Interview with Dragged Into Sunlight-Pre Dark Mofo/Australian Tour
I had the fantastic chance to chat to T, their vocalist and it was an incredible chat with an articulate individual and it is always heartwarmingly pleasing to chat to a band you really respect and their words match their deep passion for music.
DH-Hey how are things going with you.
T-Great, the band has been in the studios of nearly every
day for about two to three months now. So I'm finishing at 2-3 am and getting
back up 9-10 a.m. Same routine cycle over and over. So and then obviously
that's all the way up to a two-hour flight. So busy, but amazingly productive.
DH-Wow that’s hectic. So I'm going to ask some other lead questions,
but obviously, you are referring to a new release that’s going to be coming out.
T-So yes, we're working on a couple of new releases at the
moment. I mean normally the way we'll do things is we will record a mass volume
of recordings we will use and then we'll decide the order in which we should
release it. And that's what we've been doing, it’s been three to four years
now. So we have been putting together different concepts in different releases
and that sort of last two to three month period has been about you know getting
into the studio and putting them down.
DH-Fantastic. So can you say much about those releases in
terms of is it a full album or another amazing collaboration like you have done
previously?.
T-Yes, so there's a handful really. We do have a couple of
full albums and we've got a couple of collaborations in there as well. I mean
we've been pushing to get this stuff out since 2012-3. So since we didn't make
it came out at that stage, we've been working on it and you know sort of kept
on working nonstop and you know every week, there's been more going down and
more ideas going back and forth. There's a huge amount in the works. You know
there's a couple of full-length records in there. Whether they'll all see the
light of day, I guess it depends on sort of how it sounds when we go into the
studio and then these couple of collaborations.
DH-On that point what you were saying, I've read about Dragged
Into Sunlight being a collective that where there is sizeable geographical
distance between some of the crew. How hard or easy is that? I would imagine
that it'd be a fantastic support structure in terms of creativity and in
another way did have its own difficulties I would imagine.
T-Yeah I mean it's obvious that there's this sort of, I'd
say two heads wisdom about and the fact there are up to 12 people involved, with
nine individuals who you know use instruments and so there’s no absence of
creativity. So there's always enough people. It's just a case of getting those
people together. And when you look at the costs of running a band and whether
it's financially feasible, it's on the borderline madness.
Yes, no-one would want to sign up to this unless they were
truly committed to making the most extreme music possible and that is mainly
because of the cost and so prohibitive to get members from London at the same time
as Glasgow to come to a practice space. So you know you have your practice fees,
plus the cost of instruments getting servicing and an amplifier service sitting
in on top of that. You've got the transport or travel which you know; can add
up as well. I mean it makes a single practice pretty expensive to make happen.
So when we do get together we don't tend to get say you know six hours like perhaps
some other bands, so you know we'll get together for 10 days at a time.
DH-Wow that makes complete sense. There's a few
hardcore and metal bands in Australia that do that sometimes, because obviously
even the distance to travel is pretty big in Australia. But sometimes, they'll
do the same where members will fly in and get that done over days rather than
three hours so that's what you have to do for shit to get completed.
T-Yeah it works a lot better for us. I mean especially because
we have to. I mean we have a studio where we can go through the entire night.
So you know some of our best material has been at half four in the morning and
yet we're all too shit faced to remember it the following day. It's like we've
written some great stuff just by spending the intense time together and I think
when those people are in the same room and we work on music together, depending
on which people are involved that's always going to sort of dictate the use of
the feeling of the music. And there's sort of a few key individuals who bring
sort of different sounds, that are attractive to some like us to the table.
DH-I was going to say on that point, everyone talks about your
band being raw and abrasive and all those kind of things. Now we've spoken
about there being quite a few people involved, so what's the main creative core
that drives the band?. I mean obviously, a lot of bands talk topically about politics,
the state of the world, personal interactions and items related to that. What
are some of the main drivers for the band?.
