Sure! Ars Onirica is a musical project originally created at the beginning of 2000. With the first line-up, we recorded a demo in 2004, but after that everyone in the band has followed different musical projects until I resumed it in 2018 and I recorded the first album “I: Cold”.
2.Recently your had released your first full length, musically how does it differ from your previous demo?
Actually there are a lot of doom influences and everything is a little bit slower than in the demo. The sound of Ars Onirica nowadays could be described as a junction between doom metal, black metal and dark metal, where sounds of bands of the 90's such as Katatonia, Paradise Lost and Anathema meet the modern ones as those of Shining, Triptykon and Forgotten Tomb.
3.This is your first release since the 2004 demo, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time span?
From 2004 to 2018 I played with a dark metal band called Lykaion and I released two albums with them. Moreover, in 2016 I created also a doom metal band called Invernoir, together with members from Black Therapy and Adimiron, and last year we released a four track EP called "Mourn".
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects you have explored so far with the music?
My previous works were mostly influenced by bad “love-stories”, that fortunately ended! :-)
In this album instead, I tried to explore the suffering that you feel when you loose someone forever without any chance to do something to avoid this. Me and my girlfriend were expecting a baby but unfortunately we lost him, all the album has been influenced by that... I just faced my pain transforming it into music.
5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Ars Onrica'?
It means “art of dreams”. The creators of the name were the original drummer and guitar player, Alessio and Luca; probably they were just trying to find the right moniker to describe the sound of the band.
6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album cover?
Sure! The face you see in the cover is an adaptation of a painting from a great artist called Cristiano De Matteis; I have the original one at home! I choose to use it because it gives me the idea of a person at the window looking outside in a cold winter night thinking about his sorrow without finding a way to ease it... the same feeling that I've been through lately.
7.Currently there is only 1 member in the band, are you open to expanding the line up again or do you prefer to work solo?
I actually love composing all alone, because I can control all the aspects of the music and this is really challenging and stimulating at the same time for me. I truly like to rehearse with the great musicians that are playing with me during live acts, but I find really refreshing, for once, to just meet and play! There’s nothing to do, somehow I am a lone wolf :-)
8.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Probably the best shows we played were the first one after the coming back, and the last one. The first was as opening act for In Mourning (with Katatonia ex drummer Daniel Liljekvist) and Clouds: it was a great emotion to play with artists that I really admire. The last one was with our friends Black Therapy and Lahmia, and the reactions from the public were really good, so I think it has been a really good on stage performance.
9.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
We will play at “I: Cold” release party, then we are scheduled for a doom festival, but at the moment I can't tell you more. Hopefully more dates will soon be announced.
10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black and doom metal?
I didn't expect such a good reaction to my music. I daily receive a lot of good feedbacks from guys all over the world and this is great :) I wrote this album with the heart in my hand and these reactions mean a lot to me.
11.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that you are a part of?
We are recording the first Invernoir album, I hope it could be released in 2020.
12.Where do you see yourself heading into as a musician in the future?
My only goal is to write interesting stuff that makes me feel excited and that could excite the listeners too. My hope for the future is to continue to do this just better and better….
13.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays? Katatonia, Anathema, My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost and all this 90's stuff is always a great inspiration for me, but lately I fell in love with “Dweller on the threshold”, an album of a Norwegian band called Dystopia Nå! a masterpiece of post black/doom.
14.What are some of your non musical interests? I like to walk trough abandoned places, I love to stay in contact with the nature and looking at dusk landscapes by the sea.
15.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thank you for the space you’re giving to Ars Onirica, I hope to meet you and all your readers on tour.
Doom on and enjoy the cold!
| YouTube |
No comments:
Post a Comment