This week, Eternal Void are in the Meet The Band spotlight. The Dayton, Ohio group have signed with Tragic Hero Records to reissue their album Catharsis along with some new material. Vocalist Logan Adams and guitarist Evan Hilderbrandt introduce us to their band.
Chad Bowar: Give us a brief history of Eternal Void.
Evan Hilderbrandt: Eternal Void was originally a side project of our drummer (Dylan Krebs). Dylan and I were in another band together that eventually broke up and after a few months we decided to join forces again. Logan joined the band in 2013 after a few lineup changes and then we started to play out more frequently and take things a lot more serious.
How would you characterize the style/sound of the original release of Catharsis?
Evan: This was right after we changed our sound and were in the process of evolving. I’d describe it as a more aggressive American metalcore sound with elements of ambient music, post rock and death metal.
Logan Adams: It came from a lot of new influences impacting all of the members at once. A lot of progressive metalcore influences impacted the band.
How did you come to sign with Tragic Hero Records?
Evan: Tragic Hero Records has been a label that we’ve had an interest in signing with for a long time so we were always pushing to improve ourselves and get on their radar. Eventually some of the staff discovered us and reached out with some major interest. It’s been great and we’re very happy to be working with them.
What additional material is on the reissued version of the album?
Evan: On the reissued version there are two reprised tracks (“My Oasis” and “Lie Awake”), as well as instrumental versions of each. We really wanted to revisit these tracks and their lyrical content and breathe some fresh air into them with a new perspective and show fans what we’re capable of musically. “Suspended Animation” is a brand new song that we’re including with the re-release that really captures where the band was musically at the time of signing with Tragic.
How has the band’s sound progressed/evolved from the older to the newer songs?
Evan: The band has gone through some major progression from older to newer songs. In the past we were actually closer to a traditional American metal meets thrash sound. Over time we really carved out our sound and started to focus more on dynamics and making sure the music is telling a story and taking the listener on a journey.
What lyrical topics do you address?
Evan: We prefer to address more serious and relatable topics. This can be everything from overcoming self-doubt, solidarity and the power of life choices, things we’ve witnessed in our lives, addiction, the death of those close to us and so on. We’re very observant of our surroundings and what people deal with day to day. Sometimes we’re very direct in those lyrics and other times we’re more cryptic.
Logan: All the way from a man who never dies to drug addiction.
What are your goals and expectations for the album?
Evan: The main goal with this album is to get it to a wider audience with the help of Tragic and gain new fans that may not have heard it previously as well as breathe some new life into the album with the additional songs.
What has been your most memorable Eternal Void live show?
Evan: I think we would all agree the show we played this last December at Bogarts in Cincinnati, OH. The venue itself is historic and has always been a dream of ours to play. The fact that we got to play there, as well as announce to our friends and the local scene we have been a part of of so long, that we were taking the next step in our career really was a moment I think all of us tried to soak in as much as we could.
What are your upcoming show/tour plans?
Evan: We are looking at a run in April and hitting up some new states we have not played yet. We’re planning a few different runs for the rest of the year and really plan on playing a lot of new areas with the release of the new album.
How did you get started in music?
Evan: Music was always something I was very aware of even in my earliest memories. It always seemd like there was constantly music being played in my house growing up. My parents were always introducing me to different kinds of music and were very supportive once I started to show an interest in pursuing it. My mom would let me borrow from her collection and just explore different sounds. Eventually I saved my money after helping my dad roof a house and bought a guitar and haven’t stopped playing since.
Logan: For me personally it started as a joke. I was joking around making fun of my friends music by mocking screaming. From there I joined a band and that was that.
Who were your early influences and inspirations?
Evan: Early on I was very into classic rock and grunge. I would devour Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Hendrix, Deep Purple and Alice in Chains and try to figure out how to play riffs that stood out to me. Eventually some friends started introducing me to heavier music and then one day a friend had an extra copy of Slayer’s Reign in Blood and then suddenly I was hooked on metal.
Logan: Asking Alexandria was a huge one. The first band that got me into the stuff I love now was Periphery.
What was the first metal concert you attended?
Evan: I can’t remember the year but it was a Megadeth show. I had been to some festivals previously with a sprinkling of “heavy” bands but Megadeth was my first 100 percent metal show and it was amazing.
Logan: Miss May I, Blessthefall and a few others.
What’s the heavy music scene like in Dayton, Ohio?
Evan: Lately the Dayton scene has started to merge with the Cincinnati scene, which I think is great. Both scenes are filled with amazing bands of all genres. With the heavy bands, there is a huge level of respect and camaraderie between them as well as some healthy competition.
Seen any good movies/DVDs lately?
Evan: Honestly I haven’t watched anything new lately (been reading more). But for good movies in general, I just re-watched the Godfather saga and Goodfellas. Two masterpieces.
Logan: No, I’ve spent all of my time watching Dragon Ball Super lately.
What’s currently in your heavy musical rotation?
Evan: Lately my heavy music rotation has consisted of Crowbar, Obituary, Morbid Angel, Behemoth, Nailbomb, Elitist, Novelists and In Hearts Wake.
Logan: Good Tiger, Tesseract, Vola, Lunaform, Dance Gavin Dance, and Veil of Maya.
Anything else you’d like to mention or promote?
Evan: I’d really like to thank the fans for their love and never ending support as we take this next step in our career. It’s very humbling seeing fans at shows that were there from the beginning. We don’t forget the names and faces and never will. For those that haven’t heard our music, check us out and let us know what you think! Pick up a copy of our album Catharsis and get out to a show and hang with us.
(interview published March 3, 2018)
