EXTREME DOOM PART V: Adrian Bickle of Mournful Congregation

This is the fifth part of the series of short interviews with prolific and notable extreme doom metal musicians. They were all asked the same questions to see the different perspective they have for specific aspects of the genre. I spoke to Adrian Bickle, drummer for Australian group Mournful Congregation, which in their long history produced mammoth albums such as 1998’s “Tears from a Grieving Heart”, 2005’s “The Monad of Creation” and 2009’s “The June Frost”. 2011 will see another load of darkest funeral sounds from these Adelaide-based doom merchants. “The Unspoken Hymns” is a compilation of rare material that comes out in September. As well there is a whole new record “The Book of Kings” to be released through Osmose before the end of the year.

What was your first experience with extremely slow doom metal?
The early 90's work of Cathedral was probably the first such music I encountered. In the early to mid 90's I was quite a fan of a lot of the Peaceville releases that were emerging but I also liked the idea of taking this style even further.

What inspire you to play such music?
As a drummer, I didn't really consider playing this way until I actually met Damon Good of Mournful Congregation who was composing this sort of material. I liked the idea of playing in such a band but had no idea that there was anyone writing in this way where I lived. Once I heard the first two demos I was convinced this was something I wanted to be a part of.

What is the most important in Mournful Congregation – is it the heaviness, the atmosphere, the lyrics or maybe something else?
I'd say it's probably a mixture of these things but mostly the atmosphere, the feeling. The correct atmosphere is essential in this type of music.

Do you see your music as a very demanding one for the listener?
It depends on the listener. It's not casual music, not the sort of thing the average person would put on as relaxing background music. Our style does require a certain level of open-mindedness and patience but I don't believe that necessarily renders it demanding.

Is extreme/funeral doom metal more over the top and extreme than super fast grindcore in your opinion?
Extreme is just a very general word. A person could argue that funeral doom is more extreme in an emotional sense whereas grindcore is more extreme in a brutal sense. To me though, they just can't be compared... and I like both styles. I don't think they are over the top, they just push the envelope of two genres (doom and grind) that were fairly intense to begin with.

Did you ever feel like a misfit or a reject in the metal scene?
Again, the 'metal scene' is a very broad term. The metal scene I know is a collective of friends and musicians that possess a particular commonality. It's more like a brotherhood (with many sisters) and I feel completely at ease in this scene. On the other hand, if I was to go to a shitty commercial metal gig where I was surrounded by inbred halfwits then I'd definitely feel like a misfit/reject and I'd be thoroughly disgusted in myself if I didn't.

Can you relate to escapism?
Yes, completely.

EXTREME DOOM PART IV: Greg Chandler of Esoteric

This is the fourth part of the series of short interviews with prolific and notable extreme doom metal musicians. They were all asked the same questions to see the different perspective they have for specific aspects of the genre. I spoke to Greg Chandler, guitarist and vocalist of Birmingham-based Esoteric, which is one of the longest-running groups in extreme doom business. The band started around 1992 and so far recorded five full-lengths. 2004’s “Subconscious Dissolution into the Continuum” and critically acclaimed 2008’s double album  “The Maniacal Vale” are among their very finest works. Their style consists of tormented vocals and hypnotizing tempos that introduce the listener to the dark endless journey of torture, suffering and damnation. Lately Esoteric recorded their sixth studio effort. A double album "Paragon of Dissonance" will be out in November 2011 on Season of Mist.

What was your first experience with extremely slow doom metal?
I guess that the first Cathedral and Paradise Lost albums were my first experience of extremely slow doom metal. Though I also really liked the slow parts in Autopsy’s first two albums, more so in “Mental Funeral”.

What inspire you to play such music?
We were looking to do something different to what we were hearing, yet something that was natural to us, a part of us. So we write music that is inspired by our own emotions, thoughts, philosophies and experiences in life. Focusing mainly on the darker emotions and deeper recesses of the mind, transposed into music and lyrics. We try to focus more on what is within that using other forms of music as influences or inspiration. But yes, some bands, especially when you see them play well live, can be very inspiring.

What is the most important in Esoteric – is it the heaviness, the atmosphere, the lyrics or maybe something else?
I would say that no one thing is more important than another. It is the sum of its parts.

