1. I welcome MAR DE GRISES back on the pages of Mortem zine. It is November, your European tour with Swallow the Sun and Sólstafir is drawing near; are you now in the phase of refining your concert set? If I am not mistaken, you are playing two more gigs at home before your departure to Europe? How are you doing besides that?
Hi there and thanks! Yes you are right, actually yesterday we just played our last gig here before our upcoming European tour. We are also preparing the concert sets indeed. You know it is not easy to match crtain set length and at the same time achieving a balanced setlist when you have many 10 minute songs. And now we are adding also some new songs of course, which are not ttat long now. So it hasn’t been easy haha. Besides that, we have been working on promoting the new album and things have been working quite well in general so we are very cool with that.
2. The line-up of the tour is very strong. When concerning the emotions contained within the music, it might be difficult for some of the "more fragile" minds to get along with it. :) What do you expect of the tour and how much are you looking forward to tour in Europe? I know that Swallow the Sun are going to be the headliner; are you going to také turns with Sólstafir? Do you already know how much time you will spend on stage?
Yes I agree on that it is a very strong and lineup. Swallow the Sun and Solstafir are great bands which also create very emotional music, so the shows will indeed present a deep intense experience, attractive to whoever enjoys connecting with music at a deep level. And well, of course we are looking forward to going to the tour. Due to distance, we have been able to tour there just a couple of times before this one, so it is something very special to us because it is there where we can feel concretely much of what we have achieved as a band. And yes, STS will be headliner but we don’t now yet if we will take turns with Solstafir. It would be good to do so I think.
3. The main topic of this interview is supposed to be your actual album "Streams Inwards". How easy and natural or difficult was it for you to compose the material for the new album knowing that you had twice proved that you were to be counted with? Was it more difficult for you to focus and let your ideas manifest?
Not really. As long as the main reason to make music still is driven by natural needs of creating and communicating, it will be sometimes easy to let the process flow and it will sometimes be difficult, depending on many things such as possitive acceptance and many varied more. Besides, the general possitive acceptance of the previous albums that you refer to has showed that, in that regard, we have been doing things the right way, so it hasn’t been more difficult or easier and it has been the same; sometimes it flows seamlessly and sometimes there are many hurdles you have to pass through in order to let your ideas manifest naturally or at least feel that you are doing so.
4. What were the particular ideas and images that you started writing the album with? Did these initial ideas change as the music was growing and progressing and the time to enter the studio was drawing near?
When deadlines regarding studio recordings are near of course many emotions change and emerge, giving place to potential changes to initial ideas which are subsequently reflected in the final outcome. And we like to give every song as much time as possible to play it and rehearse it in order to let it grow naturally in terms of compositional arrangements of evryone in the band. So yes, I think the initial ideas always change a bit if you compare them against the final result, but I wouldn’t know specifically which images or ideas changed, because one of the initial ideas is preciesely to always be open to the possibility of incorporating new elements in an attempt to let emotion manifest as purely as possible and avoid overthinking. And, in the compositional process, sometimes initial ideas are not even clear enough to define them rationally; they are just images provided by feelings, so it would be difficult to define what changed and whad did not taking the start up of the process as reference.
5. It really appeals to me, that you as a band revere your progression and constantly keep shifting and no stagnation seems to appear any time soon. How difficult was it for you to make the final shape of the recording to fulfill your vision, yet not to "cross the line"? Post doom, as MAR DE GRISES tend to be labeled (which, in my opinion, is bullshit, hehe), definitely offers many ways to experiment, but the important thing probably is to hold to one’s abilities...
We are always willing to experiment and add new elements to provide a complete sonorous journey instead of just banging over the same riff. Maybe the “post doom metal” labelling refers to that, I don’t really know. But the final result is what it is, and I don’t know if we crossed the line or not because that is not something we take into consideration when making music. Anyway, I’m not a friend of compulsive labelling because I think boundaries between one and other element are just too gradual to objectively establish when one thing starts and the other finishes. Therefore, although I wouldn’t say it is bullshit, in many ways I don’t agree as well with that specific “post doom metal” labelling that has been sometimes given to us.
6. I mention this on purpose because the new album, to me, seems to have really different atmosphere, when compared with "Draining the Waterheart". Maybe less dark, but definitely more dramatical...
Yes, it might! The new album has some differences with the Waterheart album. It seems to me that In the new album there are some changes mostly in form, provided by changes and evolution in our personal lives. For example, some songs are maybe more straightforward and easier to catch but some still maintain that dense, deep and oppressive atmosphere. I guess this time there’s kind of a “breakdown” in the usual way of telling a story; somehow, those two ways of providing a musical journey used to be part of just one overall way in previous albums. So when being aware of those changes, we are also aware that there will be people who like it and people who don’t. There is always a door closing when you open one. But it seems that there are more doors opening than closing so far, and for that we are very pleased. It seems people in general have realized that although there are some changes in form, the essence has been continual. Anyway, all this is just an explanation that arises after every writing process because any possible differences or similarities that this new album presents appeared naturally and unconsciously.
7. Your main possitive from my point of view is your ability to keep the overall balance. Despite that, you music is more and more atmospheric, rich and varied. I think it must be quite a challenge to poise all the moods...
Thanks. Maybe that has to be with the way we address contrast in making music. We see contrast as the element that keeps equilibrium imperfect giving place to movement, vibration and, in other words, creation or life. Contrast can be a way to give a boost to that movement, understanding duality as one main driving force behind existence. It is an element we often tend to address but more at an unconscious level and in this case contrast between the elements that you mention.
