Hermit Dreams: “Each track on Desperate Anomies is a self-sufficient piece, both musically and lyrically”
Emerging from the Norwegian metal scene with a singular and experimental approach, Hermit Dreams presents their debut album, Desperate Anomies. Speaking on behalf of the band, Eyvind W. Axelsen — multi-instrumentalist handling cello, upright bass, bass guitar, theremin, and shruti — explores unconventional territories within death/doom metal, incorporating instruments rarely associated with the genre, such as banjo and cello, while blending them with visceral intensity and extreme emotions.
By Sandra Pinto
In this interview, Eyvind discusses the genesis of the album, the balance between innovation and tradition, and how states like loneliness, anxiety, and wonder are translated into extreme music. Through sonic experimentation, collaboration with seasoned musicians from the Norwegian scene, and preparations for their live debut at the Inferno Festival, Desperate Anomies emerges as a bold manifesto that challenges the boundaries of metal.
Desperate Anomies is your debut album. How did the concept and vision for this record come about?
The start of this band was something of a coincidence, actually. I was writing songs and testing out ideas for my other band, the progressive dissonant death metal band DISKORD. Some of the songs ended up sounding quite different from what we do with that band, even though DISKORD has a quite wide range stylistically already. But still, these couple of songs didn’t seem to fit that mold, and it seemed wrong to drag that band down into this ditch, so to speak. Then I started experimenting some more with different instrumentation, and it became clear to me that this was something else altogether. So I decided to explore this direction more consciously, and wrote a few more songs before I started reaching out to skilled friends to help me realize this vision.
Your music is described as experimental death/doom with progressive elements. How do you balance tradition and innovation in your compositions?
I don’t care for tradition as an artistic goal in itself, so that is the least of my concerns. The answer to the question is thus more or less “I don’t”, haha. The music, in my opinion, needs to develop without constraints and genre-imposed boundaries, and when it is done, it is what it is, and the labels/genres can be attached retrospectively.
The album features unconventional instruments for metal, such as banjo, cello, upright bass, and theremin. How did the idea of incorporating these elements arise, and what effect were you aiming to create?
I am always curious, and when I listen to music, something that always grabs me is when it sounds significantly different than what I have heard before. Also, writing material on new instruments is very inspiring, and gives rise to ideas that I think would otherwise not come to fruition. Cello, upright bass and theremin were “natural” to include in that sense, since I already own, and to a certain extent, can play these instruments. But when the idea to include banjo formed in my head, I knew I had to reach out to my friend Martin in order to validate this idea for real. And I think it turned out great! The banjo has a very distinct sound, that to me has a very lonely or hollow feel to it, and it is such an expressive and emotive instrument that I just really think fits this concept perfectly.
Is there a particular track that you feel best represents the band’s sonic identity?
Well, I don’t know. The second track on the album, Directionless Gaze, features a lot of the elements that are vital to HERMIT DREAMS, so that could be a good start. Still, each song is a separate entity, and I think the album is probably best consumed in full. Like most albums.
The album explores themes like loneliness, anxiety, fear, transience, wonder, and confusion. How do you translate these deep emotions and experiences into extreme music?
I think that extreme music is the perfect vehicle for expressing such states of mind. The inherent possibilities of this kind of music to create jarring and uncomfortable dissonances, piercing desperate screams, guttural growls, and bursts of aggression contrasted with sparse and lonely moments filled only by the void really translates well into the existential dread that I guess consumes us all from time to time.
Is there an overarching narrative connecting the tracks, or is the album more a collection of distinct emotional states?
No, not in the sense you would have for instance with a concept album. Each track on Desperate Anomies is a self-sufficient piece, both musically and lyrically.
How does exploring intense human emotions influence your creative process and approach to songwriting?
I think that it is not so much that it influences the creative process per se, but rather that these emotions and experiences are a part of everyday life, whether explicitly expressed or not. They are states of mind that are impossible to disentangle from the very concept of being. At least for me. Thus, incorporating them into music, or other forms of creative expression, comes naturally.
Considering the density and complexity of your sound, what kind of experience do you want listeners to have when hearing Desperate Anomies?
First of all, I want them to feel something. Music is the language of emotions and unspoken feelings. Secondly, if they also think that this sounds new and interesting in some way, I believe we have succeeded.
Hermit Dreams brings together experienced musicians from various bands in the Norwegian metal scene. How has this diversity shaped the band’s sound?
All the members of the band have brought their own distinct takes on the music, and even though I have written all the music, the arrangements are very much a joint effort. I hope that for the future of the band, the other members can be even more involved also in the initial creative phases of the songwriting.
The band explores unconventional sonic territory. To what extent do you feel Hermit Dreams is redefining or expanding the boundaries of death/doom metal?
To me, one of the most liberating things about extreme metal in general, and in this instance death/doom in particular, is that there are no boundaries! I hope that we can perhaps expand some listeners’ perception of the genre, though.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard Hermit Dreams, in terms of emotion, intensity, and atmosphere?
Describing sound and atmosphere with words is one of the hardest things in the world. I would perhaps venture to say that it is an esoteric juxtaposition of death/doom metal and a lunatic’s rabid approach to banjo and cello.
What are your plans for live performances or tours for the album, considering the complexity of the instrumentation?
This is something we are working on at the moment. Since the instrumentation is diverse, like you mention, and there are more instruments being played at several moments than there are people in the band, we are going to need at least a couple of more people to be able to somewhat faithfully pull it off live. Our first ever gig will be the INFERNO FESTIVAL in Norway this spring, so we’re currently gearing up for that, and thankfully a couple of other seasoned musicians have agreed to join us on stage. Then we have a few more plans for live gigs, but we can’t share details of that quite yet.
Beyond Desperate Anomies, what musical horizons or experiments do you envision exploring in future releases?
I think there is a large untapped potential in the sound that we have found, and the collective capabilities of the members of the band, so I look forward to exploring this and perhaps leaning even stronger on the more esoteric elements of our sound. I have just barely begun contemplating new HERMIT DREAMS music, so I guess we’ll see, but I’m very excited about this.
What message would you like to leave for new listeners who haven’t discovered Hermit Dreams yet?
Check out our album if you are looking for some leftfield death/doom, or come to one of our gigs if you happen to find yourself in the vicinity!
What is the band’s biggest ambition for the impact of Desperate Anomies on both the Norwegian and international metal scenes?
This band will probably never be one that plays a lot of gigs, or goes on long tours. However, I hope that we will be able to play some select quality gigs on good stages going forward. If anyone reading this would like to book the band, feel free to get in touch! Beyond that, thank you very much for your interest in the band, cheers from Norway!
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Merch: https://chaos-records.
