Ewigkeit is a project that will be known to many of the DTM faithfull. This is the project which gave us the impetus and idea to start when J. Fogarty burned all of his record contracts (see 'Burn The Bastards' on the 'videos' page), and then told us to give away his entire back-catalgue for free (which we did and then deleted at his request).

A release from 'Ewigkeit' is a very rare thing these days (as the project has been on indefinite hiatus since 2006), so we thought that we would ask some questions to this enigmatic maestro behind various projects..

Give us an idea what led you to create music in the first place ?

really first started actively listening to music when I was about 12 when I began developing my own taste.  This was by-and-large started by "borrowing" records from my older brother - the band that really captured my imagination was The Doors.  After that, a freind copied for me some Iron Maiden, who I then became a massive fan of.  This all ended when someone did me a compilation of Death Metal - I had finally found something intense enough to satisfy my curiosity.  During this time, I had mostly self-taught myself the guitar, and I had been playing in various bands with freinds - the heavier our tastes got, the heavier our music got - for a time, I really loved the European style of Death Metal - bands like Bolt Thrower, Entombed, Carcass, Gorefest.  The band that caught my attention most was Paradise Lost.  Their 'Gothic' album really opened my mind up to the possibility of truly dark and melancholic atmosphere. 
After a while, I grew bored and sought something else - I found it in the form of Black Metal.  I was freinds at the time with some older guys who either gave or sold me their vinyls of some totally classic albums.  I recall having vinyl of Emperor (As the Shadows Rise 7" EP and the Mini Album), Burzum (the original DSP pressing of the debut and Hyvis Lysett Tar Oss), Mayhem (De Mysteriis Dom Satanas)and Darkthrone (Under a Funeral Moon).  It was when me and my freinds really got into this stuff, our imaginations were fired up to somehow get involved in this exciting music. We formed a few bands, but lack of musicians who liked or even knew the style as well as a lack of dedication from my freinds led to me starting to create stuff by myself. It's quite amazing for me to see kids walking around wearing Black Metal t-shirts now - back then, it was completely unknown.

What did inspire you at that time to create Ewigkeit?   How important was Black Metal ?

The idea of creating my own music by myself was massively inspired by Count Grishnackh of Burzum - not so much the music, but the idea that one guy could create a "band" by himself, and not have to rely on others (Bathory did the same, but was not a band I was aware of or interested in at the time).  As I had been expelled from school, and wasn't too fond of college, I had a lot of time and energy on my hands.  When I heard the then-new 'In The Nightside Eclipse' by Emperor, I knew that this was what I wanted to do.  Listening to that album was like a satanic opera !  Truly inspiring stuff ! 

When we really got into the whole Black Metal thing, we used to jump over the wall into this massive graveyard in Brighton which is in a valley, and is basically like a forest full of little paths, chapels and thousands of graves.  We used to go up there at night and listen to music on our personal stereos.  Very atmospheric ! (albeit totally cheesy and cliche)

EWIGKEIT DISCOGRAPHY
(CDs avalable from the 'webshop')


'Battle Furies' - 1997
Eldethorn Rec. (ELD001)


'Starscape' - 1999
Eldethorn Rec. (ELD008)


'Land of Fog' - 2003
(recorded in 2000)
Metal Age Prod. (MAP037)


'Radio Ixtlan' - 2004
Earache Rec. (MOSH282)


'Conspiritus' - 2005
Earache Rec. (MOSH326)

Is the name of the demo inspired in any way by the Morrison's song?  what does it mean?

F**k no. The only Morrison that musically inspired me at the time was Jim Morrison of The Doors - certainly not Van Morrison !  The title that his song shares wit the Ewigkeit demo is pure coincidence and completely unintentional !

Through your various projects, how did you manage to make Ewigkeit so very different ?

Ewigkeit became a vehicle for my personal growth as a thinker.  As my personality developed as a young adult, so the music became more complex.  I began to incorporate my own beliefs and ideas into it (unlike the run-of-the-mill Black Metal bands who simply parody each other).  As a result, by the time I was 20, I was writing and recording Land Of Fog.  This wasnt really a Black Metal album at all - Ewigkeit had traversed too far by that point to have anything more in common with Black Metal.  Also, it was quite a pshycadelic album - due to my personal experince at the time.  This was something beyond the very conservative constraints of Black Metal.  It was around this time I started listening more to Hawkwind than Black Metal (which is certainly NOT good music for such experiences !).

What has been your experience with labels before you became part of Death To Music ?  Would you ever work with an established label again ?

Well, it's what it is.  When you are signed to a label, you are working for someone else.  The good thing is that you get more exposure, but the bad thing is, you dont get the financial rewards of that.  Being a studio based artist for the majority of my time as a musician (though not all), my hope was always that I would one day benefit financially from my work.  Perhaps I was misguided by thinking you could make money from what is essentially to most people a "load of noise", but if you are lucky and money does come into the equation, then you should benefit from that. 

The only thing you really get from being with a label is "ego gratification".  That isn't something that I have ever cared about much - otherwise, I would have continued playing in bands and playing gigs in front of people.  I was more interested in taking an idea, making it come to life and then having people listen to it.  When you get people you dont know listening to your music, it is (for me at least) incredibly rewarding to think that you are somehow communicating your ideas to people. I dont see why I wouldnt release anything through a larger label, but I would always retain the right for Death To Music to profit also.

Is there any plan at all to revisit Ewigkeit ?

Well, I think I already did just about everything with that project that I could.  Perhaps if I did another Ewigkeit record, it would be an album revisiting each period of the project (Black Metal though to Space Metal through to Industrial Metal).  It's not something I have really contemplated too much.  I get ideas every now and then, but I dont know if it'd ever be as good as it should be.  Some of the Black Metal era followers of Ewigkeit didnt understand 'Conspiritus', but it would really take some topping on a thematic and musical level !  I wouldnt ever want Ewigkeit to become a parody.  Perhaps it is better left as it is.

You are known for your diverse and eclectic influences - what is exciting you at the moment ?

Well, I have really been getting back into low-fi raw music again in a big way !  I dont so much get into 'bands', I take a general view and try to appreciate what their style is all about.  I guess to satisfy your curiosity I could tell you what I have got on my mobile phone memory card ; B.R.M.C, Burzum, The Doors, Darkthrone, Entombed, Emperor, The Eagles, Gorefest, Meat Beat Manifesto, Orcrypt, Soundgarden, The Sex Pistols and a few odd tracks of other stuff. 

Tell us about Jaldaboath, The Bombs of Enduring Freeedom and Old Forest ?

Ok - Jaldaboath lives 700 years ago in the past and has a jolly good time. The Bombs of Enduring Freedom is musings on the world as reported through the media using various noisy modern music, and I was not and never have been a memeber of Old Forest ! . It was a rumour started as a joke, and everytime I am producing their music, they berate me for having started it ! It even says that on some 'information' webpages - I personally find it funny, but it pisses those guys off a bit as they take such things very seriously.

What creative projects are you concentrating on these days ?

Various music projects ! (as always).  I quite like mixing and producing other people's bands / projects too.  Videos are also fun.  I am quite comfortable with what I am capable of now - I can have a lot of fun with stuff.

Any last words ?

Yes - thanks to everyone who keeps supporting Death To Music and it's Campaign For Artistic Freedom ! It is great to see something that started as a brainstorm in the pub betrween freinds come to fruition !