Welcome to Heavy Blog is Heavy’s feature, “The Anatomy Of.” Taken from the Between The Buried And Me album of the same name, in which the band pays tribute to artists/bands that they feel have most inspired their songwriting, “The Anatomy Of” allows us to hand off the metaphorical microphone to bands so they can talk about their influences. Read more entries from this series here.
The melting pot of musical inspiration that is Umea in Sweden is one of the hottest around. Cult Of Luna will forever prop up piles of history with their unique experiments in metal and story telling. They whet just about every appetite out there with their sonic musings. Moloken make music that branches of from Cult Of Luna’s inspiration itself. Taking a new form and leaning harder on more primal urges and feelings, their brand is thick and somber… but expansive and foreboding too.
When we premiered the video for “Beginning of the End”, we helped showcase a drifting, bittersweet musical piece. One that was a chillingly perfect finale to All Is Left To See. The album itself is it’s own entity comprised of twisting, turning pieces. Curiousity got the better of us and we had to ask the band themselves just what kind of inspirations took them to this point, musically.
Nicklas: Alice Cooper – Killer (1971)
The Alice Cooper group really affected me as a kid. I remember lying in my bed and was blown away bythe raw songs and the raw photos of the band! Alice’s voice together with the ruff guitars and melodic bass lines made me realize that this is what I want to do! Songs like “Halo of Flies” and “Dead Babies” really scared me, but in the same time i wanted more. The Alice Cooper group had a naive and a bit sloppy style that I loved and still do. Dennis Dunnaway is a underrated bass player that deserves more recognition! He is one of my bass heroes and got me interested to the instrument. If Moloken can have the same effect on a nine year old kid that Alice Cooper had on me, I can die happy!
Patrik: Mayhem – Wolf’s Lair Abyss EP (1997)
It really has it all. With extremely raw and punishing production and weird experimental approach to their craft while at the same time being so aggressive. The band themselves says they probably went too far and should have toned it down a notch. I love it. Including the drums that sounds like he’s hitting old rusty pots instead of cymbals. Brilliant and underrated guitar player too with a vocalist who’s really pushing the boundaries of the genre into what even the black metal scene deems unlistenable
Kristoffer: Breach – Venom (1999)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWV4R7sIy6k
The Swedish band Breach with their album Venom is one of the most influential and important records for me. Growing up mostly a metal head, when I discovered this record (and the band) it literally blew my mind showing a crossover hardcore band turned so dark. Playing fierce and really on the edge music with the emotions bursting out of each song. And I remember I loved the production even though it was really different from the usual clean and boring metal productions I had come to be used to. It has such depth and I loved that every instrument played such a crucial part in the sound. And then the songs, I mean shit! Heavy and fast, progressive and experimental, dark and twisted and rhythmic. In other words, totally fucking awesome.
Jakob: Virus – The Black Flux (2008)
Although I have many different artists and works to draw upon, I think the major influence for me when making music in this band has thus far been The Black Flux with Virus. I’ve been interested in most of Carl-Michael Eides works ever since Written In Waters with Ved Buens Ende, but what makes me enjoy and gets inspired by The Black Flux is that its purpose and method gets narrowed down track by track: To perpetuate a weird and fascinating journey into alien, secluded and brooding surroundings, both of the mind and of a physical world. I can understand why Stalker (1979) had such a big impact on Virus’ songwriting, as The Black Flux depicts that sensation of weirdness, confusion and fear of the unknown like in the movie. And since I enjoy music that have this overwhelming sensation of something unexplainable, terror (like the origins of death metal) or confusing motions this album is a No.1 in that department.