Usipian

Posted on Oct 2, 2005

by Anders

The Danish band Usipian was formed in the year 2000, on the ashes of the death metal band Gothic Domain... Vocalist Toke Eld and guitarist Tais Pedersen carried on the torch and was soon joined by drummer Nis Rode Larsen. There were some line-up changes during the next couple of years, before the band finally settled with guitarist Jeppe Hasseriis and the newest member bassist Kent Værens. The 5 make up a deadly squadron with their base solid tightened in old school death metal, but not affraid of spicing it up with other elements and a nice deal of technical wickedness. If that sounded compelling, you should check out their debut album "Dead Corner Of The Eye" just released by the Swedish label Metal Fortress Entertainment. I got a nice talk with vocalist Toke Eld about the new album and the band in general!

Hails, how are things in the Usipian camp?

Hey there. Well things are pretty good at the moment I must say. We are getting the first reviews for "Dead Corner Of The Eye", and it seems that people like it, which of course makes our efforts worth it.

Will you start off by introducing yourself and tell us why you play metal?

Well I'm the singer of Usipian and I guess you can say I play metal because I wanted to be a rockstar hehe. Most people who have a great passion for music, whether it’s metal, hip hop, techno or other genres, tends to have a desire to contribute them. In my case I started out playing bass actually, but I found that singing was cooler, so I gave that a try instead. I started out squealing like a pig, but luckily I improved over the years. Metal was always the one genre where my heart lay and that is why metal is still my music of choice.

A small introduction of the rest of the Usipian gang will be great as well, with a bit about their strong and weak sides well.

Hmm okay I can give it a try:

Tais and I was founding members of Gothic Domain back in 1995 which mean we have a ten year anniversary as band mates this December… We also have one big thing in common as we both became parents earlier this year. Actually we have known each other for the majority of our lives, which is a bit funny if you think about it. His great strength I would say is that he is very calm no matter what happens. He is also a very good guitarist. His weakness would be that he can be a bit lazy and that he doesn't challenge him self that much. But it should be noted that becoming a parent is no walk in the park hehehe.

Nis was with Usipian from the beginning (in 2000) but was a very close friend before that. I have a pretty strong bond with him both as a band member and as a friend. We also lived together (no gay stuff though) for 6-8 months. Nis is very important for Usipian because he is very passionate about the metal scene. It's good to have people like that, because it is rather important to be in touch with other people you know. I think you could categories that as one of his strengths. Another strength is his tendency to constantly improve his drums skills, which is always a good thing. A weak side is probably his anal approach to write so correctly that it sometimes makes you wanna puke heheh… I promise you getting a sms or writing with him on msn can be the most boring thing ever if he is in his professor mode.

Jeppe became a member when our old guitarist quit, and it was much needed because we were all a little tired and uncreative. Nothing much happened in the band at that time, new blood was needed, and Jeppe was the perfect injection. Jeppe was a really good friend of the band as well before he joined us. Jeppe is really good with a computer and it's good to have a more technical individual in a band, because we can do most things ourselves. I'm not particular interested in that kind of stuff because I simply doesn't have the patience. I'm the kind of guy who'd rather smash a computer than fixing it. Jeppe has a lot of patience which is a good strength to have. He is also very good to adapt to what kind of riffs you want him to play. His weakness… hmmm he gets kinda annoying when he's drunk heheh.

Kent is the one I know the least to be honest, but he has become a good friend, and a very creative force in Usipian. He's a very passionate musician and metal fanatic. His strength is definitely in writing some cool, strong and wicked riffs, the kind of riffs that grows on you. His patience is as low as my own, which, by some, could be described as a weakness. Others just find it to be a funny feature hehe.
 
You are now ready with your debut full length "Dead Corner Of The Eye", how has it so far been received?

So far it's been pretty well received! All the reviews, so far, has been in the top end of the rating scale, thus we can't really complain. Sales wise it's way too early to say anything, but at least it's viewed upon being more than just your average death metal album.

How do you feel about it?

I feel pretty good about it! There will always be small things that you would like to change after you've heard the album through 20 times, but I'm very proud about it. I feel we have released a strong debut death metal album, and that is what counts.

What do you expect from the album?

You always hope that people likes the efforts you've been making but its almost impossible to predict how people will react. Some reviewer once called us a very good demo band, but time would tell if we were a good album band. Well I hope that people in general see us as more than a one trick pony now. I expected people to like it, but didn't have the hope to see such positive reviews as the ones we have seen so far. I also think most reviewers have been spot on by describing us, and comparing us, to early 90ties death metal bands. It's no secret that most of us listen to that specific period of death metal.  

Usipian has been around for 5 years now, why did it take that long for you to release a full length?

I think the main reason is that we haven't been pushing ourselves enough. A bit of laziness on our behalf perhaps. But I'm actually happy about it, because it means we have been evolving. We wouldn't have been able to release an album of this standard three years ago.

How long time have you used on writing the material?

We had half of the album for quite some time, the other half we wrote about 6-12 months before we went to the studio.

The older songs that you have re-recorded, how much have they been re-worked?

