All month I have been searching for my next interview with a spooky kind of feel to it. Well, since today is the best day of the whole month, I couldn't have found a better group to do a focus piece on then Sweden's own DESCEND! Straight from the mouth of hell (well... actually Stockholm), these guys instantly landed on today's Halloween post with the release of their latest album "Through The Eyes of the Burdened".
I had a chance to sit down and come up with some great Q&A to get an inside look on how these guys are focus shifting the metal industry in Sweden and their plans to overhaul the continent.
Before we kick off that though, I felt I should be giving you guys a little inside information into the who, what, where, when, how and why these guys are continually 'wowing' crowd after crowd with their distinctive guitar licks, blasting beats and guttural vocals.
(Descend [in no particular order] is: Andreas Lindström, Jonathan Persson, Justin Biggs, Alex Wijkman, Nima Farhadian Langroudi)
The following is a biography, taken from Descend's Myspace:
"The story of Swedish metal band Descend started out in early 2003, when founding member Andreas Lindström, together with a couple of friends, decided to start a thrash metal band. Since then, several line-up changes has occurred and formed the band that is Descend today.
It is hard to put a label on Descends musical style, but the most accurate definition would be some kind of progressive melodic death metal. Also, of course, the thrash influences can still be found in the bands sound today. Regardless of what people like to call the music, the most important thing is that all the members truly enjoy and stand for the music that the band is playing today. Descend released their first EP entitled Broken Pieces in 2006, containing 6 songs. Out of the line-up recording Broken Pieces, guitarist Andreas Lindström and drummer Jonathan Persson, are the two remaining members. In 2007, Orders From Above was released, containing 2 songs.
The bands musical style had developed to be somewhat more progressive and bass player Justin Biggs had joined the band. After Orders From Above, the bands biggest and most defining line-up change was about to occur, when vocalist Leo Johansson decided to leave. At about the same time, the remaining members realized that something had to be done to take the bands music to the next level. Said and done, auditions for a second guitarist was held and Alex Wijkman joined the band after a couple of months.
The four instrumentalists got more and more linked musically and the search for a vocalist began. After almost a year of auditioning enthusiastic vocalists, the band finally found Nima Farhadian, who fit perfectly both musically and on a personal level. With this complete and final line-up, the band started to record new songs in 2008 and released the EP; The Reckoning in 2009, containing 3 powerful songs that represent the music that Descend stands for today." -Descend
Descend comes from a long line of influences for their creative sides. Descend has noted that Opeth, Gojira, Soilwork, Martyr, Katatonia, Decapitated, Necrophagist, Meshuggah, Porcupine Tree, Textures, Sikth, The Dillinger Escape Plan, System of a Down are all sources of intellectual stimulation and influence when creating music.
Descend has come a long way and has the momentum and willingness to keep going, despite the potential harsh roads that the music industry sometimes can throw at you. Perseverance is a mental game plan for these guys as they plan to enter the studio once again to follow up their impressive debut album release.
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- First off, what have you guys been up to recently (within the last month)?
Alex: At the moment we have our focus set on writing new songs. Everybody’s really creative and coming up with brilliant ideas, so it’s going to be very interesting to see the new album taking shape. Our goal is to record the next album at the end of summer 2012. Hopefully we have some shows coming up in December that will be announced soon so we’re getting ready for them as well.
- How was the recording process for your debut album? Can you shed some light in regards to a typical day of recording?
Justin: A typical day in the studio wasn’t really your nine to five sort of day. We worked long days in the studio. Obviously some days were shorter than others but basically we utilized the time we had. We had drums and guitars first. This meant that the first week was dedicated to drums and the following weeks guitars. In week 2 and 3 we completed all the guitars, the heavy, the acoustic, and the clean guitars plus the solos. In week 3 we also completed bass on all the tracks and the last 2 weeks were for vocals and mixing.
We finalized the mix and final master about 2 months after the recording.
- What studio did you choose for this album? Who was the producer(s)?
Alex: We decided to leave Sweden, despite the fact that we have some amazing studios here, and flew over to Escape Route Studios in UK. We couldn’t be happier with the result really! Dan Abela and Joe Smyth did a great job with the production and made us play at the top of our game.
- Each band has a different game plan when it comes to composing new material, how does your band compose from start to finish?
Alex: The usual process for us is that someone in the band comes up with a riff, or a series of riffs, and shows the rest of the band in rehearsal. We decide whether it’s something for us or not, and then elaborate on it further. I think me and Andreas (the other guitar player) are the main writers on Through The Eyes Of The Burdened, but the arrangements are always made by the whole band in our rehearsal space.
Justin: Yea, Andreas and Alex wrote the bulk of Through The Eyes Of The Burdened. Today, it’s definitely more open. We all write and come with small riffs or a series of riffs and bring them to the rehearsal room. So the next album will be more like a solid effort from all five of us.
- Any specific reason why you guys use the hardware you do? Endorsements? Feel? Tone? Compatibility?
