Ne Obliviscaris - Dan Presland
Questions: Stuart Millen
Melbourne's Ne Obliviscaris, who describe themselves as "progressive/extreme/melodic metal (with violin)", formed back in 2003. Years of hard work has resulted in significant international attention and a recent Australian record for music-related crowd funding. With the band on the verge of releasing their new full length album Citadel, they are preparing to embark on their biggest Australian headlining tour to date.
Dan, the band's drummer, spoke with Caught in the Mosh about their new album Citadel, how to break records for crowd funding and how the band ended up on the Soundwave
2015 lineup.
You’re releasing your new album Citadel shortly (out 7th Nov). There’s been quite a buzz around the release, from all around the world. You must be excited?
Yeah! It’s becoming quite awesome. We actually got our first bunch of reviews in recently and they’ve been extremely positive. We’re absolutely blown away. We were really unsure of how the album would be received and how it would go but so far we’re really flattered with the response.
You’ve previewed a number of the new tracks online. I found it interesting that a number of people have said they’re refusing to listen, preferring to wait for the release and hear the album in full.
I’ve read a few comments like that myself. I can understand where they’re coming from. I’m kind of similar with bands I’m a big fan of. If they release a track and you’re really excited to hear the whole album, you might try and hold out. So I understand their point of view. But at the same time, it was pretty much the label’s choice to release as much as they have. We probably would have released one single, but they were keen to out a few more out. And we were cool with that. And that’s what they’ve done. And so far, what we’ve heard, the feedback from the fans, we’re really stoked on.
The label you mention is Europe’s Season of Mist, who you signed with early last year. They’re huge, with over 150 bands on their roster. How’s that worked for you?
Initially, when we first signed with them, it was kind of low-key and we thought they were taking a bit of a gamble with us as a band. But now that we’ve been working together for a while, we’re getting a little bit more out of them and they’re getting a little more out of us. We’re really happy with the way the relationship’s going at the moment.
Dan, the band's drummer, spoke with Caught in the Mosh about their new album Citadel, how to break records for crowd funding and how the band ended up on the Soundwave
2015 lineup.
You’re releasing your new album Citadel shortly (out 7th Nov). There’s been quite a buzz around the release, from all around the world. You must be excited?
Yeah! It’s becoming quite awesome. We actually got our first bunch of reviews in recently and they’ve been extremely positive. We’re absolutely blown away. We were really unsure of how the album would be received and how it would go but so far we’re really flattered with the response.
You’ve previewed a number of the new tracks online. I found it interesting that a number of people have said they’re refusing to listen, preferring to wait for the release and hear the album in full.
I’ve read a few comments like that myself. I can understand where they’re coming from. I’m kind of similar with bands I’m a big fan of. If they release a track and you’re really excited to hear the whole album, you might try and hold out. So I understand their point of view. But at the same time, it was pretty much the label’s choice to release as much as they have. We probably would have released one single, but they were keen to out a few more out. And we were cool with that. And that’s what they’ve done. And so far, what we’ve heard, the feedback from the fans, we’re really stoked on.
The label you mention is Europe’s Season of Mist, who you signed with early last year. They’re huge, with over 150 bands on their roster. How’s that worked for you?
Initially, when we first signed with them, it was kind of low-key and we thought they were taking a bit of a gamble with us as a band. But now that we’ve been working together for a while, we’re getting a little bit more out of them and they’re getting a little more out of us. We’re really happy with the way the relationship’s going at the moment.
Did you approach the writing of Citadel any differently to Portal of I?
No, definitely not. We’re really organic and primitive in the way that we write our music. It’s all essentially done in the jam room. We just get together and someone might bring forward and idea, maybe a guitar riff or even a melody or a drum beat, anything at all, and we just go from there. We develop the idea and keep working on it until all of us are happy. If we think it’s going to continue, we’ll keep going, pushing the idea, seeing where it’ll take us.
Do you find much changes when you hit the studio?
Yeah, there are always little things you tinker with. We do pre-production, essentially, in most of our stuff and we try and knit and tinker a little bit here and there with little things. But for the most part, the whole idea and the whole song is there. It’s just little bits, like maybe a solo would be changed, or during pre-production, we might feel that something’s conflicting, so we might alter it a little bit. But for the most part, when we go into the studio, we really know what we’re doing.
In relation to your experience with the recording of Portal of I, did you pick up and tips and tricks that helped improve the recording process for Citadel?
