(Comrade Aleks rejoins us with this interview of Felipe Dalam of the Brazilian doom band Saturndust.)
Saturndust from São Paulo is one of the Brazilian doom metal scene’s discoveries. The outfit was formed in 2010, and after few lineup changes (bass and drums seemed to be a weak side of the band), one EP (2012’s Sons of Water) and two singles released in the same year, Saturndust have prepared a self-titled album. Six doom tracks performed in a nearly traditional doom manner with psychedelic and space decoration, they complete an inspiring 45-minute-long journey to the dark corners of the solar system. The band’s lyrics are influenced by classic sci-fi writers and believe in the power of the human mind.
Felipe Dalam is Saturndust’s founder and mastermind, and he has sung and played guitars and synths since the band’s first years. Here’s his message to the human race from Saturndust‘s high orbit.
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Salute Felipe! How are you? What’s Saturndust’s status?
Salute Aleskey! Fine, but “on the run” just like Saturndust. Rehearsing a lot with our new drummer, about to record our second album, some gigs with Stoned Jesus (UC) here in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro (in May).
The band was born about 6 years ago and it took about 5 years to record the first Saturndust self-titled full-length record. Why did it take so long to formulate your sound?
Well, I was just 17 when I started the band with Elder Lukas, he was 23. In mid-2012 we released a 2-song EP called Sons Of Water and Elder moved to Germany because of work. Back in the day it was hard to find musicians here in Brazil who really wanted to make heavy/slow music. By 2013, Marlon (drums) and Frank (bass) joined, and my perspective was even different, so I started to go further in my personality to create our own sound.
There were a few lineup replacements through the years — with which lineup did you compose and record the Saturndust songs?
Marlon Marinho (drums) and Frank Gopa (bass), in my basement or like we used to call it: the red light chamber. Marlon left the band because of personal reasons and Frank moved to Florianópolis because of work (yes, I’m very unlucky hahah). The line-up since late-2015 is: Guilherme Cabral (bass), Henrique Kehde (drums), and me. And I know them very well because they’re my best friends, so I don’t fear they will one day move to… the Phillipines (?)… We never know. hahah
Your music is a blend of traditional doom with stoner and psychedelic elements. How did you build your sound? What were your main reference points?
Well, after years I finally found the “point of ignition” to build more and more a sound which reflects my life-experiences. I love doom metal and I love the whole sci-fi thing, so one thing “married” each other in our sound in a very nihilistic perspective. Doom metal is perdition. The space is deep. We’re just star stuff in the vast cosmos.
The lyrics on the Saturndust songs are mostly pretty brief and abstract despite the first song “Gravitation of a Hollow Body,” which starts with the quote by Carl Sagan from “Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space”. What did you put into the songs’ texts?
Imagine an astronaut lost in space after some terrific experiences, alone and lost. This is our first album. The lyrics are his lost signs/last try to make contact. And about Sagan, he’s one of the most important humans in history, and after Copernicus and Giordano Bruno, he’s the one who really opened earthlings’ eyes about the greatness of the universe, last century.
Saturndust – Cryptic / Endless
Sagan’s work – as I see it – is idealistic, it holds his faith in humanity; do you share this point of view? Do you believe in helping mankind through learning about the universe or even just our surrounding?
It’s very important for people to learn that we humans are not the main species in the universe. That we’re just mammals with “more” consciousness, and we should learn, help, and respect each other just as other living species here. When you finally accept you’re so small compared to the cosmos, your life become less heavy. No gods, just yourself and your experience in life, try to make it worthwhile for you and the ones around you.
Who are the other authors besides Sagan who influenced you and your vision of art and music in general?
Philip K. Dick was a master of alternate universes which could be real in a (not so) distant future. The Three Stigmata Of Palmer Eldritch is my favorite work. I’m into Lovecraft a lot, works like The Color Out Of Space and At The Mountains Of Madness are all-time classics — even being a little trendy right now, I love these books.
2001: A Space Odyssey kinda changed my vision about being stuck in what could happen if you’re betrayed by the machine you created and an astral experience you might have beyond what you see. That whole vortex scene is my favorite astral/space movie trip. I hate some old-school sci-fi movies because there are a lot of shitty monsters and nothing to learn about. This new school of sci-fi like Interstellar, The Martian, and Gravity is very cool because there’s no shitty monsters, it’s more serious.
