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| This interview was made in collaboration with Last Cathedral Records |
In this interview, Imparity look back on the band's formation in Bochum, discuss their Doom Metal influences and the evolution of their sound, and talk about City of Broken Dreams and their contribution to The Silent Remains compilation.
Asmoth: Imparity was formed in Bochum in 2016. Could you take us back to the early days of the band and tell us how Imparity came together? What were you looking for musically when you started the band, and how has that original idea evolved over the years?
Markus: Andreas, our first bassist and a good friend of mine, wrote to me ten years ago one day saying that he had found a drummer near where I lived and wanted to start a band. They were still looking for a guitarist. Since I had never played in a band before, I thought the whole thing was a pretty crazy idea. But he wouldn’t let it go, so I went to a rehearsal without knowing what to expect and met Stefan there. What developed from that was not only a long-lasting musical project, but also a real friendship. We started with a rather rudimentary idea of what we wanted our music to sound like and just let things develop naturally. When Eva joined us after about a year, her unique style of singing made our musical direction much more concrete and tangible. As we became more skilled on our instruments, the songs also became more refined and better. On top of that, we gained great new influences through the various excellent musicians who played bass in the band, and now, of course, through Heiko on violin and keyboards.
Eva: After becoming a mother and being kicked out of my former band in 2011, I thought that my life as a singer was over. But then, in 2016, I realised that something important was missing and started looking for a band. I couldn’t find anything in the vicinity, and as I broadened my search, I found Markus and Stefan. It was the first time in my life that I liked the guys as much as the music they wanted to make. It was a perfect match! At the beginning, we didn’t really know what we wanted to sound like. This evolved over the years, also under the influence of the audience’s reactions to our songs and due to changes in the band lineup.
Stefan: Well, this seems to be the “kicked out” story. I had also left my first band before Imparity and was feeling somewhat discouraged when it came to music. When I saw Motörhead live in Düsseldorf together with my father, I realised that this couldn’t be the end. I rented a small rehearsal room in a bunker in Bochum and started drumming again. I then met Andreas through facebook. The rest of the story has already been told by Markus and Eva. Originally, I wanted us to sound more like bands such as (DOLCH), but I think Markus, Andreas and Eva also brought their own influences. That’s how the style emerged that Imparity has remained true to to this day.
Asmoth: Imparity is generally described as a Doom Metal band, but your music also incorporates darker, atmospheric and melodic elements. How would you personally describe the band's sound today, and what are the musical influences that have shaped Imparity's identity?
Markus: None of us really comes from a Doom background, and our influences are extremely diverse, which is why the band sounds the way it does. I myself actually come from the classic Heavy Metal/Power Metal corner, while our singer is more rooted in the Gothic scene. What we all have in common, however, are the typical Gothic Metal bands from the late 1990s, and I think you can hear these influences quite clearly.
Petzi: The band currently sounds more structured and organised than it did in the early days. This progress was already noticeable on “Tales…” and became even more apparent with the lineup change and the addition of new members.
Asmoth: Doom Metal has a very broad spectrum, from traditional and epic Doom to Gothic, Death and Funeral Doom. Which bands or artists have had the biggest influence on each of you, and are there any less obvious influences outside Doom Metal that have found their way into Imparity's music?
Markus: From the Doom scene, Black Sabbath, Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride are certainly the main influences on our music. Speaking as a guitarist, however, many of my riffs actually come more from classic Hard Rock bands and Heavy Blues bands – I simply play them much slower.
Petzi: For me and my part in the band, Les Claypool has clearly been a major influence. That has nothing to do with Doom, but that’s exactly where the appeal lies: we all bring in elements from outside the genre which ultimately make up “our” sound, and that’s exactly what IMPARITY sounds like.
Eva: I was influenced by Anneke Van Giersbergen (The Gathering), Amy Lee (Evanescence) and other female-fronted bands from the ’90s and the beginning of this millennium. But also Paradise Lost, Amorphis and My Dying Bride.
Stefan: We’ve already mentioned quite a lot of influences. From my perspective, however, Warning must not be left out. Besides their profound and personal lyrics and their unique vocals, their drumming always reminds me to show the greatest possible restraint. That thought is slowly making its way into my playing, though.
Asmoth: You are based in Bochum, in North Rhine-Westphalia, a region with a long and very active history in heavy music. How would you describe the local Doom Metal scene today? And looking at Germany as a whole, do you think the Doom scene has enough visibility and support compared with other Metal genres?
