Duality is a crucial benefactor

Acrimonious Vessel are an enterprising trio from the Big Apple who've been peddling magnificent experimental albums for the last coupla years. In this exclusive with Archaic Metallurgy, frontman Thiago Franco talks about astral plains, starting his own label, and the current state of his soul.

AM: Hello Acrimonious Vessel. Tell me, what's making your life great at the moment?

Thiago Franco: Extensive meditation sessions under the guide of several hallucinogens tend to help develop the serenity that surrounds my life at the moment, hehehehehe... I've also been pretty busy working on material across my many projects

AM: So you just got signed to a label. Now that the band is under someone's wing, what's on the horizon for you guys?

Thiago: As a matter of fact, it's MY label. I recently formed a record label - Lunatic Pandora Records - with the main goal of handling, promoting, releasing, and distributing all of my material; as I have nearly 100 songs under my belt spread across all my musical endeavors I frankly do not trust anybody with them but myself. Another factor which led to its creation is the fact that I'm particularly sick of dealing with unreliable record labels who dismiss my project as merely "another band", knowing nothing of my music, where it is coming from, or what is behind it. For the time being I am not signing any bands except for my own and bands who are closesly affiliated with me, though in time when things stabilize I hope that I will be able to sign many more artists who share a genuine drive for creating emotion.

AM: How long has Acrimonious Vessel been lurking in the shadows?

Thiago: Literally speaking, I created Acrimonious Vessel around two years ago. Though the idea itself has been festering inside me for almost five years. I do not view Acrimonious Vessel as a music project - rather, I see it as an extension of myself. It is the voice of my soul, always and forever.

AM: There are just three of you. Who met whom? Does everyone always get along? What are some of the intensely "bromantic" experiences that pull you guys together?

Thiago: Hahahahaha! The project is predominately my brainchild, though the other members (He Who Shatters Realms and He Who Excoriates Angels) are very, very good friends of mine who have agreed to be session musicians for the entire existence of Acrimonious Vessel. HWSR provides percussion and HWEA provides the occasional vocals, synth and subsonics. I met HWSR (real name Eston) many years back in my childhood. He is actually the vocalist of well-known death metal acts Humanity Falls and Animals Killing People; though his specialty is vocals he is insane at drumming when an extensive supply of cannabis is involved, hahahahaha! HWEA (real name Dylan) is one of the founding members of extreme doom act Bloodkitt from New Jersey, whom I actually met several months ago. To answer your latter questions, yes we are all very good friends and one of our "bromantic" (hahaha!) experiences include jamming together under a veil of marijuana smoke and grimness.

AM: Wow, you've got three albums (albeit internet only releases) to your credit. Are you already laying the groundwork for number four?

Thiago: I am constantly creating. Though I have chosen to release three albums available to the public there are actually close to 10 Acrimonious Vessel releases. In time I will be distributing physical releases of my albums all through my aforementioned record label (www.myspace.com/lunaticpandorarecords). As I do not worry myself with aligning with any particular genre, you can sort of view Acrimonious Vessel as being close to the Japanese experimental rock/doom/sludge/punk trio Boris in the sense that there is plenty of genre-hopping involved. The genres covered so far include drone/doom, funeral doom, black metal, brutal death, acoustic/post-rock, noise, ambient, sludge. As I said, it is the voice of my soul.

AM: I was having lunch the other day while listening to your latest album. It actually creeped me out on a few occasions. Who has given your music the most positive reception so far?

Thiago: That's awesome to hear! As with many artists, you really don't know who exactly is listening to your music or what they think of it. Though I have received predominantly positive feedback from a few random friends; the one that stood out the most actually came from my session drummer (He Who Shatters Realms) who stated he was blown away by my acoustic album the other day. I strongly urge those who have been impacted by my music, however minor or huge it might be, to drop me a line and let me know. I am aware that there are a multitude of bands out there who are teeming with arrogance and a false sense of superiority who think they are too good for their fans. I am nothing like that, I have and will continue to answer every piece of fan-mail I receive.

AM: Can you trace the evolution of Acrimonious Vessel from 'Ethos' to 'Joyless Transcendence'?

