The Goat Sessions is the title given to the trilogy perpetuated by the Canadian band OF HUMAN BONDAGE. In this band the philosophy, the religion, and the mysticism unite in a conceptual work conformed by gloomy and diabolical atmospheres based on a black metal traditional but with a extremely conceptual and subjective focus. Their leader M.P.K talked us in depth about all the aspects related with their group and opus.
Hi , congratulations for The Goat Session vol. II full length second album!. How are things going with the band nowadays?
Hi JM thanks, things are going well.
The Goat Sessions is the name of a trilogy divided in three episodes. The Vol. III has not still been released, but would mean the upcoming album the conclusion of your band?
The Goat Sessions Volume III Salvation; At One With Hell was released December 25, 2007. It's available at www.sinistersounds.ca and is the end of the trilogy, but not the band. We're currently finishing the follow up to The Goat Sessions, which we should be recording in 2008.
Was this conceptual trilogy natural or deliberated idea in the composition of your songs?
At the time of the project's inception only a few tracks had been recorded which were going to be released as a 2-track demo. A few months after we finished the demo, we weren't happy with it so we discarded it and re-recorded those songs for a longer, conceptual, somewhat better sounding demo, which became The Goat Sessions Volume I.
The remaining songs on The Goat Sessions Volume I were completed and rehearsed right before we recorded them in one take with very basic gear. Lyrically, it's where my head was at the time; focused on describing new realities; the interior scenes of rebellion. A great, but all too brief moment of contact with this muse. The words are a combination of attempting to rid myself of the Christian ego while exploring the various realities of LSD and Black Magick. The full scope of the trilogy started taking shape in the years following Volume I's initial release of 50 copies on our Blood In/Blood Out imprint.
Over the next two years I immersed myself in the reality of mysticism, existentialism and the Occult. I gained new perspectives that started opening doors of perception. I was inspired to exorcise the remnants of my Christian neuroses through writing. After reading through the results it took a few months to cut the fat from the bone and figure out what should be used. Editing that mess of ramblings into the final lyrics for the next two albums was quite interesting and almost cleansing, but not quite the closure I was searching for. The more I explore and learn about external and interior realities, the less I'm sure of.
The music was deliberate. We were trying to create a soundtrack for the message. Black metal is the easiest and most common reference used when describing our sound, but Black metal is a phrase that has almost as many definitions and variables as God. For some listeners' many bands are too goth or prog black metal or too old school while others aren't kult enough, within this context, Of Human Bondage has more in common musically with the archetype laid down by Hellhammer, Bathory and later Darkthrone.
As I See It, Antichristendom… shows a better production, sound, and better compositions. The band has won in originality, and this album is more extensive in minutes. Are you satisfied with the result of the album?
I agree, it is a more complete recording, from the concept and composition, to the artwork and recording. The Goat Sessions Volume II: Antichristendom, A Revelation was recorded with better gear than Volume I. The song structures are loose, longer and a little more out there, musically.
The originality of the sound is subject to each listener's opinion, but it was definitely an attempt to create something interesting. I was satisfied at the time and for the most part I'm still pleased with it as an album by itself and also as a segue between Volumes I and III.
The Goat Session Vol. II is a dynamic album, black metal motives, dark passages, gloomy atmospheres, female voices, depressing intros… In short, I think you are an atypical band in the scene. What's the limit musical of OF A HUMAN BONDAGE?
I try to not set limits on exploration, be it musical or mental and I'd like to agree and believe we're atypical in the scene, but it doesn't really matter, it's just a way of exploring the psyche. I'm interested in the possibility of soul and the Godhead. To read and think about these concepts isn't enough, these concepts provoke ideas which have motive and need representation. For better or worse, it needed to be written, recorded to disc and brought into existence as a declaration of independence.
