ELEMENTAL




What is Dream Into Dust all about? What's the essence?

my obsessions, which fluctuate somewhat but remain somewhat consistent at the core. it's pretty much the dark, some would say negative, side of things. i suppose it evokes a sort of dreamlike, otherworldly state, while contrasting that with a more sobering reality. or perhaps reality is a dream. beyond that, i prefer to leave it to the listener to interpret.

Discography evaluation: "Hope for Nothing"?

i was just coming out of a very bleak creative period and was at a crossroads. i sat down and decided exactly what i was doing and how everything should sound, piece by piece. it was difficult as i was not in the best mental state at the time, which you can tell. a very important work in my life.

"River of Blood"/"Venus in Chains"?

"venus" is one of those songs that happens because of a short and intense period of time and captures the feelings associated with that. in this case, the venus retrograde, when making moves in the arena of love is not a good idea. the blood-red vinyl came out well.

"No Man's Land"? (How important was the name change actually?)

i think the difference is fairly audible. from this point on more classical and industrial elements were used, as well as textures and improvisations developed by other players. this changes the makeup of the sound significantly. also, sampling, sequencing, and processing is much more prevalent, though without an overly "electronic" sound. it was pulling together a lot of strange bits in a short amount of time.

"A Prison for Oneself"? (What is "The Prisoner" all about, and what are the parallels between the TV-series and D.I.D.?)

the series tells the story of a supposed former secret agent who is kidnapped and brought to a remote place called "the village".  he is subjected to various mind games and treatments in an attempt to extract information, while he tries to escape.  most of the episodes contain a lot of pointed comments on society.  it was decided to write original music in a style that encompasses both the show and DREAM INTO DUST in tribute to the show's 30th anniversary. the underlying themes as i see them are very close to my own aesthetic and views: trapped in a seemingly pleasant world with an undercurrent of evil, a preference for wearing black and a refusal to "fit in", a restless, constant searching for avenues of escape, a dislike for giving in, even when the enemy has the advantage, the struggle of the individual against the collective, aversion to becoming part of a faceless, numbered society.

"The World We Have Lost"? (How would you compare "No Man's Land" to "The World We Have Lost"?)

i had some of the ideas for 'the world we have lost' before 'no man's land', but the decision was made to get an MCD out first. so in a sense the MCD is a miniature version of the full-length, sort of a warm-up. it creates its own atmosphere though and it stands on its own. 'the world...' is a more fully realised concept, more organised, better executed. i had sounds and segues in my head for years that i had to execute exactly in order to be satisfied. i think it worked out very well. there's always little things i wish i could fix later, but this has turned out the best so far.

How were the reactions on your recordings respectively, how were they received? (My personal favourite is the mcd.)

the first cassette was very well-received. however, i believe some of this is due to the fact that no one expects anything decent on cassette, and also underground culture has a habit of supporting more obviously d.i.y. releases. the higher you climb, the more people want to see you fall. "river of blood"/"venus in chains" gained a metal audience through the MISANTHROPY association and the harder sound. most people said 'no man's land' was unique and moving, but some tried to give it some kind of "generic gothic/darkwave" tag. i've not heard a bad word said about 'a prison for oneself' but there haven't been as many reviews on it due to its limited nature. 'the world we have lost' has so far had a great reaction, but a lot of the press of that has been handled by ELFENBLUT, so i haven't seen as much feedback. of course, there have always been and will always be some people who take issue with the certain aspects of the lyrics, saying it's too depressing. i don't see that myself.

"The World..." actually feels much more like one long song than nine - agree? It certainly has soundtrack qualities; and my guess is that this is exactly how you wanted the album to sound like. A soundtrack to the loss of the world.

the songs were written individually over a long period of time, but completed to complement each other and have a certain flow. the crossfading is meant to enhance the segues between the tracks. hopefully the listener will feel compelled to listen to it all the way through, but of course songs can be played separately. i don't think of it as a soundtrack because there are too many words which tell their own story, apart from any visuals. but in a loose sense, it is a tale of losing the world. what that means to each listener is up to them.

Is the 'non-musical' side of Dream Into Dust very important to you? Do I miss a point about it all if I concentrate on the music alone? After all, the music itself expresses a lot of the atmosphere prevalent in the visuals and the lyrics.

i try to create music and lyrics that can be taken separately or together. i would hope someone who doesn't entirely relate to the lyrics could at least appreciate the music and vice versa. the artwork is there to enhance the effect of the other two.

How broad is your musical concept?

it's broadening slightly with each release. there are certain elements i'd never include, so the sound doesn't become too eclectic or all-inclusive. i like different types of music, but they can be explored in other musical projects or not at all. the sound as of 'the world we have lost' is pretty much centered on a union of industrial, classical, experimental, doom and dark folk styles.