Do you see your music as a very demanding one for the listener?
Yes, particularly on first exposure to our music, I would say that it is music that is hard to comprehend at first. It needs time to grow on the listener as the melodies are not obvious, nor the structures. I think once you get the feeling of the music, if you can relate to the emotions within the music, it’s easier to appreciate.

Is extreme/funeral doom metal more over the top and extreme than super fast grindcore in your opinion?
I think you get different levels of extremity within all styles of music. It’s hard to compare really. It’s more about the intensity of the atmosphere and the music rather than the style or speed.

Is doom metal a state of mind or just another sub-genre of metal?
That would depend on the individual I think, it isn’t an answer that I think could be generalised. I think people that listen to similar styles of music still have different states of mind. Some are very involved or passionate about music and others less so.

Did you ever feel like a misfit or a reject in the metal scene?
Perhaps in the first few years of the bands existence when there were very few extreme, slow bands, many people didn’t get the music and found it too slow. I wouldn’t say that we felt like misfits, but simply that we didn’t fit into any category too easily and didn’t always go down so well with the crowds of other bands when playing live.

Can you relate to escapism?
I think most people have an interest or recreation that could be defined as escapism.

EXTREME DOOM PART III: Niko Skorpio of Thergothon

This is the third part of the series of short interviews with prolific and notable extreme doom metal musicians. They were all asked the same questions to see the different perspective they have for specific aspects of the genre. I spoke to Niko Skorpio former vocalist and keyboard player of the split-up Finnish band Thergothon, which was one of the most important groups of the extreme doom underground. Their only album “Stream from the Heavens”, released in 1994, is a milestone of obscure and tortured funeral sound. In 2009 bands such as Mournful Congregation, Evoken, Asunder, Worship, Officium Triste and more paid their homage to Finnish pioneers with a double tribute album “Rising of Yog-Sothoth”. In spite of not being active in the metal scene Niko Skorpio answered to a couple of questions about the dark past.

What was your first experience with extremely slow doom metal?
Depends on what you mean by extremely slow. Early Paradise Lost and Cathedral (the two tracks on “Dark Passages” compilation) are the first that come to mind. But I think we considered them only halfway down that road and we wanted to go way slower ourselves.

What inspired you to play such music?
We found it a suitable way to express and exorcise the negative emotions we were experiencing. I think each of us was suffering from the kind of existential angst common to most teenagers everywhere. I don't think we were influenced by any other bands but in retrospect it's quite clear we were influenced by Bathory (especially “Blood Fire Death” & “Hammerheart”), Paradise Lost, Cathedral, Black Sabbath, Tiamat, Mana Mana and obviously my lyrics were influenced by H.P. Lovecraft. As for places I've been interested in all kinds of desolate and abandoned surroundings since a kid, the atmosphere felt in those kind of places might have been and influence on some level.

What was the most important in Thergothon – is it the heaviness, the atmosphere, the lyrics or maybe something else?
The atmosphere. Everything else happened just to support it.

Do you see your music as a very demanding one for the listener?
I don't know, it depends on the individual listener and his or her musical background, taste, openness to things he or she haven't heard before and so on.

Is extreme/funeral doom metal more over the top and extreme than super fast grindcore in your opinion?
I have no opinion on this, except that it sounds like another of these "my daddy is more extreme than yours" things.

Is doom metal a state of mind or just another sub-genre of metal?
Just another sub-genre of metal.

Did you ever feel like a misfit or a reject in the metal scene?
Not really, more like an outsider. Then again I feel like an outsider in most social surroundings I find myself in. Anyway, consider the fact that all the hype about Thergothon appeared some ten or more years after we had terminated the band. Back in the years the band was active there were maybe ten people in the world who really cared about our music. Luckily a few of those people ran record labels.

Can you relate to escapism?
I guess so, up to some extent, as most of us.

What do you think about the “Rising of Yog-Sothoth” tribute album?
To be honest I never listened to that tribute album. In general I'm not a fan of tribute things, and the idea of metal bands covering a metal band didn't really pick my interest. Having said that, I must add that I do appreciate and respect the efforts of those involved in that project. It is of course an honour having been involved in something people want to pay tribute to.
Thergothon was just something I did for a couple of years as a teenager, nothing more, nothing less. There's plenty of other things I've been involved since which have been more important and creatively rewarding to me personally. I'm aware it's hard for some people to see things from my perspective, but so be it.