SymbolicDivine’s Ethereal Visions dives deep into personal struggles, offering an intense blend of dark themes and genre-defying metal that showcases unfiltered artistic evolution.
1.
Congratulations on the release of Ethereal Visions! Can you tell us about the
themes or messages you wanted to convey with this album?
Well the album
itself is dark because I was going through so much at the time, me and my ex gf
broke up, my dad had stage two cancer and just all the crazy shit with covid
and politically going on in the world, and I was still struggling with
addiction issues which I overcame, so I kind of just sat in my dads basement
for a year and wrote the album that took about 3-4 months, I worked on it night
and day, sometimes spending 12 hrs on recording the vocals alone, never mind
some of the mixdowns and mastering with the musical aspect of it all.
2. SymbolicDivine has been evolving since 2004 and has explored a range of
genres from Industrial and Gothic rock to Death and Black metal. What drove you
to experiment with so many styles, and how do you feel these have influenced
Ethereal Visions?
I feel like I love metal as a whole, so I appreciate all genres of metal,
so to me it only makes sense to go above and beyond and try to work on
the most interesting material vocally, and musically, I find bands that
stick to one specific sound only do good in one genre of music, I've always
looked up to bands like Korn and what not that have challenged the status qoe
and evolved with their music.
3. As a solo artist handling vocals, guitar, keyboards, lyrics, mixing,
mastering, and production, how do you balance each role, and which part of the
process do you find the most challenging?
Tbh the production is brutal sometimes to sit in a chair for more than 8
hrs sometimes 12 is monotonous, and stressful because you want the track to
stand out and be unique and part of that process is mainly the production side
of things.
4. What was the recording experience like at SD Productions in Winnipeg? Did
the environment there influence the sound or energy of Ethereal Visions?
Well I have like 8 grand worth of studio gear combined so the studio was
litterely my room at my father's place, I took time off work just to focus and
complete the album and like I said in the above answer my dad was also
struggling with stage two cancer which is now in remission, so I was also
trying to spend sometime with him just in case.
5. You mentioned that you drew inspiration from bands who have mastered various metal and rock genres. Are there specific artists who’ve had a lasting impact on your sound and approach to music?
I really enjoy weird bands like Korn, Static X, Fear Factory, Thy Art Is Murder, Chelsea Grin, Slayer, Metallica, Marilyn Mason and so on, I just find these bands really bring a sense of uniqueness to the table that other bands lack in.
6. The title Ethereal Visions suggests a kind of surreal or otherworldly experience. How did you approach creating this atmosphere in the album's sound?
I mean because of all the stuff I was going through spiritually a dark night of the soul sorta speak, it helped get my mind in that sort of place that it needed to be to focus on the album and complete it, I was dealing with a lot of depression, even suicidal thoughts tons of anxiety at the time and honesty the album and that whole process kind of saved my life.
7. Looking back on SymbolicDivine's journey since 2004, how do you think your music has evolved both technically and creatively over the years?
Well I listen to some of the old stuff I did back in 2004 and the production was really terrible so that took me a long time to perfect that side of the craft and make it as good as it could be, not only the production but just my overall knowledge of music and my clean vocals improved a lot, I kind of found a method with my vocals that works for the sound, I'm not no amazing clean singer I'm mostly a screamer but I wanted this album to be half and half, more balanced and defined, so I focused on the notes I can hit vocally not what I couldn't do and stuck to the realm I was most comfortable in.
8. With SymbolicDivine being such a personal project, what’s the most rewarding part of sharing your work with listeners, and what do you hope they take away from Ethereal Visions?
Tbh I just love making music, obviously some recognition and respect in my community is the end goal, and possibly some financial gain, but at the end of the day I don't write music for hype or fame or money I just do it for me, and the love of the craft itself.
9. You’ve crafted SymbolicDivine as your “life’s work and journey.” Are
there any particular themes or projects you’d still like to explore, or
directions you’d like to take SymbolicDivine in the future?
Well my main hope is to find and piece together a full band so the band
could help bring it to life on stage, not necessarily play the songs that I've
done in the past but hear the genre and kind of stick to the method, that has
worked for this project, and be able to keep up with me vocally.
10. Finally, how can fans best support SymbolicDivine and stay connected
with your work going forward? Are there any plans for live performances or
collaborations?
Well fans can support me on Band Camp and some old music on Itunes its
really just about helping to support not just online but financially too, its
nice and rewarding when you get an email in that says someone just bought your
album, the feeling is indescribable, Devin Townsend said he was only making
roughly a grand a month from his career and thats not a lot of money, but still
even to be able to say I can cover my rent or food or car expenses by my music
alone is I think the end goal for any project or band or artist whether you be
solo or not, as for live shows are concerned, no plans as of yet, I've been
doing lots of kariokee bars and stuff to keep the vocals crisp and practice,
because rn I am in BC and all my gear is in Manitoba so I have to do what I
have to do at the moment to show people what I can do and get my name out
there.
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