In music: ’70s Tangerine Dream is a true artistic inspiration in every single concept. They were more than just a spaced-out synthesizers band. About games: the whole EA Dead Space series (PS3) is so fucking Saturndust when you compare it to the lyrics… hahah, I mean… just like Tangerine Dream, it’s more than spaced out stuff, or monsters. The plot features religion/cults, origins, and even politics. It’s awesome and if you play alone: fucking scary.
Felipe I see that Saturndust was finally released in physical format, where is it possible to find it?
You can send a message to our facebook page, we send worldwide. Or if you’re from USA: helmetladyrecords.com
How do you promote the band? Did you try to enter the international doom metal scene with the help of labels or promotional agencies?
We released the LP via Helmet Lady Records (US) and played a few gigs with Mars Red Sky (2013 and 2015) here in Brazil, but that’s the only thing. A lot of people message us to play Maryland Doom Fest and Psycho California (both US), but we need a little help to find the dudes ~behind the scenes~ of these festivals to see if it’s possible to make it next year.
What are your plans for the next Saturndust album?
We’re about to record 6/7 tracks. They’re longer, heavier, and even a bit experimental. The name: RLC. It depends on the mixing/masterizing time, but we want to release late-2016 or early-2017 if possible.
What influenced you in the process of composing these new tracks? Was it natural to make the sound heavier and the duration longer?
Yes. I really can’t explain. And btw it feels like another phase in my life. I wrote all Saturndust songs, even drum parts, in a few months after the release of our S/T. When you listen to your own creations you naturally evolve after the process.
Will you continue to research this theme of humankind’s loneliness before the face of cosmos in the new songs?
I don’t want to put walls in our music, but it’s like “our essence”. We may talk about it as we may talk about simple stuff, the Earth is a part of the universe too. But it feels good to write about our experiences through this perspective. The unknown/beyond.
There are Son of a Witch and Witching Altar bands in Brazil who also play more or less traditional doom metal. Do you have contact with them? And do you have some doom metal fests in your region?
Our brothers from Son Of A Witch did a great job last year with their new album. We have contact, but not much because they’re from the other side of the country. About doom festivals: very very rare, it’s more like: sometimes a promoter picks up two/three bands and makes a gig or something, but a festival with a lot of bands and stuff… not yet, unfortunately. And I say not yet because the last two/three years a lot of people want to play slow here in Brazil, so I think it’s a matter of time.
Why do you think doom metal isn’t a popular genre in your country? It seems that more brutal and extreme metal genres prevail there.
Brazil is most known because of extreme metal and hardcore/crust punk bands, which is awesome too. But people from these scenes know what’s goin’ on, about how “hyped” the stoner/doom/sludge/whatever thing has gotten in these lands over the years. It’s a matter of time. There’s an agency called Abraxas which bring some international bands of the scene to play here (like Kadavar last year, or Mars Red Sky). Their job is the best, seriously. I still hope to see a gig of bigger bands like The Obsessed, Acid King, or Boris here in São Paulo.
How do you organize gigs in São Paulo? In which conditions do you usually play gigs? How many people visit your gigs? What kind of venues do you play, and so on…
We play when we have the opportunity. Sometimes 5 times a month, sometimes “month yes-month no”. Sometimes two/three bands organize a gig/fest in places like Espaço Som, Dissenso Lounge (awesome place to play, s/o Erick/Muriel), Morfeus, Zapata, etc. Abraxas organize the tours of international bands in Brazil and we play/tour with them. There’s a festival we played last year called Black Embers Fest (s/o Marcelo). It’s my favorite one here in SP. Very diverse, from crust/powerviolence to doom/sludge or synth/darkwave. Hope it gets bigger proportions in the next editions.
Saturndust – Hyperion
There are doom bands such as High Priest of Saturn, Prophets of Saturn, Saturnalia Temple, and probably more bands who approach the power of this mysterious planet (or rather, the ancient deity). Don’t you plan to gather together a Saturn coalition with them?
I think they approach the planet in a more ritualistic perspective, especially Saturnalia Temple (which is my favorite of these 3). A coalition? Would be cool in a split or something. If one day we have the chance, why not? {:
Felipe, thank you for your answers, I wish you and Saturndust to play killer shows with Stoned Jesus and finish the new album as soon as it’s possible. Good luck comrade!
Thank you, Aleskey, I felt honored. Good luck to you too and keep up the awesome work!
S/o to all nocleansinging/doom-metal/itspsychedelicbaby.com readers, if you like our music we have surprises for the next months!
https://saturndust.bandcamp.com/album/saturndust
https://www.facebook.com/saturndustofficial