6qs for Hal Sinden of Talanas

I have a dark secret. Sometimes I listen to dark progressive metal. What do you expect!? I am Norwegian and was born the same year as Varg Vikernes. That is where the similarities end. Anyway my 6qs this time is for Hal Sinden, singer in Talanas, one of the best up-and-coming bands on the progressive metal scene.

Who are your musical influences?

The band’s primary influences are acts such as Opeth, Akercocke, My Dying
Bride, Fields of the Nephilim, Decapitated, Killing Joke etc. Ewan is a fan
of some quite obscure acts such as Kayo Dot, Maudlin of the Well & Giant
Squid as well as arguably more conventional acts such as Neurosis,
Einsturzende Neubauten & Enslaved. Joe is in to a fair mix, from Mudvayne &
Dream Theater to PJ Harvey, Goldie & Roni Size. Duff is really an open book
with a lot of what he listens to, being a fan of a number of Country &
Western artists, Burzum, Dimmu Borgir & Napalm Death.

Personally, I’ve been listening to a lot of Scott Walker recently, both
early & recent. I’m heavily influenced by bands like Tears for Fears, Dead
Can Dance & the Sisters of Mercy, whilst I’d also cite Colin Vearncombe (of
‘Black’ fame) as my most significant vocal influence. Of recent acts that
I’ve been influenced by I’d say that Esben & The Witch have really done
something for me lyrically alongside Steven Wilson (of Porcupine Tree) &
From Great Height.

What has Talanas been up to lately?

We’ve been preparing ‘the waspkeeper’ (our first full length album) for what
seems like half a century. In actual fact it’s technically just over 6
months, however it seems longer when you’ve been walled up in a studio
throughout the whole of each Friday night since the beginning of last
Summer. All this has been whilst promotion for the ‘reason & abstract’ EP
has been ticking along nicely, we’re thankfully still selling copies of it 6
months on from its release, plus rather encouragingly to a lot of overseas
listeners.

I’ve also *really* got back into Patum Peperium (or Gentlemen’s Relish, as
it’s also known). It’s not just anchovy paste, it’s something altogether a
lot more refined and must always, as guided, be used very sparingly.
Additionally I’ve discovered quite a taste for white tea (not through mixing
it milk, I mean the proper kind) but I can’t confidently say that it’s had
an overwhelming effect on our sound as a band.

What’s your favorite song to perform live?

Oddly, ‘pray speed the fever’ despite it not actually being my favourite on
the EP. It seems to ilicit a strong reaction and it keeps the pace up
throughout so those wonderful young people at the front get a chance to be
non-committally violent towards eachother. I love seeing that happen, but I
have to admit to hating being a direct part of it. If I were ever to fall
into a pit from the stage, I’d be in a lot of trouble, and quite possibly
traction for a few months.

How has your music evolved since you first began playing music together?

It’s come a long way, to be honest. We went through merry hell in the
lead-up to releasing our debut EP, but in some senses the 2 year gap from
forming the band to getting the CD out meant that we had a *lot* of time to
go over styles, bounce ideas back & forth and develop a really solid sense
of objectivity about what we were doing. I’m not really sure that we’d be
getting the same degree of positive reaction to our music as we are now if
we had released something within months of emerging as a working band, as
was originally planned.

When Joe & I formed talanas straight after the split of interlock (our
previous band) and were jamming as a two-piece, it definitely sounded like
the sum of its parts - fairly blockish and in danger of being a little two
dimensional whilst we tried to discover an apparent style. I’d say that it
definitely took the inclusion of the current members to bring a more
considered feel to the sound, but even then we must’ve discarded about 3 or
4 songs before resting on the 3 you can hear in ‘reason & abstract’.

Fair amounts of the new album were written in the same period as the EP so
there’s a noticeable relevance to the style, however given the palatte of an
entire full-length we’ve managed to play around with a lot more that we had
in mind but couldn’t squeeze into a 3 track EP without sounding awkwardly
schizophrenic. I currently have only demo versions of the album as
reference, but I’m confident in saying we cover a lot of ground over 11
tracks.

If you could play a concert with a band of your choice, who would it be?

There are really so many choices and each dependent on so many things - do
they have to be active as a band still? If not then personally I’d say
Tears For Fears depite knowing how much it might shock their fans, maybe
even Fields of the Nephilim but with their old lineup. In reality though,
I’d love to go on tour with My Dying Bride as headliners, Akercocke as main
support & then us, I feel we’d suit both bands really well. Some others
might be bands like Riverside, Pineapple Thief, Paradise Lost etc.

What’s your favorite board game?

Darts, or frankly any that I can be the Chairman. I work best when in a
position of influence, such as missionary.

While we are waiting for their debut album ‘the waspkeeper’ to be released, Talanas excellent EP ‘reason & abstract’ is a steal at £5 from their website.