HMT: Greetings Henrik! Before we start off the interview, would it be possible to give a brief introduction to the band? You and Anders formed the band back in 2005, what was the reason behind the formation of the band?
“Death metal was a genre I had not yet played in 2005 and Anders was eager to do something in that style as well. I always loved the genre to the choice was obvious. Back in the early years of the band it was only a project and was moving quite slowly. However we did manage to make the “Death Lives Again”-demo with Lars Groth of Crucifix on drums. In june 2009 we gathered the full line-up and the band began running more seriously.”
Deus Otiosus roughly translates to “idle god”. How does the music fit with the name of the band, and how was the band name conceived?
“I came up with the name. It is a term for a certain type of divinity – withdrawn or idle, as you say. We had a bunch of different suggestions, but we agreed that this name would be most appropriate to the vision of the band. Musically and lyrical we want to express all things sinister and morbid without any limitations. The name Deus Otiosus allows for a very broad concept as all evils are possible in the world abandoned by God. The downside is that many people have trouble writing, uttering and even remembering the name, but I’m still satisfied with it. I think it perfectly covers and sums up our musical and lyrical themes.”
The band’s debut album, Murderer was released earlier this year, how have responses towards the album been so far?
“Most of what I’ve heard has been positive, and some have even been very positive, which is great. We have gotten good response from some people I personally respect very much, and that is nice of course. Also I don’t think we’ve seen all reactions to the album yet.”
Before the release of Murderer, a live promo, Too Maimed to Use was released as a teaser. What was it that made the band decide to do this instead of releasing a single off the album? The promo has been criticized as showing the worse side of the band (such as in Masterful Magazine), was the quality of the promo intended to be that way?
“Ha ha, since it is just two live tracks from a gig here in Denmark, one shouldn’t expect it to be as good as for example the “Murderer”-album. The live promo was the heart child of our former bass-player, Jens Nepper. From his other projects like Sagntid and Vornoff, he’s very used to circulating various recordings on cd-r. He wanted to do the same with Deus Otiosus and thought that concert to be a good and special one, so he was really the prime driving force behind that release with the rest of the bands blessings of course! To sum up “Too Maimed To Use” is, as the title suggests, a semi-official 2-track live recording given away for free to fans. Take it for what it is. Nepper sent some off to zines as well, and if Masterful Magazine thinks it shows a worse side of the band, that’s just fine. It would be more odd if they found it to be better than our album. One of the songs off this promo is also on our myspace-page.”
The artwork on Murderer’s cover looks like a person lying on a tomb. What is the concept behind the album artwork, and how did it come about?
“The original illustration is by Belgian artist Felicien Rops, although it has been manipulated a bit. Rops did some very interesting moralistic, morbid artwork. The English title of the cover-illustration is “A dinner with atheists”, so any resemblance to a tomb is purely symbolic. The cover artwork goes with the title “Murderer”, and the illustration appears like a murdered victim even though that has not been original intention of that piece. So our use of it is a free, artistic re-interpretation, but we felt that piece had the motive, atmosphere and overall style that would fit the title and album. If you look through the booklet you’ll find that all pages have artwork that illustrates or offers another aspect on each particular lyric and song. So it all fits very well together in my opinion.”
Similar to the artwork on previous releases by Deus Otiosus, Murderer’s is grim and raw and in a black and white theme. What was the inspiration behind this form of artwork on all releases, and will it be a continuing concept for future releases as well?
“The music, lyrics and artwork are a whole, and this kind of artwork fits the music. It has also functioned well as a visual identity, as the style and themes of the artwork are somewhat untraditional for a death metal band. Hopefully it signals that i not just another death metal release. It illustrates that we go our own way but are still rooted within the world of rawness and evil. As mentioned for the demo and album we’ve also had the tradition of a piece to illustrate or set a perspective on each song. I could imagine that we will keep this tradition while still renewing it - just like the music. However I am no soothsayer, and we will not be bound by rules regarding layout or anything else, so anything can happen!”
A look at the tracklist off Murderer, it feels like the band has a fascination for death, violence and of course, murder. How do you draw out the inspirations when writing the songs on Murderer? Are there any particular interesting lyrical influences?
“Inspiration can come from anything that can fit into the aforementioned concept, and the phenomena you mention above are certainly all part of the world beneath the godless sky. I would say that certain aspects of history have inspired a lot of the lyrical themes and along with this also our contemporary situation and reality. You’ll find lyrics about plague, leprosy, war, torture and death. But the arts and the realms of superstition or fiction can inspire too. Great literary works of Milton, Dante, Nietzsche and the likes and as mentioned graphic art as well. Modern art such as music or movies might also provide inspiration at times.”
