An honest shock if there has ever been one, Blood of the Black Owl’s Light the Fires!
caught us unexpected with its ritual vibes and earthy opulence. Though
initially coming off as quite peculiar, repeat listens revealed a
carefully constructed and ultimately overwhelmingly atmospheric walk
into the abyss of the outer wilderness.
“Band” mastermind Chet W. Scott was kind of enough to engage in an eloquent chat with me over his history, inspirations, and all manner of idiosyncrasies that make Blood of the Black Owl the enormous beast that it is.
“Band” mastermind Chet W. Scott was kind of enough to engage in an eloquent chat with me over his history, inspirations, and all manner of idiosyncrasies that make Blood of the Black Owl the enormous beast that it is.
-Blistering.com
I )Admittedly I’m a newcomer to your rather unique take on metal and a
question that kept gnawing at me as (I imagine) many other new listeners: where
did you get your start and how did it come to this?
Wonderful, I'm honored and humbled to have you take this
journey with me Matthew. Well, wish it could be more exciting for you all, but
the very short story of this reflects the vast majority of the now juvenile
self titled debut, as well as the 3 song demo that came before it, both of
which were actually conceived as a younger fellow and written back in 1995
while living in NYC. I never had the option of recording this music back then,
as I didn’t have my own gear or studio space, nor was I able to step into a
“professional” recording studio financially at the time. I also had no interest
in forming a band, thus never shared the work with others. Anyhow, straight
through the years to follow, finding myself exploring vastly different musical
paths, which often fell into this deliriant sort of apocalyptic noise art and
ritual ambient soundscape, I never lost touch with these initial ideas. Ideas
consisting of simple riffs and song structures that fell into a sound akin to
the bands of the time. Bands such as Winter, Neurosis and Darkthrone to name a
few, were absorbed on a daily basis and tremendously effective upon my being.
Years came and went, then within the early season of 2004,
having some of the tools in place and the desire to unlock and explore these
older ideas became a reality, with the juvenile and horribly produced self
released “Svart Ugle” 3 song Demo. Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to
establish a decent studio and the gear I’ve needed to see it through. The
intent grew tremendously richer, as I began to journey this sound as a conduit
of personal ritual and growth, spiritually woven within this artistic
expression. Thus, the debut “Self Titled” full-length was offered in 2006,
along with a vital and deeply more inspirational name change.
II) What’s the process behind most of the music you create? Is it a
fairly free-flowing experience or a step-by-step process? From what do you draw
most influence, be it musical, the world, or otherwise?
It varies depending on intent and state of being at the time of craft.
"Light the Fires!" just happened! Seriously, I can't explain it nor
believe it is my place to do so. I couldn't let go of my acoustic guitar during
this river of spirit, which the entire collection was written on. Mystery was
behind this offering in full, as most of my solo crafting, especially regarding
the ritual work of Cycle of the Raven Talons (formerly Ruhr Hunter), which now
crafts deeply and directly into my Homo Spiritualis being.
III) The Metal presence on Light
the Fires! at least as it’s usually defined sonically, was rather sparse.
Is it losing ground over time within your sound or is that just how it worked
out on this album?
Just the way it came to pass this time and I'm so thankful and deeply
content with its presence.
IV) “Caller of Spirits” is a very elaborate, intense piece of music. It
was apparent as soon as play was hit and that voice billowed forth that
something special was at hand. Do you care to break down that song and what
went into it?
The opening Galdr "Caller of Spirits" was an offering through
deepening intent and strengthening of spiritual vows, honoring the six
directional spiritual path. It is important for my being to acknowledge the
spirit world, prior to offering a collection of medicinal musical out into the
void. I had done this once before under the Blood of the Black Owl Sigil with
the opening invocation "Spell of the Elk," featured on the second
full length "A Feral Spirit" collection. "Caller of
Spirits" focused intent upon a binding runic mark that had traveled within
me for a long time. After meditation upon this unified gathering of Elder Futhark
and finding an understanding within its presence, a ritual was conceived and
captured audibly. This particular time, through the consumption of earth
tongues to usher being forward, light was revealed even further upon these
very specific marks becoming this binding sigil as a whole. Thus, the layers of
Galdr in the piece becoming one spiraling voice. Sacred horns, flutes, frame
drum, Elk shaker and a Bear bladder rattle were implemented as well. It's also
important to note that thus far, all Galdr offerings have coincided with
specific Moon phases, as well as very specific times of year.