Yeah, definitely. Every time I’ve been into a studio and recorded, there’s always been something I’ve learned, whether it’s how far to have a microphone from an instrument for the best sound, or even just different preparation. I’m kinda big on what I eat before I go in to the studio. They’re huge days. I make sure I get plenty of rest, make sure I eat more wholesome foods, I suppose, to keep me going for the big day.
So, the album is out on the 7th and you start your biggest Australian tour to date with a last minute addition of a show in Launceston on the 8th. You’ve been relatively quiet on the live front this year, given the recording; you must be looking forward to getting back out there and playing the new tracks live?
Yeah, yeah. We can’t wait to play the new tracks live and see how they go down and that sort of thing. We’re definitely keen to get down to Tassie. It’s one of our more favourite locations. It’s really low-key and everyone’s relaxed and easy going and when we go on tour, everyone has a great time.
You played a “secret” show last month. How did that go? Did you get a chance to preview any new tracks?
Yeah, we had a progressive showcase night for industry people. And that went really, really well. We didn’t play any new tracks, we just stuck to our guns and played Portal of I tunes, but yeah, it went really well and everyone had a good time.
Given the fact it was tagged a “secret” show, and it was the same night as Cannibal Corpse, did you get a good turn out?
Yeah, surprisingly. The only time we mentioned anything was 24, 36 hours earlier. But yeah, there was a quite a gathering of people there, which is always encouraging.
No, definitely not. We’re really organic and primitive in the way that we write our music. It’s all essentially done in the jam room. We just get together and someone might bring forward and idea, maybe a guitar riff or even a melody or a drum beat, anything at all, and we just go from there. We develop the idea and keep working on it until all of us are happy. If we think it’s going to continue, we’ll keep going, pushing the idea, seeing where it’ll take us.
Do you find much changes when you hit the studio?
Yeah, there are always little things you tinker with. We do pre-production, essentially, in most of our stuff and we try and knit and tinker a little bit here and there with little things. But for the most part, the whole idea and the whole song is there. It’s just little bits, like maybe a solo would be changed, or during pre-production, we might feel that something’s conflicting, so we might alter it a little bit. But for the most part, when we go into the studio, we really know what we’re doing.
In relation to your experience with the recording of Portal of I, did you pick up and tips and tricks that helped improve the recording process for Citadel?
Yeah, definitely. Every time I’ve been into a studio and recorded, there’s always been something I’ve learned, whether it’s how far to have a microphone from an instrument for the best sound, or even just different preparation. I’m kinda big on what I eat before I go in to the studio. They’re huge days. I make sure I get plenty of rest, make sure I eat more wholesome foods, I suppose, to keep me going for the big day.
So, the album is out on the 7th and you start your biggest Australian tour to date with a last minute addition of a show in Launceston on the 8th. You’ve been relatively quiet on the live front this year, given the recording; you must be looking forward to getting back out there and playing the new tracks live?
Yeah, yeah. We can’t wait to play the new tracks live and see how they go down and that sort of thing. We’re definitely keen to get down to Tassie. It’s one of our more favourite locations. It’s really low-key and everyone’s relaxed and easy going and when we go on tour, everyone has a great time.
You played a “secret” show last month. How did that go? Did you get a chance to preview any new tracks?
Yeah, we had a progressive showcase night for industry people. And that went really, really well. We didn’t play any new tracks, we just stuck to our guns and played Portal of I tunes, but yeah, it went really well and everyone had a good time.
Given the fact it was tagged a “secret” show, and it was the same night as Cannibal Corpse, did you get a good turn out?
Yeah, surprisingly. The only time we mentioned anything was 24, 36 hours earlier. But yeah, there was a quite a gathering of people there, which is always encouraging.
And speaking of live shows and touring... to help finance overseas touring, you set up a Pozible campaign and proceeded to set an Australian record most money raised in a music-related project. Did you ever think you’d have such a massive response?
Absolutely not. Definitely not. I was, personally, nervous about our initial asking point of $40,000. And I know the other guys were too. We were extremely nervous to even put that out there. It was quite an ambitious total. So to double that is absolutely mind blowing. It’s still crazy to think about now. It’s a really encouraging sign for the band and it’s really pushed us to work even harder.
How did you go about setting up the campaign to begin with?
