OLDD WVRMS REVEAL ALL
~By Billy Goate~
OLDD WVRMS. It feels like they've been eating away at my flesh and swimming in my bloodstream for a very long time, so much so that I forget to talk about how they've infected me. I was halfway through a review of their last effort when life swept me away to other places, then it was already time for a new release from the Belgian band. No, scratch that -- two new releases!
This month, the doomed instrumentalists revealed a split with Liège devotional math-prog threesome Ilydaen, just months after the release of the February five-tracker 'Codex Tenebris' (2019 - Cursed Monk Records). That's now two long-plays, two extended-plays, a compilation album, and the aforementioned split to the band's name.
The Wave & The Swell ( Split LP ) by Ilydaen & Oldd Wvrms
OLDD WVRMS is a band that seems continually tinkering and experimenting. I mean, you really have to if you're going to cross the coveted five-year mark as a band, a milestone that seems to be key long-term viability. "There is the beautiful, spacious atmosphere of Agalloch," I wrote of their last record 'Ignobilis' (2016). "All this is good news if you long for the cold, crisp air of winter, forests filled with unspeakable darkness, whispering tales of bravery, misunderstanding, and tragedy. The emotion is especially palpable and will haunt my memory for quite some time."
Ignobilis by OLDD WVRMS
I also noted at the time that Ignobilis represented "a massive turn to clean singing over previous releases." In contrast, Codex Tenebris is a reconnects with works like 'Mater Serpentium' (2015) and NØT (2015), which are also sans voix. Stylistically, you’ll find OLDD WVRMS painting from a similar tonal palate as Enslaved, even dabbling in the technical terrain of Psycroptic, though in much slower compositions.
Codex Tenebris by OLDD WVRMS
OLDD WVRMS occupies the space between shadows, where slow, patient, penetrating riffs dwell and dark words are uttered. "La vallée des tombes" is one of the gems of the record, striking a strange balance between meditative bleakness and pounding discord. I’ve long been a fan of dissonant harmonies since I realized it was “okay” to play them as a pianist delving into the oeuvre of Franz Liszt and Alexander Scriabin. Like those composers, OLDD WVRMS utilizes dissonance no merely to jar the listener, but as a critical tactic for establishing bleak moods and a sense of the sinister. Codex Tenebris is available on Cursed Monk Records right here.
On the eve of their music video, "A l'or, aux ombres et aux abîmes," Doomed & Stoned visited with ØW guitarist and OLDD WVRMS founder Ben in hopes of getting to know this fairly low-key and mysterious doom metal trio -- rounded out by Oli and Cho on bass and drums -- just a hair or two better.
What is the meaning of the band’s name OLDD WVRMS? Is their significance to the unique spelling of your name?
It’s old Germanic to "Old Worms." There’s no particular meaning, although I’m a fan of the Dark Souls saga and it could be a reference to the primordial snakes.
I'm curious how your individual paths through life brought you three together?
We’re all from the French side of Belgium, down south. Cho and Oli have known each other for almost two decades. I was searching for bandmates to put up this new project and they were the perfect match. We all played in many bands before ØW, nothing worth naming.
There’re no guidelines.
The music serves your imagination.
Why does instrumental doom appeal to you guys so much?
We tried several singers, with expectations they couldn’t achieve. It wasn’t bad, but we felt locked in restricted areas -- musically speaking, I mean. I took the mic on our previous release Ignobilis, singing just a bit, and even at that point we had the feeling that it wasn’t necessary at all, so we started writing the new album with a fully instrumental approach.
Rare is the band that can make instrumental metal stand convincingly on its own “two feet,” but OLDD WVRMS has done it. What would you say is the secret to pulling this style off successfully?
Thank you. Honestly, it’s hard to say. I guess it’s because we don’t hesitate too long on what’s good or not during the creation process. This and the fact that we blend a lot of influences from various horizons, seems to create something spontaneous. I think that’s what people like about ØW.
What instruments, amps, and gear do you find most useful in bringing your vision to life?
Cho’s setup is pretty straightforward: his beautiful DW kit with aggressive and shining cymbals -- and a ferocious need to beat the shit out of it!
Oli is using an Ampeg SVT 3 pro, SWR Goliath and Megoliath cabs with a Fender Aerodyne, plugged into a pedalboard loaded with many effects, drives, octaver, delays, reverbs, etcetera, to achieve the drones parts.
I use a Marshall JCM 800 over modified by Ruthenberg, Marshall and Orange cabs, custom guitars by Denzo Custom Guitars, and a pedalboard loaded with overdrives, delays, and reverbs.
We record in my own studio, The Pale Flame, using the exact same rig live and studio.
I don’t read French, but I’m guessing the song titles are quite important in this selection of five tracks. Can you translate them to English and tell us what you intended to express with each song? Are they meant to stand independently or are they united by a concept?
Basically, all the songs originally had lyrics -- and yes, they’re all linked, almost as a soundtrack. The atmosphere we wanted to translate through the songs titles were way more powerful in French, with a little something more poetic and dramatic.
The only concept about Codex Tenebris is the presence and absence of light and obscurity. The idea that the audience is not guided by lyrics and can travel between the songs with their own imagination and create their own stories while listening to our music is extremely satisfying. There’re no guidelines. The music serves your imagination.
So, the first track "Ténèbres" means "Darkness." It starts the record in a cold, dark place, and song expresses loneliness and fear.
Second track, "A l’or, aux ombres et aux abîmes," means "To gold, to shades, and to the abysses." It’s my personal favorite, all about deception, anger, and melancholy.
The third one is "misère & Corde," literally "Misery & Rope" -- a song about grief and loss.
Next one, "La vallée des tombes" or "The valley of tombs," is a psychoactive and hypnotic song about terror and despair.
"Fléau est son âme" is hard to translate, but it would be something like "scourged is his soul." It is about letting things go, acceptance, and abnegation.
We briefly corresponded about your EP a few years ago, when I emailed you about a sample you’d selected for the final track. I heard another sample in the final track of the latest LP that intrigued me.
It’s an Egyptian monologue taken from the movie Angel of Mossad, and it’s in correlation with "Fléau est son âme." It’s the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf. The narration is beautiful.
What's the area of Belgium like where you OLDD WVRMS calls home?
We all live in villages -- small villages. Everything is very quiet and calm. Nothing ever happens. (laughs) Sorry, there’s just nothing much to say about it.
No worries! I've lived in my share of small towns, too, so I get it. What are some of the bands that you play with in your heavy music scene?
We shared the stage with badass bands like Hangman’s Chair, Primitive Man, -16-, Jucifer, the body, Grime, Ortega, and more -- hopefully many more to come.
When you look into your crystal ball, do you envision yourself touring?
Yeah, we’d love to. Like everyone else, we have jobs and families, but touring once or twice a year during a few choice weeks would be awesome. Only time will tell if this will happens.
Finally, what would your ideal live performance look like, if you could spare no expense?
Small venues, crowed, with our light man Chouffe and a good sound engineer. You know, keep things simple.
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