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MAR DE GRISES:
Meet Chile's
Masters of Lush Doom Progressive Metal.
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Chile’s
Mar de Grises stands these days as one of South America’s higher
profile metal bands. Their latest release Draining the Waterheart is one lush and sophisticated display of high-minded
doom metal. Being familiar with the tradition of Chilean extreme
underground metal I decided to contact this Santiago quintet to
find out more about them. Read on and spread the word.
- Mar de Grises, that’s a great moniker. What does it mean it to
you how would that relate to your music?
Thank you. It means ‘Sea of Gray’ in Spanish, our native
language. In one hand, this moniker as you say, comes from the
inspiration that our grey city gives us; this grey grand magnet
that we despise and love; this grey city that we would like to
leave someday, a day that, at the same time, we would not like
to live. On the other hand, it comes from the perception of
monotony from which we feed sometimes. Not white, not black; an
emotional state that wanders around nothing necessarily
consistent. Related to the making of music, I think that state
is quite interesting at the time of creating because you don’t
know exactly what you are doing or where you are heading in
terms of creativity and inspiration, so the result is
irrationally honest, and that is the way we want our music to
be.
- Interesting. Is there much of a connection between the current
Chilean metal scene and the old scene of bands like Atomic
Aggressor, Pentagram, Torturer, etc?
Not much. The truth is the scene is a lot more dispersed
nowadays. We have also many more bands now. Back in those days,
when bands played, it didn’t matter the specific genre of them,
and people, as fans of Metal, went to the gigs anyway. Now, if a
couple of doom metal bands do a show, you will just have
‘doomers’ and related coming to it, and so on with the styles.
It is very uncommon to see that mixture of styles in a gig,
although you sometimes see it, but for the same reason, the
concurrence is never that good. Recently, there has been kind of
a revival of those bands; for example, Atomic Aggressor have
reunited and they released a new album a couple of months ago,
after like 15 years. Pentagram did the same like three years
ago, but they broke up again.
- How do you see the Chilean metal scene of today? Any bands
you’d recommend?
We have many bands, but the problem is that people often don’t
have the time to dedicate to a band in a professional way.
That’s a political and economic root. Life is not easy here; we
are a country with an economy that is still on the need of a
significant growth and change. It is very common to work a lot
and earn a little so, as you see it’s very hard to manage the
way to have the time to a band. It requires a lot of effort and
dedication. This is why many of them just stay in only a goof
idea and nothing more, due to what I explained before. A pity,
because there is a lot of potential in my opinion.
Anyway, bands that I really recommend:
First of all, Poema Arcanus. It is a great Doom band, with some
progressive touches. Very interesting and they are also an
important influence to us. You should really check them out.
Coprofago is an excellent original technical Chilean band, in
the vein of Meshuggah, with some jazzy passages. There are many
many other bands: Perpetuum is another very good band that plays
a very original kind of Metal, something like Immolation meets
Opeth, Death and Obituary. Uaral plays a folkish acoustic Doom,
in the vein of last Empyrium’s albums. Animus Mortis, Inanna,
Target, Defectoscura, Godless, Mourners Lament and
Electrozombies are other bands that I also consider of the
highest quality so I seriously recommend them. I think they all
have MySpace site, so you should easily check them out.
- Mar de Grises is signed to Firebox, how did the deal come
about?
Back on 2002, we recorded a rehearsal just to know how the songs
were going. The result in terms of sound quality and
interpretation were better than we expected, so we decided to
release it as a demo. We sent it to every record label around
the world we thought could be interested. Firebox, being one of
our main targets, did, and offered us a deal that satisfied both
parties. Since then, we are quite satisfied with the 6 year
relationship that we have had. The deal was for two albums, and
currently we are negotiating the possibility of an EP to be
released next year.
- Are you happy with the work they’ve done so far?
Yes, we are quite satisfied with the work of Firebox.
- How do you see your musical progression between The
Tatterdemalion Express and Draining the Waterheart?
Any difference in the lyrical camp?
The compositions in Draining the Waterheart are maybe
more mature. Guitars are more elaborated regarding harmony and
melody. In general, the interpretation is also more mature and
precise. Anyway, I think that the most important element, the
essence, remains the same. I don’t know exactly how to explain
that; I just feel it is more ore less the same as in The
Tatterdemalion Express. In the next album what will be
definitely different, is the fact that we will work with a
producer. In these two albums, we did all that work, and it was
too exhausting in every aspect, but most of all, it is very hard
to make five difficult guys to get to agree with something, so
we will avoid all that the next time. As for lyrics; on The
Tatterdemalion album they were more direct, more easy to
identify the elements, emotions and sceneries behind. Now, we
give more freedom to the lyrics in terms of concepts, so as to
let emotions decide what to refer to, whatever it may be.