Alex: Both Andreas and I play ESP Guitars, but we’re not endorsed. I think we both like the tone and versatility, which is important when playing both fast riffing and clean picking.
Justin: I am endorsed by Woodo guitars. I like the overall feel and tone of them both live and in the studio.
- We saw Descend doing an open air festival last summer (Metal Splash Open Air Vol. IV), how was that compared to doing club gigs?
Alex: A lot different. Club gigs are fun, but in terms of crowd size, stage sound and overall feel playing at an open air festival is something else really. I think it was one of our best gigs so far!
Justin: It was a cool experience being invited down to Germany to play. Club gigs are always fun and intimate in terms of space and crowds. Outdoor festivals you get larger crowds. Playing this festival gave us the opportunity to build up our fanbase in Germany.
- Even though your fan base lies mostly within Europe, any plans to jump on a package deal and possibly expose Descend to North America, Australia, etc.?
Alex: Given the fact that Justin comes from Canada, North America is interesting. Right now I think we have to focus on Europe. When we did the gigs in Germany and Finland we realized that we have quite a few fans there, so we’re absolutely look forward to going back soon.
Justin: I would love to jump over the pond and play in North America, Canada especially because I grew up there! But, as Alex said we have to focus more on Europe at the moment because that’s where most of our fanbase is. If the right opportunity comes up we’ll take it of course!
- How does a band who just kicked off their debut record, hope to make enough $ to continue making music? We all know that with downloading and the constant expansion of record labels and bands making albums, its hard for bands to make their mark in music history, how does Descend plan to accomplish this?
Justin: Downloading is what is. In this day and age you have to get out and tour. The idea is to show people that you stand out and that you’re serious about what you do. Playing as much as humanly possible is the best way to achieve longevity in the music business. By doing small pub gigs where maybe a handful of people show up to doing festivals in and outside of Europe is the best way to keep yourself heard. Just playing all the time!
- So the new album is done, is there any bonus material fans might get of songs that didn't make the cut? Any plans for more material for those eager fans? Will Supernova Records be a part of your future distributions?
Alex: We actually included every song that was recorded in England on the album. However, a new album is in the making and the sound of it so far is great. I think the new songs have a different flow; they are put together very well. Still there will be a good mix between long slower tunes and fast-as-hell riffage.
- Justin, being that you are from Canada, how did you end up with this band?
Justin: Well, I moved to Sweden to pursue music and life on a new level and Descend was actually the first band I joined when I moved to Sweden. They put out an add for a bassist and I answered it. The music appealed to me and we clicked.
- Any plans for music videos or lyric videos?
Alex: We’ve discussed doing a video for our single “The Life Delusion”, so that might just happen one day.
- Lets talk album artwork. Where did it come from? Who designed it? What message were you trying to get across to your fans about the artwork?
Alex: Travis Smith did the artwork for our album. Given the fact that he is one of the most well known names in the industry, the result is of course amazing. We contacted him and gave him the album title and sent him some songs, he replied with a couple of ideas that he thought would work well with the title.
Justin: The message in the artwork is more or less the direct result of the music on the record. So the message rests in the music.
- Do you find that social media helps expose your band in ways you couldn't do with word of mouth or posters?
Alex: I think the best exposure we can get, except doing gigs of course, is getting good reviews. We have been reviewed in Sweden’s two largest metal magazines and got great words in both – which is fantastic.
- The reviews for Eyes of the Burden have been very promising for the group, how do you feel the press have been portraying your band and album?
Alex: Overall we’re happy with the reviews we’ve gotten. Naturally, we are being compared to Opeth (given the fact that we both play progressive death and come from Sweden) but I think most critics have been able to see through that and appreciate our unique style. One thing that’s interesting is that people seem to think that we’re very technical. Personally I don’t see myself as a technically advanced guitar player but it’s always nice to get appreciation from others!
Justin: The reviews have been great. We take all reviews as constructive criticism. It's cool to hear what people think whether it be good or bad.
TIME TO PLAY RANDOM QUESTION TIME!
- Favourite band/song and why?
Alex: I listen to a lot of music, mostly metal; everything from old days Metallica to Gojira and Soilwork. I appreciate good musicianship and good guitar work of course.
Justin: Difficult! There are so many! Probably anything from Alice Cooper, Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Led Zepplin… The music of the 70’s was and is timeless!
- Who’s dressing up for Halloween!?!?
Justin: It’s not that big over here to be honest. I think a few Halloween parties are planned. Jonathan (Persson – Drums) will more than likely go out all zombified! He’s a sport when it comes to that sort of thing!
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To give you a preview of what to expect from their album, as well as a clip from their recent open air festival appearance, check out the links below:
(*FYI, show some love if you are impressed with the album and pick up a copy of their album today, hit up the Amazon UK store to purchase an MP3 copy or hit up the official Descend website for links to purchase the album)
You can reach the guys at at 'info@descend.se' for any questions, comments, etc.
You can reach the guys at at 'info@descend.se' for any questions, comments, etc.
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