Daniel (Vestiges)
What are your top five albums that were released in 2011? (in order 1-5)
- Downfall of Gaia/In the Hearts of Emperors Split
- Circle Takes the Square - Decompositions Vol. 1 Ch. 1: Rites of Initiation
- Aussitot Mort/Heaven in Her Arms Split
- Altar of Plagues - Mammal
- Raein - Sulla Linea D'Orizzonte Tra Questa Mia Vita e Quella di Tutti
What band did you discover in 2011 (can be a brand new band or an older band) that had an impact on your life? What made them significant?
Downfall of Gaia. Their debut full-length definitely got our attention in 2010, but their side of the split with In the Hearts of Emperors blew us away in 2011. Their music is an amalgamation of so many aspects of our favorite musical styles, including crust, screamo, atmospheric sludge, post-rock, and hardcore, all while coming together with so much power and grace that it seems too good to be true. To be honest, it's hard to imagine that it can be done any better than this and to learn that the band used our record as a reference point for mixing and mastering this split was both surprising and completely flattering. We have since become very close with the band and will be touring extensively with them both domestically and abroad.
How will you remember 2011 (in terms of music)?
2011 was a busy year for us as it was the first whole year that we were a full-functioning band. We hadn't announced that we were a band until the release of our debut full-length back in October of 2010, so prior to that we were merely writing, recording, and focusing on completing our lineup in order to hit the road in support of our album. We toured extensively in the United States and Canada on three separate tours this year and followed up our full-length with our newly released split with Ghaust.
What can we look forward to from you in 2012?
We will be touring with Downfall of Gaia on their first of tour of the states this winter and meeting back up with them overseas in the summer. We have two splits that are due out in early 2012 and we will begin writing our next full-length after returning home from our six-week tour in Europe.
What records are you looking forward to most in 2012?
We are really looking forward to Sky Burial's debut full-length, as well as the benefit split between Masakari and Tempest, but we are completely biased since we will be putting out both of these records. Other than that, we are really looking forward to new releases from Skagos, Lake of Blood, Panopticon, Cynarae, Ash Borer, Breag Naofa, and Alcest to name a few.
What did you expect to be huge in 2011 which never made it?
Alda. We have been fans of theirs for quite some time now and had the privilege of playing with them in Seattle over the summer. Their latest release was greatly overlooked and deserved a lot more attention than it received. Tahoma is an amazing album and everyone needs to get their hands on a copy of this record as soon as humanly possible.
