strommen. We licensed “Conqueror” from him and he did “...Blood and Thunder” for us as a commission. Very cool guy and easy to work with. Arik Roper did the cover for “The Wretch”. It was a licensed piece. I’ve never spoken with Arik, but his art is fucking amazing.

Is it hard to get the right live sound when you’re a trio? Would the band gain anything if you hired a second guitarist?
No, I don’t think so. Jason is a very heavy bassist so there is no loss of anything live. And besides I think two guitars muddy the sound very easily. It also restricts what the bassist can do unless both guitars are in unison. There are few doom bands that sound better with two guitars, I think. Black Sabbath had only one...

You played the Roadburn 2011 festival. Is it the right place for a band like The Gates of Slumber? Did you play the new songs?
Roadburn was great! I think the gig went amazingly well. The crowd was very into it and the set was mostly new songs! I think it’s one of the top 5 gigs we’ve done for sure.

INDIAN – Guilty Of Being Sludge

Chicago-based sludge metal mongers Indian took the sub-genre to its limits of raw heaviness and sheer brutality with their fourth studio record “Guiltless”, which was released through Relapse in April of 2011. Devastating and hammering riffage, extreme vocal abuse and suffocating tempos are what Indian is about. The weak don’t come out of there alive. Will Lindsay, on duty as a guitarist and vocalist, and earlier involved in the Wolves in the Throne Room and Nachtmystium, told We Wither about his bands and other extremely important issues.

I have to tell you „Guiltless” is a ruthless, merciless, radical album. You don’t play blast beats or participate in the metal-racing contest but still it’s very extreme. Is it your heaviest album so far?
I feel that it is, but various people will no doubt have various opinions. A lot of people into Indian still swear by “The Unquiet Sky” as the heaviest.

How do you get such a heavy sound? Is it only a matter of production?
Production certainly plays a role in the heavy sound. The equipment that we use is very crucial to the heavy sound, as well. The guitars were Les Pauls, a Monson Doomsayer and a Lakland bass. The amps were Sunn Model Ts, a Marshall JCM 800 2203 and an Acoustic 370. The cabinets and drums were all Emperors. Sanford's expertise and knowledge as an engineer was very important, as well.

Does the album have a concept in terms of the lyrics? Could you point out the most important things you sing about on “Guiltless”?
There is a concept through the album but Dylan wrote almost all of the lyrics and I wouldn't feel comfortable commenting on what he wrote. The lyrics that I wrote tie into the concept of being guiltless and are about a personal experience in my not-too-distant past. I'm afraid it is something I can't really get into, though, as I wouldn't want to name or embarrass the people involved in the aforementioned experience.

Does your band name mean that you identify with the native Americans in the way you feel like rejects and misfits, or is that explanation a little bit too obvious and naive?
The band started before I was a member and I never have asked why they chose that name. I would imagine that it is something other than the idea that you mentioned, though.

Is there a distinct line between doom and sludge in modern metal? What would you rather call Indian?
I don't really have an opinion. However, a lot of other people seem to. I personally don't have a preference in which term people use to describe us. Whatever is going to help them make sense of what we're doing or whatever is going to give them a comfortable reference point is on them.

You have been recording with Sanford Parker, who has produced lots of awesome albums is the last couple of years. What is the best thing about working with him?
Sanford is a good friend of ours. There are a lot of great things about working with him. He's actively involved in the “scene” or “genre” or whatever beyond his role as an engineer. He has a lot of good ideas and he is not afraid to voice them. He also has a high level of tolerance for people and their idiosyncrasies, which is a key and often overlooked element of being an engineer.

How close is Indian with the hardcore/punk Chicago scene?
I've only been living out here since July and have not really gotten involved in the local punk/hardcore scene. I haven't really been involved in the local punk/hardcore scene since I lived in Eugene, OR, honestly.

