I first came across the band Raven Said with the release of their single
Fields of Frost about a year ago, a very pleasing-on-the-ear slab of traditional gothic rock, with many of the elements that make a classic of the genre: a
galloping introductory bass riff, inventive intertwining mournful guitar parts,
an echoing (and slightly pitchy) vocal, atmospheric keyboards and, of course, a
nagging hookline of a chorus.
The husband and wife duo from Yekaterinburg (situated just east of the mighty Urals and Russia’s fourth largest city) had released their debut releases in 2017 with a slightly more synth-dominated sound, but they really moved into the upper echelons of the current traditional gothic rock revival with this year’s new album Beyond The Darkest Hour released through Secret Sin Records, fitting neatly into a distribution roster that includes Angels of Liberty, The Kentucky Vampires and Guillotine Dream. The new LP features ten tracks of melodic and dramatic yet subtle gothic rock which builds on the classic template of the first and second generation bands, creating a soothing yet slightly angular multi-layered minor chord guitar-dominated soundscape topped with poetic lyrics steeped in Poe (as the band’s name would suggest) and other masters of gothic literature.
Strong deathrock-tinged melodies like Bewitched, Lenore and She
Comes To Me broaden the palette further, whilst more atmospheric up-tempo
songs like Transparent Sorrow and Shadows on the Ceiling, Shadows on
the Floor have an alternative dancefloor sheen, giving the whole album an
accomplished and unashamedly romantic, almost Byronic feel, not unlike vintage second generations acts like Dronning Maud Land.
Listening to recent interviews with the band (on Obscura Undead for
example), it becomes clear that Raven Said is no weekend passion: Andrey and
Maria fully embrace the gothic lifestyle, and are as aware of the history of
gothic literature, film and music as any of their Western contemporaries, all of which infuses their songs with a depth which some purveyors of the classic goth
rock sound can lack. Their studious and painstaking approach to their
music-making has resulted in an album of impressive quality, and their
professionalism shines through in the finished product, the intricacy of the
arrangements only becoming fully apparent after multiple playings.
When the band agreed to take part in this “Ten Questions to …” interview slot, I was confident that their answers would be considered, profound and thought-provoking, and so it proved. Many thanks to Andrey and Maria, who like so many artists have had the misfortune to release their best work to date during the current pandemic, but have made the most of the opportunity to spread the word via social media.
________________________________________________________________________
1. Your first project as a duo was a kind of
mediaeval-influenced neo-folk band, very different from Raven Said.
Do you think that any musical elements of that project
have carried through to Raven Said, and contribute to your unique sound?
Аndy: I am sure that it is. Moreover, this influence is
precisely secular early European music, music for dancing, music of minstrels
and court musicians. Of course, in modern tradition it is quite difficult to
understand how this music should be and how it was actually played. The
different elements such as polyphony, diatonic scale, multi-part structure of
the composition is often used by us (more often in interludes, drops). I would
say that this happens almost spontaneously, Maria and I try to achieve very interesting
results - for example, she often manages to create an additional voice melody
in a fairly dense melodic-chord concept. The standards of medieval music were
very flexible, the performers changed parts, something was forgotten, something
adapted to a specific place and time ... Yes, there are really many different
fundamentals in our music, we are often told about this, but this makes it
unique. The bottom line is to have the inner harmony of all these things, then
the listener also will have an internal interest - what will happen next? I
myself love to listen the music in this vein.
Maria: I believe that we naturally
put all our music experience in our songwriting. Probably, in this sense I am a
very harmonic person. Atmospheric music could be very different, and the style
differences that are so obvious at first are smoothed out when it comes the
general idea of the work. We assume that the "gothic" in this
context is much closer to the original source.
2. Even with the previous project, there was already a
gothic visual element, as can be seen on YouTube. How important is the visual aspect to you?
А: The protagonist of our songs is always “romantic”, an
exceptional character at an extraordinary moment. And our visual images are its
continuation, the unity of form and content. As we have repeatedly said, our
style is not “stage costumes”, it is we ourselves, and a certain eccentricity
allows us to be open and understand our music better. Actually, most people on
the planet are “visuals”; their memory and imagination are determined by visual
images. So, our visual aesthetic is also an effective tool for presentation.
M: The visual aspect is very important for us because it
is an external expression of ourselves. This “image” is part of our everyday
life, our romantic, even aesthetic philosophy, at least, if we talk about me. We try to comprehensively present our work. It seems to me that performers
often underrate the influence of band image on the general perception of their
work. Many of them doesn't have harmony in this regard.