When the double vinyl format is released for the "Light the Fires!"
collection, a 14 minute companion Galdr entitled "Spirit Canoe (Hailing
Father Sky)" will replace "Caller of Spirits" to open the
journey. Also, within the vinyl format will be exclusive artwork to reveal this
binding oaken sigil I spake of.
V) In most things I’ve seen you’re simply listed as playing ‘all
instruments’. Could you break down what some of those were and why? Any guest
musicians?
Blood of the Black Owl is a personal endeavor. Like the debut self-titled
album and the second full length "A Feral Spirit," "Light the
Fires!" is solely of my own craft and spirit and looks to remain this way
indefinitely. Due to popular, miss guided information on-line, many folks seem to not
realize it’s just little old me as a solo artist handling everything and not an
actual band. Blood of the Black Owl has never been a band, nor will it ever be.
James Woodhead was the only "guest musician" I've ever worked with under
this musical sigil. James contributed to both of the split releases with
Celestiial (2007-08) and At the Head of the Woods (2011), as well as the third
full length offering "A Banishing Ritual (Into White)." Daniel Ellis
Smith Harrod is another name you may see pop up in relation to this endeavor.
However, Daniel has never contributed music, as his role lies within an
inspirational and vital lyrical craft.
In some regards, to the spirit within Cycle of the Raven Talons,
compositionally the Blood of the Black Owl musical sigil seeks to tell stories
of awareness, through the heartbeat of the Mother and breath of the Father. Instrumentally,
the Cycle of the Raven Talons musical sigil is exclusively organic and
acoustic, focusing deeply within ritual through primitive crafting, using
sacred and sometimes ancient acoustic instrumentation, while Blood of the Black
Owl unites the primitive with the modern. Thus, sacred horns, frame drums,
shakers, rattles and native woodwinds are implemented and woven heavily within
all modern instrumentation such as: acoustic and electric baritone guitars,
fretless bass, mountain / hammered dulcimers and various other modern tools.
VI ) Any chance of you unleashing in a live setting this year? How would
you pull the rather complicated sounds heard on album together?
As previously mentioned above, Blood of the Black Owl is just a humble
solo endeavor and will look to remain that way. I’ve never intended for this
voice to be on display within a live forum. So I can safely say a Blood of the
Black Owl live performance is never going to happen. For the record, the two
men I’ve mentioned prior, Daniel and James, are the only two folks I would
consider to share this journey as a live spirit. However the reality is,
neither of them, nor myself for that matter find ourselves in a position to
handle the time, demand and devotion it would take to bring such an endeavor to
life. So with that said, my apologies to the folks whom may have wished for
something of this nature.
It may be of interest to note that "Caller of Spirits" was
initially intended, to offer as a Cycle of the Raven Talons related Galdr and
was ritually performed in its entirety within a festival showcase back in 2009.
There are plans for a few performances once the Cycle of the Raven Talons “An Offering
To Mystery” 2xCD has been released on Glass Throat Recordings. For those who
may find a stronger connection within the ritualistic and purely acoustic
element, or Galdr work of the Blood of the Black Owl voice, I would recommend
seeking a Cycle of the Raven Talons performance. However, said live rituals are
most likely to manifest privately within a wild location here in the Pacific
Northwest region of the United States.
VII) There’s still a lot of year to go in 2012, what’s up next on your
plate that you can talk about in the months ahead? Any grand declarations to
present to the world?
Well, most folks may not realize my own Glass Throat Recordings is
co-releasing the Blood of the Black Owl "Light the Fires!" deluxe CD
with Bindrune in August. I'm hoping to find a home to release "Light the
Fires!" for a 2xLP vinyl format as well. There is a bit of interest thus
far, however nothing confirmed. So I'm not sure if that will make a 2012
release or not. We shall see? Next up for G.T.R. is the debut CD release for a
novemthree / Cycle of the Raven Talons collaboration entitled "Cedar
Spirits" that is scheduled for an Autumnal Equinox release. Then the
second Fearthainne offering entitled "Knowing" will finally see
light. I'm hoping for a Yule release on that one, however I'm feeling sometime
early 2013 might be more realistic.