Thiago: The actual chronological order is 'Joyless Transcendence', 'This Cold Existence' and finally 'Ethos', though the latter two albums were composed at around basically the same time. I began Acrimonious Vessel with the goal of composing depressive drone/doom whose core influences were old Sunn O))), old Earth, Abyssmal Sorrow and Krohm; music to convey the feeling of being caught in a psychoactive void. During the time I recorded 'Joyless Transcendence' I was in the throes of a heavy drug binge including Dextromethorphan (DXM), lysergic acid amide (LSA), salvia divinorum, diphenhydramine and weed. The entirety of 'Joyless Transcendence' was composed under the influence of each of those drugs in varying degrees in a dimly lit room, basking in complete insanity and despair. Contrastingly enough, 'This Cold Existence' and 'Ethos' were composed on a fine day, in a white room in complete sobriety. Duality is a crucial benefactor in Acrimonious Vessel. Positive and Negative. Yin and Yang. Good and Evil. Although I manage to create very contrasting music in different circumstances, it is still me; all me. The branches may be different, but they are all connected to the same tree.

AM: When it comes to your music, color me impressed. Do the three of you all collaborate on each album or is 99% of the mateiral prepared by one guy?

Thiago: I composed the three albums alone; a lot of the time I create music it is in solitude. However, I am utilizing the entire Acrimonious Vessel lineup for an album of mine I have planned titled 'Descent from the Peripheral' which - if you are familiar with them - is a play on words of the monumental classic 'Transcendence into the Peripheral' by diSEMBOWELMENT. They are my absolute favorite band who has influenced me EXTREMELY. The goal of this album is to reimagine their sound; back in their day they managed to perfectly mix the two extremes, death metal and doom metal. I plan on doing a modern day interpretation of their sound involving brutal death metal and noisy, feedback-laden drone. After that material is completed we will see what lies in store for Acrimonious Vessel's "full" lineup.

AM: Does listening to your own music prove cathartic or are you irritated by the parts of a song you could've done better?

Thiago: I am perfectly content with all my music. To be honest, every song I have ever made is done on the spot; some can call it improvisation, though I see it as much more than that. There is a certain connection to songs that are created in one go. I feel that I am not creating music, I am just bringing forth what is already within me. I am a bit displeased with the vocals on 'Joyless Transcendence' but in the end it is all what makes the music.

AM: How did you learn the finer points of recording your own music? What kind of software do you use to bring Acrimonious Vessel to life?

Thiago: Trial and error mostly. Everyday I am learning more tricks and ways to effectively hone my sound. In all honesty I utilize the bare minimum (as well as duality, minimalism is an important philosophy I hold in both my music creation and my life). I just use an Ibanez guitar tuned to E standard which is missing two strings at the moment, Audacity, and for my ambient/non-metal pieces I create them all using Garageband, a program which I hold in VERY high esteem. Garageband is godlike to me and needs to be used a lot more often.

AM: I know this would be unrealistic, but judging by what you accomplished so far, do you think you can go on creating music until the end of time?

Thiago: Honestly speaking, yes. As I mentioned before, Acrimonious Vessel transcends just another "music project" of mine. It is my most personal project to date. I am Acrimonious Vessel, and Acrimonious Vessel is me. As long as I have the use of my fingers, my mind, my ears, my eyes, and my life, I will always be creating music; albeit in a few years I am fairly certain that the music of Acrimonious Vessel will mature. Only time will tell how it will sound.

AM: If everyone had their own distinct philosophy that's the sum of their life experience, what would yours be?

Thiago: If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stomping on a human face - forever.

AM: Forgive my ignorance, but what's Sun O)))? What’s Boris?

Thiago: Sunn O))) is an experimental drone/doom act from the US that perfectly blends ambience, drone, doom, and noise. The atmosphere these guys create are some of the bleakest I've ever heard; imagine being stuck in a cathedral swarming with moths and other vermin. Boris is a Japanese experimental rock-trio that genre-hop like crazy with every album they release. They choose to play whatever the fuck they want and they fucking do it great.

AM: Have you ever considered bringing your music in front of a live audience?

Thiago: The possibility of shows is very real and very likely. Hopefully later this year or sometime early next year I will be playing shows with the alternate Acrimonious Vessel lineup. I am intending for these shows to be distinct in their own manner. As with my recorded material, the songs we plan on doing will be completely improvised on the spot, under the influence of various drugs as that is one thing the three of us share in common: the ability to sublimely, flawlessly and competently improvise under the influence. So needless to say every single Acrimonious Vessel show will be completely different and the material will exist for that one night, so I actually urge people to go right ahead and release live bootlegs of our shows, hahahahaha!

AM: Oh right, you're from New York. Is this New York state or Big Apple New York? How's your hometown doing these days? You still watch concerts often?

