Ivo Henzi – Forest of Fog

After first forming in 2003, and following the release of three full-length albums in the early 2000’s, Forest of Fog, the brainchild of ex-Eluveitie guitarist and Swiss musician Ivo Henzi, is back with a vengeance in 2016. Ten years after the release of album number three, Abgründe, the first single, “Awake” from Forest of Fog’s new forthcoming album (as-yet-untitled) was released back in August this year and has already seen the video accumulate over 14,000 hits and 500 likes on YouTube.

Metal Obsession had the pleasure to catch up with Ivo Henzi for an exclusive interview to discuss the return of his solo black metal project after a decade-long wait, forming new band Cellar Darling with fellow ex-Eluveitie band mates Anna Murphy and Merlin Sutter, and much more. Read on below!

Not only is single “Awake” the first track and piece of new material from Forest of Fog in 10 years, but it is also the first track from the band written and performed entirely in English. I was keen to know what the inspirations were behind “Awake” and the new album this time round?

“I’ve been working on new Forest of Fog material for 10 years,” Ivo begins. “I am constantly getting inspired by the music I listen to, but also movies or life in general. It’s really hard to name a specific inspiration, because my musical inspirations are so diverse and they’re constantly in motion. I mostly get inspired by sitting in front of my desk with my guitar, programming a beat, and just jamming around it. That’s all the magic. Suddenly a riff becomes a chorus, then it evolves to a whole song, which can take between a week or a few years to finish. Sure, musicians get inspired by other music every day – conciously or subconciously – but I’m never like, ‘Hey, I want to make song which sounds like that song I just recently heard’. He then continues by adding, “Yes, the new album will all be in English. This has two reasons: first, when I started making music, my English wasn’t on a sufficient level. Second, I think English sounds better than German when screamed.”

The music of Forest of Fog has always run a fine line between black metal and melodic death, with “Awake” showing an even stronger leaning towards the latter. Featuring drumming from Merlin Sutter and mixing/mastering from Anna Murphy and others, what can you say about the sound direction the music has taken, I ask?

“This evolved naturally. For me, I’ll always write riffs with ‘black metal’ vibes – that’s just where I come from. I grew as a musician during these ten years: I got better technically, and that’s something you’ll also hear on the album, of course. However, music for me is still not a tool to show off your skills, I have no interest in that. I’ll rather go with a simple and screaming black metal riff than a complex death metal riff anytime. And for me, Forest of Fog was never intended to focus on one genre: all I want to make is emotional music straight from my heart. If it ends up being a death metal or post-rock riff, it doesn’t matter to me.”

No doubt it was refreshing (and perhaps cathartic, even?), I mused, returning to his solo project after so long? This revitalised and vibrant sound and energy certainly comes through with “Awake”, at the least.

“Thank you. Yes, after the events with Eluveitie, and when I quit the band, I knew the right time had come to push me for releasing a new song and to follow up later with a full-length album. It certainly triggered a feeling in me to ‘wake up’ and show the world that Forest of Fog is alive. The song title ‘Awake’ is no coincidence.”

Since the unfortunate happenings with Eluveitie, Ivo Henzi joined with ex-Eluveitie band mates Merlin Sutter and Anna Murphy to form a three-piece band based on the title of Anna’s debut album, Cellar Darling. Looking forward now, things appear to be moving very well for them, and they have been hinting restlessly that new material is currently being worked on by all three of them. Any new updates on the progress of your debut album?

“Yes, it’s doing very well so far! We just released our first two songs, and the feedback has been amazing so far. We’re really, really happy. We started working on more songs, and as soon as we’re ready, we’ll release it. It’s hard to name a specific date yet, but the songwriting is going very well, so I am confident to say that we’ll have something to release in the first half of 2017.”

At the time of the interview, Cellar Darling’s new music video for “Challenge” had just dropped. Displaying a softer, more experimental sound, I was curious to know what kinds of other sound or themes fans can look forward to hearing with this new album?

“We said to ourselves, we want to write music we just love. So you can expect a good range of harder and softer songs,” Ivo explains. “We want to be diverse but without losing the focus on who we are and where we came from. We want to sound like ‘us’; everything will happen naturally, we won’t force anything. For my part, I will always try to write heavy riffs – I would even say metal riffs – but I also want to write good songs, and if a metal riff doesn’t fit, I try something else.”

Following Anna Murphy’s two successful shows in Sydney and Melbourne last month (which saw Ivo Henzi and Merlin Sutter join Anna as their touring band), I asked how it was for them performing in a smaller venue, and if they were pleased with the reception they received?

“It was great!” Ivo enthuses. “I actually like smaller venues more than very big ones, because there’s just more connection and intimacy between you and the crowd. The crowd in Australia was very good; the reactions were very positive.”

Another ex-Eluveitie band member had also joined Anna’s shows for the Australian run: none other than Rafi Kirder. Do you think you’d work with Rafi Kirder again soon for any more live shows?

“Maybe! We haven’t decided on anything yet.”

Both Forest of Fog and Cellar Darling are very different from Ivo’s past work with Eluveitie. It was pondered how it must be exciting writing and working on material so far apart from what Ivo’s life had been for many years. It also seems like the trio of himself, Merlin, and Anna, have grown much closer lately due to the happenings. I asked Ivo what he would say for him has been the best thing to come of all of this?

“The best thing in the world are friends you can count on,” Ivo states. “Friends who have a rich history together, travelled the world together, and went through a lot of ups and lows. Being in the same boat now – with the same goals and ambitions that’s something very precious. And, of course, it’s very exciting to me writing and working on something different than Eluveitie. It’s also a big challenge, and I am also kind of afraid of it too, but this just keeps pushing me to another level, I believe.”

Before we wrapped up, I asked Ivo if he had any words he’d like to offer to his fans?

“I am overwhelmed by all the support of the fans. This is in the end what keeps me doing all of this! I feel honoured and proud, and all I want is to write the best music possible. Thank you!”

You can follow, purchase, and download/stream music from both Forest of Fog and Cellar Darling from the links below!

Forest of Fog

https://www.facebook.com/forestoffog/

http://forestoffog.com

Cellar Darling

www.facebook.com/cellardarlingofficial

www.cellardarling.com

Related Posts

• 

  El Colosso – Forgotten Ancestors
• 

  HJELVIK – Welcome to Hel
• 

  AC/DC – Power Up
• 

  Scour – Black