Markus: Even though the Doom scene as a whole is large and diverse, I feel that it is somewhat underrepresented, especially when it comes to live shows. There are relatively few events in Germany dedicated specifically to Doom. Things look quite different in Italy or Belgium, for example. I find the scene there more diverse and vibrant than it is here. I am always surprised by the size and activity of the Stoner scene. Unfortunately, despite the many overlaps between the two genres, it is difficult to get Stoner fans to attend Doom events.
Stefan: The Ruhr area certainly has one of the coolest Metal scenes in all of Europe. However, as Markus already mentioned, Doom isn’t particularly widespread here. Since I originally come more from the Black Metal side of things, we also play with Black Metal bands from time to time. We’ve always received a lot of positive feedback from those audiences, though, because fans of extreme Metal music can usually also understand and appreciate Gothic Doom.
Asmoth: Your latest EP, City of Broken Dreams, marks an important step for Imparity, especially with the changes in the lineup and the addition of violin and keyboards. What did you want to explore with this EP, and how do you feel these new elements have influenced the band's sound?
Petzi: With this EP, we wanted to present the public with a current snapshot of the band and the new lineup, so that it would already be clear what the future will sound like.
Heiko: We wanted to add a new colour to our palette, which is why we introduced the broad, horizontal sounds of the keyboards. They take the overall sound somewhat out of its fragility. The violin stands out nicely through its higher tones and thus adds a sound that you don’t find in every band. Bands with two guitars are very common, but replacing the second guitar with an electric violin is something special and brings a new sound.
Markus: We had been thinking for a long time about integrating a keyboard sound that wouldn’t be too dominant. When we came across Heiko, the combination with the violin was perfect for us. Since I’m more of a rhythm than a lead guitarist, we had also always been missing a solo instrument in the band, and we found that with the violin. The keyboards then enrich the sound nicely and give it another distinctive touch. The EP is primarily intended as a brief sign of life and an introduction to the current band lineup, while we are working on new material for a full-length album.
Asmoth: City of Broken Dreams presents two different sides of Imparity, with two Metal tracks and two acoustic reinterpretations. What made you want to revisit these songs acoustically, and did working on the acoustic versions change the way you look at the original compositions?
Petzi: My perspective on the original compositions hasn’t changed. Instead, it showed me that there is an additional and completely different way of expressing ourselves. Originally, it was a project planned for a private event, but while working on it, we collectively realised that it made sense – and was fun – to develop this possibility further.
Markus: The acoustic versions were originally only planned as a house concert for Heiko’s birthday. But we felt that the arrangements were far too good to perform them only once in a family setting. So we decided to make them available to a wider audience on the EP as well. Whether we will do something in this direction again, however, remains open.
Stefan: The inspiration certainly goes in two directions. On the one hand, we’d like to integrate even more acoustic elements into our sound, and on the other hand, perhaps record more acoustic versions of some of our known songs at some point in the future. We’d also really like to perform the whole thing live again, but the opportunity hasn’t arisen yet.
Asmoth: Imparity contributed “City of Broken Dreams” to The Silent Remains, the first compilation released by Last Cathedral Records. What did it mean for the band to be part of this project, and what was your reaction when you were invited to participate alongside so many other Doom Metal bands?
Markus: We were really happy when we received the invitation, and it was immediately clear to us that we wanted to be part of it, even though initially we didn’t know which bands we would be sharing the compilation with. When we saw the finished product, I was really proud to be featured alongside so many great bands, many of whom I am a fan of myself. Just to name three examples of bands whose records I actually have on my shelf: the German band Mirror of Deception, who have just released another fantastic new album after a long break; Fvneral Fvkk, also from Germany, whose new album I am eagerly looking forward to this autumn; and, from a little further away in Argentina, the fantastic HeléH.
Stefan: At this point, we’d also like to say a big thank you to Michael “Mike” Heß from Tales Of Mike, who supported us with his compilation. You should definitely check out Tales Of Mike – it’s a really cool project that is also released through our label, Schattenpfade.
Asmoth: The Silent Remains is more than a Doom Metal compilation, as all proceeds go to nina+nico e.V., which supports people affected by sexual, psychological and physical violence. How important do you think it is for the Metal underground to come together for projects with a social purpose like this, and what would you like listeners to take away from Imparity's contribution to the compilation?
Eva: I think Metal, especially Doom Metal, attracts people who have also seen that life can be tough, and some might have experienced violence themselves. In my experience, the Metal community stands together against all kinds of injustice. So this contribution is a good way to participate and show our support.
Markus: The Heavy Metal scene is fundamentally a very social scene, and many Heavy Metal fans work in social professions. At the same time, the proportion of people in the Metal scene who have various kinds of psychological problems is also quite high, as music often serves as a way of channelling emotions and as a refuge. That’s why I think projects like this bring together two things that have belonged together for a very long time.