Creation is power, which may sound a little silly or obvious to some, but it's the rituals of creation and exorcism that define us. It's like my mother-in-law says, 'Life is all about rituals' and I enjoy exploring, taking part in, dissecting and writing about them. The Goat Sessions may be the end result of too many similarly themed rituals or maybe not enough. Ritual is for the internal what experiment is to the external. We follow the voice of inspiration to the best of our understanding and The Goat Sessions is our interpretation, thus far, of that voice.
What are the cover concept about and the lyric's theme connect to trilogy? In the album appears an opus of Francisco de Goya ('The Incantation'). Why this selection for layout?
The concept was to create and present the visual equivalent of the music.
Volume I's cover is a cathedral blended with a photo of lava which may have been intended to distort the house of God with brimstone and fire to make it something new, yet equally beautiful.
The cover of Volume II: Antichristendom, A Revelation is a copy of a woodcut depicting Satan at court with newly initiated witches. It was blended with a close-up still photo of a stream a photographer took. We were at his apartment enjoying good conversation and hashish when I noticed the photo hanging on his wall. The still photo reveals compelling images that would have gone unnoticed had it not been captured by the photographer. Nature is ever-changing and capturing a moment in its course became art. I was intrigued by its psychic magnetism.
As for using Goya's 'The Incantation', it's a work that impressed me. I'm fascinated with tales of blasphemy, sin, redemption, possession and sacrifice and this work portrays an aspect of religious transformation.
'A serious illness in 1792 left Goya permanently deaf. Isolated from others by his deafness, he became increasingly occupied with the fantasies and inventions of his imagination and with critical and satirical observations of mankind. He evolved a bold, free new style close to caricature …satirizing human folly and weakness. His portraits became penetrating characterizations, revealing their subjects as Goya saw them. In his religious frescoes he employed a broad, free style and an earthy realism unprecedented in religious art.' Taken from www.arthistory.cc
The trilogy's end, The Goat Sessions Volume III: Salvation, At One With Hell features a painting by Jeroen vanValkenburg, which to me portrays an idea of self, will and spirit and there relationship in some part of space time, call it what you will.
What's you actual posture on the politics and religion? Is OF HUMAN BONDAGE a satanic band?
Of Human Bondage may be political depending on the definition and who's judging. I keep up with world issues to try and catch a glimpse of the many truths behind the stories. Noam Chomsky and Mike Rupert taught me a few ways to explore politics.
I'm obviously fascinated with religion, Of Human Bondage may be Satanic; The Goat Sessions became a self stylized reverse exorcism. I'm trying to explore the depths of mind, and one result of this exploration was The Goat Sessions, which details the process of destroying my Christian reality tunnel, embedded in the subconscious.
I'm interested in all forms of religion, their symbols and practice, basically occultism in general; be it gothic, metaphoric, allegoric, philosophic or theological. The Devil is in the details and I enjoy exploring the details. Is that Satanic? It might be to some and total bullshit or not 'true' enough for others. Satan is a word. Can one word define and describe all aspects and varying interpretations of divinity? President Bush has said, God is on his side, while the 'enemy' simultaneously also claims ownership of that same God. God and Satan may represent a universe of knowledge and exploration, but they also represent a world of idiocy and death, it all depends on your beliefs, point of view and definitions of how these words are represented, either as symbols or fact. The fundamentalism behind faith needs to be abolished.
That being said, I haven't come across a word that accurately portrays this mind and embodies the idea of its spirit in one word. I am the alpha and the omega; I am at one with Hell. Ha-ha; human life in this body has begun and will end and what comes after is speculation, but it's the speculation that makes life interesting.
Both releases have been released by Sinister Sounds but what was the reason for this choice? What's your opinion on the work, distribution and support to your band?
I became aware of Sinister Sounds through the guys in Martial Barrage who had just signed on to do a record with them. I sent S.S volume I, an early rough mix of Volume II and told him Volume III was written. He was interested in releasing Volume I properly and we agreed to release the whole trilogy though S.S. As far as their work, distro etc. we're satisfied, S.S has done exactly what both parties agreed to as the terms for each release.