Everyone in the band had a say in it somewhat. There was a lot of brainstorming and ideas thrown around of how to... of what rewards to offer, how much of each reward and stuff like that. There was a lot of brainstorming between everyone and we shared everything in an excel document. We did a lot of research on how other bands went about it, about what made it successful, what rewards did they have, how well did each reward go... we looked into it a fair bit before we went ahead and hit the GO button. For the most part, everyone had a go, but Tim (Charles) did a lot of work with putting all our information into one document and presenting it to everyone at the end.
Do you have any tips for other musicians thinking about setting up their own campaigns?
I guess the one thing is, you’ve got to have an audience to present your crowd funding to. We saw quite a few of the ones that didn’t do too well and they were always perhaps people who had just started out and were asking for a particular amount of money. If you’ve got no one to ask and nothing to present them, from what we’ve seen, you’re not going to have success. We waited until a certain point in our career. The idea was floating around but we sat on it for probably 12 to 18 months. We waited to a certain point in time where we though OK, perhaps we’re getting to a point where we do have the audience, where we could present all these products to them and they can pledge for them if they wish. It just happened that the timing worked out well for us. So yeah, my advice to other bands is to just plug away at it for a while and get to a point where you think you’ve got an audience, where you can present your crowd funding ideas to them. And if you’re confident in it, you should be right.
Will the location of donors affect your touring destinations?
Yeah. Look, we would’ve tried to get over to Europe as hard as we could, regardless. But the fact that it has been such a success for us means it is going to influence where we’ll go. We’ll try to get to more places than we would have originally and perhaps spend more time over there than we would have. We definitely owe it to the people that supported us and pledged towards the rewards we offered people, so yes, it has definitely had an impact.
Absolutely not. Definitely not. I was, personally, nervous about our initial asking point of $40,000. And I know the other guys were too. We were extremely nervous to even put that out there. It was quite an ambitious total. So to double that is absolutely mind blowing. It’s still crazy to think about now. It’s a really encouraging sign for the band and it’s really pushed us to work even harder.
How did you go about setting up the campaign to begin with?
Everyone in the band had a say in it somewhat. There was a lot of brainstorming and ideas thrown around of how to... of what rewards to offer, how much of each reward and stuff like that. There was a lot of brainstorming between everyone and we shared everything in an excel document. We did a lot of research on how other bands went about it, about what made it successful, what rewards did they have, how well did each reward go... we looked into it a fair bit before we went ahead and hit the GO button. For the most part, everyone had a go, but Tim (Charles) did a lot of work with putting all our information into one document and presenting it to everyone at the end.
Do you have any tips for other musicians thinking about setting up their own campaigns?
I guess the one thing is, you’ve got to have an audience to present your crowd funding to. We saw quite a few of the ones that didn’t do too well and they were always perhaps people who had just started out and were asking for a particular amount of money. If you’ve got no one to ask and nothing to present them, from what we’ve seen, you’re not going to have success. We waited until a certain point in our career. The idea was floating around but we sat on it for probably 12 to 18 months. We waited to a certain point in time where we though OK, perhaps we’re getting to a point where we do have the audience, where we could present all these products to them and they can pledge for them if they wish. It just happened that the timing worked out well for us. So yeah, my advice to other bands is to just plug away at it for a while and get to a point where you think you’ve got an audience, where you can present your crowd funding ideas to them. And if you’re confident in it, you should be right.
Will the location of donors affect your touring destinations?
Yeah. Look, we would’ve tried to get over to Europe as hard as we could, regardless. But the fact that it has been such a success for us means it is going to influence where we’ll go. We’ll try to get to more places than we would have originally and perhaps spend more time over there than we would have. We definitely owe it to the people that supported us and pledged towards the rewards we offered people, so yes, it has definitely had an impact.
I can image you would have received pledges from people in locations that you would never have imagined?
Yeah, definitely. I’ve been sending out packages in the last couple of weeks and I’ve been at the post office and I’ve been like whoa, Rio de Janeiro. Then the next one is some small town in southern France, then there’s one in South Africa and it’s like, this is crazy!
Well, I guess that diversity of your fans’ locations is one of the examples of how the Internet has benefited bands, as opposed to the more often heard complaint that it’s killing the music industry...
Yeah. I guess you see bands complain about what the Internet can do to CD sales. Personally I think it sucks that you’re in an industry that judges you on how many units you push and stuff like that. But for me, personally, I really like what the Internet’s done for music. I’ve discovered tons of stuff that I wouldn’t have if it weren’t for the Internet. You can go onto youtube and type in “thrash metal” and something will come up and there’ll be recommendations and you read the comments and people say to check out this band and check out that band. And it’s just endless. I’ve spent many nights checking out new music online. I’m personally a fan of it.