 

I really like your artwork. I generally love bands that stick to certain aesthetics and develop it from album to album. Could you tell me about the graphic artists you have worked with?
The only artist we have worked with for our album-related stuff has been Scott Fricke. He is a tattooist here in Chicago and a good friend of the band. Scott has been very good at making visual representations of our music and ideas. He actually spent some time at the studio with us to get his ideas for what to do with the artwork for “Guiltless”.

You seem to love tattoos and all of the Indian covers look like perfect ideas for a tattoo. Did you get any of them inked yet?
I have the pentagram that we use for our logo on my shoulder. Everyone in the band with the exception of Sean has the pentagram. I don't know that I would get album-specific tattoos, but I do love Scott's style and look forward to having him tattoo me in the future.

Are any of your tattoos related to the music or bands in general?
I have four Black Flag tattoos. I also have the word “Outlaw” tattooed on my wrist, which has a lot of meanings. One of which is a nod to Waylon Jennings. I also have a portrait of Hank Williams, Sr. tattooed on me.

What made you go vegan? Did you ever care about bands such as Day of Suffering or Earth Crisis, which try to talk about social problems?
I became a vegan in 1997 for ethical reasons. It was just something that I didn't want to take part in anymore. I grew up hunting and fishing and had never felt entirely comfortable with it, which also contributed, albeit in a more latent fashion. I still have the same ethical feelings but it isn't something I really go flaunting about and I certainly have no intention of using the band as a platform for that or any other ideology.
I never cared for the bands you mentioned. Bands that were talking about social problems and such that I was into were more along the lines of Born Against, Man is the Bastard, Noothgrush and the like. All of which are still bands I still love.

Why did Middian only manage to complete one album “Age Eternal” in 2007? Was Mike Scheidt too busy with Yob to keep Middian going?
I was actually talking to my friend that booked that band last week about things. The band seemed kind of cursed from the start. There were always some underlying personal tensions that really flared up when our lawsuit happened and it is ultimately what killed the band. I think the band not being universally accepted in Yob's place is what also led Mike to reform Yob. Our last tour, half of our set was Yob songs. That really kind of put the writing on the wall. That and the fact that the law suit really kind of pulled us apart. It was too bad. I really miss playing with both Mike and Scott.

You were involved with the 2009 Wolves in the Throne Room album “Black Cascade”. Was it just an episode for you? Why did you leave the band so quickly?
I was also on the “Malevolent Grain” EP and the “Live at Roadburn 2008”. I played with them for a few years and did not join the band with the intention of it being solely an episode. My leaving the band is rather complicated to explain without having to tell some details that are really not to be shared publicly. The best I can do is state that the Weavers and I have different ways of looking at a lot of things. We did try to make it work and it didn't. Unfortunately, I don't think any of us feel very good about how everything ended up, but we did the best that we could. We're still friends and keep in touch and see each other when we're in town, which I am very happy about.

Wolves in the Throne Room is seen as a pretty specific band, with its own sound and atmosphere. Did you feel it was something special to be a part of it?
I never really thought of it in terms like that. I enjoyed playing with them and I particularly enjoyed all of the travel we did together. One of the points of contention between us is that I never cared for the visual aesthetics that the band had or the talk about spirituality/magic/etc., which is very important to Nathan and Aaron as well as a lot of people that like the band. It was a good experience and I'm happy that I did it. Ultimately, Aaron and Nathan are happier not having a dissenting opinion and I'm happier playing with people that I have more in common with. I must add that I am also happy to not be involved in the black metal scene. It's not a scene I was ever particularly interested in as a fan or musician, with a few exceptions.

You were also part of Nachtmystium during sessions for the 2010 album “Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. II”. That material is really original and different to anything else. Was the recording inspiring too?
I don't know that I would use the word “inspiring”. I had a lot of fun making that record. Usually, I don't enjoy the recording process, although I am certainly happy to have the finished product. I think part of what was so enjoyable about making that record is that I wasn't emotionally involved as I was never really a member of the band or anything. It ended up being a lot more casual than any other recording session I've done, which I think definitely contributed to the final product. Blake is extremely open to other people's suggestions and ideas as well.