- Tell us a little bit about the recording of Draining the
Waterheart? Does it sound just like you envisioned it before
the recording?
We recorded it in Pig Power Studios, here in Santiago, Chile.
The recording itself wasn’t that long, but we did took very long
on the mixing process. The sound engineer was very busy on those
days, so he just could have mixing session like every 2
weekends, so it was very difficult and exhausting. And the
results I think they are never 100% what you expected, more even
if you are working the way we did. Finally, the result in terms
of sound is acceptable, but no more than that in my opinion.
- Please tell us a little bit about the artwork of Draining
the Waterheart? Who is the artist?
It was done by Tuomo Letonen. (Grave Flowers, Swallow the Sun,
etc.) He did an excellent job in my opinion. Although we guided
his work in many aspects like textures, colours and concepts
behind, the general idea of the visual part was his. I think it
shows in a very direct and simple way the title itself; you can
see some kind of creatures that are ‘draining’ off the water of
some kind of heart, and they, at the same time, are part of that
heart, just as feelings create themselves at the same time of
being them. You know, Octavio Paz, the Mexican writer, wisely
said that the fishing-net to catch words is made out of words. I
agree with that.
- It seems as if Mar de Grises is getting more attention in
Europe than in the American continent? I am just seeing more
press coming from that territory. Would you say that is because
your label is Finnish-based or would you say that there are more
fans open to your sounds in that continent?
The fact that our record label is Finnish, definitely is
important in that aspect. Apart from that, it seems that
European people simply feel more identified with the music and
the moods and elements behind it that we make, rather than
American people. But the truth is that I don’t really know about
that; maybe if we had an American label, it would be vice versa.
- You just returned from a European tour that took you through
several countries, how was the reception in each country?
It was a very interesting, intense, dense, exhausting, and happy
experience; an unforgettable time to us. We knew many different
places, many different people. We played in around 10 countries
and learned a lot about the touring life and ourselves as well.
I think after this tour we grew a lot as a band, and hopefully
we will be still growing. You know, we live very far from where
the core regarding the worldwide metal scene is. I love my
country, but unfortunately we are indeed very far, so it is very
difficult.
- Any tour highlights?
Maybe Finland was one of the highlights, and its Firebox Metal
Fest, where we shared stage with acts like Dark Tranquillity or
Impaled Nazarene, because we felt somehow like in home there,
being Firebox our record label. Tons of funny stuff. We built up
a very good relationship with the guys of Ablaze in Hatred,
Thurisaz and mostly Saturnus, with whom we toured almost all the
tour. Very nice and humble guys
- I am always searching for great albums to check out, please
list you favorite records? Those that influenced you and those
that you may be currently spinning.
Ved Buens Ende – Written in Waters
Gorguts – Obscura, and all of their albums
In the Woods – Omnio
Virus - Carheart
Morbid Angel – Covenant, and all of their albums
Mayhem - Everything
Danzig – IV, and all of their albums
Ulver – Madrigal of the Night, Blood Inside, and all of
their albums
Death – Individual Thought Pattern, and all of their
albums
At The Gates – Slaughter of the Soul, and all of their
albums
Depeche Mode - Violator
The Dillinger Escape Plan – Calculating Infinity
Dark Tranquillity - Everything
Cannibal Corpse – Tomb of the Mutilated, and all of their
albums
Anthrax – Everything until Sound of White Noise
Poema Arcanus – Iconoclast, and all of their albums.
Shape of Despair – Angels of Distress
Celestial Season – First two
Metallica – Everything until black album
Pink Floyd – Everything
Sepultura – Arise, and the other first three.
I think that’s more or less the music that has influenced me
more in my life, and I am constantly listening to it. There are
many more, but that is a shortest review I could do.
Recently: Last Gojira album, Code – Nouveau Gloamming, Johnny
Cash Greatest Hits, last Mono album, Natalie Imbruglia –
White
Lilies Island, Saturnus – Veronika Decides to Die, Jack Frost –
Wannadie Songs, Ion Dissonance last album, etc, etc…
- What’s next for the band? Upcoming plans?
For now, we plan to play some gigs here in Chile, and start
working for a new album, hopefully to be released in no more
than one and a half year from now this time. Also there, are
plans for a new EP to be released in around six more months.
Besides that, just continue playing and making music, at least
until the need of doing it disappears.
- Last words
Thank you for your time, and thanks to everyone who identifies
with what we honestly do.
Regards from the end of the world.
Official Site
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