Their debut album Ingress is currently kicking up a big fuss with the Doom/Sludge/Stoner Metal Underground scene and it's not hard to see why. The album showcases everything we LOVE and KNOW from the scene whilst forging their own creative path along the way.
I caught up with Hibernaut recently to discuss their musical past, present and future with this great interview.
You can read my review here of Ingress or you can read my good pal Frazer's excellent review over at Desert Psychlist for a more in-depth analysis.
You can also check out the fantastic review from the awesome site Clean And Sober Stoner.
Hi there. Thanks for doing the interview. How are things with you today?
Hi Steve, we’re excited to do this! And we’re stoked people are digging’ Ingress since its release so things are great!
For folks not in the know, can you give a brief history of how the band came together and where it is today.
I started feeling the creative itch and was having fun riffing out on guitar, a change from playing bass with all my previous bands, also writing lyrics and doing my best with vocals, that was a first for me as well. I was doing demos of songs and I showed them to Zach and asked him to lay down drums.
Hi there. Thanks for doing the interview. How are things with you today?
Hi Steve, we’re excited to do this! And we’re stoked people are digging’ Ingress since its release so things are great!
For folks not in the know, can you give a brief history of how the band came together and where it is today.
I started feeling the creative itch and was having fun riffing out on guitar, a change from playing bass with all my previous bands, also writing lyrics and doing my best with vocals, that was a first for me as well. I was doing demos of songs and I showed them to Zach and asked him to lay down drums.
We played for years together in Dwellers, Subrosa, and a few other bands so it came together quick. We decided to make a band out of it and brought Josh in on bass. Something was missing and we knew our buddy Joey, also of Dwellers and Iota, would bring the heat, in the form of blistering leads of course. Now we’ve got our second album demoed and are ready to start recording it.
How would you describe your own sound. Well apart from it's LOUD and PROGRESSIVE as hell.
Heavy is the go to for me. Sometimes thunderous and driving, at others slow and plodding with a sense of serpentine, writhing psych. A fevered dream enshrouded in loathing and disgust.
Why did you call yourselves HIbernaut.
Hibernaut is meant in some ways to describe a somnambulistic state. Is the reality we think we know nothing but a waking dream? Is anything real, beyond the world we create in our own minds? Are we dimensional orbiters and the grave is nothing but a portal to another plane? I sure don’t know but I like to imagine such nonsense.
You released your new album Ingress recently. What can people expect to hear from this album?
74 minutes of horror themed stories intertwined with psychological/philosophical musings and a visceral sonic assault?!
The album's had a great response from the Underground scene. Has this surprised you the way folks have taken to your album.
Yes it has and it’s really fulfilling. I feel making music is a compulsion, we do it because we have no choice and when it connects with people it becomes a galaxy, no matter how small, that we as a band and as listeners alike occupy. It’s awesome to be part of something bigger than yourself.
What bands and artists influenced you when recording this album?
Probably everything I’ve ever heard in my life but I’m sure the heavy rotation of all things Matt Pike (High on Fire, Kalas, Sleep, Pike vs the Automaton) played a huge role. Warhorse, Celtic Frost, Saint Vitus, Uriah Heap, Dystopia, Buzzov-en, Goatsnake, Lord Dying, the list could go on for days.
Was this a hard album to write and record for.
I see Jordan Barlow designed the artwork for this release. Jordan's a great artist who has designed a lot of great artwork for bands such as 1349, Goatwhore, High On Fire, Pike VS The Automaton and Saint Vitus amongst others. How did you hook up with Jordan.
He is a great artist and has been a pleasure to work with and get to know! The weird part is I didn’t know who he was when I asked him to do our artwork even though I have three of the aforementioned records in my collection. Bad on me for not taking the time to look into artists of album covers that I find inspiring.
Will you be performing any gigs to promote this album locally or further afield!
Once we get the second album laid down we will be out there wherever and whenever we can. We hope its soon!
If you're planning a tour what can people expect from the LIVE version of HIBERNAUT.
Loudness! Just expect to have a good time with us!
Before you go, do you have any words of wisdom for your new and potential fans out there?
Listen to the album loud so you can feel it! Maximum volume yields maximum result as Southern Lord would say.
How would you describe your own sound. Well apart from it's LOUD and PROGRESSIVE as hell.
Heavy is the go to for me. Sometimes thunderous and driving, at others slow and plodding with a sense of serpentine, writhing psych. A fevered dream enshrouded in loathing and disgust.
Why did you call yourselves HIbernaut.
Hibernaut is meant in some ways to describe a somnambulistic state. Is the reality we think we know nothing but a waking dream? Is anything real, beyond the world we create in our own minds? Are we dimensional orbiters and the grave is nothing but a portal to another plane? I sure don’t know but I like to imagine such nonsense.
You released your new album Ingress recently. What can people expect to hear from this album?
74 minutes of horror themed stories intertwined with psychological/philosophical musings and a visceral sonic assault?!
The album's had a great response from the Underground scene. Has this surprised you the way folks have taken to your album.
Yes it has and it’s really fulfilling. I feel making music is a compulsion, we do it because we have no choice and when it connects with people it becomes a galaxy, no matter how small, that we as a band and as listeners alike occupy. It’s awesome to be part of something bigger than yourself.
What bands and artists influenced you when recording this album?
Probably everything I’ve ever heard in my life but I’m sure the heavy rotation of all things Matt Pike (High on Fire, Kalas, Sleep, Pike vs the Automaton) played a huge role. Warhorse, Celtic Frost, Saint Vitus, Uriah Heap, Dystopia, Buzzov-en, Goatsnake, Lord Dying, the list could go on for days.
Was this a hard album to write and record for.
