I Klatus Interview

1. Can you give us an update on what is going on with the band these days?
Tom: We are currently wrapping up the recording and mixing of our upcoming EP, “Vortex”, which we have been working on periodically for the last 2 years.  It is a noise-concept recording based on a person being ensnared within an energy vortex and their struggle against being torn asunder by it. It is intended to be a follow up conceptually to "Kether" in that, the listener is brought through a gateway from the fourth and fifth dimensions. The new recording again features many noteworthy collaborators and multi-cultural instrument usage. It is an expansion of the concept that the song Portals from our last album was written about. We are currently editing an epic video for that song (Portals) to put out with the follow up album.
John: Other than that, just perpetually writing, making cool art, and conceptualizing ideas for the band's forward progress.

2. How would you describe the musical sound of the new album and how it differs from previous releases?
John: With “Kether”, there was definitely a much more cohesive approach to the songwriting, where we all kind of knew where the others were coming from, and could therefore fill in the space and eliminate the chaff to make the songs feel like that they were "ours" rather than being created by each one of us separately and then brought to the table. We also had the addition of Tariq Ali (R.I.P) for some of the writing on bass which helped me to redirect some of my creative focus to vocals and the gongs & robots, which is kind of our blanket term for all the weird noises and effects that we are so fond of.   In truth, this is the first of our records that really felt like a band, rather than a studio project between Tom and me.

3. The song lyrics cover a lot of occult topics, how would you describe your views on Occultism and which areas of this subject do you find the most interesting?
Tom: We are openly referencing our own personal experiences with meditation, DMT, LSD, Kabbalah, The Old Testament, The Book of the Dead, The Bhagavad Gita, Kundalini practices, pan-dimensional psychic vampires and other entities, Atlantean culture, Blavatsky, Manly P. Hall, Malchezidek, Crowley, Egyptian culture, Dreams, and the Tarot. I believe that there is absolutely a series of symbols and word codes which can transmit states of being and activate parts of a human conscious that would otherwise lay dormant. This language has been called Occult because it has been knowledge long hidden from the awareness of the uninitiated. These are tools of consciousness. Just as one can use a hammer to build a house, you can also use it to strike a man down. It is all inherent to the intent of the wielder of these certain understandings. We find ourselves as a band employing ancient symbols and words along with tones and rhythmic patterns to generate specific intentional vibrational states within whatever space the music is played and especially within the listener. No matter what your vibration of consciousness, it will inevitably be altered right down to the way your molecules oscillate while listening to the pulsating wave patterns as they emanate from the speakers that the music is played through. We are using what keys we have found through our own paths of self-awareness and growth to convey our sense of uplifting and sound-tone healing vibrations. The music is very dark and aggressive, because it is so important to look at the shadow and the source of discomfort so that it may be exposed to the light for healing. Some get angered by looking into the speculum for fear of knowing truly what lies at the depths of the unfathomable abyss.  When you dive into the deepest darkest pit of that vortex, the Malkuth, you only discover more of yourself. In our own personal lives we have used these tools to grow through dark times and the result is reflected and spoken about in our music. Hopefully the listener can absorb this implementation of Occultism and take away their own sense of uplifting as we all make our sojourns through this life back into the light. That is the journey of Kether.

4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the band’s name?
 Tom: It references, firstly, the "I Spartacus" notion, in which a self-liberated slave rises up against his Roman oppressors. There is also a science fiction story where Klaatu is an alien from the future, weaponized with the power to destroy worlds and charged with the task to come to earth to judge mankind's worth against complete extermination. So I Klatus is the encoded principles of both of these notions.  This is why it is singular as well as plural; the many are the one. Awareness, rebellion, strength, the future, the past, potential executed, and unrealized all coalesce into a delicate balance of polarities in which chaos is the kept. Like how a judge interplays with the condemned. The oppressor as well as the abused.  How an electron dances with a proton.  In this dualism we realize that there are only two opposites of a single spectrum, of which there lies only a fulcrum of temperance to one whole.

5. What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and how would you describe your stage performance?

Tom: We have had a series of small shows in random cities at strange times over the years. We usually have projections of animations and video which go along with the themes of the music for our live performances.

6. What are the touring plans for the new release?

7. The new album came out on Horse Drawn Records, how did you get in contact with this label and how would you describe the support they have given you so far?
John: I can answer both of these questions together. Firstly, Horse-Drawn Records is an extension of the recording company that we have been working and collaborating with for well over a decade. Horse-Drawn has always allowed us to take our time to refine and adapt our sound to create the heaviest and multi-faceted albums, so it just felt natural to put the albums out under the umbrella of their label. We maintain a DIY approach through all of this and that includes any touring or upcoming shows. We are currently searching for representation and tour management but until then we will continue to put shows and tours together ourselves and with budget and resources being what they are, our expectations for extended touring are low.

8. On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to your music by fans of sludge and doom metal?

Tom: We generate our own feedback through our amps in large halls. Our sounds are atonal, as this is what affects the crown chakra, and is most pleasing at loud volumes. It is similar to the tones generated by a Tibetan singing bowl. The majority of our sales abroad have been in Europe so far.

9. What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

Tom: I would like to get heavier but with greater aesthetic song structure.  For example, if you combined Burning Witch with Genesis. This would be the most desirable result of future growth at this time. However, speaking fifth-dimensionally, all directions are not only possible and inevitable, but also already achieved in a single overlapping moment of pure awareness and cacophony. This is not recommended for third-dimensional listeners, for their access should be limited to whatever time line they are accessing in the present, otherwise severe psychosis and hyper-dementia schizophrenia could be incurred.

10. What are some bands or musical styles that have influenced your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

John: I would say the bands that most influence the decision making of I Klatus are Neurosis, Buried at Sea, Burzum, Warhorse, Drudkh, and Godflesh, as well as elements of Kundalini medatiation, Tibetan throat singing, and other chakra charging activities.

11. Outside of music what are some of your interests?

Tom: Personally I create a lot of art and designs as well as some video editing and experimental animation. You can find out more about this at www.tomdenney.com. I will have my second book of illustrations coming out early this summer.

Woz: I’m involved with numerous metal, folk, and rock bands.  During the day I’m enabling wind power for localities on every continent.  In my spare time I make beer, mead, gruit, wine, and pulque, and am constantly researching ancient brewing traditions and ways to reproduce these methods.

John: I produce and create many different styles of music but also enjoy building things with my hands. It is my dream to design and build a completely sustainable home and recording facility of recycled materials in the desert. This will be our compound where we will make our albums and art for the rest of the world to consume.

12. Any final words or thoughts before we wrap up this interview?
Woz: We will continue to craft our art for the sake of art—not for fame or fortune.  If we continue to excel in being obscure, so be it.  I’m not sure if that’s completely selfless or selfish, but in our experience, the best results are derived when we make sounds for ourselves.