T-Well I think when we read through newspapers and magazines
nowadays and you can clearly see the stuff you're talking about and it’s a
topic for people to focus on. Some bands have some sort of political messages
or their songs that have some sort of certain theme going on or something like
that. There's many bands, that focus on this. Dragged Into Sunlight is not
about that. Some bands you really know if it's going to have some sort of
political agenda or message and with us, you know that there is none.
But you know even if that were the case, I would never say
well you know let's put that into music because it seems like you're short-changing
people you know if people want to have a political debate you know it's in an
academic forum and it shouldn't be via a three minute to 10-minute piece of
music, where they've you know condensed their message it's 20 lines or
something like that. So we don't have any political message. We started with
an aim to make the harshest and most extreme music possible, being experimental
and pushing the boundaries and yielding a good result ultimately so that's that.
And when we listen back to it, you know it's about making the most diverse
music that we're capable of making.
DH-So that's clearly the aim of your band to be extreme and
push those boundaries, and it obviously is something you've definitely focus on,
but what about the kind of cathartic nature that exists in extreme music
because I get the sense of that and when you're talking about certain bands
like Converge and Amenra and a few other bands like that, it's really that deeply
emotive stuff, it's really you know the hard grinding, tortuous and cathartic
stuff that comes through from a live performance and probably producing these
types of songs as well.
T-Yes, there's definitely a lot of that. And it’s a big
driver. And often it’s just surviving the chaos. Anyone who has been on tour
with us or spent some days with us realizes this. You know it's there's a lot of madness in there from all the various members, and some very strong
personalities and you know a lot of chaos. You know three days in Australia
will no doubt feel like three months. You know I almost feel sorry
for our driver, but who can tell what happens on these drives/gigs. You create
intense music and the personalities involved also create extreme feelings.
Ultimately that's what drives the music.
DH-Yes, I've not obviously I haven't seen you live, but I
can see that there is a lot of that dark and punishing energy in your live
performances on Youtube. Now your music, it's quite a different mix of
quite a few genres. You know there's obviously there's doom and sludge and black
metal, but I also pick up a lot of crust and hardcore influence in there as
well. How did the sound develop as a band, because I really strongly believe
that one of the strengths of your band is it's not pigeonholed at all. Like I
think it's really strong in its intent, but it's not pigeonholed by one genre.
T-I guess it was a very deliberate move was to make sure
that no one could ever point out just one sound or genre. I mean I say
deliberate, but it's actually very natural. You know no one involved would want
anyone to point a path to the part of a song and say oh that sounds like that you
know. I mean there are various moments you can point out that you know certain
moments in a record and say oh you know that reminds me of something like Autopsy
or Obituary or Incantation, or that it reminds me of a great scene or something
like that. But you know generally you can't sort of pigeonhole, you can't you
can't put it in a box. And I guess you know that's something which is quite
special, because there aren't a lot of bands around nowadays that have some sort
of natural, yet aggressive diversity. And you know it comes from almost a chemical
reaction from the people involved or coming from different backgrounds. You're
right when you say this influences the sound and certainly a lot of us you know
grew up listening to hardcore. But equally as much hardcore as death metal. Yes
as much hardcore and death metal as when the two blended together you know sort
of around, I guess in the late 90s you had very strong sort of early renditions of
sort of the metal bands that were in the hardcore scene bands like Earth Mover
for example and Adamantium in addition to that you've got obviously your
traditional death metal bands the likes of Autopsy and Obituary you know and
then you've got sort of when it starts going a bit more technical and the likes
of Aeon came out and you know it expands the sound generally and you know it
spans 30 years of music, that's sort of been you know what’s been on our C.D.
players for 25 to 30 years. Yes, it's got to come through, doesn't it? Eventually
it goes somewhere and all those influences from those different backgrounds and
you know it’s not just a here and now thing.
DH-Yes absolutely. I mean you can hear that's super crystal
clear from the kind of deep releases that you have put out. Personally, how did
you first get into music?.
