1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the solo project?
Herbstlethargie is my first musical output as a soloartist. I might be known for my work as the drummer of the german pagan black metal band Gernotshagen and also for guest appearances as live drummer for Eïs and Firtan in the past. This time I'm responsible for the entire songwriting. Therefore Herbstlethargie is my personal way to express myself as an artist and musician. I had no limitations and boundaries, except my own. And also its a kind of a homage to some artists and bands who have influenced me a lot throughout my life.
2.You have your first full length coming out in September, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style that yo went for on the recording?
The overall intention for this record was to create a solid atmospheric black metal album. I tried to create a mixture of faster and harsher parts with blast beats and fast tremolo picking as well as more dreamish parts with some depths. Also I wanted to create somewhat warmer and some colder parts to represent different feelings. Together with Alboin of Nightside Audio we managed to get a modern and clear production with also a kind of rawness within the sound.
3.The lyrics on the new recording are a concept album, can you tell us a little bit more about the story you covered with this release?
The overall idea behind the lyrical concept is to create several layers of interpretation. The most obvious one is the course of autumn from his early beginnings in September until the colder, wetter and darker days in late November and finaly the transition to the winter season marked by the first snow. In literature and psychology, autumn is often a symbol and a synonym for passing away, for farewell and the beginning of nature's great sleep. Within autumn there is a certain form of melancholy. I wanted to capture this melancholy in a lyrical way. The individual texts are about different moments of farewell, the fleetingness of individual moments, their beauty or the associated sadness. Nothing is forever. Everything has to end. And because we are aware about those facts some moments become even more special and important to us. So I would say there are a lot of metaphors within this album that are embedded in the general life cycle of autumn.
4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Herbstlethargie'?
Since Herbstlethargie could be translated into autumn lethargy, I would say this name fits more than perfect to describe the feelings and emotions I tried to capture within the debutalbum. Also autumn was alsways my favorite season and wanted to include some kind of melancholic feelings into the name.
5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the new album cover?
The artwork consists 100% of photos that I took myself as well as design elements, such as small drawings that I made on my own. The pictures show places from my hometown of Thuringia in central Germany and they are all places that I like to visit myself when I go hiking in the forest and look for peace and quiet. The scenery you can see on the cover is one of my favorite places the so called 'Meisenstein' (or to be more precise the view from these place on the opposite hills) and of course all photos where taken while autumn.
6.With the exception of a few session musicians you recorded a lot of the album by yourself, are you open to expanding into a full line up?
I am open to maybe expand into a life line up someday. But for the recordings I want to be on my own with some help here and there by good friends. Especially the songwriting is a part I don´t want to give out of my hands, even if it just would be partly
7.A lot of the lyrics where written 10 years ago, can you tell us a little bit more about the delays in getting them recorded to music?
Some of those lyrics where first written as poems and not supposed to be shown to anyone else than me. Only over time a cencept emerged from the entirety of the lyrics and the idea came up to making a black metal album out of it. But when this idea got born I wasn't able to write solid songs by my own. I first had to learn a bit of guitar and bass and also there was always a matter of don't having enough time. The past years I was realy buissy with Gernotshagen ans also with going to university. Therefore it took its time until a whole album grown out of all my ideas and then, when covid hits the land, I finally had enough time to finished my songwriting and in summer 2021 we managed to record the album. The last year from then passed for the search for a label and the production time of the release.
8.The new album will be released on 'Northern Silence Records', how did you get in contact with this label?
To be honest, Alboin and I just applied to a couple of labels. Fortunately, Northern Silence was one of our absolute favorites and so the search quickly came to an end when label boss Torsten agreed to release the album. It turns out he really liked the music a lot and i think it fits realy good into the roster of Northern Silence.
9.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of atmospheric and depressive black metal?
The reactions where mindblowing to me. Even if theres only just one complete song revealed, I´ve got contacted by some people from all over the world, who told me that there liked the track a lot and are looking foreward for the entire release. Some of them told my that they where listening to the song on repeat fore hours which is an enormous compliment to me.
10.Where do you see yourself heading into as musician during the future?
I'm hoping to develope my guitar playing and maybe some other instruments. Also, I hope to always find enough inspiration to create new music in the style of the debut release but without repeating myself, and also to find new and interesting lyrical concepts because I'm not a fan of disjointed songs and lyrics on an album.
11.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
The bands that have influenced me the most are definitely Woods of Desolation and Panopticon. But I'm also influenced by bands such as Austere, Lascar, Veldes, Sol Sistere, Wolves in the Throneroom, Eternal Valley, Unreqvited and others. Besides these atmospheric and melancholic/depressive black metal artists I'm also influenced by some older country singer-songwriters like Townes van Zandt, Blaze Foley or Johnny Cash. Also i realy like the records of 40 Watt Sun a lot.
Not all of these artists find their influence right into my songs directly, but sometimes it's just the way they express their feeling, how they create emotion an things like that which touches me somehow.
There are also a number of german black metal bands such as Wolfhethan, Infaust, Eïs, Aaskereia, Brocken Moon or Nyktalgia whose records where spining like hell during my youth and early to mid 20's and whicht may have influenced me more than I realize, I guess.
Currently I'm mostly listening to the 'Autumn Eternal' and the 'the Scars of men on the once nameless wilderness' records by Panopticon, Mare Cognitum, Tardigrada and occasionally the Cure, John Moreland ore Townes van Zandt.
12.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
First i like to say thank you for your interest in me and my music.
In general, I would say to everyone just respect nature. Respect animals and respect our ecosystems. I wish more people were a little more introspective before they speaking or reacting. If you don't have to say anything, just be quite. Don't polute the world with your meaningless opinions unless they are constructive. If you feel anger in you, then don't unload it on other people, just go into nature, into the forest, onto the field, to the lake or the sea, go into yourself, reflect for a while and get to know yourself. And after that go and write an black metal album...
Bandcamp: https://herbstlethargie-northernsilence.bandcamp.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Herbstlethargie
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/herbstlethargie/