I think the music of Dream Into Dust is incredibly original, but not as in 'extraordinaire' or 'bizarre' - it's original in a very discreet way. Do you agree? How do you - in this context - perceive your music yourself? Where would you place it in the music cosmos?

that's difficult to say. the pieces range from song-oriented to improvised, with many points in between. i suppose we occupy the same space as other artists who have covered both those ends of that spectrum. i do try to be original with the way i play and compose, but so much has already been done it's hard to create something 100% new. i think things become new by context. we place things together that could seem like disparate elements except that i make them work together by emphasising their similarities.

That said, my way of perceiving things makes both the musical and visual side of Dream Into Dust seem very beautiful to me - I find them aesthetically very appealing. Have I misunderstood, or failed to grasp, something?

that's up to the individual. there are aspects that are meant to be beautiful, and others that are meant to be ugly. however, if you have a certain type of mind, you may in fact find this ugliness has its own beauty, or vice versa.

I feel your art evokes, to some extent, a certain 30's/40's atmosphere - are these decades an inspiration in any way? Which aspects to you find attracting and/or inspiring? Which parallels do you see between the world as it was then and as it is now?

aspects of that time period have been of interest to me, and probably will continue to be. but the music and lyrics are not about the past. it attempts to be timeless. a dream/nightmare-world reflection of the dark side of life that exists outside of time.

Does Dream Into Dust equal Derek Rush?

in the sense that i have the controlling vision, and if i stopped there would be no band. but each piece that uses additional musicians is affected by their presence, and i have to thank bryin, eddy, and the others for their excellent contributions. the songs that are only me sound different.

Is all your music essentially philosophy made sound?

that's an interesting way of looking at it. DREAM INTO DUST probably follows that the closest, as it's the most "mine" and every song has some kind of idea, theory, or intent. the other projects i've worked on are less so, or different at least. OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN is more improvisational, in a more industrial/experimental noise vein. it somewhat manifests principles of alchemy and chaos magick in the way it's created. A MURDER OF ANGELS is dark ambient with bits of classical and electronics blended together to keep it interesting,but it's purely about sounds. those two projects are collaborations with bryin dall.

What's your stance on nihilism?

i look at it as a philosophical and mental "cleaning house". things pile up to the point where you say, 'i don't care about anything anymore." it may happen at some point after that you decide that some things you do actually care about, and then you can introduce them back into your life (or not) on new terms.

"Not Above But Apart" - what is your stance on elitism?

that depends on your definition. the dictionary i have calls it "the attitude that society should be governed by an elite group of individuals". i would say that pretty much expresses the way things are. unfortunately the elite are not always right. but this doesn't really have to do with "not above but apart". the song is not proposing to say how others should be. it's expressing annoyance at the way certain others are, but i'm not trying to change them or say that i'm superior to them. merely that they make me sick and i'd prefer if they did not intrude upon my life.

What does love mean to you?

you're probably asking this in relation to the use of the word "love" in the same song. i meant that love is not to be taken lightly or given too easily. the fact is that some people may not deserve your love, still other may use it for their own ends and not give in return.

What do you think of people who use their 'art' merely as a means to promote ideology (no matter which)? They seem to increase in number every second day or so. I wonder why?

to me it only falls flat when the ideology overpowers the music. as a listener, i can generally choose to listen to words or ignore them and just like the music, unless they're too much in your face. for example, i don't really mind the "evil" lyrics of some metal bands as long as the music is good. a case where garbled vocals actually helps! in contrast, it's easy to dismiss overtly racist bands becaue they basically play terrible music with obnoxious and mindless slogans shouted over the top.

"This world is not ours any longer. It's full of wickedness, sordidness, betrayal, fear. This world is sentenced to death, but it goes on killing and destroying, trying to save itself." Hasn't it always been that way? A 'perfect' world wouldn't be a world at all if you ask me. What exactly would you change if you could?

i think there's a huge gap between the way things are and "perfect". certainly perfection, especially on a global scale, is an unreasonable goal. there's a lot of room for improvement in any number of areas: the values people hold, the way we treat the planet, the obnoxious attitudes, the list goes on.

Who are 'we' and what is 'the world we have lost' like? If it's not 'ours', whose is it then?

this is very hard to explain since the album's been done now for 7-8 months. i'm not in exactly the same state of mind as i was when working on it. also these things can be left open to interpretation. but in a vague sense, "we" are people who feel the same way about certain things. "the world" can be a certain world within this one, a place a person or group of people exists in, such as a community or a state of mind, or can be a country, or even the whole of earth. what we've lost depends on the previous interpretation and how each listener interprets it. perhaps the world was never really "ours" in the first place, in which case what we've lost is simply the belief that it was.

How do you actually manage to live in NYC, or the States at all? Is it an inspiring environment? What is NYC like in your eyes? (Have those mosquitoes left town again, by the way?)

i was born here, and moving to elsewhere seems to be legally and/or financially impossible for me. NYC isn't terribly inspiring in itself, but it seems pretty much everything is here as far as getting anything done. it's also a good place to live if you like to keep late hours.

