Page 20 - The NOISE November 2015

north in the north
interVieW BY
MiKe WiLLiAMS
Music is, above anything else, the sonic creation of a soundtrack to life. Like art, the written word, and the air we breath, music is an essential component of what it means to be a human being. Like most genres, the community of musicians that comprise the wildly large umbrella that is metal are dedicated to mastering their creative form and, like all masters, that progression is a marvel in itself to behold. Tuscon’s North is a prime example. From their beginnings over ten years ago to their most recent release, the growth that this band has shown can only be measured in immense leaps and bounds. The Noise caught up with drummer Zach Hansen to retrace the footsteps of these doom-metal giants in anticipation of their upcoming show at Firecreek Coffee on November 8. A must see for fans of the heavy!
You’re celebrating your ten year anniversary with a two song cassette entitled Through Raven’s Eyes. Cassettes have seen a resurgence in the sludge scene, what moved you to this format over the more standard vinyl release?
With Through Raven’s Eyes, we talked about doing a split with the band Northless, great guys and good friends of ours, and the names alone are a good enough reason to do it, but then we signed to Prosthetic Records. We told them about what we were doing and they said that’s great, as long as we get to do something with those songs, since they’re on our label now. They wanted to do a two song digital release, but we decided to do the single, which is this cassette. It’s hard to do a two song release, like it’d have to be a 7” or maybe even a 10” and it gets pricey. North has done a lot of cassettes recently, because they’re inexpensive and it’s a fast turn-around. I don’t want to say cassettes are novelty, but people really like them. The look, the aesthetic is pleasing, and it’s a souvenir that your can pick up for $4-$5 at a show an actually listen to it. And it’s beyond a visual download code. You can’t hold a download.
And you actually have a platform for art to come with a release as well, definitely a medium that’s been dying quickly in the age of the digital format.
Right! With digital downloads, you’re losing the art. With digital downloads, people aren’t looking at anything while they listen to the record.
Arizona is experiencing something of a doom/post-metal/sludge renaissance right now, thanks to the hard work of band’s like yourselves; however, North has been at it significantly longer than most other projects today. What was heavy music in AZ like when the band first formed and what projects were you looking at as having the right sound? Obviously, Neurosis jumps to mind ...
When we first started, we were solely instrumental and took a lot from the post-rock, progressive scene. It wasn’t until a month or two before we brought in another guitar player, who has now been with the band for nearly ten years. I hate saying, “Yeah, we brought him in later,” because he wasn’t with us for all of two months. Ha! But the addition of Matt was instrumental to the development of our heavy sound. Pelican was a huge influence because them and Bongripper were really the biggest post-metal, instrumental metal band and there just wasn’t a scene for that. We were really starting from scratch. It’s crazy to see all these other bands coming to fruition throughout the years. It’s great to be a trailblazer and, I don’t want to say “inspire,” that might be taking too much credit, but it’s just great to see other bands come along doing similar things. Neurosis was a big one, obviously, and Isis. The band Rosetta from Philadelphia was a huge personal influence, just watching how they work, wrote and conducted their business. Really, a lot of friends’ bands.
Like Pelican, when you first started, you were instrumental; however, the last couple releases that came out featured some amazing vocals and lyrics. What prompted the change?
Whoo! That was a while ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. We felt like we were getting stale. We were only 18, 19 at the time and we didn’t want to get pigeon-holed into that post-rock, instrumental sound. So, in trying to develop beyond that, we thought vocals would propel us to the next level and broaden our horizons. The way I saw it was adding vocals might make us less popular in the short-term, but it’d help us break-through and reach a greater audience, which is what everyone wants to do. You don’t want to be stuck playing to the same five or ten people every night. I don’t want to say marketability, I mean, look at what we’re
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doing, but a broader appeal could be achieved. If we didn’t find the right guy, we wouldn’t have done it but, but we got Kyle who we’d known for a long time. He added so much to the band, even on a personal level and brought a really nice balance. I think that’s a big thing: you can bring as many people as you want into a band and if you don’t coalesce properly, it’ll never work.
As North is taking off on tour right after one of the Southwest’s largest and most acclaimed metal festivals, Southwest Terrorfest, is going on and this year’s line-up is absolutely focused on stoner/ doom metal, were you wanting to get in on it as well?
We wish we could! We’ve done it all three years in a row and, just this year, David Rogers who runs Terrorfest told us, “Hey, I’m going to start alternating bands.” So, we’ll be on the slate for next year instead. We were going to be one of the secret shows, but with all the touring, the guys just couldn’t work it in. Obviously, we’d love to be playing with Sleep, but we’ve had our fair share. Ha! However, Matt and I have another band called Languish and are opening the Sleep bill, so we’re kind of there ...
The band called The Great Silence “a monumental opus” that took “years of suffering” with its follow-up Metaonia as a “transition EP.” Where does Through Raven’s Eye’s fit into your progression as artists?
We wanted to showcase the beginning of the mastering of our sound. Metaonia was the first record as a three piece and it was a quick turn-around. The Great Silence was just years of suffering, member turn-over, and it was just such a pain to write and create. We called it our opus because it really was just so much suffering. We’d bring someone in, lose somebody else
... It’s a very long record that took forever to put together and Metaonia was different. It came together fast because it was just the three of us getting to know each other as a three piece. We don’t anticipate adding another member or even losing another member; if we lost one of the three of us, we’d probably stop the band. Metaonia was the final piece of the puzzle. The transition into the final form of North. So, Through Raven’s Eyes is the beginning of the mastery of that sound and it also serves as the preview to our full-length.
Are there any projects you’ve gotten to perform with that got a total fan-nerd reaction from North?
Yes! Totally! Definitely Sub Rosa from Salt Lake City. I nerded out way hard and might have creeped them out, actually ... Rosetta when we first met them, which was so long ago, but I’ve always been such a huge fan and we’ve now gotten to play four shows with them. Alcest, too! There’s just been so many. I just nerd out over everybody and love being able to play with all these bands. Just meeting them and having them as contemporaries, which we totally aren’t always. Ha! And everyone is always so gracious and nice. The scene we participate in, no one’s a rock-star and it’s so community based. It makes you feel grateful that you’re doing this at all.
Final question, there’s plans for a 2016 full length, also on Prosthetic records. What can you tell us about the upcoming release?
It is written. The sound is everything that North has been. It’s heavy, gloomy, contemplative, and technical. And it’s fun! We’re really enjoying every song on this album and every song is put together with the utmost care. We know this is our first big chance. It’s a Prosthetic full- length, you know? Hopefully, it’ll be followed by plenty of touring and our biggest exposure yet to a mass market. We’re bringing that traditional North heaviest and suffering, while keeping the emotional aspect of it. It’s a really progressive record, even though I hate saying that. Ha!
| Mike Williams knows his different varieties of metal. music@thenoise.us
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