One of the sickest albums to come out so far this year is Guiltless by Chicago’s blackened doom wizards INDIAN. I know for a fact this album will stand the test of time. CVLT Nation had a chance to interview Will from INDIAN & get his perspective on the creative process on this album. After the jump, check out this epic interview & some special live footage…now tune in!
What up Indian…how you brothers feeling today?
Well, today is the North American release date for Guiltless, which we’re all pretty excited about. This album has been a long time coming.
The vocals are meaner, more hateful & blackened beyond belief on Guiltless, did this happen organically or was it intentional?
I guess I would say it happened more organically than anything else. The music certainly demanded that kind of delivery in my opinion.
On any level, was there something Indian wanted to express with this album that maybe you had not in the past?
Well, I definitely has some personal things to express with this album due to the few years leading up to it not being the most fulfilling for me, musically speaking. All five of us felt the need to really push the band to something beyond the previous albums, and we wanted to kind of revamp things with Sean and I being involved on this album.
Your use of drone is on point…it seems that you use it almost as a melodic instrument. Is that hard to achieve?
The drones and all of the elements of the album really came rather naturally. We had the vaguest concept of where we wanted the album to go, but it ultimately came out on its own. Nothing was really forced.
With all of that being said, I was really happy with how the drones and whatnot came out and it’s nice to hear that other people noticed it.
Could you describe your creative relationship with Sanford Parker?
Sanford is a very good friend of ours and he has recorded almost everything the band has ever done. His old band played with Indian quite a bit when Indian was starting, too. I have also toured with Sanford four times in various bands. He understands our music and knows what we want it to sound like. Sanford is also an incredibly talented engineer and there is no one else I would rather work with.
When you are performing live, what kind of energy takes over the band?
I really can’t describe it. To use an extremely overused cliché, it is a cathartic experience and it certainly kind of carries me away.
INDIAN LIVE 4.9.2011 at SUBT CHICAGO – ‘GUILTLESS’ RECORD RELEASE SHOW (1/3)
INDIAN LIVE 4.9.2011 at SUBT CHICAGO – ‘GUILTLESS’ RECORD RELEASE SHOW (2/3)
INDIAN LIVE 4.9.2011 at SUBT CHICAGO – ‘GUILTLESS’ RECORD RELEASE SHOW (3/3)
Besides making music together, what other activities do you guys like to do together?
We’re all drinking buddies. On occasion, we’ll go to shows together depending on who’s playing. With summer coming on, we’ll probably be barbequeing rather frequently.
Your new album’s artwork is super…what was the concept behind it?
Our friend, Scott Fricke, did the artwork. He is a local tattooist. Scott came to the studio while we were recording to hear what was going on and kind of get some of the feeling behind what we were doing and that was the artwork he gave us. We didn’t give him any suggestions or ideas. It was all Scott’s concept and it came out amazing.
Could each of you break down the album you heard that made you say “damn I want to start a band”?
For me, it was Black Flag’s “Who’s Got the ten-and-a-half” album. There are other Black Flag albums I like more, but Black Flag is my favorite band and that was the first one I heard. I can’t speak for the other guys, although I know seeing The Melvins for the first time was an inspirational moment for Ron and Dylan.
Who are some of the bands that you consider peers & what bonds you to them?
Bloodiest, who are another Chicago band, are peers and good friends. We’re just the same type of people and we love each others bands. Other local bands would include Sweet Cobra and Anatomy of Habit. Rwake and Yob are bands that are also good friends and are bands that we love. Right after I send this interview, I will probably think of at least five more bands I should have listed. So it goes….
I just wanted to say thanks for creating super sick heavy music that we @ CVLT Nation dig…any final words?
Thanks for getting in touch and doing the interview.
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