Like I said there's a definite antisocial and fuck
the mainstream vibe from the hardcore/punk or the metal underground which I
hold pretty strong myself. So how did you first kind of get into music?.
T-Exactly what you have suggested there. And I talking about
myself personally. It was going to do hardcore shows in very small venues you
know talking hundred to eighty to two hundred people sized venues in the
northwest of England watching bands like Archangel, Reprisal etc. Yes, I guess there
was a lot of great European hardcore around that time, but it was around that
time that hardcore metal was really merging and you had the likes of Archangel
coming out. So you know that's the sort of scene that sort of took me in at the
time. And it grew over the years. You know it and you grew into it. Yes, I guess
that's just the journey I followed in music, now I can't say it's the same for
others in the band. They have their own journey they started in the underground
death metal scene or the underground black metal scene. Yes, some of them you
know sort of I guess initially got into more technical music, like more
technical death metal and then decided actually no they almost reversed and
they were exploring a sort of a simpler more primitive side of death metal. So
you know it's a variety of backgrounds. I can also talk for myself personally,
because when you say so yeah fuck the system you know that's ingrained because
every person involved we all started at a grassroots level like absolute
grassroots level, where you were playing in venues of you know 80 to 200 people,
it was very small scenes. Everyone knows everyone. And you know it's just
mirrored throughout the music.
DH-Indeed and that comes across really strongly. I've had
reading some of your interviews and that I think the concept of not knowing the
band or collectives personal identities is an excellent ideal because it should
be about the music I think. It’s not a sideshow like a Slipknot or something similar.
The main attraction should be the body of work produced.
T-Yes, it's exclusively about the music. And that’s how it
should be. You know it's about I guess presenting the listener with a blank
canvas, allowing the mind to wonder what I was saying about those early bands
you know early hardcore bands. You know that old scene did that mixing, sort of
with metal and so on, where bands would play some exceptional death metal riffs
in parts but they looked like hardcore kids and they were sitting between hardcore
and metal scenes, but completely independent. Dragged Into Sunlight doesn't
want to be labeled and that's because you know there's no sort of
preconception. This allows each listener to form their own vision in their own
head. I think it allows them to create their own, to almost paint their own
picture.
DH-Yes I think that's perfect for what the aims of your band
are with your releases.
And I think all the releases are really exceptional. I think
they're definitely sensational in that there are links between them, but you know
there's no specific genre or restrictive style. Is there any one release that
you hold you know with a bit more pride or hold in a higher place?.
T-I mean obviously, there's been developed over time which
you've been talking.
I mean in the albums, you have Hatred for Mankind,
Widowmaker and N.V. , as well as the demo Terminal Aggressor. Those first four
records, they're all strong in their own right. I love them each as much as the
other. And the reason is that they all have the same sort of time put in.
They've all had the same approach and we would never release something unless
you know we felt it was perfect. You know here's no forced reason for us to
release anything. As you know we don't work to label deadlines. I mean they(record
labels) tried to set them and I think our last one was got two years ago or
something and we just missed it, because there is no one pulling the strings. There's
no one going to retire off doing this type of music and no one has that
ambition. So we do what we want, there is collective ownership of each release.
And that's why it's safe to say that every release now sits on par with the
others. I can't speak for other members, but I'm fairly sure that'll be the
common theme you know and we don't tend to look back on a release too much once
it's been done. Well besides listening to it you know we really enjoy listening
to it. And if there is something out of place chances are we've listened to it
six million times before you know before it reaches that stage of mixing and mastering.
You know we're all exceptionally comfortable with what we're doing, and by the
time that we're mixing something and mastering it and it's well ready for
release. I think even if there was something out of place on the artwork, we
wouldn't release something yet. So we all sit on the same artistic plateau as a
band.
DH-And I think that's that gets to my next point, I think
you know in this age of social media and all that, there is often a lack of
honesty or genuine effort in a lot of music genres or individual bands these
days. So I think that's really pretty refreshing that you know there's not a
wasted note or piece of artwork, none of it is a throwaway. And I think that's
damn amazing.
