By Jonathon Besanko on July 19, 2016

Already underway with your Vessels Australian tour, having played Sydney and Canberra thus far, how has the tour been going thus far, and what is it you all hope to get out of this tour?

“It’s been great so far, probably better than we expected. It’s the biggest tour we’ve done here in Australia, and Evolution Touring have helped to promote it harder and better than any of our previous tours. The supports are also top notch, which is awesome. Considering it had been nearly two years since we last played some of these cities, it was definitely time for us to get back out there!”

Touring in support of your newest album, Vessels, this is also your first studio album since being signed with Napalm Records back in February this year. How has the shift from Kolony Records to Napalm been, and where would you like to see yourself and Be’lakor going next following this Australian tour?

“The transition has been really smooth. Kolony was a smaller label, and we’ll always be grateful to them for getting behind us early in the piece. When the opportunity to join Napalm’s roster came up, Kolony was supportive. With Napalm, it’s been a cool thing to have a team of people working to help the band grow. Napalm has already helped us with some opportunities we wouldn’t otherwise have had, with Vessels being licensed for release in Japan and some interesting touring possibilities opening up. Once our Aussie tour is done we’ll see what other shows can be arranged, but we’ll also be keen to get into song writing again really soon.”

The release of Vessels on July 1st saw the album debut at #2 on the iTunes Metal charts, and, alongside other chart entries later on, at #62 in Germany; giving you your first official chart entry. Run us through how the reaction was for you when the news first came in.

“I’d love to be able to say that we celebrated in style, but the reality was far more banal – we probably exchanged a text or two, and of course got a great sense of satisfaction out of releasing an album that was well-received. In the context of things, the achievements are all quite small and incremental. And the number one thing for us is always whether we are happy with the music ourselves.”

Being your first concept album, can you describe to us a bit what you’re dealing with thematically with Vessels?

“Yeah, for sure. Fans will know that a lot of our songs are inspired by nature, mythology, history, space, science and philosophy. Vessels was therefore really just a chance for us to go into a more detailed, in-depth set of lyrics where we could take our normal story-telling approach and create one long story across the album that would explore these themes. We ended up writing a story that tried to capture the vastness and inter-connectedness of life, touching on ideas and moments that inspire or move us. The album begins by describing the formation of light in the sun, and then its journey to Earth. As the album progresses, that light’s energy passes through different life forms, or vessels. Their trials and struggles are described, especially through the middle of the album. Towards the end of the album, a human briefly takes his place in this chain, providing a chance for the energy to, in essence, reflect on its own existence. I won’t give it all away, but it’s a story that hopefully fans will find adds another element to the album’s music.”

What was the inspiration behind the concept chosen?

“We’re really interested in the ideas that the album covers – there’s a definite sense of fascination and awe, whether it be nature, science or astrophysics. So it’s natural for us to write about these topics.”

Was there any benefit in taking longer to create Vessels than some of your previous albums?

“Yeah, absolutely. Whilst we’d have loved to have had it done sooner, taking our time did allow us to craft things a little more, and play around with new sounds. We added some details that otherwise may not have been there.”

Talking about the current tour, with a back catalogue spanning four impressive albums that have songs of considerable duration — do you feel like you miss out on playing some songs live that you would otherwise like to play more often?

“Definitely. We’d like to play at least 5 songs more for this tour which we simply couldn’t fit in. It forces us to be very selective!”

Since release, the response to Vessels has also been stellar. How has that been for you, being a key component behind its lyrical approach?

[laughs] “Thanks!  We’ll take a stellar response any time, whether it’s a space-themed album or not!”

As a band which now has a profile as large as yours, it seems like your touring schedules stays relatively sparse. Considering you all have day jobs, have you or any of the other band members ever considered following Ne Obliviscaris’ example with their Patreon campaign and performing/touring full time?

“Yeah, we have discussed this, definitely. It’s a really interesting topic. NeO have made a very big decision and you have got to respect that. There are some massive sacrifices that you make if you go that way. We wish them the best of luck – so far it seems to be going really well for them, with some great tours happening. From our perspective, we find it really important to try to keep some balance in our lives if possible. (And balance is notoriously hard to find when you’re in a band and touring a lot). We started Be’lakor for fun, because we absolutely loved writing music. As things progress, you start to see other components becoming bigger and bigger factors – touring, promo, the business side of things. At the same time, the band members are progressing with careers and having families. So we’re at the point now where as people and friends we’re talking about what the band’s goals are. I think we all value having other hobbies, interests and careers, and of course having time for family. So our goal is probably to grow the band but always with a view to keeping it fun and having balance.”

What was your latest “holy f*ck!” kind of moment?

“There have been a few. But one that comes to mind recently was when Niklas Sundin of Dark Tranquillity had a listen to our latest album and wrote an email with some really kind words about the music. That was pretty incredible for us because we were big fans of DT back when we started out!”

Are there any Australian bands you are listening to at the moment?

“I have been a fan of Voyager for a while now, going back to my favourite album by them, Univers. That’s a melodic classic. Quiet Child is a band that I reckon is doing great things. Jack the Stripper stand out because they are just so intense and eye-catching. Future Corpse‘s album which came out recently is a great debut.”

Finally, any last words you’d like to offer your fans before we wrap up our interview?

“A huge thanks from us for waiting so long between albums and for coming out to our shows as part of the Vessels tour!”

Be’lakor are on tour now in Australia in support of their new album, Vessels. Presented by Evolution Touring, you can purchase tickets now through Evolution Touring’s website.

http://www.evolutiontouring.com/tour-news/belakor/

About Jonathon Besanko

Jonathon is an aspiring fantasy/sci-fi novelist and music journalist. Thanks to the influence of the music he grew up with, he has always possessed a keen interest in metal and rock. He is also a huge fan of mythology, legend, and folklore from all across the world. You should follow him on Twitter.