Ethereal Void interview

 • Hi! Can you tell me about Ethereal Void and your previous musical experiences?

Ethereal Void was originally formed as a side-project of The Design Abstract, with the goal to make Bloodbath-inspired straightforward death metal. Logan and I went back and forth in terms of writing and recording, and over time refined the sound to its current more groove-focused mix of modern and old-school. 

The Design Abstract has been the focal point of our musical "careers" for almost a decade, but we are both members of various other bands, most of which release under the Abstrakted Records collective, with some notable exceptions being Avatar of Hate and Radiant Black.

• Why did you choose your band name, how did you form, and what led you to play death metal?

Guess I jumped the gun on the origin story. Ethereal Void was chosen because I have a history of being forced into atrocious band names, so this time we really workshopped a name that didn't suck. Logan and I seem to naturally gravitate to the death metal sound. We like breakdowns, we like chunky riffs, we like blast beats. Death metal also meshes decently well with other influences.

• Can you tell us about Primordial Dissonance?

The concept and goal of Primordial Dissonance was to create brutal, primal, esoteric-sounding death metal. Stripping the sound down to its barest form, but creating textures out of complexity and various percussion techniques. It's excessively rhythmic and contains very little melody; it's caveman music.

• What kind of feedback are you hoping to receive for your album?

It would be cool if people liked it, but that's not something we were thinking about when we made it. This was a challenge we imposed on ourselves, and as far as we are concerned, it was an overwhelming success.

• Do you plan to embark on a world tour in the future? Do you think touring the world is an option available to every band, or what does a band need to do to achieve this opportunity?

We aren't even touring our own hometowns. We have no interest in playing shows unless we were given the funds to make the show live up to the album experience, and make it worth our time to do so. Even then it would be unlikely. We have families; we just like making cool albums.

• Do you believe in a heavy music scene without money?

I think money (and implicitly streaming numbers, internet clout, and social media as a whole) is antithetical to any music scene which is supposedly counter-cultural and underground. Social media and music streaming have basically killed the ability to "make it big" with anything that isn't lowest-common-denominator, and because of that it's much more valuable to humanity to just create unique and weird art even if (especially if?) it has no monetary value. It's cool when a heavy band makes it big, but it also inspires a flood of clones just trying to cash out. Is that saturation damage worth the original contribution to the art? Who's to say.

• What are your thoughts on online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free, and if so, why?

I started releasing music in 2013, basically when streaming was gaining a foothold. As a result, I have never charged for my music because in my opinion it's a losing battle. If you gain enough success that people want to pay for your music, that's great but it means people will also steal it. In my opinion art should be free. That doesn't mean artists shouldn't be paid, but we shouldn't expect the art industry to behave the same way --for example-- the trades do. The supply vs demand numbers make that overwhelmingly unlikely; just because you put in the work doesn't necessarily mean that product has monetary value, unfortunately.

• Who are your musical influences? Did you ever imagine your band could become as famous as your favorites?

I think for Ethereal Void, Logan's influences of Gojira and Meshuggah shine through more than mine do. It would be very cool to have that many people listening, but I think the expectations that come with that size of audience would be crippling to artistic integrity.

• Have you received formal music education? Do you think it's an important factor?

Yes, I went to university for Music Theory and Composition. I dropped out part way through year 3 and I don't think it's necessary whatsoever unless you have an interest in it. I personally love the academic side of music theory, but i'm under no illusion that it makes you more creative or more successful. It's just more tools to use if you see fit.

• How do you balance your music with other obligations such as family, job, etc.?

Well, I spent many years ignoring all of the latter in service of the former, at my peak spending a whopping 64 hours a week on music while I worked a 32 hour part-time job. Now that I have a wife and a kid, I rarely work on music; Primordial Dissonance took a good chunk of time, whereas for a while during peak productivity we had releases coming out almost every week.

• How do you deal with mistakes during a performance? Do you get nervous before a performance or competition?

We don't play live so I will speak from past experience in various performance situations. I think mistakes and imperfections are interesting in any art, and when I'm watching a performance I make it a game to see what I can notice. I hope when I'm performing that there's some asshole out there doing the same, and if they catch me messing up, I hope it makes them happy.

• What's next for your band? Thank you!

We have an impending lineup change, and we are ever-so-slowly working on new material. We also have CD copies of Primordial Dissonance that we are trying to sell. Otherwise, nothing too crazy. 

Thanks for your time!

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