Please, you speak us on 'Meditations In occult static' song (instruments, recording place, acoustic guitars, voices, symbolism…). For this album have collaborated session musicians? The album's credit show the expression 'Honorary Cult members', isn't?
Meditations In Occult Static began with an acoustic piece I came up with while we were getting high and having a few drinks. We recorded it and left it for months before re-examining it as the foundation for something. We invited a few friends down for a jam so after enjoying some psilocybin tea we recorded various drums, piano, and guitars. If I remember correctly, the djembe was mic'd and recorded through a wah-wah guitar pedal, if we actually ended up using that take I can't recall, but for us, it was cool trying different recording techniques. For vocal accompaniment the music required someone who encompassed some spirit of the occult. Excerpts from The Great Beast Speaks were altered and used.
Honorary cult members are the artists we were recording and/or rehearsing the live band with and felt they needed recognition. The drummer, live guitarist, and electronics guy that all played on Antichristendom are now members in the Of Human Bondage church congregation.
What are your main influences (musical and others) to write the songs? At the moment do you consider that bands like NECROMANTIA or BURZUM were significant in the life of your band? The earliest influence on Of Human Bondage would be religion, but specifically Christianity; my upbringing amidst church doctrine and the Bible stories I grew up with as a child. I loved hearing hushed congregations whisper of evil being committed in the name of Satan. It was and probably still is a place for bored housewives to gossip about the sins of friends before hearing of Lucifer's glorious fall.
I craved more Hell, more of the apocalypse, it gave me goose bumps. A childhood friend turned me on to the horror movies of the '70s and '80s to try and recapture that unholy thrill, which much later led to films by: Alejandro Jodorowsky, Werner Herzog, Ingmar Bergman and Ken Russell.
In the past, the books of H.P Lovecraft, Brian Lumley, Stephen King, Richard Laymon, Jack Ketchum and Clive Barker were an influence while Colin Wilson, Aleister Crowley, Michael Gira, Sam Harris, Richard Dawkins and Robert Anton Wilson have had the most impact on my life in my thirties. Musically, the following albums were some defining moments: Black Sabbath-Black Sabbath, Celtic Frost-Morbid Tales, Deicide-Deicide, Darkthrone-Transylvanian Hunger, Neurosis-Through Silver In Blood, Pink Floyd- 'More' soundtrack, Gorgoroth-Destroyer: Or How To Philosophize With A Hammer and Swans-Soundtracks For The Blind..
As for the bands you mention, Burzum was the second band I heard in connection with Black Metal and for the second time that month a record changed my life, Darkthrone was the first. A close friend introduced me to both many, many years ago. I would say they were both very influential, musically. I heard a Necromantia album much later. I popped in a few discs of theirs last night after reading your question. That early stuff was ahead of its time, I haven't heard their recent stuff.
Do you play in other parallel bands besides in OF HUMAN BONDAGE?
Yes, work in collaboration with Daniel of Deadwood (ex-Blodulv) has begun. The sound explores slower, detuned guitar riffs and noise.
Does the musical expression arrive farther than the word for you?
If the music doesn't alter consciousness, I have no interest in the word. On the other hand, I will do extensive research on and exploration of artists I like. I enjoy writing prose; I like feeling inspired, the communication that forces you to create is magick. The Goat Sessions trilogy is a confession which will continue on future recordings.
Your new album (last piece) has been announced. What is the differ that we can meet between the upcoming release and the current compositions? You talk us in depth about the new publication (Cover, label, songs, musical way….)
The Goat Sessions Volume III Salvation, At One With Hell was recorded over three days. We recorded the last day at our Blood In/Blood Out basement studio after moving our studio from an isolated farm house in southern Manitoba, where we had spent two days tripping and tracking songs with an outdoor temperature of -37 Celsius and a wind chill of -51. We literally couldn't go anywhere.