Thiago: I live in "Big Apple" New York, but not in the city. I reside in the borough of Queens which is a fairly uneventful, suburban area.

AM: Have you ever accidentally walked in and interupted a "Law & Order" shoot?

Thiago: Hahahahaha! Oh yeah! They actually decided to arrest me on the spot too.

AM: When life gets you down, where do you find the strength to maintain an empire state of mind?

Thiago: I have a deep, shamanistic respect for entheogens. I feel that psychedelic drugs should NOT be used for recreation, rather they should be revered and honored for there is so much benefit that its usage begets. I embark on hallucinogenic voyages about once or twice every month in conjunction with meditation which lasts for hours to clear my mind and firmly grasp onto the tranquility which floats in the ether. Along with that, creating music is a very means of therapy for me, so for the most part I am a very calm person.

AM: Hey, you know what? Let's make this a little more interesting with a short parlour game I know of. I'll mention a few key phrases directed at yourself and you answer them frankly. I believe what we're about to do was popularized by one Marcel Proust. Ready? Here we go...

Your character.

Thiago: I am an extremely laidback individual and though I oftentimes seem cold and unapproachable, I am in actuality a very friendly guy.

AM: The quality you admire in a man.

Thiago: One who values, above all else, reason, logic, rationality and does not fall into the herd mentality.

AM: The quality you admire in a woman.

Thiago: A girl who isn't a slut and actually values their dignity and self-respect.

AM: What I like about my friends.

Thiago: They're awesome! Hahaha!

AM: Principal defect.

Thiago: I have a very short temper and do not hold back when aggravated.

AM: Favorite occupation.

Thiago: The Shaman.

AM: Idea of bliss.

Thiago: Meditating in an unending, lush field under the influence of LSD, Mescaline, Shrooms, Weed, DXM, Salvia, and DMT as a tranquil afternoon breeze caresses my being with Entheogenic or Bluetech play in the background.

AM: Biggest misfortune.

Thiago: Losing all my weed.

AM: Famous person I'd like to be.

Thiago: God.

AM: I would like to live in.

Thiago: The astral realm.

AM: Favorite color.

Thiago: Sky blue.

AM: If I were an animal, I'd be...

Thiago: A cat!

AM: My favortie artists.

Thiago: My favorite bands include Nobuo Uematsu, diSEMBOWELMENT, Inquisition, Bloodkitt, Humanity Falls, (V.E.G.A.), Boris, Gorguts, Weakling, Yasunori Mitsuda, Benighted In Sodom, Drudkh, Blut Aus Nord, Intestine Baalism, Corrupted, Bohren Und Der Club Of Gore, Artificium Sanguis, Deathspell Omega, Grand Belial's Key, Portal, Nachtmystium, Agalloch, Lurker Of Chalice, Taake, Last Days Of Humanity, Mgla, Judas Iscariot, Leviathan, Immolation, Arghsolent, Xasthur, Sargeist and Burzum.

AM: My favorite names.

Thiago: I have none actually. I like my own name.

AM: What I hate most.

Thiago: Stupidity.

AM: Historical figures I admire.

Thiago: Friedrich Nietzsche, Anton LaVey, Terrence McKenna, Nick Herbert, George Orwell, and Hunter S. Thompson.

AM: Historical figures I despise.

Thiago: Whatever fuckhead decided to make hallucinogens illegal and alcohol legal.

AM: The military enterprise I like most.

Thiago: The Marines. Hoo-rah!

AM: A talent I'd like to have.

Thiago: Astral Projection and Lucid Dreaming at will, two things which I've already been working on for a while now and am slowly getting closer to finally achieving.

AM: How I'd like to die.

Thiago: In peace.

AM: My soul's condition

Thiago: Slowly understanding itself.

AM: The faults I can accept.

Thiago: Existence.

AM: Which member fo the band has the most diverse CD collection?

Thiago: Thiago: HWSR (Eston) most definitely. The reason I am so heavily into music now is because he pretty much let me rape his Soulseek account and download a multitude of albums from him years ago. I think he has somewhere around 30000 songs, all from black metal, death metal, and doom metal bands.

AM: Alright, I guess that's all we ever need to know about you for now. Thanks. Do you read reviews often?

Thiago: Yes I do. I am signed up to metal-archives.com y'know, hahahahaha! It was great doing this interview, thank you for giving me this opportunity. Take it easy man.

Interviewed by Migual Miranda

03/10/2010 17:28