Interview with Shelmerdine (Dark Awake)
Hail Shelmerdine, welcome to my small, own inferno, Archangel’s Lantern! First of all, tell the readers the history about the beginnings of Dark Awake. Where did you get inspirations and ideas back in time to create your dark ambient band from? How would you define the style of Dark Awake?
- Dark Awake is a martial/neoclassical/neofolk/dark ambient/ritual/post industrial band from Greece and was founded by me (SHELMERDINE VI°) around 2002 Anno Domini.
Dark Awake is a path for me to express my philosophy, my views and my magical experiences. The music is inspired by occult subjects and has a strong philosophical and alchemical context.
All Instrumentation, Orchestration, Human Bones (Kangling), Apocalyptic Sounds, Production is done by me and the Narrations, Choirs and Vocals by Sekte.
The Music and Image exploring the fields of SYMPHONIC NEOCLASSICAL ORCHESTRAL APOCALYPTIC FOLK MARTIAL DARK AMBIENT RITUAL OLD NOISE POST INDUSTRIAL!
Thematically and musically it's about the topics, like runes, paganism,esoteric occult and other subjects with neoclassical instruments, ambient soundscapes, human bones instruments, etc.
When did you start to play the musical instruments? Which musical instruments can you play? Do you have a musical education?
- In the middle of 90's I was start playing and learn alone guitar. I haven't any musical education.
I'm interested now only for the orchestration with neoclassical instruments, ambient soundscapes, human bones instruments, etc.
After listening to the albums of Dark Awake, I must admit, I enjoyed all of your tracks, as they are well-composed pieces of dark art with a specific occult and an obscure atmosphere. How the process of creating a new composition is look like? Which are your favourite composers?
- I turn the deep thought into music by achieving a situation where the mind is immobile to be able to perceive the subtle vibrations of inspiration.
Some music examples from my music influences are Dead Can Dance, The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath A Cloud, Throbbing Gristle, Zero Kama and many others..
Dark Awake has a very rich discography since 2008. Would you be so kind to speak about the releases? Which persons were invited as special guests for your materials? Your band worked and works with a lot of different labels. Enlighten us about the circumstances of these collaborations, please.
- We have released (on physical audio formats like vinyls, CD-s, tapes) 6 full length albums, 2 mini albums, 1 vinyl 7'' EP, 1 split album (with HYPERBOREI) and we have participated in some compilations with other bands.
We take into account when choosing a label the reciprocal curiosity and esteem, the chance to improve, same goals.
In our last album “Atropos Of Eudaimonia” we had 2 guests, one was Giordano Bruno (Prince of Agony) from the Italian cult black metal band EVOL who has taken the artwork pictures for the CD and the other was Richard Weeks (from Carnivorous Forest) who has added male vocals on the “Kneel To The Cross” (song cover by Sol Invictus).
Now let’s talk about the lyrical conception of Dark Awake. What should we know about your lyrical themes? Who writes the lyrics in the band? How many different languages and titles you used yet in your materials?
- The tracks that we used lyrics is not too many. In general our thematology is taken by subjects as Ahrimanic Persian Sorcery, Anachronism, Art, Baroque, Goetia, Dandysm, Elitism, Enochian, Erotism, Fantasy, History, Literature, Occultism, Orientalism, Mars, Nietzsche, Luciferian, Renaissance, Romanticism, Runes, Saturn, Secret Societies, Sethanic Witchcraft, Sigils, Symbolism, Sumerian Civilization, Zoroastrian, Zos Kia, Victorian, W.O.T.A.N., 1700-s, 1800-s, 1900-s, 1920-s..
I have write some Lyrics but usually we take parts from philosophical and occult grimoires.
What kind of literature do you prefer? What are your favourite authors/books?
- I'm reading a lot just to mention some books by Austin Osman Spare, Guido von List, Karl Maria Wiligut, Stephen Flowers, Evola, Dion Fortune, Crowley and many others..
Name us the historical era(s), where you would live with pleasure, if you could choose from.
- In ancient Greece.
Which occult teachings, articles are the closest to you?
- Runes, NAOS, Chaos Magick, Goetia, Astral Projections, Psychic Vampirism, Necronomicon but I use my own methods.
You are from Hellas. What mysterious places would you recommend us from your beautiful ancient land? Greece is not only famous as a country with rich cultural and historical heritage.
- All the ancient ritual places from Hellas.
ευχαριστώ πολύ!/Thanks a lot, Shelmerdine! In the end, please send some thoughts from Dark Awake to the readers of Archangel’s Lantern.
- I would like to thank you about this interesting interview.
DEFEAT MAN AND BE A GOD!
Important links:
Bandcamp: https://darkawake.bandcamp.com
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