Does inspiration equal pain for you?

i think you mean does pain equal inspiration? not always. sometimes it can, but you have to reach the point of being able to translate your pain into something else. there are certain states so desolate that nothing can really come of it. i have a whole album's worth of lyrics and musical snippets that were done during a period so bleak that they couldn't be finished - every time i even look at them i'm overwhelmed with a thoroughly unproductive depression. it's a shame in a way because i think i had some decent ideas, but if i can't communicate them and they only cause more pain then there's no point.

Since I detect ambient-noise-soundscape elements in some of the music of Dream Into Dust - how would you define music? Where would you draw the line? To me, music equals sounds evoking some kind of atmosphere, some kind of feeling.

music is organised sound, whether by chance or by design. the reason people come up with different names for music is because most people can only accept a narrow, western definition of music. without all the elements they consider mandatory, like melody, harmony, and rhythm, they're lost. they short-sightedly say something is "not music", and assign another name to it, such as "soundscape" or "noise". after awhile these names stick and we all find ourselves using them simply hoping someone will recognise the similarity to something familiar or interesting to those who haven't heard it.

I remember having read that you actually appreciate a couple of black metal bands - what does attract you to their music? What music do you like listening to in general?

i find the speed, brutality, and ugliness of black metal to be unique and exciting. however, very few bands do it well enough to transcend a simple formula. i think this is the case with most genres however. once something becomes a recognised style, hundreds of imitators appear to sell the new trend to the masses. the music i listen to depends on the mood i'm in. dark folk, experimental, industrial, doom, death, and black metal, dark ambient, ritual, electronic, gothic, and the like top the list, but there's crap in all of them as well. i generally can't stand jungle, rap, trip-hop, opera, and country, but a decent song can happen in those realms too once in a while.

Tell us a bit about Chthonic Streams. What is the basic concept, and what are the aims?

it was inspired by a number of underground labels i admire. the label and mailorder was started to promote the band and any other related projects i'm involved in. this spread to carrying releases i have simply done cover art for. then it began to carry certain releases i find personally interesting, especially of a limited and special nature.

How closely are Dream Into Dust and Chthonic Streams interlinked?

both are a result of my vision. but DREAM INTO DUST exists beyond CHTHONIC STREAMS through releases on other labels. we'll see if the opposite will be true in the future, i.e. CS releasing material without DREAM INTO DUST on it.

What's your opinion on the demise of Misanthropy Records?

it's a shame tiziana couldn't have kept going, since she has to be one of the fairest label owners in the world. she genuinely cares about the artists and the quality of the releases first. she seemed to be increasingly burnt out on dealing with the more annoying aspects of the business, first hiring people to handle other duties and finally ending the label. as of this writing though, all of the releases will stay in print for as long as the demand is there.

And what on the "Presumed Guilty" compilation? Most of the music on there is no less than brilliant, which is most important of course, and I readily agree with the concept as well. There's just one thing which bugs me - namely the fact that if it wasn't for all the controversy around Burzum in general and Vikernes in particular and the huge media interest it resulted in, the label would hardly have made it as far as it did. Misanthropy may not have tried to consciously provoke (provocation and controversy - censorship, too - are always very effective selling points), but I can't help it - I do smell a bit of pretense between the lines.

well, you could say if not for BURZUM then black metal in general may not have made it as far as it has, wherever that is. if people decide to buy things out of morbid curiosity or a reaction to trendiness and sensationalism, then sales will go up, it's a fact. MISANTHROPY has never actively promoted varg's controversial aspects in any way, in fact they've attempted to discourage such associations and focus on the music. the fact is all three labels were denied distribution in certain areas because of varg's actions and statements. i disagree with about 99% of what he has said in interviews, but none of this comes across in his music, so i appreciate it on an artistic level. in any case, if people choose not to sell or listen to BURZUM because of varg's views, i suppose that's their call. the problem comes when all the label's artists - many of whom dislike varg as well - are shut out in "guilt by association". utterly stupid. not to mention the irony of anti-fascists using the fascist tool of censorship. so the idea of 'presumed guilty' was to give an inexpensive introduction to the artists' music, while simultaneously giving us all a forum to remark about this.

Your predictions for the times to come? Forthcoming projects (Dream Into Dust and/or others)?

we've been recording tracks for several compilations. the darkambient album by bryin and i as A MURDER OF ANGELS was released in september 1999. i co-wrote, played bass and other noises, and mixed half of the LORETTA'S DOLL album 'creeping sideways'. new sounds and concepts are already being worked on for the next DREAM INTO DUST release.

Anything to add, even?

thanks for the interesting questions, keep spreading the word underground.





SOUNDS INTERVIEWS SHOWS