Nick Magister – Guitars/Synths “Blackshift” is the first album we made as a full line up band, since Lucia entered the band and gave her contribution to the composition as long as everyone else. I think you can hear the difference and the growth in terms of sound and songs articulation comparing this album to both our previous works “Reveries” and “Ascension”, in which we were less mature, but we still love those two albums because they are part of our musical path and identity.
“’Blackshift’’ is not so much an album as it is a fully immersive listening experience. Both introspective and wildly expansive it sound and scope is epic in nature and also deeply intimate. Ghostheart Nebula is a band that continues to grow and evolve, pushing the boundaries of cosmic doom and represent the human voice within universe, a voice that reverberates from the void. The result is an atmosphere that is both overwhelming yet expansive
‘’Yes, we try to play with contrasts in terms of sound as well as lyrically and emotionally. There are sections in this album that are more melancholic and ethereal and then suddenly we try to wake the listener up and make it facing the cruel reality with faster parts and walls of sound.
Is it a transformative experience? Where the passing of time is insignificant?
‘’We like to follow a constant enveloping stream when we compose. Nothing is redundant, there’s a progressive approach in which we like to move, creating a sort of journey that always changes. In this perspective, trying to get out from conventional structures.
What is the allure of the cosmos and the answers you find there?
‘’The cosmos is the field in which we feel ourselves. Even though most of the time it’s a scary place, cold and deadly, we need to face the fear of the unknown to become what we are. Sometimes we find no answers, other times we reach some peace of mind.
Why do you find it so inspiring?
‘’Because it has the feature to give us another perspective in how we see our lives and every day struggles and it pushes us to look for different solutions when we come to make music. It’s vast, deep and from a cosmic distance we can see ourselves and how small and insignificant we are.
How do you integrate it into heavy music? Does the thought of the void allow for some crushing riff work?
Definitely. Often, when we think about the deep space, the first riffs that come are slow and dramatic. Then it happens to take a breath and see this beautiful void full of stars that dance around the planets and we fall in love again with this perfection, allowing us to create different nuances and painting some colours into the emptiness.
The ideology of Sunya’? Knowledge and acceptance over inevitability?
On point! “Sunya” is the substance of the voidness, where we embrace of all our miseries that drives the vacuity of our lives. It’s such a profound subject for us and it can describe well the meaning of “Blackshift”
It is also full of beauty and loss? This is also expressed through the differing vocal styles?
‘’Yes, off course. As we mentioned before, we like to create contrasts between darkness and light and this is something we use to do with vocals as well.
How do you describe cosmic doom? Is it something intangible, the closer you get to it the further it moves away or an all-consuming force with in you?
''Both interpretations are really cool. If you look at nebulae for example, you can see this giant amass of celestial objects that, from a distance, create a colourful cloud of beauty but, if you look closer you will see explosions, collisions and also realise that all the elements that belong to that giant ball are very distant each other. Our souls and personalities follow the same rule, and that is exactly what we believe in and the foundation of our music.
Future plans?
‘’At the moment we’re focused on promoting our upcoming album as much as possible and we’re confirming some gigs inside and outside Italy this fall and the next year. We have a lot of ideas about what will be the next album after “Blackshift” but everything will take the time it needs.
Tops six albums of all time?
To me, it’s a very difficult question, since they are too many to be condensed in just six, haha.
I’ll try to list the ones that inspired the most Ghostheart Nebula’s music.
Nevermore - Dead Heart In a Dead World
Katatonia - The Great Cold Distance
Mono - For My Parents
Saturnus - Veronika Decides to Die
Alcest - Les Voyages de l'âme
Shape Of Despair - Quiet These Paintings Are
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