JAMES ASHBEY - LETHEAN

💿 Hi, it's a pleasure for us to have on Hardrockheavymetal JAMES ASHBEY of LETHEAN!! You're Welcome!!

Thanks for talking to us! 💿 "THE WATERS OF DEATH", your new album, is "hot'n'ready" and will be available from Nov 9th! Can you tell us somethin'about its composition process and style? We have the privilege to listening to it in preview and we were very impressed! The album was composed throughout 2017 as a collaborative process - having just two members has its good and bad sides, but it meant that we shared a similar vision for the end product, as well as making the logistics of rehearsing and recording much simpler.

In terms of the style, we just mixed together our tastes as heavy metal fans and these songs were the result - hopefully they display our own personality in a way too.

Defining the style is not really necessary, but I suppose we walk a path somewhere between epic heavy metal and doom. 💿 Can you tell us somethin' about the birth of the band? Which bands influenced you? Alongside the perpetual influence of IRON MAIDEN and JUDAS PRIEST, I was listening to bands such as DARK QUARTERER, QUICKSAND DREAM, FATES WARNING and CANDLEMASS, and wanted to evoke similar atmospheres with my own project. Since Thumri joined I would say those influences all remain relevant, but our songwriting also gives a bit more consideration to the legacy of United States Power Metal (USPM) than was the case in LETHEAN's earliest days.

💿 This new platter will be out via CRUZ DEL SUR MUSIC. Can you tell us somethin'about the birth of relationships with them? It's a very simple story, we felt that they would be a great fit for the style of LETHEAN due to the other excellent bands they have released, so we sent Enrico the mastered album to listen to, had a positive discussion about it, and now here we are with the album nearly in our hands. We thank him for having faith in us despite our obscurity! 💿 The real news in music industry is the return of the vinyl. What's your opinion about this classic format and the current "music business"?

It's very strange to see vinyl in supermarkets and high street chains - there's obviously a degree of hipsterish hype about it in mainstream markets, but for heavy metal it's of course a perennial format that most people still love.

For most of us putting on an LP and looking at the sleeve and lyrics sheet is all part of the ritual which adds to the listening experience.

Having said that, I am not a vinyl elitist, I have always liked CDs and buy them often. 💿 We love the cover of TWOD!! Can you tell us somethin'about? We're very pleased with the cover, by German artist Stefan Bleyl. Working with him was very collaborative, I sent him the initial ideas, then we exchanged various images and works in progress until the result you see. He has really nailed the atmosphere and sense of mystery - broadly speaking, the artwork relates to the themes of the album's lyrics, which focus on mortality, journeying to the unknown, leaving behind what you once were, and so on. 💿 Can you give us news about your next live projects? Are scheduled any gigs? No news, we don't have a live line-up yet so we'll focus on more songwriting until circumstances might change. 💿Thank you so much for your time! See you soon on Hardrockheavymetal!

Guard well the secret of steel.

PA Clawhammmer PR

#lethean