Interview with Riven done by Patrick posted up on 12-18-18

Interview with Zeromus vocalist and all instruments of Riven done by Patrick


1.Hello Zeromus how are things going in Belgium this week? Please introduce yourself to the readers.
Hello, my real name is Tom and I live in the city of Antwerpen, Belgium. I'm 31 years old.

2.When did you first become interested in playing and writing music?What was the first instrument you learned to play?Are you self taught or did you have lessons when first starting out?
My interst already started when I was about 12-13 years old, when I listened to some metal compilation albums. I wanted to play guitars, but never did until I was 18 years old and bought my first guitar in a local electronics store with some money I got for my birthday. I taught it myself because I did not want to start music school when I went to college.

3.You also handle the vocals for the band when did you first start growling and singing?Do you do anything special to keep your throat and voice healthy?
I used to sing in other bands/projects but it was always clean singing. My voice could handle that perfectly. I always try to sing in a way that my voice doesn't hurt, so I can keep it up. I didn't have much experience in growling, but managed to do it at home with some practice. I can't do it really loud (more practice will be needed for that), but it was good enough to do the record where I can turn up the volume, but not for live shows. I tend to sing only once per week, so my voice doesn't
need to work too hard.

4.When did you first get the idea to start this band?And how did you choose Riven as the name of the band does it have a special meaning?
I bought a new music mixing program with a lot of options to program classical instruments (piano, violins and of course church organs) and drones. I was already experimenting with it, but then I saw a live show of the Finnish band Skepticism, which blew me away and then I knew I wanted to make this kind of music with the options I had. The name Riven comes from a cult video game on the first Playstation, it had such a weird setting and I always thought it would be a perfect name for a experimental music project.

5.You are the sole member of the band when you first got the idea to start this project did you plan to work alone?What do you feel is the easiest and hardest part of being a one man band?
I chose to be a one-man band because then I can decide everything. It's all about experimenting for me and I just wanted to do the stuff I like on my own. This project is perfect for that. The only negative thing is that I can't perform live. At this time I don't feel the need to play Riven as a live band, but maybe in the future I might get asked to do a live performance and then I'd have to look for musicians who want to perform Riven with me.

6.Would you like to find some new members to make a full line-up or do you prefer working alone?If you had the opportunity to work with any musicians{past or present} who would you like to work with?
As I explained earlier I don't really feel the need to have a full band around Riven, but maybe it will be the case in the later stage. I would like to work with John, the singer of Evoken, once. He has such a great voice and his way of doing his thing on stage was always an inspiration for me.

7.Hail To The King is the debut release from the band how long did it take you to write the music for the debut release?
About a year. I was experimenting a lot and once I got into the flow of a song I just kept writing until it was done. And then I just experimented until I found the flow for the next song. Basically one day I didn't have the inspiration and the other day I just came up with an idea and went on with that. It was all about the right moment.

8.Where do you draw inspiration for the lyrics and what are some topics you wrote about on the debut?
It's basically some kind of story where a medieval village was caught by the plague. The king did everything to defend his people, but in the end he dies.

9.I believe Hail To The King is a digital release are their any plans to do a physical release soon?Besides the Hail To The King release does the band have any other merchandise available for the readers to buy If yes what is available and where can the readers buy it?
There is only the digital download. I wanted to release that first to see what I response I get from it (because it is so experimental, you never know how it turns out) and maybe release it physical in the future if there are fans out there who would want it, because I know a lot of people (including me) still prefer music on a physical format. There is no other merchandise.

10.Have you ever thought of making a video for any of your songs if you had the opportunity to make a video for any of Riven's songs which one would you like to see made into a video?
Haven't really thought of that, but it would be an interesting idea! I know some guys who are amateur movie maker, maybe I could ask them. I don't know which song it will be, maybe the title track?

11.Besides playing in Riven do you currently work in any other bands or solo projects? If yes please tell the readers a little about them?
I play in Svarthart, a doom/death metal band. We played quite some shows last month and released 2 records. And also Generaal Onzin (which means General Bullshit), a one-man band with dutch lyrics that focus on jokes. I only play in my area for fun.

12.When you need to take a break from working on new music or band business what do you like to do in your free time?
Mostly listening to music, play video games or board games and going out with friends in the weekend. I also like going to festivals in the summer, with Metaldays in Slovenia as my all-time favorite.

13.Besides funeral doom metal do you listen to any other forms of metal or music in general? If yes what are some of your favorite genre's and who are some bands you enjoy listening to?
I basically have 3 favourite genres: Doom metal, power metal and grindcore. But I have a lot of different records going from Aborted to Powerwolf and from Tankard to Elis. I also enjoy more popular bands like Foo Fighters, Queen and the Beatles.

14.Thank you Zeromus for taking the time to fill this interview out do you have any final words for the readers?
Well, thanks for the interview and keep supporting underground bands, because they need it!

                                                     Band Contacts
                                           https://rivendoom.bandcamp.com/releases
                                      https://www.facebook.com/Riven-1800758369937308/