The Waning Moon - Debut EP review and Ten Questions to Zac Campbell

The Kentucky Vampires and Ariel Maniki and the Black Halos have been two of the biggest names on the guitar-based goth revival scene over the past few years, so when The Waning Moon project was announced, a collaboration between the Louisville act’s alchemic guitarist Zac Campbell and the well-respected Costa Rican frontman, expectations in the goth community for the new act were (appropriately) sky high.

The duo’s eponymous EP was digitally released at the appropriate astrological time at the end of last month to universal acclaim, four tracks of driving 90’s-influenced gothic rock, with less of the hurried deathrock of TKV’s debut set, but with the addition of dancefloor-oriented synth motifs, to combine the drive of the old school goth rock of bands like The Mission with the savvy cool of Suspiria and Angels of Liberty.

Whilst there’s an unashamed nostalgia to the overall effect, the production and mastering, courtesy of Ariosto N Uribe of Colombian goth legends La Procesion de lo Infinito, is very much 2022, giving the project’s sound a contemporary feel despite the comforting familiarity of the musical ambiance.  The four songs sparkle with emotional energy, with Maniki’s intense baritone complementing Campbell’s renowned sharp yet mellow guitar tone, the result of his lovingly curated selection of authentic guitars, pedals and amps from the golden age of goth.

The Waning Moon’s self-titled debut EP was released at the end of April and is available for download from their Bandcamp page. Excited by the new release, I contacted Zac to find out more about their unique collaboration. My thanks to him for the interview which follows.

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1. I suppose the most obvious question is how did you two get together when you already have your own main projects and live in different countries?

Zac – I have been a fan of Ariel’s music for some time and gradually over time I think we both became friends over nerding out on music gear and bands, etc. I approached him mostly out of being a fan of his work with Ariel Maniki and the Black Halos and Draconian Incubus to ask him if he would consider doing vocals on this project, and was extremely happy and excited when he agreed to work with me on it.

 

2. What are you trying to achieve with The Waning Moon that’s different from your other projects?

Zac – Well with The Waning Moon, I really wanted it to be unapologetically in your face pure goth rock! With the Kentucky Vampires, we have been maturing with writing music to sort of developing our own somewhat unique sound that is a bit of a more modern take on gothic rock. Having this project lets me work on music that is just pure nostalgic gothic rock! Drum machines, keyboards, synths, guitars, bass, etc. Still trying to keep our own sound, sort of our own identity if you will, on top of the obvious influences from 90s goth rock.

 

3. What was it about the name The Waning Moon that appealed to you?

 Zac - I have a background of being involved with Wicca at various stages of my life. When thinking of a band name for this project we had landed on some but later discovered they were taken and during a final brainstorming I was thinking about names that sort of invoke what I was feeling with the material from the band, as well as capturing some essence from Wicca, or the occult, etc. This name also helped us easily devise a logo for the band as well as a theme. We have decided to release material on days coinciding with the waning crescent moon in the lunar cycle. Our EP that we just released was dropped on the first day of the waning crescent moon of April.

4. What was the songwriting and recording process for this EP?

Zac – So far, the process with exclusion of one, thus far unreleased song has been where I write and construct the instruments in the song. Once I am happy with the track, I then pass it on to Ariel who then works on lyrics and vocals for the songs. If changes are needed such as extending or shortening certain sections of possibly note changes, I will then go back and make these corrections to the songs and send back to Ariel for the vocals. On one track however Ariel wrote and recorded some acoustic guitars, and keys/synths and drums, where I then added bass guitar and electric guitar parts to it. I am extremely happy how that track turned out and can’t wait to see it released!

 

5. You’re just back from a visit to Costa Rica. What were your impressions of the country and of the scene there?

Zac – Well as far as the country is concerned it’s incredibly beautiful! I have always been a bit of an animal and nature lover and Costa Rica most definitely has an abundance of both! When it comes to the scene, I think Ariel is much more capable to answer this question than I am. We didn’t really see much of the scene as I understand during our visit there weren’t any events happening. We were busy partying though and working on The Waning Moon things as well as relaxing and exploring the country to really have time to do much else!

 

6. Ariosto N Uribe (of La Procesion de lo Infinito) adds to the “goth supergroup” vibe by handling production and mastering. Why did you choose to work with him?

Zac – Ariosto is a dear friend of both Ariel and I and always is a pleasure to work with on any project. Considering the work he had done before, Ariel and I both agreed that we believed he would do a great job with this material. When it comes to mixing and mastering music, I have written I am not a fan of doing it myself after spending long periods of time working on the songs. I think I become too familiar with them and won’t make decisions out of some unconscious bias and have always considered that to be a job for someone outside of the situation, so to speak.

 

7. Will this EP be a one-off release or will there be further releases from The Waning Moon?

Zac –There will be further releases from the Waning Moon for sure! We already nearly have a full-length album complete, and we were spending some of that time while my wife and I were visiting Ariel and his family in Costa Rica filming video. We also have plans to meet later in the year to create more videos as well. And are also discussing doing some serious touring in the future.

 

8. So far the EP is only available digitally. Will there be a CD or vinyl release?

Zac – There is a plan to move forward on a physical CD for the EP, and possibly a vinyl release later on. With the full-length album, we want to move forward with physical CD and vinyl for it. So possibly if there is a way in the future to see the EP make it onto vinyl, I think we both would love to see that.
 

 

  

9. As well as this side project, you’ve guested on other bands’ releases such as Amaranth and Deliverance MX, Zac. Are there any other artists whom you’d particularly like to collaborate with?

Zac – Oh, I am always open to collaborating on tracks with artists! I really enjoy doing it, and I like to get to work with artists I admire or am friends with. There are a few collaborations coming up that I have done. I did a “remix”/cover for Davey Bones on his upcoming release that I am really proud of! And I am working with Male Tears providing guitar on a track right now.

10. It’s been a couple of years since the last Kentucky Vampires album. Is there any news of a follow-up?

Zac – Yes actually! We hope to release a new EP with 5 brand new songs very soon! It is in the final stages of writing and we’re hoping to get that wrapped up and off for mixing and mastering very soon!