Οι Withered Land στο Museum Of Past Affections : Interview In English

1. Hello and thank you for the interview. To the readers who may be unfamiliar with withered land,

would you care to gives us some informations about the project?

Hello and thank you too! Withered Land is an Epic/Atmospheric Black metal with dungeon

synth/folk/viking elements solo project by me, Olga Kann.

The Project is inspired by such themes as Battles, Nature, Mythology, Death, Esoterics, Magic, Fantasy,

Tolkien, The Elder Scrolls, War etc. Praising the legends of the past.

The material for the debut album has been accumulating over the years. The official year of the creation

of the project can be considered 2020, when I invited my friend vocalist Alex Rabets and Greek

guitarist/sound engineer Koliopanos Filippos to participate in the recording the debut full-length.

In 2021, the project became part of the Finnish label Naturmacht Productions which released "The

Endless Journey" album. A year later, an instrumental version of the debut album was also released

2.Your latest work dates back to 2021 with the name "The endless journey" an full length album with 5 songs. Tell us where did you inspired the lyrics from

The album was originally conceived as a conceptual narrative story, as a hero's life journey. The texts were inspired by historical events/heroes, fantasy books/films/games, and of course Tolkien. The hero leaves his home in search of himself, justice (as it seems to him). Shedding the blood of his enemies, he receives blood in return from the universe, his house is burned. Hatred/revenge/lust for power is something that shouldn't exist, but it does and always will.

The theme of death permeates this album, the upcoming single and the second album. This is something sacred that I will return to one way or another in my lyrics. Human emotions, especially vices, esoteric experience, death and rebirth, the beauty of nature, historical events, philosophical reasoning, fantasy - all this in one way or another inspired and will continue to inspire the lyrics of the project.

3.Also the album has amazing atmosphere and I think all this come from the epic symphonic parts of it... Do you agree?

I pay a lot of attention to the symphonic part, the arrangements, this is what makes me lose my head. I try to make all the parts work harmoniously with each other, but sometimes I can get too carried away and forget about the guitars, hehe. Well, this is my style, it constantly changes, through trial and error, I look for different options.

I have a lot of tracks in development that feature only acoustic instruments, there are more pompous tracks with more symphonic arrangements, but there are also guitar-oriented tracks (there will be a lot of these in the second album). The new album will contain several dungeon-synth tracks originally written for the instrumental format. It’s good when you manage to find the optimal balance, but each creator or listener has his own. I try to do it according to my feelings, as required by the inspiration and history of the track. It’s always not easy to choose and stop on only one final arrangements. So in the future it will be great to publish a separate collection (or maybe several) with alternative sounding tracks, remixes.

4.Will we see some new release for Withered land in the near future?

It’s difficult to promise anything now, these are the times. I have the second album ready (ready for 100% instrumentally, as well as some vocals ready). But I plan to invite many guest musicians to the new release, really hard work on the vocals ahead. 

This is a very difficult release for me. In it I tried to do something different from the first album, it is dedicated to a different topic, but is still dark. I would say that it is much angrier and darker than the debut album. And sometimes it's hard for me to go back to working on it. Tied to the winter atmosphere, I would like to release it at the end of fall. But, as you understand, this fall I no longer have time to accomplish my plans. Several full-length videos have already been shot for several songs from the album last winter; some material remains to be completed. And I can’t bear this painful waiting, I want to finish it quickly. But I understand that haste in these matters is never good. In addition, an album of my other project should be released in the near future, and a lot of money, time and effort have also been invested into it.

I think in the break between the first and second album I will be able to release several separate songs that are not related to the future album. I am also learning new folk instruments, such as the bass talharpa and kantele. They are present as an additional decoration on a future release. I also have new tracks in development. There is so much I want to tell you, but again, a new release is better than any intrigue, so I won’t make any promises. When the time comes, then I can show it.

However, there is good news. Right now I'm working on releasing a new track and music video that features guest appearances as well as new instruments. As my sound engineer said - "this is definitely the best of your tracks at the moment" (believe it or not - everyone can decide for themselves after listening, hehe). I am very grateful to him and everyone who supports me at all stages of creating music. Inspiration is a difficult thing. Even if you have it now, you need to pool all your strength and resources and organize the process in a special way so that the song/album eventually sees the light of day.

 

5.What's it like to have a one-women metal project in Belarus?

I always try to be neutral towards the gender of the performer, his country, etc. You never know what a person can do until you listen to the material. 

Specifically, it is very difficult for me to create while in Belarus; there are many restrictions here (both economic, sanctions, and political ideological). But what we have, we have.

Regarding the one-person project format, this is something that gives complete freedom. You don't waste time trying to force your colleagues to do anything (because let's be honest, your own demons are through the roof). You can work with other people, I do this in several of my other projects. But regarding this project, I was faced with misunderstanding and the imposition of other ideas, and this is not close to me. A project in this genre should not have restrictions. For me, he is a reflection of the soul, something that comes from within.

6.Are you planning to do any live shows?

In general, such a possibility cannot be ruled out. I think that this will be a format for working with session musicians and for specific events. Exhausting tours are definitely not for me. I want to give listeners the opportunity not only to hear, but also to see the project live. But studio work still comes first for me. I'm also thinking about online concerts and different acoustic performances. I am currently moving from a noisy city almost full-time to a house in the deep forest, where I am setting up my home studio. So, this format would be convenient for me and interesting for a number of listeners, "forest acoustic gatherings online". What do you think of it? I will be glad to hear feedback from you on any of my social networks. Or would you like to see a live concert in your city/country? Write about this too, it is important for artists to receive such information. You can also recommend the project to your familiar organizers/bookers - this will also help us meet faster. I think everything can be done.

7.Thank you again for you time.. I leave the last words up to you

Thank you very much for the interesting conversation! I answered these questions for as long as possible, oh. This autumn was a difficult test for me, a lot of hard work, a lot of worries and doubts. The first snow brought me back to life and allowed me to look at many things as if they were a white sheet of paper. Only we ourselves write history on it. Sometimes it is extremely important to take a break to allow the flow of words to flow into a full page/chapter/book. Listen carefully to your feelings and the things around you; many answers lie on the surface while others are hidden. Everything has its time and its own story. Take care of yourself, and see you again, thank you!

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