With their second album „Ash Of The Womb“ the post-rock band ILLUDIUM around mastermind Shantel Amundson has entered Prophecy Productions in a worthy way. We took the opportunity of the release to ask the musician some questions about the background of the album and the band as well as about her artistic history. In the following interview, Amundson explains what influence the raging wildfires in California in the late summer of 2020 had on the creation of the new record, which musical role models of hers one wouldn’t expect from ILLUDIUM and why, from her point of view, it’s not important for listeners to know the intention behind an album.
According to your label, you named yourselves after the concept of „Illud Tempus“ by philosopher Mircae Eliade. What is that about and why did it seem like a fitting representation for your music?
I was very drawn to the work of Mircae Eliade and Joseph Campbell in my early years as a student of Anthropology, that was right about the time that ILLUDIUM was formed and much of our early material was written. The name for ILLUDIUM was inspired by Eliade’s concept of „Illud Tempus“ in his work „The Sacred and the Profane“, referring to sacred time. For this project it means to reflect a sort of nostalgia for a lost paradise, not just in the sense of it being a primordial place but rather as a liminal space of oneness and renewal. I chose the name because it captures a sense of what I am seeking to embody in my music, and a state of being that I implore the listeners to at least consider, if not attempt to discover through their experiences in listening to our music.
Most people probably won’t see any connection between such abstract concepts and their everyday life. In your opinion, to what extent can such considerations nevertheless have meaning in life?
Music often allows us to de-focalize from whatever chaotic elements exist in our external environments, and enter a more personalized atmosphere where our thoughts, dreams, sorrows, and musings come to life. Some songs and albums can become the soundtrack, a sonic backdrop to our daily existence. I could be listening to a concept album in a foreign language („Sorni Nai“ by Kauan being an excellent example) riding the train home, and in that moment the music takes on a whole different, personal meaning that is far from the idea that the artist sought to put across conceptually in their music. Abstraction allows listeners to be able to uniquely experience and navigate their own way symbolically with music, giving a distinctive intimacy to an artist’s work.
With most bands it’s quite obvious which artists influenced them. The fact that you we’re inspired by Smashing Pumpkins, Isis, Kate Bush and Cocteau Twins, according to your label, however, would probably be guessed by only a few. How is it that one would rather think of Emma Ruth Rundle or Alcest when thinking of bands with a similar sound to yours?
I think there is a big difference between what is formative to artists, and what their music tends to evolve into. The majority of musicians are drawn creatively at an early age alongside a multitude of genres and artists that are quite specific to a certain time-period. Sure, musicians who play black metal are quite obviously influenced by the canon of artists that fall within that genre, so it might be obvious to some where their influences originate. But many of those artists were similarly inspired to learn their instruments by artists outside of that genre. For me, progressive rock and 90’s alternative form the foundation of my inspiration. I wouldn’t be a musician without bands like King Crimson or Deftones. Artists like Kate Bush and Liz Fraser similarly inspired me from an early age to view and identify myself simply as a musician, capable of holding my own power and finding my own way to innovate as a female musician in a historically male-dominant, and sexist industry.
You’ve recently signed to the German underground label Prophecy Productions – not the most obvious choice for an American band. How did you get in touch with the label?
I believe the story is that Martin Koller caught wind of us through a performance at Thirst for Light V. Prophecy Productions has long been one of my favorite record labels, and we had just started to put work into what would become this upcoming album, so naturally we were honored and very eager to start a relationship with them.
You wrote your new album „Ash Of The Womb“ during the severe wildfires in California in the late summer of 2020. Did you experience the disaster firsthand? How did the fires affect your lives?
All of us living on the West Coast have experienced these fires in our own way. If not directly, we have all known friends or family who have been evacuated, lost their homes or have been displaced during this ongoing catastrophe. We are all too familiar with the odor of wildfire smoke and ash falling from the sky. The fire seasons really blend together into one ongoing nightmare, dormant during some times of the year if we are lucky (there is currently a wildfire raging south of my home county in the dead of Winter). It’s something that has informed the way that nearly every person on the West Coast lives their lives, and there is an underlying current of anxiety and dread for the return of each new season.
Although „Ash Of The Womb“ was written under dire conditions, which are evident when looking at the artwork, it sounds surprisingly peaceful or at least comforting in many places. How were you able to retain this gentleness?
I returned to the memories and sacred places of my childhood, both for inspiration and refuge when it was difficult to breathe. Despite the tragedy that this earth and its inhabitants have endured, new life continues to emerge from the ashes like hope reborn. That harmony between the dark and soft aspects of the album is meant to reflect that peace that exists during times of great strife, even if it is difficult to find.
The album title seems to refer to death, but also focuses on something biologically female – the womb. What is the idea behind this particular choice of words?
There is an untold story to this album that I will likely open up to the idea of sharing at some point, but at this moment I have chosen to focus less on my personal experiences with birth and death in hopes of shedding light on just how intertwined those two processes are. The title overall ties together everything that the album is about conceptually, but focusing on the more biological components, it embraces the torment and loss that often comes along with giving birth. Aside from some of the more obvious themes of „Ash of the Womb“, survival has to be the most important to me, and I feel as though that is something that is something we can all relate to right now outside of the context of reproduction.