The album became noisier as we started experimenting with altered states, recording techniques, field recordings and effects. Over the following months we dismantled the recordings, adding textures and removing unnecessary sound. It is the soundtrack to the death throes of a Christian ego while giving birth to a tiny glimpse of primordial consciousness. The songs are structurally primitive, but have depth both in sound and presentation.
Sinister Sounds told me the new album sounds like a cross between early Godflesh and traditional Black Metal. As much as I'd like to agree, I don't think that's quite accurate to perspective listeners. We've added some noisier elements, but we don't have the crushing heaviness or atmosphere of Godflesh.
Metallian magazine felt the noisiness of the album was masquerading as extremeness and boring. For some that may be true, we don't play a thousand notes per song or particularly fast. I'd like to think The Goat Sessions Volume III is deliberately paced, like many great Fulci films. There is no masquerade, no attempt at being extreme. This is the sound of masks being removed. It's an attempt to expose what's beneath the mask, the raw nerve of ego. Vol. III Salvation, At One With Hell explored a portion of the vast psychic depths of sound and vision, while a war of words raged on between mind and divinity. The results are not for everyone, they are from the ether of the universe, the inspired word of God, the blasphemy of belief or from some other, equally vague, location.
The current material we are working on is more experimental at times than The Goat Sessions and at others more brutal. This will be the first time we've rehearsed material before recording so it should be a much tighter, fuller sounding album.
Well, in the greetings section of the album appears contradictory concepts: God and the devil, Christ and Satan, reality and dreams, life and death… maybe OF HUMAN BONDAGE is the meeting point or the relation between these concepts?
The mind is a meeting place between opposing concepts, every recording and performance with Of Human Bondage is a ceremony of opposites, at least we choose to believe they are.
Do you think that there is a true underground scene currently? There seems to be for some, but it's not for me. I'm always searching for new sounds to captivate me I'm not interested in which bands have been deemed posers or which have been deemed true. I'm trying to remove myself from the school yard antics of the internet nerds.
And what about shows? Where has OF HUMAN BONDAGE played and with which bands?
We play live every couple months to generate a little income for the band, but we don't tour, the obligation of family life demands a paycheque. We usually play with local bands like Arctic Circle, Psychotic Gardening, and Putrescence. The only band of notoriety we've played with was Cryptopsy, which wasn't very exciting although their singer Lord Worm introduced himself as a fan and he was cool to talk with.
How is the metal scene in your country? What are the main problems of a beginner band in Canada?
The metal scene is decent for kids that are into the bigger tour packages, but we rarely get the more obscure bands that are unable to tour the prairies of Canada.
Our local scene isn't too exciting, especially within the metal genre, however those that are involved in the underground scene are dedicated and make it worthwhile performing live.
Canada as a whole seems to be creating many sounds. I really like bands like Toronto's drone duo Nadja and our fellow prairie countrymen Wold.
I would like to know your opinion about the current, underground and the way of promoting bands, like mags and the new figure such as my space, or internet in general
There seems to be many levels of underground music all of which I just can't keep up with. Discovering a band rarely feels like a magical experience anymore. It's not like years ago when I would scour the globe looking for any zines with articles mentioning the words Black Metal; especially the Norwegian bands of the early 90's.
MySpace is the popular way to currently check out a band. It's the mentality of the times; it's like the one stop shopping trends of the big box stores of the West. It makes a certain kind of sense why certain bands make a point to not have a MySpace site or even an Internet site at all. Regardless, you need to somehow connect with the globally affected quick fix mentality of the majority and MySpace fills that need. Art that isn't represented on the net sadly has a reduced, specialized audience.
An ultimate question ok. According of the band's name, who enslaved to the man?
Most of humanity is enslaved by some part of their psyche. It depends on the archetypes you gravitate towards, be it religion, violence, enlightenment, power, self-destruction, apathy etc.
Ok, that was all, thanks for your time bro! You can add anything you want for the Xtreemmusic ..s readers.
Thanks for your interest, see you on the other side.