![]() We formed in 2010 and have released two full-length albums thus far: Waerachtighe beschryvinghe… in 2014, and Zwart vierkant just a few days ago. Grey Aura is a conceptual black metal band. ![]() Thanks for interviewing with me! I’d love if you could first just introduce Grey Aura as a band and talk a little about your musical and non-musical influences. Our conversation, lightly edited for length and clarity, follows. I had the chance to interview Ruben Wijlacker via email about Zwart vierkant, the album’s creation and concept, and Grey Aura’s past and future work. I suspect the loud, raw vocals might trip some folks up, but they’re appropriate to the album’s conceit (if you want those trve BM vocals, I recommend you check out Waerachtighe beschryvinghe). The sheer craftsmanship involved will be clear to anyone, regardless of whether or not this is your cup of tea. But with each repeat listen, more details emerge-a touch of Spanish guitar (5:12 in “Maria Segovia”), a little Balkan swagger (6:15 in “El Greco in Toledo”). Like the visual art inspiring its story, it can be baffling on the first go-around. (also of Laster) and a host of other featured musicians, thread catchy melodies, found audio, and even lounge-y passages into the fabric of the album. Wijlacker and bandmate Tjebbe Broek, along with bassist S. The music shifts from baroque sequences of acoustic instruments, layered horns, and agonized shouts to furious tempests of black metal blasts and riffs. The jazz palette the band deploys, the psychological messiness of the Dutch lyrics, and even the mainline black metal elements are splattered expressionistically onto the framework of the album’s story. ![]() Perhaps somewhat ironically, Zwart vierkant isn’t actually that angular. The band incubated the concept on two demos in 20, and very recently it reached its apotheosis: Zwart vierkant (“black square”). They describe themselves on Bandcamp as a “ Gesamtkunstwerk Club.” Since their first full-length, Waerachtighe beschryvinghe van drie saylagien, ter werelt nooyt zo vreemt ghehoort, they have singularly pursued a modernist narrative of madness (more on that later). ![]() Grey Aura has been working for a decade, using black metal to construct stories that reach beyond the limits of a concept album. ![]()
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