Interviews: Ysilik

This is a new interview with the Technical Death Metal/Progressive Death Metal band Ysilik from the USA. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1.Where did you get the idea for the band name, you plan it or came out just like that?

The name was originally Sacre Vates. We felt that was somewhat contrived and Chester brought in the name Ysilik which was the name of a shadow realm level in the video game Darksiders 2. The lead character never actually travels to this level, he's just informed that one of the villains he needs to face is from a shadow realm known as Ysilik.

2. Why did you want to play this genre?

We all are fans of technical, progressive, melodic, and aggressive metal. We also love all different styles and genres and feel we have a melting pot of music as a band. Paul has a Phd in Musicology so he brings in all different styles of music from different cultures, tunings, and instruments. Greg the bassist is into building synths and has an immense amount of pedals to experiment with sounds and effects. Aaron is into all styles of drummers ranging from technical death metal to fusion jazz and incorporates those styles into the dumming. Chester has a vast array of musical background. He and Aaron were bandmates in a former band. He is also a composer of electronic music and movie scores. His depth of lyrical content and unique style and delivery fit our band perfectly.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

Yes, we did. Paul and Aaron were in a band previously as well as Chester and Aaron. Paul and Aaron knew Greg as his band jammed in the same building and we would always wonder what it would be like to jam with him as we heard the craziest of bass playing coming from him. Chester had not previously met Paul or Greg before forming the band. Within the first 30 minutes of the whole band being together for the first full-band jam, we knew we had something special.

4. Each band member's favorite band?

Between the Buried and Me, Dillinger Escape Plan, Protest the Hero, Doomtree, Code Orange, NIN, Morbid Angel, Carcass, Sikth, and Tool are our ultimate favorites. We listen to basically anything we can get our hands-on.

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

Life experiences are the main inspiration but we are all lovers of music, writing, performing, and recording. We are very influenced by nature, star wars, and odd documentaries and movies LOL.

6. Where was your last gig?

Our last gig was in February in St. Paul at a dive called The Northstar Bar and Grill. It was amazing and shout out to our local scene!

7. Where would you like to act?

I think we would like to play 18+ or All Ages shows at any venue that would allow that. We really enjoy seeing the younger generation and our staple fans that give all at every show! We're also data-driven and get a kick out of looking at who's listening to us currently and where we could see ourselves play in the future.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Any band that is willing to play with us! We do not discriminate! We are fans of things weird, interesting and not of the typical metal scene. Chester also has these ideas of implementing a show within the concert, whether it's burlesque, comedians, aerial performance, or dance, etc it would be great to feature that as we play (or between songs when we tune).

9. Who not?

Bands and people that suck! Santa Clause too, he never comes around anymore to get us anything like WTF Santa, we've been good, haven't we?!

10. Have Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

Aaron: I certainly still to this day get that nervous adrenaline rush but I have since learned how to channel that into my performance and put the best show on I possibly can at EVERY gig. A HUGE factor in getting to this level is to practice as much as possible and get appropriately warmed up. But also, really letting go of what could go wrong and just being confident and performing at the moment. That has been the key factor in beating stage fright. This should be FUN!

Chester: I never truly got stage fright when performing vocals but I did get some really great tips from POS (Doomtree) rapper from my first show opening for him. He was a very generous down to earth person and gave me some tips that I still use to this day about stage presence, crowd control, and just having fun while being on stage. To this day I pass those details forward to others.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

Specifically for this band: Between the Buried and Me, Car Bomb, Meshuggah, Carcass, and pieces of different genres, as well as music from other cultures Flamenco guitar, is a huge part of our sound as well.

12. What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

An Autograph! LOL we never anticipate anyone being that into us is that we are so odd but occasionally it happens lol. We love to give the fans what they want.

13. What do you think of your fans?

They are TRULY the greatest! We know we are not the easiest band to listen to but we have garnered some truly great fans since we started 4 years ago.

14. What do you think of our site?

It is AMAZING! THANK YOU for the cool interview! It’s nice to share conversation with you awesome folks and we look forward to do it again. Lots of amazing artists and talent can be found by reading some of the other interviews so if any of our fans find this interview and have some time, definitely check out some of the other interviews and articles.

15. Something add?

The new Meshuggah album slays!