3. Despite Transylvania being the home of Dracula and a
lot of dramatic landscapes – like the “Devil’s Settlement” near your home city - Eastern Europe
has not been traditionally associated with the darkwave or gothic scenes, with
only the likes of Laibach and Borghesia making a big impression
internationally. But now with yourselves and the likes of Molchat Doma and Icy
Men, there seems to be growing interest in the region and the bands are doing
well on the global darkwave scene. Do you feel part of a regional gothic
renaissance or do you feel that you are working in isolation?
А: A tough question. As a result of historical, religious
and political events of the 20th century, a very special picture of the world
was formed, where the countries of Eastern Europe were partially “excluded”
from the global system. And even after the displacement of communist regimes
and the abolition of military-political alliances, a certain
"isolation" remained. Currently, with the super-speed development of
communications, almost every men of the planet are able to possess nearly any
information. Of course, formally we belong to a local scene, but all our projects
are very distant from any manifestations of “national ident”, from language to
genre conjuncture environment. I
am so glad that in the United States, and Western Europe, and whole the World, interest exists and is progressing in new modern East European musicians. There
are a lot of talented people who have something to say and something to
surprise you with.
М: Yes, in Russia and other countries of eastern Europe
we have a “dark scene”, in one form or another. We are always glad to tour to other
cities, to collaborate with musicians and DJs. Hopefully, over time the dark scene
will grow, develop, resolve this “isolation”, our own difficulties and mistakes!
And the listener's interest in it will also grow. As for Raven Said, we are
often told that we are purists of old-fashioned, old-school goth rock, and in
this sense, our sound is certainly European-oriented. But I think that interest
in quality music has no national or temporal boundaries.
4. You both speak excellent English and use the language
for almost all of your output, whereas some other bands like She Past Away have
opted to sing in their native tongue. Will you ever sing in Russian?
А: We are very honored! It's great to hear that from a
native speaker! Be sure to pass this on to my English teacher at the
university!! Actually, the answer to this question is a logical continuation of
the previous one. Raven Said use English to expand the borders of audience. We
don't want to limit ourselves only to Russian-speaking listeners. And if we can draw the attention of the world music business to the Russian scene - this is
wonderful, totally... hopefully we are changing the situation for the better.
I grew up with foreign
music (in Russia there were times when it was considered almost normal to deny
its existence), and most of my favorite artists sing songs in English. At the
same time, I adore, for example, Spanish-speaking bands, they are very bright,
very exiting - Los Сarniceros Del
Norte, Los Gorgonas ... Just awesome! By the way, She Past Away themselves
speak excellent English, but their native Turkish is very beautiful.
M: Simply impossible to deny the fact that for rock
music, English is an ideal forming element. Goth rock is a very lively and
dynamic genre, and English poetry is also great for it. I adore the Russian
language - the most beautiful and richest in semantic nuances, you can believe
me as a professional linguist! But due to these same factors, it doesn't match every musical performance perfectly. And of course, I agree, it limits the
understanding of a significant part of non-native speakers.
Although I have an idea that a lot of people do not particularly pay attention to the lyrics, perceiving the
song as whole, and the vocals and phonetic features are just a harmonic tool. The
example the bands that Andy mentioned just confirms this. By the way, in our
dark folk project Salem Guest we sometimes use the Russian language.
More melancholic, lyrical
material is quite suitable for that.
5. Your name - Raven Said – is obviously a reference to
Edgar Alan Poe, and your track Lenore (the name of the narrator’s muse) also references the famous poem
(including the whispered lyric “never more”!). Does your interest in the gothic
scene extend to literature and film, and does this have an influence on your
lyrics in other songs?
А: Nope,
I won’t open all the secrets associated with our Lenore! For there are too many special connotations! Unleash your imagination! Of course, the world of our
inspirations is extremely diverse and far from being limited to a “Gothic context”
only. Personally, I love the books of R. Bradbury, A. Bierce, A. Sapkowski, R.
Bloch ... Maria and I love old black and white horror films. And even sometimes
we play the board game «Ancient Horror» or «Arkham Horror» according to H.P. Lovecraft! As a result, we create our weird images and stories. You hear it in our songs.
М: The romantic, melancholic type of personality forms
the corresponding worldview. I really like poetry, especially symbolic,
visionary, of a variety of poets - English, German, Irish, French, of course,
Russian. For example - V. Blake, F.G. Lorca, W. Yates, F. Villon, S.
Baudelaire, V. Gumilev ... I love medieval literature and music. I like to
create storytelling compositions with many interpretations. “Gothic Theme” is
our natural habitat!
6. The new album is a musical progression from your
debut Seven Deadly Tapes with more sheen on the guitar and more understated
keyboards, resulting in a fuller, more consistently classic 80’s goth sound.