Onto things closer to home, you had And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope added to the curriculum of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music last year. Did you ever think your work would be the subject of student’s compositional analysis?
Definitely not. I never would have thought that something like the Conservatorium would consider doing that. It’s such a humbling honour. I’m still flabbergasted to this day that they would consider our work worthy of study, that’s for sure.
And in November last year, in response to a fan’s query regarding you appearing at Soundwave, AJ tweeted that you’re an “Amazing world class band. Would love to have them (on SW)”. Nine months later you were announced on the lineup for 2015. You must be pretty stoked about that. How’d it all come about?
That’s another thing we were extremely blown away by. We weren’t exactly sure how to take AJ when he first tweeted that. We obviously got excited, but didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves or anything like that. It basically came about as you described. He mentioned to us on Twitter that he was a fan and, like any Australian band, we were keen to play Soundwave. We suggested to him some months ago that we would love to send him a copy of the new album and he basically tweeted back saying “Welcome to SW15 guys!” and it went form there.
Wow. That’s great. And it’s an awesome lineup next year.
Yeah! I’m extremely excited to play that. I’ve actually never been to Soundwave, so my first time going will be to actually play it! I’m quite spoilt!
Do you approach festival shows any differently to your normal pub gigs?
I don’t think so at all. We’re really big on giving everything we have, every night, no matter the conditions. We’ve done shows with 20 people and we’ve done shows with 2000 people. It doesn’t make a difference to us. We give everything we’ve got. As hard as that can be sometimes, you’ve just gotta see through it, keep pushing. You’ve gotta kick a goal every night, because at the end of the day, however many people there are, they’ve paid to see you perform the best of your ability and that’s what we’ve got to do.
Yeah, definitely. I’ve been sending out packages in the last couple of weeks and I’ve been at the post office and I’ve been like whoa, Rio de Janeiro. Then the next one is some small town in southern France, then there’s one in South Africa and it’s like, this is crazy!
Well, I guess that diversity of your fans’ locations is one of the examples of how the Internet has benefited bands, as opposed to the more often heard complaint that it’s killing the music industry...
Yeah. I guess you see bands complain about what the Internet can do to CD sales. Personally I think it sucks that you’re in an industry that judges you on how many units you push and stuff like that. But for me, personally, I really like what the Internet’s done for music. I’ve discovered tons of stuff that I wouldn’t have if it weren’t for the Internet. You can go onto youtube and type in “thrash metal” and something will come up and there’ll be recommendations and you read the comments and people say to check out this band and check out that band. And it’s just endless. I’ve spent many nights checking out new music online. I’m personally a fan of it.
Onto things closer to home, you had And Plague Flowers the Kaleidoscope added to the curriculum of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music last year. Did you ever think your work would be the subject of student’s compositional analysis?
Definitely not. I never would have thought that something like the Conservatorium would consider doing that. It’s such a humbling honour. I’m still flabbergasted to this day that they would consider our work worthy of study, that’s for sure.
And in November last year, in response to a fan’s query regarding you appearing at Soundwave, AJ tweeted that you’re an “Amazing world class band. Would love to have them (on SW)”. Nine months later you were announced on the lineup for 2015. You must be pretty stoked about that. How’d it all come about?
That’s another thing we were extremely blown away by. We weren’t exactly sure how to take AJ when he first tweeted that. We obviously got excited, but didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves or anything like that. It basically came about as you described. He mentioned to us on Twitter that he was a fan and, like any Australian band, we were keen to play Soundwave. We suggested to him some months ago that we would love to send him a copy of the new album and he basically tweeted back saying “Welcome to SW15 guys!” and it went form there.
Wow. That’s great. And it’s an awesome lineup next year.
Yeah! I’m extremely excited to play that. I’ve actually never been to Soundwave, so my first time going will be to actually play it! I’m quite spoilt!
Do you approach festival shows any differently to your normal pub gigs?
I don’t think so at all. We’re really big on giving everything we have, every night, no matter the conditions. We’ve done shows with 20 people and we’ve done shows with 2000 people. It doesn’t make a difference to us. We give everything we’ve got. As hard as that can be sometimes, you’ve just gotta see through it, keep pushing. You’ve gotta kick a goal every night, because at the end of the day, however many people there are, they’ve paid to see you perform the best of your ability and that’s what we’ve got to do.
