PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Following the release of their fourth album, I caught up with front man Aries from the Austrian black metal band, Hellsaw for an email interview.
Your album fourth album ‘Trist’ was released on 27 February; can you tell me about it? How did you come up with the title?
‘Trist’ in German means sad or melancholy, and it’s a word that appealed to me because of the implied emotions behind it. You can apply it to an emotional state, or to a particular situation. I leave the listeners to decide which one.
Is there a particular theme or idea running through the album?
As with all our albums the theme running through it is negativity. It’s the negativity inside ourselves that we always draw on when creating our music.
How does this album compare to your previous albums?
‘Trist’ is the logical development from our previous albums. With each one we have grown both as musicians and individuals and the Hellsaw sound has been fine-tuned, and each album reflect this progression. The fact that we recorded the album live in the studio gives it a much more aggressive and personal feel of what Hellsaw is all about. Much harder to record that way of course, as you have to be perfect in one take, but worth the additional stress and effort.
How did you find writing this album? Being your fourth, do you find it gets easier or more complex?
It was quite hard work writing this album. Because I draw so much from what’s inside me, and how I react and relate to external events or things that happen to me, it can be draining. But it’s a great feeling when you finish it and realise what you’ve been able to create.
Are there any collaboration on this album?
There are no collaborations no. We work with each other within the band, and at this point in time we didn’t feel it necessary to include any guests.
Do you have any favourite songs from the album?
I like each song because each one has it’s own particular aura, and they appeal at different times. If I had to choose which were my favourites I’d have to say ‘A Winter Cold’ and ‘Trist’.
You are due to play Extremefest in the summer and have a few upcoming gig, are you looking forward playing the new album live?
Yes of course. We will have already toured with the album and played at other festivals by the time we get to ExtremeFest so we will be well practiced and know what to expect in terms of audience reaction to the individual songs. Although, having said that, each audience is different.
Are there any tracks that you are especially looking forward to playing live?
We have a very fluid set list, which we can, and do, change to suit how we feel at the time, and to suit the event, and since playing live is something we all very much enjoy all the songs are equally important to us.
Are there any more gigs being planned? Do you have plans to come and play in the UK?
We are about to leave on an extensive tour of Russia, which will be our first visit to that country, and we are confirmed to play at Walpurgis Metal Days and the ExtremeFests in Austria, Germany and Switzerland, but that’s all we’re allowed to mention at the moment. We are more than ready to play in England again, the audiences there are fantastic and hopefully we’ll get the opportunity.
For those that have not seen you play live, how would you describe yourselves?
The image is just an externalisation of our selves. We don’t leave our own personalities behind and create different personas for our performances. What you see is what you get! Playing live enables us to add a completely different dimension to our music, one where we can interact with our fans and respond to them, so expect us to look you in the eye and mess with your heads.
You have a very distinctive image; does it take long to get ready for gigs?
As a band we’re always rehearsed and ‘stage-ready’, but as to actually getting ready to get up on stage, we’ve had lots of experience playing live, so we’re pretty organised when it comes to everything. We are also very focussed on what we do, so we don’t get distracted by what’s going on around us – it’s as much getting ready mentally as it is physically.
Is there anything else you would like to say to your fans?
We’d just like to thank them all for their support. Some have been with us from the start, and some have joined us along the way, and they are always appreciated by all of us.
Official website – http://www.hellsaw.com/