Women are still underrepresented in rock and metal, and when a band does happen to have a female lead, it’s sometimes turned into a gimmick (for example „female-fronted metal“). In your opinion, does the scene need to catch up in terms of inclusion?
We have a long way to go in regards to inclusion and representation within music. I understand and respect why some wish to use and embrace the term „female-fronted“ (although I find that it is largely used by cis-men in the industry), but speaking personally, I am not interested in promoting my music in such a manner. Quite frankly, I cringe every time I hear the word „female-fronted.“ It has been assumed many times by professionals that I am merely a vocalist or that I am fronting a band for other male musicians. It would be a dream of mine to have people just hear and feel my music, and keep most elements of my identity private, but I have tried this in the past with projects and there is some degree of transparency about who I am as an individual that I would like to convey through my art.
Getting back to your new record: „Ash Of The Womb“ sounds a lot more well-rounded than „Septem“ in terms of production. How did you go about this?
I think with both albums I would have liked to focus a lot more time with production, but it is most obvious with our first release. Our goal was to record a very raw and organic album, and there wasn’t much thought put into creating ambient passages or adding textural samples. I had been sitting on the material for a while at that point and Greg and I really wanted to move forward with new material we had started to write, so „Septem“ was really about celebrating where we had come to be as musicians and collaborators at that point in time.
Looking back, how do you feel about your first album?
I have mixed feelings, but overall it took a lot of strength and vulnerability to put „Septem“ out. Both albums have a certain degree of rawness and imperfection to them, and I’m sure a lot of artists will agree that often with albums you have to just finish it and put it out there, otherwise the fine-tuning and re-arrangement of songs can be an endless endeavor. There are a few songs on there I am really proud of, and a few that I can’t bear to listen to but overall it holds a special place in my heart.
In artwork and music videos you rely on a black and white look – as many other bands do. What drew you towards this particular aesthetic?
This is something particular to this album that I utilized in attempting to juxtapose two concepts that are not typically associated with one another: birth and mortality, of death and regeneration. All along the West Coast – in California, Oregon, and Washington – there are places brimming with new life, amidst a landscape charred and blackened by the fire. It’s a surreal thing to behold. I sought out Daniel Hart of Festering Wounds for much of the artwork surrounding the release, their visual style and preference for black and white photography really met well with the vision and aesthetic of this album.
On the surface, „Ash Of The Womb“ is a typical post-rock album, only when listening closely does one notice special details like the synthesizers in „Soma Sema“. Does it bother you that some people might hastily dismiss your art as arbitrary because of that?
I haven’t really heard either of those sentiments expressed so far, if I’m being honest. It has been really fascinating to me to hear feedback from reviewers or folks in the industry who have attempted to pigeonhole us into a particular genre, about what they are hearing with this release. But at the end of the day, I’m not bothered by critics or genre-tags that I am in disagreement with, everyone is entitled to their own tastes and opinions.
How do you handle this matter yourself – does music have to be unique to catch your attention or excite you?
I think in the past I would definitely say that it does, as I have historically turned away from mainstream genres in favor of more progressive and experimental artists. I’m pretty picky in regards to what I listen to, but there are a lot of artists these days that draw me in that I’m sure many people would likely turn their nose up to.
Compared to other post-rock bands, you rarely seem to use effects like reverb and delay. Do you think that there’s too much use of effects in this genre?
Never. Give me all of the lush tones. I am a total sucker for reverb-ladened music, although I think distinctiveness does play a big factor here. A great example of that would be bands like DIIV, Pinkshinyultrablast, and Holy Fawn. Their music is obviously quite heavy on the effects, but I find the songwriting and melodic arrangement in these bands to be very unique. Naturally, bands on the post-rock or shoegaze spectrum are going to be experimenting with tones and textures in their music and there are a considerable amount of bands that overdo it. But, there are also instances in which over-doing reverb can be tastefully done.
Do you already have further plans for ILLUDIUM?
Right now the priority is on song-writing, and we are pretty far along into our next release. It has been logistically impossible for us to plan any tours right now given the current Covid climate, but we do have some announcements we are sitting on that I think a lot of our fans will be really excited for. I will say with certainty that a good amount of our fans will be able to see us both in the U.S. and abroad in 2023.
I’d like to go through a short brainstorming session with you to finish. What comes to your mind about the following terms?
I’m going to respond with the first thing that comes to mind, in a few words or a simple sentence. Here we go!
Sustainability: Reciprocal relationships
Screaming vocals: Can be redundant or one of the most visceral, emotive aspects of metal
Winter in California: Coastal Wildfires in the dead of the season.
What you are most proud of as a musician: This album and all the work that everyone involved put into it.
Reproductive rights: Are exactly that.
ILLUDIUM in five years: I don’t quite have the foresight for that, but I’m hoping we will have a few more albums and some major tours under our belt.
Finally, thank you again for your answers. Any last words you’d like to add?
Thank you for your time, and as always to our fans for their support! We are feeling very overwhelmed by the response to the album so far, and are immensely grateful to everyone who has picked up the album and followed us on this journey.
28. März 2022 Stephan Rajchl
Dieses Interview wurde per E-Mail geführt.
Zur besseren Lesbarkeit wurden Smilies ersetzt.