"All About The Album - 15 Questions" - a brand new section at the RockUnited site where a recording artist with an recently released CD is confronted with 'album'  questions (15 of them, duh!). If you'd like to have your material up here, email: urban "at" rockunited.com (simply replace "at" with your standard @ )

MARTYR LUCIFER: "Farewell To Graveland"

MARTYR LUCIFER,  the former Opposite Sides, Dogma, and Hortus Animae musician is going solo with his epic sounding platter, "Farewell To Graveland". The arrangements are grand, melancholic, dreamy, and just as dark, filthy, odorous, and utterly doomy/gloomy, as you may expect from this classy rocker. Find out more about the album, here's none other than, Mr. MARTYR LUCIFER...

How has the reaction to your latest CD been?

Martyr Lucifer: The album has been released just a few months ago and maybe it is early to say something concrete, but judging by the reviews and the feedback of people in general it seems we're having a very positive reaction and I'm obviously very glad of this.

How long did this CD take to make from start to finish, recording-wise?

ML: It took a couple of years to write it and record it. The recordings lasted longer than usual because, being this a project made up of musicians settled all over the world, the timings ended up being dilated because we've worked deferred, by emails and file sharing. Drums have been recorded in the US and the UK, respectively by Grom and Adrian Erlandsson, then the bass in Ukraine by Vrolok, and then we've proceeded with Arke's guitars, Bless' keyboards, my vocals and Leìt's in Italy. This kind of process surely made everything longer and different than usual but it gave me the time and the chance to fit the pieces of the puzzle with calmness and clarity.

What kind of 'sound', production wise, did you have in the back of your mind, prior to entering the studio?

ML: Well, it probably sounds unbelievable but I had in mind exactly the sound we obtained. “Farewell to Graveland” is basically a guitar-driven album and that probably happened because the guitar player Arke (Opposite Sides) completely understood the feeling I wanted to give to the tracks.

What kind of input did the producer have during the process?

ML: The producer Simone Mularoni (DGM, Empyrios) of Domination Recording Studio had a big role in the successful realization of this album, I have worked with him in the past and I'm pretty sure I'll work with him again in the future. He knows how I work, I know and appreciate how he works and we understand each other. This makes it a magical team that shouldn't be changed.

And are you pleased with the final outcome? (sound - production wise)

ML: Yes, definitely. There's nothing I would change.

Did the producer (you) use any (weird) experimental miking and/or recording techniques?

ML: Just a few effects on vocals or guitars, on some parts. The vinyl effect on one track. So, no, we have used nothing particularly weird.

How did you go on about capturing your 'live sound' in the studio, or perhaps you didn't

ML: We didn't. For the simple reason that Martyr Lucifer is for now a studio project, so we have never played gigs before. I will probably start managing gigs after the release of the second album, for which I have already written material for a record and a half. So I presume I will be able to understand if I captured the live sound only at the third album.

Please inform us about your favourite songs and lyrical highlights and why?

ML: My favourite song in the album changes everyday, so I really can't tell. I like all of them and all of them give me different feelings. Same about lyrics but I would mention the song “Turmoil” because on its words has been made a particular work. The song is about children abuse by priests and, reading its lyrics, it is not understandable whose point of view it is, cause it could be both priest and violated child. Moreover there is a temporal progression that, somehow, describes happenings from childhood to adult age.

Any overall theme of mood that you're trying to capture while writing songs?

ML: No, it depends on the inspiration I have at the moment. And inspiration might come from anything, a book, a poem, a trip. Anything. Also I generally try to not fossilize myself onto one theme or mood, even if the songs on the album, while dealing with different topics and having different feelings, always retain a kind of general guideline that is for the reader / listener to find out, peering into the lyrics and with assistance of the evocative images accompanying the booklet. 

Does your vision for coming up with music get affected at all by time?

ML Well, the music vision has to change when you are in evolution. It changed from the one I had and perhaps it will change again. I have faced many music styles during my career, progressive and gothic black metal with Hortus Animae, experimental death metal with Opposite Sides, dark metal/space rock with Space Mirrors. And I'm surely opened to new and more adventurous experimentations.

Did the record company interfere with anything on your "sound" and songs?

ML: Not at all, indeed. I have given them the album already recorded and even mastered. They have liked it and sent it to the world. No pressure.

Are there any 'crazy' behind the scenes anecdotes from these sessions that you can share with us?

ML: Sure there have been some funny moments during the recordings, just that maybe not something too particularly sensational that would sound like a little story or anecdote. In fact we had the idea of filming a little video diary that would show not only the recording process but also our way to the studio (because sometimes we were headed there in crowds) and breaks, but then due to that fact that some of the musicians were recording in different countries we had to abandon this idea and accomplish only a short photo-diary video that you can see in the Martyr Lucifer youtube channel and other networks. But for the next album I will try my best to put this idea to reality and get involved all the interested public in our funny moments and not only. 

How would you describe the sound of your new CD to any potential new fan? 

ML: I'd describe it as dark rock/metal “soiled” with progressive rock and subtle electronic arrangements. Melancholic but also aggressive, sometimes dreamy. A heavy load of powerful guitars, granitic bass, classical instruments, hypnotic synthesizers, persuasive voices and ethereal acoustic arpeggios among all the ingredients that make this an album with a strong character but difficult to label.

Who are your influences and heroes? (music-wise)

ML: I think in this album hovers the spirit of The Sisters Of Mercy, The Cure, Joy Division, David Bowie, Joy Division... But also Pink Floyd, in a more electric manner, of course. I've been said there are reminiscence of bands like Tiamat and Katatonia. I have not taken these bands as a reference while writing the album, but I appreciate them very much and therefore it is even possible. Also I'd add that I don't know if you can feel it from Martyr Lucifer's music but one of my favourite bands ever is My Dying Bride.

If there's anything you'd like to add, say, please do:

ML: Thank you for this interview and to all the fans that keep supporting the Martyr Lucifer project. Let "Farewell To Graveland" lead you through the darkness. Beyond the darkness.
~All best,
Martyr Lucifer

Interview by: Urban "Wally" Wallstrom,
Photos from the band's website www.martyrlucifer.net
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