How much of that is down to the fact that you had the album professionally
mastered in the US, or was there also a deliberate change in direction?
А: Yes,
it’s easy to see that with Seven Deadly Tapes we have slightly different
starting points and progressing. On the new album Beyond the Darkest Hour we
changed the sound a little towards dynamics, it's more danceable. The result is a
synthesis of old-school and modern goth rock - a labyrinth album that draws
cold pulsating energy into a delicate twilight. Our master engineer from the
United States, Mr. Brett Anderson, has done an excellent job. But still, Maria
and I did all the production work. Mr. Anderson put the final touch here, giving the
tracks a “commercial gloss”. As a result, the mixes are excellently heard on hi-end
equipment, through airpods, perfectly broadcast on the radio and sound good in
a music hall.
7. You have a song (Shadows on the Ceiling, Shadows on
the Floor) on a new compilation album, Blood and Dust, which brings together
bands with a kind of Fields of Nephilim western vibe. How did your involvement
in this project come about?
А: I really love the Fields of the Nephilim and have
always liked the image of Carl McCoy. It is a great honor and pleasure for
us to participate in this compilation. The composition Shadows on the
Ceiling, Shadows on the Floor very subtly conveys the excitement, anxiety
of the character of this story. Just imagine how he stops for the night on his
way. Desert, cold, strange sounds everywhere ... And thoughts about what awaits
him tomorrow, and if he gets a tomorrow?
М: It was a very interesting project, already at the idea
stage. Not just a compilation of gothic Americana or dark country songs, but
rather an “alternative western soundtrack”. And I really love alternative
westerns! The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is
generally one of my favorite films. And the soundtrack for that was written by
my favorite artist - Nick Cave. And our track Shadows on the Ceiling, Shadows
on the Floor is ideally suited to the atmosphere of such a film. Exact about
that vibe told us the promoter of the compilation when we applied for
participation. And it’s very cool to be in such a great company!
8. You have attended big events like WGT as a spectator
in the past and Raven Said played at the Lumous Festival in Tampere (Finland)
last summer. Which other dark festivals would Raven Said like to play at one
day?
А: Of course, we would like to play on
Wave-Gotik-Treffen, this is our favorite Gothic festival. Also - Whitby Goth
Weekend, Castle Party ... On another continent - Bats Day in the Fun Park,
Eccentrik. Actually, we are open to any interesting offers. We like all events
where the atmosphere of friendship and understanding prevails. Raven Said is an
actively touring project, we adore the road, new cities, meeting people, new
clubs and stages! And we are happy to be wherever people want to hear our
music, and where you can have a good time. Just contact us!
9. When you play live, you’ve done covers of songs by
bands like The Sisters of Mercy, Christian Death and The Cure, which can be
found on YouTube. Were these your main influences, or were you more influenced
by the second generation of bands?
А: And
this is not a complete list of our cover songs. Work on it is always very
interesting. Perhaps in the near future we will do some records. We are often
told that the sound of Raven Said is very comparable with bright examples of
the second-generation Goth Rock (or the second wave, as it is called in
Europe). Nosferatu, Mephisto Walz, Rosetta Stone ... But the “first generation”
of goth rock and proto-goth rock bands had a huge influence. Eclecticism, a
melting pot of the new sound of that time period - avant-garde, punk rock,
post-punk, psychedelia. Listening to the vinyl records of Bauhaus, The Mission,
Siouxsie and the Banshees, you feel that boiling, rage, sexuality, primacy -
the formation and birth of a new star from cosmic matter.
M: As I said earlier, in other interviews, creative
musical experiments of the 70s had a fair influence on us. We really like this
music, from David Bowie and Velvet Underground to Iggy Pop and The Cramps. For
guitar music, it was a time of colossal creative experimentation.
10. Do you already have any songs written for the new
album, and if so, what kind of direction are you heading in?
А: Of
course we have! And I feel some good potential of these new tracks. I am sure
this is quality music, and it will not leave indifferent our beloved listeners
from the present and add new ones from the future! As for the direction, here,
I think, the most important thing is to move forward and always try to do
better. Nowadays, the rhythm of life has become just terrific, everything feels
transparent and transient. Nevertheless, it is necessary to dream and to plan
something else, more, impossible. Such a way of thinking really helps in
achieving life goals, and as one of them is the creation of actual, high
quality and interesting musical material.
I told you that the answers would be profound. Many thanks again to Raven Said for expounding in such detail their well-defined gothic and musical philosophy, one of the most rigorously academic it has been my pleasure to encounter over the past forty years. Stay goth!
No comments:
Post a Comment