No problem, thanks for the interview!!
It's a pleasure! NOVEMBERS DOOM has just released your 5th album, "The Pale Haunt Departure", how have sales been for the album so far?
Well the album just came out barely a month ago, so it's a bit early to say for sure, but it seems to be doing well and getting around. We've got much better distribution this time around, where it's evem in the major chains like Borders, Tower, and FYE. So that helps alittle bit to. I think this will probably sell more than any of our previous discs easily.
Are you happy with how the album turned out?
Yes, actually we're probably more pleased with this album than any of the old ones. This is the first time that I can sit down and listen to our cd without cringing too much and hitting the fast forward button to skip certain songs. I feel that this is definitley the most "consistant" album we've made. The writting, performance, and the production all turned out pretty much the way we were hoping, so that's good.
Who are some of the influences musically and lyrically of NOVEMBERS DOOM?
We're actually pretty diverse and vared in our tastes. As a whole I think we're influenced alot by stuff of PINK FLOYD, THE DOORS, BLACK SABBATH, TROUBLE, CANDLEMASS, and alot of early 90s metal like ENTOMBED, GRAVE, PESTILENCE, SINDROME, and MAIMED. We each have different tastes as well. I enjoy alot of classic rock and eighties pop new wave stuff as well as KISS and THE BEATLES, and I really like old progressive rock too. Vito is very into power metal and industrial. Joe likes everything from MOTORHEAD to THE WATERBOYS. Brian likes alot of industrial, noise, and goth. Paul tends to be the most "death metal" one of the band, though he likes alot of different stuff as well. All of this stuff influences us in some way or another.
How does it feel to look back on the past 16 years in the buisness? Did you ever imagine NOVEMBERS DOOM would last this long?
Well I myself have only been with the band about six or seven of thoes sixteen years, though I have known the band closely for almost their entire existence. I don't think I expected either ND or myself for that matter to still be doing this stuff all these years later, but I'm glad that we managed to prservere. I think a big part of the reason that we've lasted this long is because of the growth and development in our sound and writting that's occured over the years, and we've not gotten stale or in a rut.
How do you think NOVEMBERS DOOM has developed through the years?
Well we started out basicly a straight forward slow doom metal band. Gradually the band started to take more chances and expand the sound through introducing new elements into the writing that come from outside the death metal realm, or even the metal scene in general. We've started to care less and less over the years about fitting into any particular scene or category, and just write music that comes naturally even if it's not typical or expected. Plus, every new musician that was come into the band has brought something new to the table, so that helps out with growth as well.
How long did it take to write "The Pale Haunt Departure"?
We really took our time with the writing this time, partically because we added Vito to the lineup in early 2003, and it took some time for us to get used to his writing and playing, and vice versa. We demoed about four songs in the fall of 2003, just to get an idea of where things were heading and then we recorded the album in the fall of 2004. So basically we took well over a year writing and refining the songs until we were satisfied with them. It seemed to work pretty well.
Are there any tour plans for 2005?
We just got back from playing the South by Southwest festival in Austin and soon we'll be heading to Minneapolis to play the Metalfest out there with SODOM and DEW SCENTED and others. After that it's just some dates here and there, no defijite "tours" yet. We're looking into the possibilities of that though. We are scheduled to play in The Netherlands in October at the ProgPower festival and most likely do a mini-tour out there then in the UK and maybe elsewhere hopefully.
Ok last question Larry, what's your view on music sharing on the internet?
Ahhh, a tricky one......well, see the use of the internet to spread your music and everything is awesome, and it's done us alot of good. However, when it comes to people downloading entire CDs for free without our permission, then it kinda hurts us because being an indie band, every single CD sale counts. And that money doesnt go into our pockets, it basically keeps the band going in terms of paying for us to make shirts or tour or make more CDs. If we could afford to give it all away for free we would, but unfortunately we can't. However, we've always offered free tracks for download on our site because we do encourage people to check out some of the songs before they decide if they want to buy it. If you can't really decide after hearing a few tracks, then I dunno. Basically it boils down to the fact that, we can't stop people from downloading our CDs, but we'd appreciate it if people who download our songs and enjoy it, go out and buy it afterwards. Honestly, our packaging and artwork and everything that comes with the CD. It does closely tie in the entire listening experience so if you're only getting the music I think you're missing out on the important part of it all.
Well thank you Larry for your time, and good luck in the future!!
Thank you again for the interview. It's my pleasure.