Sunday, October 23, 2011

Heavenwood Interview


Interview by Ricardo Dias ( guitar and ,melodic vocals )







1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?



We have been promoting our 4th new album " Abyss Masterpiece

"released by LISTENABLE RECORDS and it is getting great reviews and

feedback from the press and fans. We have done two SHOWCASES at FNAC in

Portugal and more gigs are coming for the near future. It was a real

hardwork to compose and record this new album so it´s a wonderful

feeling to notice that everyone is really enjoying it from all different

countries and cultures.





2. how would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how

does it differ from previous releases?



This new " Abyss Masterpiece " comparing our previous " Redemption "

is much more darker, we deal on this album with the darkest side of

love, everyone knows love have to faces just like a coin..we decided

to focus on the hardest part, the sad emotions, some kinf of

frustraion, drama and also a very portuguese way of feeling and living

on this world wich is the term " saudade ", it means yearn but in a

very peculiar way. We got inspiration also from the very first

portuguese female poet D.Leonor / Marquesa de Alorna that for many

portuguese is still nowdays a kind of a myth. We did have a lot of

difficulties in exploring or even studying is work from the XVIII

century. It´s funny because i did findo original works scanned and

archived on an american cultural archive on the net rather than

finding it on paper or websites in Portugal..she was a " persona non

grata " for the system in portugal back in the XVIII century. A

revolutionary, a visionaire, a women rights defender once portuguese

women on those days werent aloud to share or express with man her

feelings, poetry, etc. D. Leonor also was the very first to translate

the best poetry and philosophic texts from german, grench and english

to portuguese so i think she deserved this recognition instead of just

work a " clichet " poet and that would be rather easy..but we love

challenges!





3. What are some of the lyrical topics and concepts the new releases explores?



We adapated two poems from D.Leonor for the songs " Leonor " in th

eoriginal title " I´ll Sing a day of sadness " and " Goddess Presiding

Over Solitude ". The rest of the songs are inspired in her capacity of

expressing feelings such as love, anger, hope and criticism regarding

the injustice she passed when she was jailed when she was still a

young child till her mature age for a crime her parents didn´t commit

againt the portuguese state ( a murderer ). D. Leonor developed alone,

by herself, while she was jailed on the CHELAS MONASTARY ( near lisbon

) an amazing capacity for writting feelings she didn´t experienced

such as parental affect, love or passion..most of the times Nature was

her only friend or confident ( as she discribes on the song / poem "

Leonor " ). Even sometimes there is a mistraphoic feeling on he rwords

and thats why we titled the album " Abyss Masterpiece "...she was

capable of going real down her soul/ mind and made the best possible,

fought for her and other rights and made her own justice. We identify

a lot with that and all this aspects works as a metaphor also for the

band personality and history since we started. The " Abyss Masterpiece

" is a huge metaphor.



4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the bands name?





HEAVENWOOD is related to our very own world, it´s aconnected with the

legend of the lady ghost Judith Heavenwood, a forest and a special

place where evryone that would pass by would become different after

this travell around.



5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and

how would you describe your stage performance?



We had fantastic experiences just like beeing the first portuguese

band to play on WACKEN OPEN AIR, also touring with ATROCITY, IN

FLAMES, SOLITUDE AETURNUS, LAKE OF TEARS and THEATRE OF TRAGEDY was

great. It´s  a wonderfull when we share also the stage with our old

time friends MOONSPELL as it was last September on the best Club in

Portugal that is know for all bands when touring and comming to

Portugal that is HARD CLUB, it re-open again afert some years cloose

and both bands played on the official re-opening week for a great

night fulll of fans from both bands. Rememberi we had supported CRADLE

OF FILTH on a mini tour in Portugal too many years ago and that was

cool also!





6. What are the touring plans for the new release, any plans to hit

North or South America?



We do hope to play!! We had very good feedback from the press and a

lot of fans have mailing us regarding our new album, moost disvoer the

band with th eprevious album " Redemption " but now with LISTENABLE

RECORDS working perfectly and with passion we have been noticing a lot

of new people very interested and amazed with our music, many said

that we have som e kind of musical charisma, a lot of portuguese

living on the states send their compliments and congrats and are

waiting for the album to be on the american stores, its a kind of

proud too for them, its a question of feeling clooser to their country

in a cultural form..that is a real deep and wonderfull feeling..it´s "

saudade " :)





7. On a worldwide level how has your new release been recieved by

gothic metal fans?



Great, i dont remeber to have for example a negative review, a really

like even when it´s nnot so positive at least be constructive and

rational..it´s hard for a Emo or Thrash 18 year old guy to understand

our music now so perhaps sometimes those kind of feedback i do

understand but i do understand also that this same guy will pick up

our album when he does have 22 or 25 and then he will say to it self "

oohhh now i do understand this stuff, this metaphors, this feelings "

We have fans from all ages but most of HEAVENWOOD fans are ecletic and

they do enjoy metal and good music, most of them are between 25 - 45

and our goal is to get more young metal fans in our music and

words..although " Abyss Masterpiee " is a dark ride into love it have

a message of hope...just listen to our final instrumental track " Her

Lament" it´s a metaphor and it does transmit hope regarding the

feeling you got when listening to it...





8. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?



hmmm.. nice question! We don´t want to predict but hmm..i think we

love to explore the soul so the mysticism, alchemic processes and

metaphors will be again a inspiration...it will depend on the mood of

the band but i´m shure grind core or black metal we will not playu,

that´s not our musical personality.







9. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your

music, and also what are you listening to nowadays?





The classic one from The Cult, Sisters or Fields to the classic Death

Metal stuff..the term gothic i think it´s a rotule to define our dark,

emotiv, dramatism..COnsider us a kind TIM BURTON for the metal music,

or at least we try or would like to be :)



10. Does paganism or Occultism play any role in your music?



on a metpahoric way yes, we do embrace a lot of differente religious

concepts,we´re not extremists defending the road you´re watching in

front of you is one way only and that you will not see any crossroads

some km´s after 1 hour walink on it...no..we are spiritual and i

believe humanity balance and harmony will have to deal with the

balance for Consciouness / spirit and Flesh / Materialism..man is on

the midlle..now the quest is..does man want to be an instrument/ tool

or does he want to be the worker ? Why can´t he be the both ?





11. Outside of music, what are some of your interests?



Reading, watching a lot of seminairs and congress regading Humanity

all kind of expressions for example like Michael Tsarion, i do love to

read Paupus or Alan Kardec and i do feel interest in understanding and

working on my inner capacityes..studying myself wich is very important

for a development. I do beleive we must care of our inner garden first

then we can look at the others garden too afterwards. To many people

live is life without discovering themselfs, without speaking to their

own beeing. I love musical instruments also and work with them so

music is hal of me in life, family is the other half.







12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?



Thanks for the great interview and i want everyone to check our new

album " Abyss Masterpiece", i know a lot´s will download it but if you

enjoy it you have to buy it, it´s a album to be discovered with time,

to be studied..if you wann be a kind of INDIANA JONES on metal

music...yes this is the one album you have to buy and to listen, read

and understand step by step!

A portuguese musical hug to all and check our official site at

www.heavenwoodclan.co.pt or www.myspace.com/heavenwood

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