'An Everborn' is the oldest track on the album. We recorded it back in 1998 as Gothic Domian. It exists exactly in the same form and pace as it was back then. Nothing has been changed about it. We recorded it to greet and acknowledge those people who have been faithful to the band and has been following us. You could call it a little "thank you" note or whatever. 'Brought Upon Chains' was on our debut demo CD, and has been altered a little bit to make it more death metal sounding than it did. 'Shadows Of The Once Unseen' and 'Clouded Restrainment' sounds just like they did on our 7 inch record, only different in sound of course.

How much time was spent in the studio with the recording and mixing?

We spent about a month in total I believe. Or maybe 5 weeks.

Is it still Tais who are the main song writer in the band, and how much influence do the rest of you have on the final outcome?

Nope. We all work together to get the songs done, and I would say we all have equal influence on the finished product.

How does the song writing process in Usipian work?

Usually Jeppe, Kent or Tais have some ideas for some riffs or a song structure, and record them on computer. From there we all sit down and listen to it, where Nis then can come with some basic drum ideas and further song structure. When the guys have some samples finished I get to listen to them, and can come up with some ideas where to change pace or other ideas for riffs. When a song is finished, and we all agree that it's finished, we then begin rehearsing it. All lyrics are written after the song is finished as well.  

Can you tell a bit about the lyrical content on the album?

Simply said the lyrics have a negative approach towards humanity. They shouldn't be confused by being political though. It's more meant in a spiritual sense. I feel that people have less and less personality and a sense of themselves and I just feel I have to address that somehow. I don't mean that all people should be opposite of everyone and everything by all means, just at least have their own mind in what they are doing. That would be the basic description on the lyrical content. But that would, of course, be boring in eleven songs, if it was all there was to it. I’m a huge sci-fi and movie fan so I tend to mix that in my lyrics as well. Some of the songs on the album are just movie songs. 'Dead Reckoning', for example, is a Dead Trilogy (Quadrilogy) reference. There are others as well, but you have to guess it yourself hehe.

How did you end up with the album title "Dead Corner Of The Eye" and what are your thoughts behind it?

Well, the title just struck me one day. It's like the "blind spot": The things you don't see, yet still they are there to come. Again it's the regression of mankind that's on a plate here. I just thought the title would make a catchy album title and sum the lyrical content of the album up as well.

How did the band end up on Metal Fortress?

We have stayed in contact since they released our 7 inch EP "Clouded Restrainment" last year. When we had recorded the album they offered us a good contract (at least for a debuting band) so we thought "why not?" instead of using months on promoting it to others.

Is it going well with the label?

It seems to be working very well, although we are at an early stage when it comes to promoting the release. But so far MFE have sent it out to reviewers and radio stations all over the world, and are now preparing advertisement in selected relevant media. It seems that the label is supporting us all they can.

The label is known for being keen on releasing vinyl, will "Dead Corner On The Eye" be released on vinyl as well?

You bet! But when is the question I cannot answer. Soon I hope…

How do you feel about vinyl, are you a fan of the black gold?

I was never a vinyl fan. I mean it looks the deal and everything, but I never got to be a collector. I have a large collection of CDs and DVDs and somewhere you gotta draw the line right? Now I have my child and my car (which is my second child) as well… enough is enough… but damn vinyl just looks killer. Nis is a vinyl maniac though.

The cover artwork for the album is made by the mighty Dan Seagrave, how did it end up like that and why did you chose him?

I guess it started with me writing with him some years ago about doing a painting for me personally, and for personal reasons. It never really happened, but as I was in contact with him we know he wasn't unreachable. Dan would always be the number one choice artist to use, but first we thought he was too expensive for our rather limited budget. We were thinking about doing a computer "generated" cover, but quickly threw that idea away, as it sucks. We just thought "Well fuck it" and went ahead to make Dan do the cover for us. The reason is of course that we are all big fans. Me and Nis in particular. And who better to be represented on the front cover than Dan Seagrave if you are trying to re-create the feeling of early 90ties death metal!? It was no-brainer really. I was a lot in touch with him during the process as he was very keen on captivating the lyrical feeling throughout the album. We had a basic idea for the cover and Dan quickly started realizing what he could do with it. Yeah it was just a really good experience to "see" the genius at work. And you can bet your ass that we're gonna use him again.

Are there any touring being planned as support for "Dead Corner Of The Eye"?

There's been a lot of talk but nothing has been finalized yet. We'll just have to see what might happen.

How do you look upon the future of Usipian?

Personally I think its looking pretty good. We have released a solid debut album in my opinion, and that's always a good way to start. Hopefully we can really move forward with this album, and be a well known death metal act.

We have now waited 5 years on your first full length album, how long will you make us wait on the next?

Heh, yeah well not another five I can pretty much guarantee you. Actually we're hoping to record sometime early next year, depending on how much touring we’re going to do to support this album. It's always hard to predict, but that's the goal. We're already writing material as we speak….erhm or wrote…

Which albums have been listening a lot to lately?

I've been listening a little bit to the new Nile and Hate Eternal.  

Thanks a ton for doing this interview with me, if you have anything to add, feel free to add it now!

You're welcome buddy! GRRROOOAAGH!

Usipian website