Heol
Telwen
If Celtic folk music is
what's running through your veins then a new pump of oxygen is here to
revive and satisfy you. Heol Telwen's debut album "An Deiz Ruz" is here
to please your needs. Mylgaon Vibuc’h, the band's bass player offered us
some insight regaridng the band and their future plans.
1. HELLO THERE AND CONGRATULATIONS ON “AN
DEIZ RUZ”! IT’S A WONDERFUL PIECE OF MUSIC! ARE YOU CONTENT WITH THE FINAL
RESULT OR IS THERE ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO CHANGE?
Hailz Christine! Thank you for the compliment,
we are pleased if you like ‘An Deiz Ruz’. The final result is great, except
a few points regarding the overall sound. But you have to stop mixing some
day, you can’t go on changing and changing things, perfection is not of
this world! So for a debut album, I think we have achieved a result that’s
not too ‘clinically clean’; I am thinking about all those albums that are
really perfect, with a triggered drumkit & tons of effect-racks, each
and every note placed exactly where the grid of the software says it has
to, and that are totally soulless. ‘An Deiz Ruz’ has a human touch.
As for compositions themselves, I would say
I discovered parts of our music during the studio process, and even after
whilst listening to the album at home. I’ve changed some lines here and
there; I like when music is not static and keeps evolving from the moment
of creation. One thing we could change is our drummer who’s utterly gay…
2. I WROTE IN MY REVIEW THAT YOU PLAY FOLK BLACK
METAL WITH MANY CELTIC AND MEDIEVAL MUSIC INFLUENCES AND A DARK AND EVIL
ATMOSPHERE FLOWING FROM YOUR SONGS. YOUR SONGS HAVE A WARLIKE AND ANCIENT
FEELING. DO YOU AGREE?
Well we don’t claim to play Black Metal at
all! I would say we play Celtic Folk Metal. Our roots in Metal vary from
old-school Heavy Metal to modern ‘post Black Metal’ stuff. When you listen
to ‘An Deiz Ruz’, you can find as many Thrash or Heavy influences as Black
Metal ones! Some parts of our music may sound warlike, some melancholic,
some more energetic as if you were feasting around a fire after a won battle.
I don’t know what you mean saying ‘Medieval’; Celtic music is eternal and
its roots draw their resources in timeless grounds.
3. NOW, LET’S SUPPOSE THAT YOU WERE ASKED TO REVIEW
AND PRESENT YOUR MUSIC. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS
POSSIBLE?
As said above, Heol Telwen plays Celtic Folk
Metal. Each of these three words is as important and descriptive as the
two others to us.
4. ALL YOUR LYRICS, TRACK TITLES AND EVEN THE
BAND NAME ARE IN BRETON. WHY? DON’T YOU THINK THIS MIGHT BE AN OBSTACLE
TO YOUR CAREER? BY THE WAY WHAT DOES “AN DEIZ RUZ” MEAN?
‘An Deiz Ruz’ means ‘A Red Dawn’. The beginning
of a journey in Breton territories.
We chose a Breton name to stress a strong
Celtic identity. We mix Breton, English and French languages. They bring
different emotions and are used for different purposes. As for the obstacle…
first I’m not sure people often read lyrics and if yes, if it really matters
for them to know what topics are developed within them. Do you understand
Norwegian, Polish, Lithuanian? I guess not! And it doesn’t prevent you
from headbanging to the music bands speaking those languages play, does
it?
Actually, we don’t play music to start a career!
And most of all, making a career in metal today is quite something you
can merely dream about. We won’t ever live from our music, you know.
5. WELL, SINCE EVERYTHING IS IN BRETON AND VERY
FEW PEOPLE KNOW THIS LANGUAGE COULD YOU PLEASE PINPOINT THE MAIN TOPICS
YOUR LYRICS DEAL WITH?
Some songs deal with traditional Celtic topics
and mythology. A song is an extract from a poem from 5th century. And I’d
like to note everything is not in Breton; some of the lyrics are written
in French and English!
