.
Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording and release of the new album?
One Eon was released in CD & digital formats just two weeks ago. So lately we have been trying to find different ways to promote the album. At the same time we are also preparing limited edition picture vinyl release of the album. Last week we received the inserts (lyric sheet & poster) for it and also approved the vinyl test prints.
After the recording & mixing sessions we have been back at the rehearsal room to prepare our future live sets. As a result of that, we already did one short weekend tour in Lithuania and Latvia in December 2014.
2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
I think that One Eon is heavier, darker and more doomy than our previous album Nil. I think that this time we managed to find overall sound that is very natural 0xíst sound. This might be very much due to the fact that we did the mix by ourselves, which ruled out a lot of studio wizardry and brought the whole thing closer to how we sound live.
3.This is the first album to be released in 3 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time span?
We went through some lineup changes. After Nil we lost two band members and got two new members in. It took a while to write all the tracks that ended up on the album. We also left some stuff unrecorded, just like we had done with Nil. Those tracks didn’t either feel good to play, or just didn’t find their place on the album. I think that first One Eon tracks were written and rehearsed in 2012 and we had the whole thing ready about 2 years later. We also did our first central European tour in 2013 and some touring in the northern parts of the Europe. The latest thing that happened was that Sameli, who played bass on One Eon, left 0xíst in the summer of 2014. Since then we have our original bass player Ossi back in the band.
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
Many of our lyrics are about self-study & -development. As dark as they may seem, they also reflect the joy and full enjoyment of life and about fulfilling it the way how we see fit to ourselves. Music, lyrics and life is about constant development - sometimes for good, sometimes for worse. The key is in learning, making conclusions & actions, instead of surrendering and letting yourself to become phlegmatic and ignorant to necessary change & development.
5.I know that the bands name is pronounced 'zero exist', how does it fit in with the musical style you play?
It is very powerful title, just as our music is powerful. As much as number 0 symbolize nothingness, it also symbolizes eternity and allness. Our band name describes a state in which either all or nothing exist. I see it as an inner mental state, which you either value and maintain, or let the flame die out and become nothing.
6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Lithuania has been my favorite so far, but we have had good ones in Belgium, France, Germany and Finland as well. I guess the show is good when it shows who we are musically, covers different eras of the band and gives as much enjoyment to the crowd as it gives to ourselves.
7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
We have been booking some European dates for spring 2015. First of all we’ll do a record release show in our hometown Riihimäki on 6th of March. In May we’ll go on the road and do couple of gigs in Poland, Romania, Slovakia & perhaps few more countries if we get lucky. We have been talking about doing another short tour in western parts of Europe later this year, or perhaps in early 2016.
8.The new album was released on Death Shrine Offerings, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
I came up with that title & idea for label through working with my death metal band Cynabare Urne. We did send out some label promos of One Eon, but at the same time we also became more and more fascinated about doing the whole thing on our own. The reality seems to be that most of the physical copies of our releases that get sold, are being sold at our shows. So why bother someone else with it, or why would anyone even want to get involved? Most of the offers that we got from labels were only for digital release. I guess that makes sense as more and more people seem to be happy with streaming music instead of purchasing it. However, this album was produced to become a vinyl album and a physical release with printed lyrics & graphics. There was no way of going around it.
9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to the newer music by fans of dark and doom metal?
We are getting good reviews and feedback from all over the globe. There are people who seem to think that it is our strongest release so far, but there are also those who might have expected something different. One interesting thing is that each of One Eon tracks has been picked up by someone as their favorite tune of the album. We can see through our Bandcamp & last fm page that there has been a peak in the streaming numbers, so I guess that people are checking the album out.
10.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Juhani just released a new album with Apocryphal Voice. Saattue is working on finishing the third album and Cynabare Urne is working on the first release of the band. Mikael is active in a 50’ies rockabilly band Mr. Black & 5000 Cadillacs and he recently became the drummer of old Finnish thrash metal band National Napalm Syndicate.
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
I can’t see any other direction than keeping it dark and heavy. Naturally we’ll have to keep it interesting & motivating to ourselves, but right now I have no idea of what will it be exactly.
12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
That is quite a wide range. We listen to a lot of things from Pink Floyd to Bathory and from Fields of the Nephilim to Slayer. Personally, my all time favourites are Celtic Frost and Fields of the Nephilim. I will also mention Triptykon and Bethlehem, when I’m “guiding” people into the Dark Metal path that we are journeying on.
13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Recently I’ve been reading about John Dee and gone through some hermetic literature. Traveling is on top of my interest list. I try to visit all sort of dark, mystical & historic places on my trips & vacations.
14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks a lot for the interview. Check out our homepage www.zeroexist.net for recent news & additional info. Also have a look at www.deathshrineofferings.net
One Eon was released in CD & digital formats just two weeks ago. So lately we have been trying to find different ways to promote the album. At the same time we are also preparing limited edition picture vinyl release of the album. Last week we received the inserts (lyric sheet & poster) for it and also approved the vinyl test prints.
