Deluge of Sorrow
as interviewed by DJ Gool for Bisoul Promotions

DELUGE OF SORROW, a young band that has literally been sweeping the floor at every of their latest gigs!!! Emotional sirene motives meet intense metal at break-neck speed meets powerful female vocals, all moulded on a canvas of its melodic though melancholic grip -- that is the sound DELUGE OF SORROW offer at their every show. So add to that the visual aspect they included for GeNeTiKa, no wonder the crowd went crazy to their show on the opening Friday night of the mentioned Bisoul event! Here for you before they go into the studio, Yury/Fubu/Clark Kent/Superman - choose the way you want to call their very own keyboard player, responsible with his mates for their own creative sound!!!!

Hi Yury obo Deluge! Already with only 3 live performances, you are earning a name for yourselves when it comes to atmospheric doom/death metal. So guys, and gal, tell us a bit more about you and this sound you have built following “erratic rehearsals, intense experimentation & steady song-writing” as your biography puts it?

The idea of DELUGE OF SORROW started when Niko, Keith and Matthew met College some 4 years ago. It took time before the current line up was formed, and even much more time before we performed at our first gig  held January 10^th 2004, a day we always remember for the cheers from the crowd. It gave us further courage to pursue our creation. Our sound is the combination of 2 guitars, bass, drums, keyboards and female vocals, which although may be defined as doom, it includes influences from gothic up to trance-electro.

Unlike most bands with female vocals, yours is a style where you give work to the female larynx, in the sense that it is not complimented only by sweet doom-laden melodies, but by sheer frenzied grinding moments of fury, an equilibrium which I must say your Katia commands well! How does this come about?

Fortunately for us, Katia is one of those singers who have a classical music background, even performing as a kid in numerous stage appearances. Everybody knows the demanding power of the classical voices, and that gave us an extra tool to work with. While listening to other female-fronted bands, we managed to create a sound of contrasts with its due equilibrium, thanks of course to Katia’s ability in both reading our ideas and delivering her part. Her voice manages to fill in and at the same time bind together the powerful noise emitted by our instruments.

In fact while non-doom and non-death metal influences (references to SIGUR ROS at times spring to mind) are easily notable, the more obvious references lean towards the refreshed MY DYING BRIDE without female vocals instead of Aaron, or to a sharper extent, ORPHANAGE missing the male growler. What can you say about this observation, I mean, how do you see your sound overall?

To put it straight, we must say that MY DYING BRIDE is a great influence to us. However it is not “the” influence of DELUGE OF SORROW. All of use listen to rather different music and are influenced by this different music. For example Ludvig and Yury would not mind attending a pumping trance party, Nico plays in a ska band, while Keith and Matthew enjoy the sounds of MANSON and LACRIMOSA.  We obviously share that common love towards doom-metal but it is not an exclusive love. What we mean is that our sound is the result of us putting together our musical following and personal beliefs and defining it as DELUGE OF SORROW. We believe that music is the sound of our inner voice, a voice which neither can be described, nor explained. In our case, this inner delivery includes a female voice.

Yet it seems that you would not mind a male vocalist too right? From what I read you already have had some auditions for this right? 

Well, unfortunately we have never had any luck with male vocals with both Rodney and Sandro not ending up as permanent members. At the current stage we are experimenting with a new male vocal sound, but that’s it for now; we do not want to sound any trumpets before the ball starts rolling.

To your texts now. Granted that you are well known to your mates as very frank upfront individuals, your lyrics deal with morose topics in a varying approach from your style contemporaries. Rather you deal with everyday situations like stressful communication with difficult characters than sadness for sadness sake, or otherwise you would rather take a more actor-like perspective like your own life through the eyes of a dead relative. I am intrigued to ask more about all of this, and the final picture one may draw from your lyrics.

This is the same as our music. It all boils down to our influences and backgrounds.  We can say that our differences, similarities and contrasts are blended together to create one sound. Our lyrics are the result of not only personal views and experiences, but also flashes of creativity, anger and sorrow. It is a matter of being ourselves and defining who we are by saying what crosses our minds. Death is a common issue in most doom bands as everyone suffers it one time or another. It leads to a deep and sorrowful emotion, many a time to loneliness. But loneliness is not only the lack of the physical presence; it is also the void in the soul. How many times do we feel lonely in this densely populated country!?

And visually live. Again you come out as a whole unit making body gestures to the different moods of your music. Correct me if I am wrong but some of you are/were actors right, and presently some are attending art school not?

Well, none of us are actors for a living, that’s for sure. Some of us already make a living through their respective jobs, while others continue to study to gain diplomas and degrees. Nico, Katia and Yury are the ones currently still studying with the first two in an art and design college. On the other hand, Keith, Matthew and Ludvig have their full time jobs. Apart from that, during our gigs, we try to express our feelings also by our gestures, which we would not really define acting, since that gesturing comes out also naturally during our rehearsals. Obviously a crowd that sees us going about wildly on stage will catch the vibe and follow up, and prefer that to a bunch of people standing motionless on stage. Our role on stage requires us to pass on our feelings over to the crowd, in any way possible.

Finally a word about your website and future recording plans. Kindly update the Bisoul readers about it all…..

Our website www.delugeofsorrow.com is finally online. Developed by our drummer Ludvic (who happens to be a website developer), it well reflects the soul of DELUGE OF SORROW from its very inside. We are also planning to enter the studios soon, most probably after the coming gigs. Meanwhile, DELUGE OF SORROW is willing to make its sound available for others to listen. Contact us!!!

· ·  click for deluge of sorrow's photoshoot during GeNeTiKa