We got another great surprise from the indisputable land of Doom Metal; of course I’m talking about the UK. Well known is the past of this brilliant scene, but now we have the honour of be witness of an apparent resurrection of this style. We already know about some bands firmly decided to take the Doom Metal at their deserved place in extreme music. This time SILENT WINTER, a solo project of the multi instrumentalist Kevin Lawry, is the living example of the renewed force of this style. “A Plague To Come” is the name of its first demo and it’s an interesting blend of the “old school” and the renovated, fresh sound… So here are the questions that Mr. Lawry kindly accepts to answer…

BB: First I would like to thank you for giving us this interview. Can you tell us about the band’s beginnings?

SW: No thank you. I’m pleased that you have taken the time to listen to Silent Winter and thanks for the kind review. I began writing the songs that eventually became ‘A Plague to Come’ around November 2003.  I had several ideas on demo tapes and basically took the best riffs and started composing.

BB: Can you tell us about your debut EP “Solemn Verses”? How was the reception of this work?

SW: I released ‘Solemn Verses’ as a teaser for ‘A Plague to Come’. I’d had the songs waiting to be recorded for a while and was eager for people to hear Silent Winter. ‘Dying Embrace’ and ‘Dark Sorrow’ were the two most finished songs. So they made the first release. ‘Solemn Verses’ was received ok. It got the attention of underground labels, press and doom fans. So in that respect ‘Solemn Verses’ achieved its’ goal.

BB: What do you think is the main difference between “Solemn Verses” and “A Plague To Come”?

SW: I think that ‘A Plague to Come’ has a better mix sound wise. I hadn’t done any studio work before hand so I was learning as I went along. For me personally, I can hear the growth in the songs and the development of Silent Winter.

BB: I must congratulate you for your new demo, is quite original and at the same time has this special “taste” of the old school Doom Metal… How you get this “mix”? Was it totally premeditated?

SW: Thanks. I love doom metal music. I think it’s the most underrated genre in metal. With Silent Winter I wanted to mix the different styles of doom from traditional, death/black to funeral doom and create my own sound.

When it came to mixing the songs, I was thinking of the sound of Cathedrals’ ‘In Memoriam’ and Reverend Bizarres’ ‘In the Rectory..’. I wanted that low end doom sound. For the vocals, I was taking inspiration from black metal. The way the vocals are set in the background.

BB: What are your sources of inspiration when you write the music?

SW: There are the obvious influences of My Dying Bride, Opeth and the early 90’s doom scene. But there are also less obvious influences like from the death metal bands I listen to. One of my problems with death metal is that the bands play so fast you can’t hear the riffs properly which is such a shame cause they are often great riffs. I found that if you slow them down they make excellent doom riffs.

BB: Can you tell us about the lyrics? What they talk about?

SW: The lyrics are quite personal. There about feelings that I have experienced or the way I feel about people and life but perhaps in a less obvious way. I haven’t actually given it that much thought to be honest…it’s just what comes out when I write.

BB: My favorite song is “Dying Embrace”, it guitar lines are exceptional… Have you got a favorite song in this demo? Which one?

SW: It’s interesting you mention ‘Dying Embrace’. It’s my favorite song to play. But, I don’t have a particular favorite. What songs from the demo I listen to depends on the mood I’m in at the time.  That’s what I think the strength with ‘A Plague to Come’ is. The songs are all doom but take in different styles and moods. Each song is a bit different but it is all Silent Winter.

BB: What about the demo title “A Plague To Come”. What’s the concept behind this apocalyptic name?

SW: When I was putting together the music I was thinking of how when you switch on the t.v. or read the newspaper everything you see or read is doom and gloom. Perhaps man is a plague on earth.

BB: How was the recording process of this work? Are you satisfied with the final result?

SW: As I mentioned before I hadn’t done any production or mixing work before. It was trial and error pretty much. I think I got the sound that I wanted but I think the songs could have been mastered better than they were. The drum sound is a bit inconsistent.

Of course as I’m learning more about production and mixing I’m going to hear things that I’d want to change. But overall I think it captured Silent Winter at that time. One of the things that I want people to notice with Silent Winter is that on each release the songs and sound get better.

BB: You mentioned bands like My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost and Opeth as influences for Silent Winter… But I’m pretty sure you have more influences besides the mentioned bands, am I right? Can you tell us about some other influences?

SW: Yeah, I first started listening to metal music when I was quite young. I was really into Black Sabbath, Metallica, Megadeth and Iron Maiden. Those were the early bands that made me want to play guitar. Then I got into Slayer because I wanted something faster and heavier. That’s when I got into more underground bands. I discovered doom through Paradise Lost.

 I take influence from Mourning Beloveth, Shape of Despair,Candlemass, Morgion, Anathema, Panthiest, Grand Magus, Aphotic, Draconian…I took the name Silent Winter from one of their songs…there’s just so many doom bands I listen to. I also enjoy hearing some death metal like Immolation and Nile and there’s a few black metal bands that I like as well.

Obviously if you just take inspiration from a few bands or one style you will never really grow as a guitarist or song writer. You’ll just get good at doing one thing. I try and listen to some other forms of metal like the death bands I listen to get some ideas for riffs or arrangements I might not have thought of otherwise.

BB: How was the reception of this demo within the UK? There many good Doom Metal bands in your country… it must be hard to stand out in this scene…

SW: I have actually had more response from people outside of the UK. I’ve had emails from people from Norway to Russia and yourself! But it is very difficult to get the Silent Winter name noticed and to stand out. That’s why I try to take in some other ideas from different metal scenes. Also being from the UK you know you have got to compete with My Dying Bride for doom fans attention which is quite daunting. Another way I’ve tried to break into the doom scene was buy sending the demo to bands that I listen to. I’ve had some very positive replies especially from Darren in Mourning Beloveth and Kostas from Panthiest.

BB: What bands are you listening nowadays?

SW: I’m currently listening to Novembers Doom ‘The Pale Haunt Departure’, Mourning Beloveth ‘A Murderous Circus’ and Candlemass ‘Candlemass’.

BB: Have you planed to sign with some label soon?

SW: I have nothing definite but there has been label interest. Silent Winter will be appearing on a compilation being put together by a UK label called Golden Lake which will give the project more exposure to fans and labels.

I have planned the next Silent Winter release for November time which I hope will be the release to get signed with after the groundwork laid by ‘Solemn Verses’ and ‘A Plague to Come’.

BB: Why you decide to drive this band alone? Will be more musicians in Silent Winter someday?

SW: I just have a very strong vision of where I want Silent Winter to go and how I want the music to sound. For years I played in bands were I couldn’t express musically how I felt or was stuck in bands with no determination. That’s why I decided to keep Silent Winter as a one man band. There may at some stage be members for live shows but not any time soon. I just enjoy being in the studio creating the music I want to hear.

BB: Thanks again for your words… these last lines are all yours….

SW: It’s been a pleasure. Cheers! People take note,  Silent Winter  a new power in doom!