5. THE ARTWORK AND EVERYTHING ARE EXTREMELY BEAUTIFUL.
WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE OVERALL ARTWORK CONCEPT?
The cover and the inside of the digipack are
really beautiful. The cover is due to George Prasinis, a Greek painter
we got in contact with us thanks to our label (Burning Star Rex). Kraban
worked hard also to illustrate the inside. Those guys are talented!
6. ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THE REVIEWS YOU’VE RECEIVED
SO FAR AND WITH THE FANS’ FEEDBACK? WHAT WAS THE MOST FLATTERING AND WHAT
THE WORST COMMENT YOU READ ABOUT YOUR MUSIC?
Globally, reviews are positive. People seem
to like our music. We played in Paris a few months ago and the venue was
overcrowded with people singing the songs! It is surprising for a young
band, I guess (more surprising were the spotlights exploded by crazy slammers’
shoes!). This is the best feedback we could expect!
On the other hand, sometimes we got bad reviews,
mostly from people who don’t like pagan & folk music, so it’s not really
important. The worst feedback was from a Norwegian webzine, who accused
us (through what we could understand) of plagiarism of Primordial. Even
if we love this band, I don’t see any common point between us… By the way,
we asked precision & translation to the reviewer and he didn’t dare
explain his opinions, so… who cares?
7. WHAT’S, ACCORDING TO YOU, THE BEST AND THE
WORST PART IN YOUR MUSIC?
The best part of our music… a good mix between
Folk & Metal… pagan choirs, Thrash riffs, raging voices, wild atmospheres…
It’s quite impossible for me to answer this question! I love everything
in our music!
The worst… I would mention the cruel absence
of banjo on our album… hahaha
We insisted that Hades plays banjo parts but
he harshly refused…
8. BESIDES THE TYPICAL METAL MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS,
YOU ALSO USE TIN AND LOW WHISTLES AND BOMBARDE. WHY? WHAT DO THOSE INSTRUMENTS
OFFER TO YOUR MUSIC?
We are fond of those traditional Irish instruments,
the way they sound, the melodies you can whistle thanks to them… We plan
to use more and more traditional instruments in the future.
9. BY THE WAY I’M ALWAYS INTERESTED IN FINDING
OUT WHY BANDS CHOOSE A SPECIFIC GENRE TO FOLLOW. SO WHAT APPEALS TO YOU
IN FOLK BLACK METAL?
At the beginning of the band, the members
used to play straight Black Death Metal. Every member liked Celtic &
Breton music, so they decided to compose in a Celtic vein.
10. DO YOU HAVE ANY PLANS FOR LIVE SHOWS? DO YOU
HAVE ANYTHING SPECIAL TO OFFER TO THE FANS IN YOUR SHOWS? ANY EFFECTS,
COSTUMES OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT?
We play with our instruments and our voices…
No costume or light show until now, and we don’t plan to include something
like that in our shows! We play some acoustic titles; that is calm before
the storm of the end of the gigs. What for the future? Wait and see…
11. IF YOUR MUSIC WERE AN EMOTION, WHAT WOULD
IT BE? IF IT WERE A PAINTING, WHAT WOULD IT SHOW?
I would say it is more a panel of emotions
than a single one. Our music expresses at times the calm turning to rage,
or introspections of a small man before Nature…
If it were a painting, I guess a Mondrian
or a Malevitch would fit perfectly… haha. More seriously, a picture representing
an untamed sea, furious black clouds, high cliffs bowing down to the great
ocean…
12. IF YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO INVITE A FAMOUS MUSICIAN
ON STAGE, WHO WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?
We would be proud to guest Keith Fay and John
Ryan, and the entire Cruachan! Their music has been a huge influence on
us, and we had the luck to share the stage with them before drinking and
joking and jamming after the gig in an excellent spirit. Great time, that
night in Germany! Hope we can do it again some day!
13. THANK YOU! THESE LINES ARE YOURS… LEAVE YOUR
MESSAGE!
Thank you Christine for this interview! Raise
your horns and see you soon at a gig venue!
Christine Parastatidou
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