Not at all because I enjoyed the process so much! Writing songs and lyrics are incredibly time consuming for me but its meditation, a hyper focused state that is simultaneously vague and unfocused, just waiting for the music and the lyrics to reveal themselves. Working songs out together as a band and recording is a whole other level of enjoyment, once again being part of something bigger than yourself.
What is the creative process or setup within the band? Do you all write the music together or do certain people within the band do that?
It starts with me standing in front of my amp, full volume of course, riffing until I hear something that grabs me. The song starts to write itself from there. Then I start to demo it on computer, partly so I don’t forget it, and show it to the guys once I’ve worked out my parts, the structure and vocals/lyrics. We start jamming it and they all write their parts in the process. It is always incredible to me what we create together and how the song comes to life with our combined influence.
How did you get involved with music? Was it a particular album, group or artist that made you want to write and play your own music?
Josh, bass, showed me bands like Rage Against the Machine and Tool in the mid 90’s when I was 10 or 11 years old and that progressed, or regressed, to punk which got me going. The first band I started, I was banging on drums, played a cover of Fix Me by Black Flag and I think that’s as far as we got. A couple years later my pal Jake gave me Punk Uprisings Vol 2, a compilation with 39 bands and among those was Buzzov-en with their song Plow, it blew my mind man.
What formats is the album being released upon. Any plans for physical media in the future.
We will press it to vinyl and have CDs and Tapes made. We actually have the layouts done and a vinyl master ready to be sent to the plant so its just a matter time.
What is the creative process or setup within the band? Do you all write the music together or do certain people within the band do that?
It starts with me standing in front of my amp, full volume of course, riffing until I hear something that grabs me. The song starts to write itself from there. Then I start to demo it on computer, partly so I don’t forget it, and show it to the guys once I’ve worked out my parts, the structure and vocals/lyrics. We start jamming it and they all write their parts in the process. It is always incredible to me what we create together and how the song comes to life with our combined influence.
How did you get involved with music? Was it a particular album, group or artist that made you want to write and play your own music?
Josh, bass, showed me bands like Rage Against the Machine and Tool in the mid 90’s when I was 10 or 11 years old and that progressed, or regressed, to punk which got me going. The first band I started, I was banging on drums, played a cover of Fix Me by Black Flag and I think that’s as far as we got. A couple years later my pal Jake gave me Punk Uprisings Vol 2, a compilation with 39 bands and among those was Buzzov-en with their song Plow, it blew my mind man.
What formats is the album being released upon. Any plans for physical media in the future.
We will press it to vinyl and have CDs and Tapes made. We actually have the layouts done and a vinyl master ready to be sent to the plant so its just a matter time.
I see Jordan Barlow designed the artwork for this release. Jordan's a great artist who has designed a lot of great artwork for bands such as 1349, Goatwhore, High On Fire, Pike VS The Automaton and Saint Vitus amongst others. How did you hook up with Jordan.
He is a great artist and has been a pleasure to work with and get to know! The weird part is I didn’t know who he was when I asked him to do our artwork even though I have three of the aforementioned records in my collection. Bad on me for not taking the time to look into artists of album covers that I find inspiring.
I saw a private commission he posted on Instagram and knew immediately I wanted to work with him, it was the style and subject matter I had envisioned. So I sent him a message and then started to look into some of his other works and boy was I surprised when I realized who he was. Luckily for us he was into doing the art!
Did you let Jordan have free reign when designing the artwork or did you provide some of your own ideas for the album cover. Awesome artwork as well.
I started by sending him the music and lyrics, then he asked if we had any ideas before he started so I sent him a rough sketch with a couple notes scribbled on it. He took it from there and created a piece that encompasses the spirit of the album with his attention to detail and inclusion of underlying themes within the lyrics. I can’t wait to get the record pressed so people can see the artwork in its entirety, the gate fold is awesome! The artwork added another dimension to the album and is now a part of it, so for the third time, greater than the sum of its parts.
What is the current state of the local Metal scene with Salt Lake City, Utah, Do you get the chance to perform gigs on a regular basis and do you have a local scene that you're actively involved with?
It’s thriving, there are so many good bands and people in the scene here! We even have us a heavy metal bar called Ace’s High! There has been a great punk/metal scene along with Doom and Stoner Rock as long as I can remember and nothing has changed other than our faces get older and new ones emerge. We have the opportunity to play shows but our focus has been writing and recording.
Did you let Jordan have free reign when designing the artwork or did you provide some of your own ideas for the album cover. Awesome artwork as well.
I started by sending him the music and lyrics, then he asked if we had any ideas before he started so I sent him a rough sketch with a couple notes scribbled on it. He took it from there and created a piece that encompasses the spirit of the album with his attention to detail and inclusion of underlying themes within the lyrics. I can’t wait to get the record pressed so people can see the artwork in its entirety, the gate fold is awesome! The artwork added another dimension to the album and is now a part of it, so for the third time, greater than the sum of its parts.
What is the current state of the local Metal scene with Salt Lake City, Utah, Do you get the chance to perform gigs on a regular basis and do you have a local scene that you're actively involved with?
It’s thriving, there are so many good bands and people in the scene here! We even have us a heavy metal bar called Ace’s High! There has been a great punk/metal scene along with Doom and Stoner Rock as long as I can remember and nothing has changed other than our faces get older and new ones emerge. We have the opportunity to play shows but our focus has been writing and recording.
Once we get the second album laid down we will be out there wherever and whenever we can. We hope its soon!
If you're planning a tour what can people expect from the LIVE version of HIBERNAUT.
Loudness! Just expect to have a good time with us!
Before you go, do you have any words of wisdom for your new and potential fans out there?
Listen to the album loud so you can feel it! Maximum volume yields maximum result as Southern Lord would say.
Words by Steve Howe and HIBERNAUT
Links
