Interview with Hell Spawn - December 2009

Hey guys, first off congratulations on another great and interesting album! The wait was long, but it was worth it!

Thank you so much for the kind words, we all really appreciate the warm reception of the album and even more so the ongoing support!

As mentioned above, the wait was quite long especially because the new album has already been announced or at least talked about for a while. I notice some line up changes, a new label, ... Are that the main reason?

Of course the line-up changes and not just a new label, but the 3rd label we signed to for this album (both Rage Of Achilles Records and Black Lotus Records shut down before we could finish the recording) contributed to the delay, but there was certainly more too it as well; first and foremost there’s the fact that we’re entirely self-financed when it comes to recording, so it automatically takes us longer to complete an album as none of us are even close to being wealthy, living paycheck-to-paycheck. Then when you factor in familial responsibilities and priorities, my complex personal life, other related musical projects (such as Twisted Tower Dire and Brave), along with the fact that I’ll only do WHW when it’s truly felt and necessary, plus our commitment to excellent audio quality, I think it’s easy to understand how it can take so long between albums. That being said, it took a bit longer than we’d hoped for, and we’ll certainly strive for less of a distance between “VOL” and the next album!

Listening to the album, the first striking change is the vocals, how come you’ve asked Rain Irving to take up the vocals?

Basically, despite the fact that I’d written the lyrics and melodies as I’ve always done in the past, there were numerous realities to consider: the new material is far more demanding instrumentally (and guitar is my first instrument, for almost 30 years now) so it would require more time than I have available to master handling both playing and singing simultaneously – but even then, that brings me to my second point, which is in a live situation, I’ve always felt as if I cannot give my best when spread “thin” between two instruments – which is unacceptable to me; I want to give nothing less than 110% onstage. Lastly, since the music on the album kind of takes us back “full circle” to the more diverse beginnings of WHW, it seemed appropriate to restore the original vision of the band, with a dedicated singer and myself as just a guitarist/composer. Plus, I’ve never really been a fan of my own vocals either…

Another evolution is in your music itself, “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” is even more progressive, more varied, more experimental than “Of Empires Forlorn”. And another step away from the initial doom metal. A natural evolution or due to the numerous line-up changes?

Actually, the material of which “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” is comprised was all composed even before “Of Empires Forlorn” and in some cases dates back 16 years, so it has nothing to do with the line-up changes at all, though the caliber of musicians in the band is in fact higher than ever before. Essentially, each album dictates as specific atmosphere and flow, so we always adhere to that; we could’ve just composed what we feel is the greatest song so far, but if it doesn’t fit in within the parameters of the other material of a particular album/era, it will be archived for future use. Other songs grow and evolve over the course of many years – the music itself determines everything, and rather naturally I might add.

The new album is released by Cruz Del Sur, an excellent label with a heart for authentic metal bands. It almost seems the most logical label to release WHW?

Yes, Cruz Del Sur is among the very best labels in terms of integrity and passion for quality metal indeed! It was totally logical for WHW to align with CDSM after the demise of Black Lotus due to the fact that over the years, I’ve developed a strong friendship and business relationship with Enrico. Beyond this, many close friends are also part of the roster as well such as Slough Feg and Widow (previously anyway), with more alliances to be announced soon!

Another fine initiative is the fact that they are going to rerelease “Sorrow Of The Angels” and “Of Empires Forlorn”. Although in limited and numbered versions, I guess a lot of people will be very happy because they’re both out of print for a while now?

That’s correct, brand new limited-edition versions of both albums will be released on January 29th, 2010 just in time for our performance at Germany’s Hammer Of Doom III on February 6th. We decided to authorize these re-releases simply to combat outrageous eBay prices and respond to the countless demands we’ve had over the years for them. Literally, for years now, not a day has passed that I haven’t received a request for one album or another, so considering that and the fact this is our 20th Anniversary, I decided to set aside my own personal feelings on these recordings and give people one more chance to procure them. I still intend to properly re-visit these albums in the future to fix the problems I’ve had with the mixes and so forth, but for these CDSM versions, I wanted to maintain the audio integrity of the originals for a reason (besides, neither time nor finances would permit otherwise). It should also be noted that Iron Kodex and High Roller Records from Germany have teamed up to offer limited-edition vinyl versions of both albums as well, and these will be released along with a 2LP version of “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” at Hammer Of Doom III!

I read somewhere there are already plans to very soon complete “Fear Of Infinity”, the other half of “Vast Oceans Lachrymose”. The whole story isn’t told yet?

Well, the whole story isn’t told yet primarily because there are further chapters of my life yet unwritten, but indeed, “Fear Of Infinity” is complete musically and has been for quite some time; had “The Furthest Shore” not grown to mammoth proportions, “VOL” would’ve contained 8 more songs – these will now form the vast majority of “Fear.” Lyrically, there are no parallels to “VOL” other than the fact that they are additional entries in my personal aural diary. As far as how soon we will be able to complete “Fear Of Infinity,” that largely depends on how quickly we can pay off the massive studio debt incurred by the completion of “VOL.” Our audience can help speed up the process by buying the CD’s or LP’s as opposed to merely downloading them, or at least buying a shirt or something…otherwise it could take as many years as last time.

The last gig nearby was in 2004 in Holland, the next one that is announced is the Hammer Of Doom III Fest in February (in Germany). You’re surrounding Belgium in a way... Seriously then, any chance for a prolonged stay in Europe (with some extra gigs of course)?

Currently, the only confirmed date is for Hammer Of Doom III, which we’re co-headlining with Saint Vitus, and it is in fact an exclusive show for WHW – we promised Oli that we wouldn’t arrange any other gigs near the event. Of course, we’re absolutely planning to return to the EU for something more extensive later in 2010, and quite frankly, after the dismal show in Gent back in 2004, it’s a personal commitment of mine to make up for that. I wish that the explanations for that travesty were good enough to rectify that, but really there’s no suitable excuse – even if the reasons are legitimate. I give my word that we’ll give Belgium a proper ass-kicking show at the earliest possible opportunity.

Could be the ideal trip to celebrate your 20th anniversary as a band? Or have you got other things planned?

There’s no better place to celebrate 20 years of WHW than within the EU and no better way than to perform as many concerts as possible during this time, as well as in support of “VOL.” Obviously, we have a plethora of special releases coming out very soon with the anniversary in mind, but nothing really compares to getting out there, performing and spending time with our brothers and sisters!

That’s it for now, if there is anything you like to add to these questions, please be my guest...

Thank you for the opportunity to speak of WHW and “Vast Oceans Lachrymose” – it is very truly appreciated. Thanks also to everyone who has waited so patiently for this album, I hope everyone feels that it was worth all the wait and that no one is disappointed! Perhaps most of all…thank you for Duvel! I hope to see everyone very soon out on the road! Cheers!

Thanx very much for your time and the interview.
A lot of success with the excellent album and all you’re up to!
All the best !!
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