Candlemass Interview with Robert Lowe: Doom Eternal, Eternal Doom
The reputation of Swedish/Texan doom outfit Candlemass goes without saying. I know I’ve said it before, but bassist Leif Edling is in the top three great doom riff-writers, and his powers are as potent as ever on Candlemass‘ new album, Death Magic Doom (Nuclear Blast). I’ll spare the wax poetry and intellectualizing because the record has already been reviewed, but we all know they’re gods among mortals in the international doom scene.
Having interviewed Edling for his recent solo album, Songs of Torment, Songs of Joy (Candlelight), I thought it might be prudent to hit up vocalist Robert Lowe. Lowe being the Texan portion of the band as well as the singer for Solitude Aeturnus — one of the best traditional power doom bands in the US — his perspective was bound to be unique and informative about the inner workings of the band. Failing a phoner for scheduling reasons, I sent some questions via email.
The occasional trouble with email interviews is that (1:) you never get to ask a follow up and (2:) you sometimes fall into the trap of the one or two sentence answer. Particularly as the interview plays out, the subject, answering the whole thing at one, consciously or unconsciously gets bored of what they’re doing and the answers get progressively shorter. Lowe has a little bit of that going on, but there’s still plenty worthwhile in his answers, so please enjoy the Q&A after the jump.
You got to record Death Magic Doom in Sweden as opposed to King of the Grey Islands, which was done in Dallas. How was it different this time around other than the locale? You joined the band shortly before the last record needed to be done. Was there anything you had the opportunity to do this time around that you didn?t get for the last one?
When recording King of the Grey Islands it was basically just me and the engineer. There was no immediate feedback from the band. But I was comfortable recording the vocals because that is what I do. Although recording Death Magic Doom was a little different simply because I was in Stockholm and had my bandmates for either input and/or encouragement which obviously made the recording process a lot different. Leif and I did have several discussions on wordage, phrasing and approach to the actual vocals themselves which did have an impact on how the vocals were laid. So yes in that aspect I did have the opportunity to approach things differently.
How is recording with Candlemass different for you than Solitude Aeturnus?
Well, obviously when doing a Solitude Aeturnus project there is a lot more hands on between John Perez and I. Living in the same state makes it easier to get together and work on the material and flesh it out. With Candlemass, we all know Leif is the mastermind behind the music and I basically step in, do my part and discuss things while recording as to how the vocals shall and/or should be done.
Candlemass is obviously a band who knows their sound and what they want to put on a record, but there?s still growth from album to album. How do you think things have changed this time around and what role have you played in the evolution of the band?
I think the only thing that I brought to the band is a sense of camaraderie and the willingness to work as a five-piece unit. We are all professionals and know how to handle situations and therefore work as a complete team for the desired end result. Thus bringing about one cohesive unit, enjoying what we do.
The band got to do their first US tour in 17 years for King of the Grey Islands. Having been through that with them, did you come out of it feeling more settled as a member of the band?
No, I would have to actually say that the prior European tour and festivals that we did in 2007 helped us to bond as a complete unit before coming over to the States.
How much of the Death Magic Doom writing process were you there for and how involved were you in the lyrics?
None. I showed up the weekend of my 10 day stint in Stockholm for the recording of the album and got straight to work. As mentioned before there was some periods of time when Leif and I did discuss phrasing and wordage.
At what point in their construction do you first hear the songs, and how much of a guideline do you have as far as melodies are concerned?
Well, there is always the demos and the scratch vocals to work with and I just take it from there.
You?ve gotten to re-record a couple Candlemass classics. How do you feel about taking on new material as opposed to the older songs?
I enjoy them both. Not only do I get to refashion the older classics with keeping to their integrity, I also get to add to the new Candlemass of today.
The record starts with ?If I Ever Die? and ends with ?My Funeral Dreams.? How much of the title Death Magic Doom is just a description of the three things most apparent on the record?
That would be better answered by Leif, which he has explained is a culmination of several themes throughout the album. Whether the beginning or the end were a preconceived process, I am not privy to such information, hee hee.
As a fan of Candlemass, how is it for you to be in the band now that maybe some of the novelty has worn off, you?ve done some touring and really had a chance to be a part of making a record? Or has the novelty not worn off at all?
I don’t know if there was any novelty but only a respect for what Candlemass has done and brought to the doom masses. So therefore I will always appreciate my position in the band.
Is there any chance of another US tour?
Not likely this year my friend.
What?s up with the next Solitude Aeturnus record?
As a matter of fact the Solitude Aeturnus camp is currently working on new material. And I would have to say no one is going to be disappointed.
Tags: Candlemass, Gods, Nuclear Blast, Sweden, Texas