I believe you had some issues with some “sketchy drum kits” on your Asian tour last year. What happened there?
Ha! There were a few locations in Asia where the backline was pretty beat up, to say the least. Our last show in Thailand, I actually had a kit drum and every band that night had used it. we were the last band playing and by the time we got on stage, there was a giant hole in the bass drum! So, out came the gaffa tape and we had to get a chair to help hold the drum up. We somehow got through the set like that. It was pretty interesting, for sure.
You’ve been around for a while now. Do you have any favourite moments , where, when you look back, you can’t help but smile?
I think one of the biggest ones for me would be playing the Palace last year with Devin Townsend. Devin’s been a huge influence on me and the band for a long time and the vibe of that show was just extremely awesome. I think it was probably one of the best shows in our career.
OK, it’s about time to go Dan. Thanks for your time and good luck with the release of Citadel and the tour.
Thanks man.
Ha! There were a few locations in Asia where the backline was pretty beat up, to say the least. Our last show in Thailand, I actually had a kit drum and every band that night had used it. we were the last band playing and by the time we got on stage, there was a giant hole in the bass drum! So, out came the gaffa tape and we had to get a chair to help hold the drum up. We somehow got through the set like that. It was pretty interesting, for sure.
You’ve been around for a while now. Do you have any favourite moments , where, when you look back, you can’t help but smile?
I think one of the biggest ones for me would be playing the Palace last year with Devin Townsend. Devin’s been a huge influence on me and the band for a long time and the vibe of that show was just extremely awesome. I think it was probably one of the best shows in our career.
OK, it’s about time to go Dan. Thanks for your time and good luck with the release of Citadel and the tour.
Thanks man.
Ne Obliviscaris release Citadel worldwide on Fri 7th Nov (11th Nov in the US). Various bundles are availble from Nerve Gas. The Australian Citadel album tour begins in Launceston on Sat 8th Nov and continues around the country, finishing in Perth on Sat 6th Dec.
Tour pack bundles are also available from Nerve Gas.
More dates on the Citadel world tour to be announced...
Fri 8th Nov - Launceston, Club 54 - tickets from Oztix
Fri 21st Nov - Melbourne, 170 Russel - tickets from Oztix
Sat 22nd Nov - Adelaide, Uni Bar - tickets from Oztix
Wed 26th Nov - Canberra, The Basement - tickets from Oztix
Thu 27th Nov - Sydney, Bald Faced Stag - tickets from Oztix
Fri 28th Nov - Newcastle, The Cambridge Hotel - tickets from Oztix
Sat 29th Nov - Brisbane, The Brightside - tickets from Oztix
Sat 6th Dec - Perth, Amplifier Bar - tickets from Oztix
They also play the huge 2-day Soundwave festival in 2015.
Soundwave dates and venues:
Sat 21st and Sun 22nd Feb - Adelaide, Bonython Park
Sat 21st and Sun 22nd Feb - Melbourne, Showgrounds
Sat 28th Feb and Sun 1st March - Sydney, Olympic Park
Sat 28th Feb and Sun 1st March - Brisbane, RNA Showgrounds
Weekend and Single Day tickets are available now from Soundwave
Tour pack bundles are also available from Nerve Gas.
More dates on the Citadel world tour to be announced...
Fri 8th Nov - Launceston, Club 54 - tickets from Oztix
Fri 21st Nov - Melbourne, 170 Russel - tickets from Oztix
Sat 22nd Nov - Adelaide, Uni Bar - tickets from Oztix
Wed 26th Nov - Canberra, The Basement - tickets from Oztix
Thu 27th Nov - Sydney, Bald Faced Stag - tickets from Oztix
Fri 28th Nov - Newcastle, The Cambridge Hotel - tickets from Oztix
Sat 29th Nov - Brisbane, The Brightside - tickets from Oztix
Sat 6th Dec - Perth, Amplifier Bar - tickets from Oztix
They also play the huge 2-day Soundwave festival in 2015.
Soundwave dates and venues:
Sat 21st and Sun 22nd Feb - Adelaide, Bonython Park
Sat 21st and Sun 22nd Feb - Melbourne, Showgrounds
Sat 28th Feb and Sun 1st March - Sydney, Olympic Park
Sat 28th Feb and Sun 1st March - Brisbane, RNA Showgrounds
Weekend and Single Day tickets are available now from Soundwave
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