Murderer was recorded at Earplug Studios, where bands such as the legendary Mercyful Fate have recorded before as well. What was the recording process and experience like? I understand that Victimizer has recorded there before as well, how was this experience different from then?
“Yes, Mercyful Fate recorded the instrumental parts of the 2009 re-recordings released on the “Evil”-single. We’ve recorded there with both Victimizer and Deus Otiosus and the experience weren’t all that different between them. The studio is comfortable, close to home and producer Pede is pleasant, fast, serious and skilled. Only difference between the two recordings is that Pede perhaps had gotten a bit better in the meantime and made the production of the Deus Otiosus album better than the Victimizer recording. So far Earplugged Studio is the best one I’ve recorded in, and though I am no soothsayer, I hope I’ve not been there for the last time.”
The album was mastered by Jeppe Hasseriis, also from The Cleansing (correct me if I’m wrong!). What was it like working with a fellow death metal musician, and how did him being a musician of a similar genre help in the mastering of the album?
“You are correct. Jeppe plays in The Cleansing and Strychnos. I have never worked with any kind of sound engineer who did know and like metal music, so I wouldn’t really know the difference. The advantage of using Jeppe is that I know him already and know his work, so I know how he can make it sound. Also he lives close by, so I can be there while the mastering is going on and can easier give running input and wishes. I have had many recordings mastered by Jeppe and have always been very satisfied.”
Henrik, in addition to Deus Otiosus, you are also involved in a number of other bands at the same time. How do you juggle the time and commitment between these bands?
“Besides Deus Otiosus I am only involved in Exekrator, which is a slow moving band, so it’s not nearly as bad as it has been earlier! I find it pointless to be in more than one band unless they are very different from each other. There are more than enough bands out there already.”
How do you get the inspiration and creativity when writing music for each of the bands? What are the writing processes for each of the band?
“The inspiration can be pretty much the same as the lyrical inspirations, which is natural as the writing the music and lyrics are often an entangled process. Though it might be fair to say that the inspiration for music more often comes from other music than it does for lyrics. Mainly my inspiration is indirectly all the music I’ve listened to through my life and the idea it has given me of how metal music should sound. Of course inspiration might also come directly from listening to something, but it is very rare that a band can inspire me positively these days, so inspiration from current metal is more in the lines of what to avoid doing.”
Who are some of your personal influences when it comes to playing with Deus Otiosus?
“I think anyone reading this knows that heavy metal has an incredibly strong historic song treasure, and of course I get inspirations from all the metal and heavy rock that I have listened to and loved through my life, like Black Sabbath, W.A.S.P., Dio, Mercyful Fate, Slayer, Death, Morbid Angel, Bathory to name but a few. I also think you would have to be blind, lying or stupid to disagree that metal is today unfortunately creatively dead. There are so many bands and releases all sounding like things that have been done better before. It is so seldom that you listen to absolutely fantastic music today, but when a band does it certainly inspires and ignites my spirit. Bands deserving the most honorable mention here are (perhaps among others) Absu, Macabre, Melechesh, Grand Magus. I am very glad that there are still bands like these that can inspire by their greatness.”
It seems that Deus Otiosus is an extremely hardworking band, with promos constantly being sent out for reviews. What are some of advices that you will give to aspiring bands?
“Actually, I don’t know. I think there are bands out there doing more and bands doing less. We’ve had to pass on quite a few live shows for example. But I know that Jens Nepper sent out a bunch of the live promos, and we sent out some advance copies of “Murderer” when we were looking for a label to release it. My cynical advice to bands aspiring to make a name for themselves is that the safest way is to simply emulate one of the current trends of formula of how to play metal. Your safest bet is trying for convincing goat warriors or ‘religious satanists’, as people will easier relate to and like what you’re doing. Going your own way is more of a gamble and it is likely you will not get attention to match your work. So if you’re after appreciation, try to copy Bathory or Autopsy. Only do your own musical vision for personal, artistic reasons. In general however I would say that doing live shows and using your own personal network will help most new bands. And any kind of promotional activity is favorable compared to keeping to the rehearsal room – or in some cases bedroom.”
We have come to the end of the interview, thank you for taking the time off to answer our questions!
“No, thank you for your interest and support!”
Dues Otiosus on the internet:
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©2010 Heavy Metal Tribune | Hong Rui
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