Harakiri for the Sky

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Harakiri for the Sky
Harakiri For The Sky Logo.png
Harakiri for the Sky at Party.San, 2018.
Harakiri for the Sky at Party.San , 2018.
General information
origin Salzburg and Vienna , Austria
Genre (s) Post black metal , blackgaze
founding 2011
Current occupation
JJ (Michael V. Wahntraum)
MS (Matthias Sollak)

Harakiri for the Sky is an Austrian Post-Black Metal - band from Salzburg and Vienna .

history

Harakiri for the Sky was founded in December 2011. Matthias "MS" Sollak wrote and produced some songs on his own, as he was looking for a way to extend his creativity outside of the genre boundaries in which he worked with his previous bands, among others. a. the pagan metal band Bifröst , moved, to act out. He shows them to JJ (real name Michael V. Wahntraum), founder of the post-black metal band Karg , of which MS was also a member at the time, and asked him if he would be interested in writing lyrics to the songs and the To take over vocals, which eventually resulted in Harakiri for the Sky. MS takes over all the instruments in the band and is also responsible for the songwriting, while JJ writes the lyrics and is responsible for the vocals. Live the band is supported by various musicians from friendly bands.

In October 2012 the band finally released their self-titled debut album on the German label Art of Propaganda . The album was largely positively received. In April 2014, the second album Aokigahara was released. The name is derived from the forest of the same name in Japan, which is known as the place where many people commit suicide. Several singers from the black metal sector, u. a. Torsten ( Agrypnie ), Seuche ( Fäulnis ) and Eklatanz ( Heretoir ) are guest singers on the album. The album also contains a cover version of the Tears-for-Fears song Mad World in post-black metal style. The album received positive reviews overall.

In March 2016 the band went on tour with Der Weg einer Freiheit and The Great Old Ones . The third studio album III: Trauma was released on July 22, 2016. The band also performed at the Summer Breeze Festival in 2016 . Harakiri for the Sky were nominated for an Amadeus Austrian Music Award in the Hard & Heavy category.

style

Even if the music has some characteristic features of Black Metal such as B. the screaming vocals ( screaming ), the distorted guitars and the rather raw production, Harakiri for the Sky does not play Black Metal in the classical sense. Compared to classic Black Metal, the music is significantly more melodic and less aggressive: Blastbeats only appear sporadically at certain points, most of the songs are mostly in the mid-tempo range and the songwriting is not just limited to repeating a few riffs, but rather is more versatile overall. While classical Black Metal mostly uses dissonant chords, Harakiri for the Sky often uses classical harmonies, many melodies are written in minor. The production is relatively raw, but relatively modern compared to other black metal bands. Overall, the music contains significant influences from post-rock and post-metal such as B. the more variable songwriting, the reinforced melodies and the increased use of classical harmonies as well as the emotional depth of many songs. This style, which has become more and more popular in Black Metal for several years, is therefore often referred to as Post-Black Metal .

In terms of text and atmosphere, the band also shows certain parallels to " Depressive Black Metal " (DBM). The heavily distorted, often desperate sounding screeching singing, the variable songwriting and the many melodies in minor contribute enormously to the emotional depth and atmosphere of the music, which ranges from melancholy-dreamy (typical for many post-rock bands) to sad-gloomy or depressive varies. The texts mostly deal with negative feelings and thoughts, in many texts the negative facets of life and the loss of all hope are discussed. In addition, the subjects of death and suicide are often taken up, among other things in the name of the band ( hara-kiri refers to ritual suicide in Japan). JJ, who is responsible for the lyrics, describes himself as a melancholy and sees the writing of the lyrics as an outlet to compensate for one's own negative thoughts, "which is why the text concept behind Harakiri for the Sky can be understood as an autobiographical one". Nevertheless, the texts should not be understood as mere suicidal thoughts, as the background that leads to the corresponding feelings is primarily discussed.

Awards and nominations

Discography

Chart positions
Explanation of the data
Albums
Arson
  AT 62 02.03.2018 (1 week)
  DE 29 02/23/2018 (1 week)
  • 2012: Harakiri for the Sky
  • 2014: Aokigahara
  • 2016: III: Trauma
  • 2018: Arson

Meaning of the band name

The term "hara-kiri" describes the ritualized suicide of the samurai in Japan. The idea for the band name came from JJ He was looking for a term that best describes the feeling of powerlessness that he feels in certain situations. "Harakiri for the Sky" came closest to this feeling in his opinion.

“The name grew on my dung and I know it's quite peculiar. But it has a deeper meaning for me. For years I have been looking for a term that reflects the feeling of powerlessness that makes me feel about music or certain circumstances in my life. As if you were running as fast as you can across meadows and fields, only to throw yourself off a cliff into the sea at the climax of the song. Watch the video for "Glosoli" by Sigur Ros and you will know what I mean. HARAKIRI FOR THE SKY comes closest to this term. "

- YY

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b http://fromdarknessmagazine.blogspot.de/2016/02/interview-with-matthias-harakiri-for-sky.html
  2. ↑ http://www.metal-archives.com/artists/V._Wahntraum/18007
  3. ↑ a b http://www.stormbringer.at/reviews/10702/harakiri-for-the-sky-aokigahara.html
  4. ↑ III: Trauma, by Harakiri for the Sky. Retrieved November 24, 2017 .
  5. ↑ Saturday, 08/20/2016 | Summer breeze . In: Summer Breeze . ( summer-breeze.de [accessed on November 24, 2017]).
  6. ↑ DerStandard.at : Amadeus Awards: Julian le Play and Voodoo Jürgens nominated five times
  7. ↑ a b c http://www.metal1.info/interviews/harakiri-sky/
  8. ↑ Chart tracking: DE / AT