8. "Streams Inwards" is just another step of your path, I yet would not call it a milestone really, these debates I would ditch for know, but a part of the natural progression. How do you yourself see your position in the metal scene these days? I mean, the time of imposed hopes was over with your second album at latest and now, it is the time to show the course to the others...
It is very difficult yo desribe out position in the metal scene. Although we have many potential and good metal here, Chile is not a country known for its metals scene or its metal bands, so many of the things we have been achieving are new not only to us but also new around here so every step we take is over a base of new and sometimes uncertain paths. That means that every achievement that can define our place in the metal scene is felt and „touched“ by ourselves with some delay. Having this in mind, we just stick to do what we think is right and to work in a structured and honest way and put efforts on achieving each album we release as a bigger milestone than the precious one, despite the real size of the milestone. But, to answer to your question, I think our position in the metal scene is one that has some „exotic“ featues sort to speak that can be a hurdle or serve as an aid as wll, depending on the way to adress them. Signing to Season of Mist, touring in Europe, etc are important concrete achievements that can define pur place in the scene, but there is still a lot more to go.
9. How were the lyrics born and how would you describe the feeling of "Streams Inwards" when it comes to the lyrical side? Does it contain any personal experiences, life situations and attitudes? How should the listener grasp the lyrics when trying to understand them, so that he does not get mistaken?
Any way to grasp or intepret what we make is real. Right, wrong, correct or mistake, does not apply here. We have our own stories behind and even interpretations but they are not to be considered correct. In our case, the lyrical approach for the band consists of referreing to anythig as long as and allowing the possibility to find inspiration for writing anywhere. We just try to translate that to lyrics. The inspiration that drives the lyric process can be provided by our immediate emotion regarding any aspect or event of life; in other words, the creative source supplied by inspiration is filled with visions and every experience the inner world considers relevant. And specifically, we indeed see a common idea in the lyrics and the conceptual part of the overall album. But this idea emerges concretely after observing the final result more than before; it is also a rational interpretation of a process that grew based on a complex and sometimes contradictory mix of pure emotion and rational drivers. The way we see the lyrical connection is that, in a metaphoric way, the album title it can refer to emotion streaming as the main connection and language of the self with the universe and everything around. Having in mind that emotion is the immediate response to environmental stimuli, it is what determines human motivation, behaviour and “movement”, despite the type of emotion. So, in that regard, emotion streams just as heat or forces at a cosmic level as a result of the manifestation of consciousness of the universe. I think all streams; all movement is universe’s creation. Human life is another stream, guided by emotion. Emotion streams the human stream, sort to speak, because emotion is what determines human behaviour, or human movement, from the mentioned perspective. So the name Streams Inwards refers to these processes, coated with metaphors that in many cases inevitably resulted in “cosmic” topics due to what I tell you. In other words, I believe emotions are the most real manifestation of the self as part of a whole, a whole that is just as alive as we are, being the planet, and the universe. So emotion can be as “cosmic” as planet Earth or the Solar System. Man seeks to feel, whatever the kind of feeling or emotion may be. But as I told you this is a personal interpretation and the idea will always be to perceive any interpretation just as true as the other.
10. How do you see yourselves as musicians? I personally feel your playing to be more skillful, less bound by a sort of an engagement or duty...I feel maybe more of the "fondling with the instruments"...
Yes, maybe! There is a big difference between how we played our respective instruments, for instance, in the time of the demo (almost 10 years ago) and now. Obviously, growing in that aspect provides a stronger bridge between your emotion and your instrument, therefore the telling of a more fluent and cleaner tale. I’m not speaking of better or worse playing; I’m referring to “fonding”, just as you say, because I think many times people considered to be “bad” musicians provide a much more rich and true message than many that are called “virtuous”. Well, it also happens all the way round sometimes. Besides that, many things can happen in ten years. We have been involved in cycles of conflict, cycles of peace and happiness, achievements as a band, etc, but over the years, I think we have gradually achieved an alignment in terms of lyrics, concepts and also in everything that’s behind being part of a band and, of course, musicians.
11. Who is the female singer in the "Aphelion Aura" bonus track? By the way, it is a great choice for a bonus track as the slow composition feels really etherial and kind of outside of the MAR DE GRISES direction. It seems that the fans of Elend or The 3rd and the Mortal must be satisfied.
The singer is a friend of Rodrigo M. She is a very talented singer; actually she recorded the track just in a few minutes with a significant level of improvisation. Her name is Natalia Suazo. She has her official project called Natisú, project in which Rodrigo M. also participates. Very interesting, you can check them out in their Myspace site. And well, thanks for your words regarding the choice we took. I like the different and fresh sound texture that her warm voice and free vocal pattern gave to the song and I like the fact that it is not the typical beauty-and-the-beast female voice complement to growls that female vocals give to metal sometimes haha.
12. That is all from us, thanks a lot for your time, we are glad to see MAR DE GRISES in MORTEM ZINE for the second time. We hope it will happen many times more. Have a good time and all the best!
Thanks to you again for the opportunity to be part of Mortem Zine for the second time. No doubt it will happen again. Many thanks to all the Czech and Slovak fans. We will be playing there in december, in Prag as well as in Bratislava. We have many great memories of Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Very nice people, very beautiful landscapes, gorgeous women and best beer ever. Can’t wait to have a nice cold glass of Gambrinus! Haha. See you all there!
