Published by Davide Pappalardo on January 15, 2018
Colossloth is one of the most important new names of the field of modern power electronics/experimental noise and drone music, Now, after many releases on CDr, cassette, vinyl, and his first full lenght Outstretch your hand for the impress of truth (2015, Cold Spring), he returns with his sophomer album called Heathen Needles, probably his most accomplished and mature work to date. We took the chance to talk with him on FLUX about his last work, his music, and what inspires him.
Ph. Lewis Burn
First of all, thank you very much for your time. Colossloth is one of the most interesting experimental/industrial project in recent years, it mixes perfectly oldschool and modern sounds, resulting in something unique. How was it born?
Colossloth was born in 2006, i got fed up being in bands that kept splitting up so decided to go it alone and try something new, I used old synths and guitars in the beginning and recorded a 15 minute track called Fly silver corpse, fly! which was very heavy doom, it did really well and all the original CDs sold out, after that I kept buying old broken synths And samplers and started experimenting.
If we analyze your works, we find out that many of them have a strong doom influence, be it in guitars, tone and/or atmosphere. What about it? I understand it’s a genre you really like (as I do myself).
I’m a big doom metal fan and I’ve been lucky to play with some great bands over the years, my stuff really seems to fit with doom, I just love the heavy crushing atmosphere that it has and the whole bleakness appeals to me greatly.
There is something mysterious, ancient, and at the same time cold, abrasive and futuristic in your sound, something which gives us a menacing but enthralling experience. What do you try to conceive with your works? Is there a ritualistic element used in a modern setting?
Absolutely, I’m really into Wicca ( I’ve completed a course and am now certified in it ) and this is something I believe is a massive part of the Colossloth sound, the idea on Heathen needles was to mix the beautiful with the harsh , the dark and the light.
Heathen needles is your last effort. It expands upon the sound of your first album for Cold Spring, Outstretch your hand for the impress of truth, with some different results. I think it is a more abrasive and noisier effort, with some “pure power electronics moments” . Can you please elaborate on this? What’s the story behind the creation of it?
After the unexpected success of the first album ( it ended up being played twice on BBC national radio in the UK ) I wanted to move into a more aggressive sound, I met a guy in my home town of Leicester called Tom Reynolds who is famous for his one man death metal band called Foul body autopsy who I really admire, I got talking to him and he is a very very talented producer so I asked if he’d be interested in recording Colossloth, he said yes and did an incredible job on the album, he is a perfectionist and I’m very lucky that he got involved making my noise clear and loud.
Your last two works have been published by Cold spring, a very well known and respected label. How was this partnership born?
I absolutely love being on Cold spring, I met Justin and jo at a few gigs over the years and they were impressed how many gigs I was doing a year and eventually we agreed to do the first Colossloth album, it’s a great label to be involved with and the support and hard work they put into their artists is second to none. Also they are great fun people to go drinking with.
Ph. Benedict Culm
What are your influences? Which bands and genres have been an inspiration for you?
I’m into everything like doom / punk / black metal and experimental electronic stuff, the bands that have inspired me over the years include Cult of luna, Gnod , sunn 0))), Tim Hecker to name just a few.
What are you listening to? Which modern bands would you like to recommend to the curious and ever-searching listeners?
I’m lucky enough to get some records from Cold spring and at the minute I’m loving the new Khost album and I’m really really into She spread sorrow, her stuff is breathtaking and I highly recommend it to anyone. Gnod is always playing at some point of my day and I’m quite fond of shit and shine too.
Let’s talk about the live experience: I get it’s an important dimension for you, and you had some peculiar live settings in the past. Would you like to tell us more about it?
Playing live is what Colossloth is about I guess, I’ve been gigging solid for 4 years now and I’ve played with so many great bands and so many venues, I’ve played gigs where literally no one turned up and I’ve played gigs to 300 people a few weeks later, i love traveling about meeting new people and seeing new bands and having plenty of beers, I’m loving it at the minute.
What about your gear and instruments? What do you use, what are your favorites? Is there a difference between live and studio time? And what about your songwriting? How does a Colossloth track come to life?
The gear I use for Colossloth is very primitive, I always wanted to be an anti musician, I can’t play any instruments and have no intention of learning one either. I have an old sampler and just play the song loops and experiment over the top with an iPad I like to punch and kick, my gear packs up into a small back pack so it’s great for touring on public transport.
Thank you again! Anything you would like to say to our readers?
Yeah thanks to anyone who has bought an album , I’m very greatful for Flux support too, Colossloth is an ever changing sound and I believe the best is yet to come so just give it a while and good things come to those who wait, Rome wasn’t built in a day after all.
Ph. Lewis Burn