In this interview, we explore ALKYMIST's latest single "The Scent," its connection to their album "UnnDerr," and the evolution of their sound amidst personal challenges.
1. Congratulations on the release of your
second single, "The Scent"! Could you tell us more about the meaning
behind this track and how it fits into the overall theme of
"UnnDerr"?
The general
theme of the lyrics on this album revolves around the pitfalls of life. The
Scent somehow unfolds around fatal attraction. It's about when love or
obsession becomes like a poison. I've seen people lose control and do
inappropriate things to hold on to that poison like it was some kind of drug,
losing all sense of things… I think we’ve all tasted a little bit of that
felling.
The lyrics
from the UnnDerr-album tries to dive down into the ambiguity of what lurks
beneath the surfaces of human behavior … what you see is not always what you
get. Something might be hidden away... and what lurks in the mind? Nothing is
never what it seems when you really digs into the human subconsciousness.
2. "UnnDerr" marks a significant
progression in ALKYMIST's sound. How would you describe the evolution of your
music from your debut album to this new release?
Not so much
the sound, as we chose to recorded the album at Ballade Studios again, where
we've recorded our two previous albums.
But we made
some of the new songs, that in our world, is a little bit shorter in length and
a little bit more classic heavy metal constructed, but still with the Alkymist
vibe. This definitely gives some more variation on the album. We wanted to
stretch it a little bit further, but decided to do it the way we did because we
needed a new drummer. We are saving some of it for the next album, so we can
take the time, to be certain in our expression.
3. You’ve been working on "UnnDerr"
for several years, even setting up your own studio space in Copenhagen. How did
this extended recording process and studio environment influence the final
sound of the album?
We ran into
some delays over the past years... one getting a divorce, one having a child
and one breaking his arm. During those times, some of us worked on getting our
own little studio up and running. We actually wanted to record the album
ourselves. We did a lot of experimenting on our sound and made a lot of new
song and were excited about what we were doing. But things took an unfortunate
turn and we had to part with our long time drummer. So if we wanted to get the
album done in 2024, we had to do it all over again. But now we needed to focus
on getting our new drummer ready and let Lasse Ballade take care of the
recording again. But the next album will definitely be done a little more
different.
4. With the addition of new drummer Per
Silkjær, how has the dynamic of the band changed, and what has Per brought to
the table for this album?
We have
known Per for about four or five years and always admired his drumming as well
as his personality. We are on the same record label and have played concerts
with some of the bands Per has played in/are playing in and he has always
praised Alkymist. So he was very honored when we asked him and fortunately he
was up for it. He is the same age as the
rest of the band, where our former drummer was much younger, which often led to
different opinions. Per is more direct in his playing style and he very easily
taps into to the music and does not make things more complicated than
necessary, which gives a good flow. As he says..."I understand it".
5. The album artwork by Anders Kidmose is
striking. How does the visual aesthetic of "UnnDerr" complement the
music and lyrical themes on the album?
We had this
vision of some kind of well dressed, but mysterious man/creature, that
manipulates with you and tries to trap you or drag you into a world of
deception. In the past we would just let Anders come up with suggestions to the
album-cover, but this time we had this special thing in mind that we wanted him
to create. It was a little bit time-consuming, but we started in good time.
6. Your music has always been known for its
progressive and psychedelic elements. With "UnnDerr," you’ve
mentioned exploring more direct expressions. How did you balance the
experimental aspects with the more straightforward elements on this album?
We have
always had all the elements in the music… the experimental parts and the
directness or simplicity if you want and the contrasts. It’s just the way we
combine it and we decided to have a little bit more of the classic elements in
the music, this time. Also Per drumming makes it a little more straight forward
and taken into consideration that he only had 4 month to learn all the songs,
has also makes the music more direct.
7. "UnnDerr" seems to delve into
themes of ambiguity, the subconscious, and hidden meanings. Can you elaborate
on how these concepts are reflected in the music and lyrics?
When I
write the lyrics I always try to feel the vibe or the ambience of the music… It
kind of guides me into how the atmosphere should be. And since we very often
has these shifts in the songs, for examble from loud and aggressive into more
calm verses or spheric parts, it steers me in that direction. And then it up to
me to find a suitable story, which often is some melancholic everyday stories,
poetically dramatized, which in this case evolves around human ambiguity.
8. You've worked once again with producer Lasse
Ballade, who has collaborated with other prominent bands like Orm and Solbrud.
What does Lasse bring to the ALKYMIST sound, and why did you choose to continue
working with him for this album?
As
mentioned before we actually wanted to do the production ourselves and we
actually also did. But when we had to part with our former drummer, we
decided to let Lasse Ballade do the
recording once more. We know Lasse very well and we know that we were going to
get a solid production and that it actually would suit the music very well.
Then we could concentrate on doing a lot of rehearsing with our new drummer and
focus on the music. Next time we will probably do a lot of the recordings
ourselves and experiment a little bit more on the sound, just to make it a bit
different, without losing the Alkymist feel.
9. You’ve announced a special release show for
"UnnDerr" at Loppen in Christiania, Copenhagen. What can fans expect
from the live performance, and will there be any surprises in store?
Not really,
besides that we expect to do a solid show, performing all the new songs and
having a blast of an evening with the audience and the support band OFFERNAT.
10. After the pandemic halted plans for
"Sanctuary," how has the band’s creative mindset shifted, and did the
challenges of the past few years influence the direction of
"UnnDerr"?
Well, we had a lot of time to think about how we wanted to fit the new album together. How the album cover should be designed, bandpics, preparing for videos etc. All that was really nice to be at the forefront of. We also had time to figure out which type of songs, how they should be arranged properly and which direction we wanted to go. All that also generated new ideas for the future and gave us some valuable experience. So it’s the most well-prepared album we have done so far and we will hopefully benefit from that in the future…
11. Finally, as a band known for pushing
boundaries, what does the future hold for ALKYMIST? Are there any new
experiments or collaborations on the horizon after "UnnDerr"?
There are
definitely new things in the making and new ideas are forming. We are still
discussing the sound, the vibe and what atmosphere we are going for, and how we
want to do the production. But all in all it’s an exciting future for us, so
let see what it brings…..
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