Interview Trails of Anguish

Delve into the journey of Trails of Anguish, from their tumultuous beginnings to their upcoming compilation and beyond. Explore their musical evolution and intense emotional themes in this exclusive interview.

1. Can you tell us about the origins of Trails of Anguish and how the band came together?

Originally, in 1998, I had my music band called 'Through Sombre Sorrowfields' and Scythrawl joined us. I remember that he always had trouble getting along with the members of the group and even with me. We did a few concerts, but nothing more.
A few months later, after some conflicts the band disbanded.
Despite our differences between Scythrawl and I we decided to form a duo because we had good chemistry musically.
Besides, at the same time, I also formed another band 'Fathomless Oracle' with my bassist.
Musical extracts from my 2 bands are available on my channel ‘YouTube/@Apocryphes’
Trails of Anguish is a sort of continuation of our first band but with a more aggressive and Black Metal touch. Both on the record and with Fathomless Oracle, I kept a more melodic and technical musical touch.

2. Your upcoming compilation "Scathed Gaping Misery" features tracks from your only two EPs. What made you decide to compile these works now, after so many years?

I had completely stopped playing music after the Scarred Mememo EP in 2003. Actually in 2022, my original bassist player from 'Through Sombre Sorrowfields' wanted to jam with me and Scythrawl and it was cool playing together. Hence the idea of wanting to restart the Trails of Anguish band. I put the 2 old EPs on various platforms like Spotify in December 2022. Subsequently, Hessian Firm discovered us and approached us for a compilation. We accepted with great pleasure and we intended to return to the music scene.

3. How do you feel your sound has evolved from your first EP, "Relentless Abhorrence of Misery's Grievance," to your second EP, "Scarred Memento"?

At the time we knew Yannick St-Amand, now well known for having recorded groups like Despised Icon and Voïvod. We did business with him for the 2nd EP.

4. What inspired the emotional and aggressive themes in your music?

I like mixing the emotions of sadness and anger, I feel good there. These were our usual moods. We had an inner rage, the feeling of being imprisoned in the conventions of life, screaming in pain when things went wrong. An overflow that had to be evacuated, especially during a show.

5. Could you share a bit about your songwriting process and how you approach creating music that balances emotion and aggression?

So based on these feelings of pain, on the guitar I try to create sadness and hope, while with the drums and vocals we create hatred and aggressiveness.

6. Your live shows were known for their intensity. How do you translate that energy from the stage into your studio recordings?

This rage and pain was part of us, during our practices, we were always drunk. Our songs were always different from one practice to another. We got carried away by emotion, so no tempo for us, it broke the atmosphere. In the studio, once again, our songs were different, we played them faster than usual, we got carried away by the emotion of the moment. We knew we weren't in the tempo, but we found it was more natural that way.

7. What challenges did you face as a band during your active years, and how did you overcome them?

At the time we didn't have any challenges, despite the fact that we were a duo, we always had friends to play with us, especially during our concerts. We just wanted to play music.

8. After Trails of Anguish disbanded, what did each of you pursue musically, and how did those experiences shape your approach to music today?

After Trails of Anguish disbanded, I did absolutely nothing for the next 20 years. I played a little acoustic guitar, but nothing more. In 2023, I'm starting a new band 'Apocryphes' and I would like the sound to be more defined, more precise and clearer.

9. The album art for "Scathed Gaping Misery" is striking. Can you talk about the concept behind it and how it complements the music?

I wanted an image that is close to our Black Metal origins from the 2000s, that feels old. I didn't want to mislead the listener and put on a too beautiful image. I wanted an image that reflected the emotions of Trails of Anguish.

10. Black metal is known for its passionate fanbase. How do you connect with your listeners, both old fans and new ones discovering your music through this compilation?

Most listeners are on our Facebook or YouTube page. The majority listen to our music on Spotify. I was expecting an audience in my age group, between 45-50 years old. And surprisingly, it is very varied 60% under 34 years old, 30% 35-45 years old , and 10% over 46 years old. So, it's a good thing to have made this compilation, it will allow new generations to know the Black Metal genre of the time.

11. Looking ahead, do you have any plans for new music or projects, either individually or together as Trails of Anguish?

For Trails of Anguish, we will probably make a new album but we will have to be very patient, difficulty with scheduling and availability.

https://linktr.ee/trailsofanguish

With my new band Apocryphes, things are progressing very well. I built this group in 2023 with my former bassist and singer from Through Sombre Sorrowfields and recently for a few months, the former drummer and guitarist from Magister Dixit joined us. Apocryphes may have some similarities with Trails of Anguish, but without being limited musically, as much as it is extreme. We are in the middle of a composition period and we want to release an album towards the end of 2025.

https://www.facebook.com/Apocryphes
https://www.youtube.com/@Apocryphes