T-Yes, I mean the artwork as an example, the more current
piece of art in the last two years or so, it's over a hundred fifty hours now that's
gone into it and it's like you stated; there shouldn't be a wasted note, there
should be no filler- you know no one's getting paid properly no one is getting
any benefit from doing this other than for example: making you know each cymbal
sound like a smashing a window into hell, you know it's got to be the most
extreme thing. That's what that's our mission statement. So if we're not
fulfilling it and it's just you know sort of filler riffs or filler part after filler
part with the occasional strong part, there'd be no point in doing it.
DH-Yes, absolutely and now let’s chat about life experience
in music how important or relevant is that to you?. Myself why I work as a
nurse and for me that's a really good mirror into the wider world and maybe the
darkness of the world and provides a lot of fuel and inspiration, how does it
have context for yourself, like personally, how does that come into it. I know
it's as we said before it's not about any political or personal statements but
how do you see that?.
Now we just want to be able to do what we want to do without
consequence. I think if I was to say you know what comes from that professional
background and what influence does that have on the music; well I think from the sort of the legal side reach and so from that level of qualification, but also
in that industry itself, you know corporate law is very ruthless. It's about brutal
as it gets. So I think you know there's a lot of harsh reality there and you
know we've seen a lot of misery and seen a lot of people lose. And I guess you
know they deal with things very firmly and very strongly with very significant
intent. And then when it comes to the likes of a psychologist for example you
know, like I said understanding that misery, understanding depression and
irregular state of mind. And that was something which came from that
background. You know it was just I guess when we talked about the concept of
the band obviously all that knowledge and life experience feeds into this
concept that would become Dragged Into Sunlight.
DH-Excellent, so you're arriving pretty soon in Australia
and the festival you are coming to I have to say it's probably our(Australia’s)best
arts and music festival.
It's pretty darkly curated, but not in a wanky way in a
really good way. I think it's an outstanding fit for your band. I went last year
it's both incredible and intense. Have you heard much about the festival?
T-You know we haven't we done much of a dig in or research
and the reason we don't look at that is because Dragged Into Sunlight
is just about making the most extreme music we can make. So you know we don't
get a lot out of it so far as you know financials or anything like that. But
one of the biggest benefits is being able to go somewhere like Australia which
is you know for us the other side of the world legitimately the opposite side
of the world. So yeah it's good to go there and experience it first hand,
but not have any preconceptions. And like I said you know when people go to our
show, they don't have those preconceptions so it's a new experience for both of
us.
DH-Absolutely and it'll be an exceptional fit because Dark
Mofo is really quite dedicated to it. The artist and their form and their
creations. They're not afraid of the darkness and grimness like there's a lot
of thought-provoking shows and art, there are so many different things there. It's
not going to be a boring or pigeonholed event, that's really what I'm trying to
say.
T- We've heard that much about its aims. That's the most
exciting part when I hear you talk about it or anyone else that we spoke about
when they're talking about it(Dark Mofo). That's an extremely exciting part for
us, because individuals may ask what is Dragged Into Sunlight about, or people
saying oh you know I wonder what they sound like or what is the live show is
all about?. Well you know for us going to Australia, you know it's a different
scene and to see it first hand that's an incredible experience in itself. You
know that's what attracted us, so the premise was fantastic.
DH-Exactly, that's really true. I'm really looking forward
to catching you at Dark Mofo, I rate your works very highly and I am sure it
will be mind-blowing.
I'm sure you will love the tour and I hope you enjoy
Australia and also thanks very much for the opportunity to talk to you because
I'm a long term fan, so it's been really fantastic to chat to you.
T-Thanks Mark, and we'll see you really soon and thanks again.
Hope to catch you over there. Take care. Cheers.
https://draggedintosunlight.bandcamp.com/
and catch them live this week, particularly at the insanely evil Dark Mofo.
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