After the recording & mixing sessions we have been back at the rehearsal room to prepare our future live sets. As a result of that, we already did one short weekend tour in Lithuania and Latvia in December 2014.
2.Recently you have released a new album, how would you describe the musical sound that is presented on the recording and also how does it differ from the stuff you have released in the past?
I think that One Eon is heavier, darker and more doomy than our previous album Nil. I think that this time we managed to find overall sound that is very natural 0xíst sound. This might be very much due to the fact that we did the mix by ourselves, which ruled out a lot of studio wizardry and brought the whole thing closer to how we sound live.
3.This is the first album to be released in 3 years, can you tell us a little bit more about what has been going on during that time span?
We went through some lineup changes. After Nil we lost two band members and got two new members in. It took a while to write all the tracks that ended up on the album. We also left some stuff unrecorded, just like we had done with Nil. Those tracks didn’t either feel good to play, or just didn’t find their place on the album. I think that first One Eon tracks were written and rehearsed in 2012 and we had the whole thing ready about 2 years later. We also did our first central European tour in 2013 and some touring in the northern parts of the Europe. The latest thing that happened was that Sameli, who played bass on One Eon, left 0xíst in the summer of 2014. Since then we have our original bass player Ossi back in the band.
4.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the newer music?
Many of our lyrics are about self-study & -development. As dark as they may seem, they also reflect the joy and full enjoyment of life and about fulfilling it the way how we see fit to ourselves. Music, lyrics and life is about constant development - sometimes for good, sometimes for worse. The key is in learning, making conclusions & actions, instead of surrendering and letting yourself to become phlegmatic and ignorant to necessary change & development.
5.I know that the bands name is pronounced 'zero exist', how does it fit in with the musical style you play?
It is very powerful title, just as our music is powerful. As much as number 0 symbolize nothingness, it also symbolizes eternity and allness. Our band name describes a state in which either all or nothing exist. I see it as an inner mental state, which you either value and maintain, or let the flame die out and become nothing.
6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played over the years and also how would you describe your stage performance?
Lithuania has been my favorite so far, but we have had good ones in Belgium, France, Germany and Finland as well. I guess the show is good when it shows who we are musically, covers different eras of the band and gives as much enjoyment to the crowd as it gives to ourselves.
7.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?
We have been booking some European dates for spring 2015. First of all we’ll do a record release show in our hometown Riihimäki on 6th of March. In May we’ll go on the road and do couple of gigs in Poland, Romania, Slovakia & perhaps few more countries if we get lucky. We have been talking about doing another short tour in western parts of Europe later this year, or perhaps in early 2016.
8.The new album was released on Death Shrine Offerings, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?
I came up with that title & idea for label through working with my death metal band Cynabare Urne. We did send out some label promos of One Eon, but at the same time we also became more and more fascinated about doing the whole thing on our own. The reality seems to be that most of the physical copies of our releases that get sold, are being sold at our shows. So why bother someone else with it, or why would anyone even want to get involved? Most of the offers that we got from labels were only for digital release. I guess that makes sense as more and more people seem to be happy with streaming music instead of purchasing it. However, this album was produced to become a vinyl album and a physical release with printed lyrics & graphics. There was no way of going around it.
9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to the newer music by fans of dark and doom metal?
We are getting good reviews and feedback from all over the globe. There are people who seem to think that it is our strongest release so far, but there are also those who might have expected something different. One interesting thing is that each of One Eon tracks has been picked up by someone as their favorite tune of the album. We can see through our Bandcamp & last fm page that there has been a peak in the streaming numbers, so I guess that people are checking the album out.
10.What is going on with some of the other bands or musical projects these days that some of the band members are a part of?
Juhani just released a new album with Apocryphal Voice. Saattue is working on finishing the third album and Cynabare Urne is working on the first release of the band. Mikael is active in a 50’ies rockabilly band Mr. Black & 5000 Cadillacs and he recently became the drummer of old Finnish thrash metal band National Napalm Syndicate.
11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?
I can’t see any other direction than keeping it dark and heavy. Naturally we’ll have to keep it interesting & motivating to ourselves, but right now I have no idea of what will it be exactly.
12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?
That is quite a wide range. We listen to a lot of things from Pink Floyd to Bathory and from Fields of the Nephilim to Slayer. Personally, my all time favourites are Celtic Frost and Fields of the Nephilim. I will also mention Triptykon and Bethlehem, when I’m “guiding” people into the Dark Metal path that we are journeying on.
13.What are some of your non musical interests?
Recently I’ve been reading about John Dee and gone through some hermetic literature. Traveling is on top of my interest list. I try to visit all sort of dark, mystical & historic places on my trips & vacations.
14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?
Thanks a lot for the interview. Check out our homepage www.zeroexist.net for recent news & additional info. Also have a look at www.deathshrineofferings.net
