Southern California’s Lake of Blood are a force to behold, pure aggression and misanthropy in the form of musical ritual. Taking the atmosphere of black metal and an absolute passion for the material to entirely new levels of intensity, they have just released their debut of last year, As Time And Tide Erodes Stone on vinyl via the ever glorious Flenser Records.
Lake of Blood recently took some time to answer a couple of questions we had regarding their past, present, and future. Hit the jump to find out more.
Lake of Blood have been around for a couple of years, and since the bands inception have released an EP (Heed The Primal Calling), a split (with Panopticon) and finally the debut of last year (As Time And Tide…) – is taking your time over a release a conscience decision, or is it a case of life conspiring against the collective to find the time?
The Heed the Primal Calling EP was the seedling from which we began to grow, released by Ryan Fairfield (Terrible Old Man, Hallowed Butchery) at Milkweed Records. Through his blind faith in pummeling, passionate music he helped us lay our founding stones. We are glad to have shared that moment with Ryan. As far as I know, his label has become stagnant, though he remains active as a musician. The Panopticon split forged a bond between us and another heavily inspired and visionary musician, Austin Lunn (also of Seidr and Kolga). He played a large role in the growth of our band. As Time And Tide Erodes Stone marks the death of our first incarnation. The artwork for the CD version of As Time And Tide Erodes Stone was created by Austin at a time when the band had dissolved to three remaining members.
A year ago, a reassembled Lake of Blood was fortunate enough to tour the East Coast for the first time ever with Seidr and Falls of Rauros. It was an unforgettable, snow draped, drunken, couple of weeks from Kentucky to Maine spent with incredible people. To address the question more… time is always conspiring against us. Our lives outside the band inhibit our ability to submerge as deeply in the the creative process as we wish, and ought to. The releases have all been put out as soon as time and funds have allowed. We don’t hail from privileged backgrounds, so working with labels has been a necessity…for now.
As Time And Tide Erodes Stone is being released on vinyl via Flenser Records – how did the relationship come about? The new artwork is just incredible, if you’d care to guide us through your decision to rework the art and your choices in artists?
We hold a great deal of gratitude for the effort Jonathan at Flenser has put forth to give us this opportunity to breathe life back into this recording. The release of this vinyl will bring closure to a lot of frayed emotions revolving around the production and original release of As Time and Tide…
We had been in contact with Jon/Flenser around the time the record was being finished in early 2010. He had expressed an interest in releasing something from us, the only reason I can scrape together as to why we choose to instead work with the label we did, is due to the confusion that existed around the fate of the band at that time…a swindle of sorts, regrettable.
The new cover features a woodcut image from Olaus Magnus (1555). The reference to the folklore is in no way intended to be significant. We simply appropriated the image for its apparent relation to the title. The image on the back of the sleeve as well as the poster were both done by Nate Burns (Revolting Worship), a respected artist and distant comrade of the Cult. Working with Nate has been collaborative to a degree. He’ll sketch an array of ideas from which we choose to develop, inspired from themes we provide from within the lyrics, but the majority of what occurs comes from his nature.
Do you have plans for new recordings in the coming year?
February may be the most significant month this band will ever experience. The full length we plan to begin recording, will contain over an hour of material we have been composing and road testing over the past 2 years or more. Some of these songs are well overdue while a few others are still toasting in the oven, never yet heard by outside ears. It’s hard to express the pride and excitement we have for this record.
Can you talk us through the progression of the band in terms of the music made? Obviously the EP was recorded very early on in your career and the difference in style and structure is quite apparent, line up changes have occurred – what impact did this have on the group?
Heed the Primal Calling was born from four long-time friends, a celebration of raw, triumphant music, conducted strongly by Nordic, with words by Saffyrion. A fifth joined the circle, anticipating the need for a second guitarist for the forthcoming recording. Thus the band operated, recording and performing, as so. Haagr, from the split onward, has taken full reign of his lyrical pandemonium. As a young band we exhausted ourselves with opposing ambitions internally, and a pointless array of shows…muddled attempts to seek affection from the calloused whore, Los Angeles. Always to be met with limp indifference, an awful taste lingering in our mouths.
Early on, we were fortunate enough to play some shows with Leech (Salem, Oregon) and Thou (Baton Rouge, LA) while they were touring in support of their split. We found both groups to be hugely inspiring. It wasn’t until the lineup change took place, that the band had our shit together enough to get on the road, to find life and bounty outside Los Angeles. As Time And Tide Erodes Stone was intended to be a demo, but became much more. The record simultaneously introduces the first real collaborations between the guitarists in the song writing, while also a requiem to the friendship that had long existed between those who have left and remain distant.
While on tour during June 2011, two songs were documented live, in a basement in Salem, Oregon, known as the Burial Grounds. Eternal Warfare Records, a BG resident, has released this recording, a run of red cassettes limited to 300. These songs will again be included in the studio recording session we’re booked to begin February 10th. They exemplify the material we will soon release, yet haunt with their own glowing essence of that June…don’t overlook. Poster designed by Dave Condon (Antimony Media, Altar of Plagues) included.
Can we expect to see Lake of Blood touring soon, perhaps even venturing overseas?
We were honored to play an enchanting evening very recently with Thou, The Body, and Folivore in Santa Cruz, CA marking a hiatus the band is on from playing live – to focus and prepare, quietly stalking our next LP.
As a collective of people, what brings you together? Whether that’s music, people, your surroundings – what inspires, influences and drives you to create?
As artists, we long to extract and consume all we can, but only when inspiration allows. Lake of Blood is something we take incredibly seriously, while also being an unending exercise in transcending control & possession. Songs often take a long time to develop, pieces sewn from rare tapestries of the subconscious. We are constantly involved with one another through our different projects & pursuits.
We try to maintain a very open state of criticism and revision, to substantiate the power of a song, both on record and in the live environment. Most of our group are rather solitary people. We interact with each other and few others. Some of us attend school, while some work. Music has long been what binds us, our vessel through which we view the world. Inspiration flows through the beauty and repugnance of our surroundings, scattered across the multi-timbrel rot of decaying Los Angeles. We escape in clouds of smoke and songs of sorrow in gardens yet destroyed, in the dank sub terrain of the music chamber.
Your new recording will be released via the Cult of Melancholia (the Cult recently put out the doctorshopper full length cassette) imprint – who, or rather what, is the Cult of Melancholia?
The Cult of Melancholia is the banner flown by the minds behind our pursuits in this band and beyond that, accessible only to the core group of our allies. It binds the visual artists we’ve come to involve ever closer to our music and the words by which it is accompanied. The Cult will play a greater role in years to come, publishing more than our music. No further information need be disclosed.
SVPPORT
Lake of Blood live ritual:
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