Interview with Pete Devine of Pete’s Rock News and Views (https://petesrocknewsandviews.com)
PD: What type of artist are you?
H: Heretoir is a post (black) metal band from Germany. We like to combine the raw energy of black metal and the melancholic emotionality of post rock and dark metal with the rhythmic power of modern melodic death metal. Our singer switches between screams and clean vocals and our lyrics are about personal experiences, melancholy, urban life, nature and what it is like to exist in a dying world.
PD: Tell us the brief history of yourself.
H: The band was founded in 2006 by David. A few years later I joined, since David and I knew each other for quite some time and realized, that we both write songs and are very much interested in the same music. A bit later the line up was completed and we played our first live shows. To this day we toured with Dornenreich, Der Weg einer Freiheit, Kalmah and others and played shows with Katatonia, Killswitch Engage, Enslaved, Alcest, Agalloch and many more. Our new full-length called “Nightsphere” will be released on October 6th.
PD: Who are your musical and non-musical influences?
H: There are a lot of different influences ranging from Bathory, Agalloch, Alcest and Katatonia to Explosions in the sky, Fall of Efrafa and Ulver. Dark Tranquillity and In Flames are very important bands for almost all bandmembers and we really enjoy the work of Borknagar, Killswitch Engage, early Architects and Blind Guardian. We also draw inspiration from nature and the beauty of wildlife. Also movies (like “Into the wild”, “Stay” or “Bladerunner”), books (like John Zerzan’s “Twilight of the machines” or Henry David Thoreau’s “Walden”) and poems (like Voltairine de Cleyre’s “The toast of despair”) are very inspiring to us.
PD: What are your dreams and goals?
H: We accomplished so many great things with this band, that we couldn’t be happier. Of course we would love to continue to release great music and play awesome tours and festivals together with the bands we love for as long as possible.
PD: Who writes your songs, what are they about?
H: In the beginning David wrote most of the songs, but Nils and myself contributed to the songstructures and the lyrics. Our upcoming record was written by all of us together as a band. That was a unique and very satisfying way for us to write music and we really hope, that people will appreciate what we created.
PD: How do you promote your band and shows?
H: We are quite happy with the work our label and our booking agency does for us in terms of promotion and getting us on the road.
PD: What do you think about downloading music online?
H: Of course it would be great if musicians and artists in general would get more money for the love, energy and hard work they put into music and artworks. Unfortunately we live in a capitalist society that exploits people in unimaginable ways and I guess as a musician you need to accept, that people will get music online for (almost) free. That is the way it is.
We have a Patreon account through which people can support our band and help us to pay our bills.
PD: What song do you wish you’d written and why?
H: “Dissolving bonds” by Katatonia. Simply because it is one of the most beautiful, heartbreaking and just perfect songs ever written.
PD: What are some of your pet peeves?
H: Trash left behind by people in beautiful nature reserves.
PD: What is your proudest moment in music?
H: We had so many, it is hard to pick one. Playing with bands you like since you were a teenager is of course always something very special.
PD: So what are you working on at the moment?
H: We are preparing the release of our next record and the accompanying tour, that will take place from mid to the end of October.
PD: Tell us about your next shows and why we should be there.
H: You should try to be at one of our next shows, because we cant wait to present the first single of our upcoming album live. It will be a great opportunity to experience what this band is all about.
Heretoir links:
Band/Artist location – Augsburg Germany
Facebook – You Tube – Soundcloud – Bandcamp – Merch –
Instagram – Apple – Spotify – Amazon – Deezer – LinkTree – Last Fm –
Check our page for Heretoir
