Dark Awake Interview

 Dark Awake are:

☩ SHELMERDINE VI° [ All Instrumentation, Orchestration, Human Bones (Kangling), Apocalyptic Sounds, Production ] ☩ SEKTE [ Narrations , Choirs and Vocals on "Epi Thanaton" ,"Soil,Blood...And The Reaping Of Light" , "Anunnaki" "Imago Typhonis" and "Absinthe And Nihilism " ,"Non Omnis Moriar" Albums]
☩ ELINA P. [Vocals on "Meseonas" CD]

I have to make a premise.
Bands that deal with esoteric, occult and obscure themes are too many and unfortunately do not stand out in their choice for an original name (in fact the word dark in various bands metal and not) is just a repetitive cliché. 
Not to mention the mixtures of themes that each band proposes in a pompous and cheesy way.
However, their music is remarkable and honestly good. D. A. have a typically Greek and genuine sounds and spirit, especially when a classic string instrument is used or when the female voice stands out with  pathos and full tension.

How much did you consider it important for you to produce music with a strong references to your national culture ... and why?

I came from a country with very huge ancient tradition and civilitation. I love to study Hellenic traditions which hide a lot of truth.
It have inspired a lot the contemporary occult world and the art in general but also i follow  my own path when i 'm making music so I am getting influences from many other elements.
All that is very important cause is a way to promote the traditional mysteries and heathenspirit,to rekindle the ancient values.
I hope to inspire the listeners and young individuals who feel strongly for the traditions of their ancestors and who are fascinated by and interested in the ancient wisdom to develop their knowledge.

From your discography  you debuted in 2008 with the CD "Meseonas" since then the dark synth and dark wave genre has spread very much even among those who listen to metal and black metal.
Esoteric and occult symbols are used randomly, and casual contorted notions and lyrics (as cryptic as possible) are widely used.
Would not this look slightly contradictory to you?

In experimental dark music you can go deeper in the darkness, in esoteric subjects , you can find totally new aspects ...
The last years,it seems that many metal bands and other listeners found  all that aspects and all that esoteric, occult and other symbols  that you mention it.
Some of the new music bands wants to use them to spread their ideologies with that way.So today all of them are widely used.

In the track "120 Days Of Sodom" from your full length "Soil, Blood ... And The Reaping Of Light" there is a sample from the homonymous film by Pasolini. His counterculture was very much avant-garde for its time and faced scandalous themes with scenographic choices of perversions and blasphemy.
Many groups use these themes almost exclusively in a graphics form, but then there is no cultural insight into such choices seems that it stops at the mere provocation to astonish the audience only.
What were your reasons to choose a title related to that movie and why?

The sound samples from  Pasolini 's film and the whole influence on title was done to give in that song  the atmosphere of ritualistic / industrial decadence.These attributes of fetishism blend with noise ritualistic industrial sounds added to turning this song into unequalled expose of apocalyptic ritual industrial art.

The same choice was made in the song "Lux Et Tenebris". Do you think that Pasolini and Crowley have been truly understood and accepted ?

Pasolini and Crowley works have a strong  philosophy idealism that is hard to understanding totally from mass.

What your musical inflences ? Do you have any favourite bands in the dark ambient industrial scene of today ?

My music inspiration are mostly from Martial industrial, Ritual , Neoclassical , Apocalyptic folk , Neofolk, Dark Ambient , Noise etc. genres.
No i don't have any favourite band from the "new" scene of today.

What are the future plan for the band?

To release a new full length album.

When I think about Greece I immediately think of Diamanda Galas, do you think that her success has helped other musicians coming from your country to have more recognition and exposure?

No, i don't think so, cause  Diamanda is one of her kind.

What do you think about the work of Kenneth Grant (Typhonic Trilogie) and how do you think its work has been transposed and integrated in successive streams like chaos magic, dragon rouge, and those movements that incorporate tantric elements?

The teaching of Kenneth Grant is Thelematic at his base.It is enriched with a variety of demonic elements , astral projections and all of them have a common goal which is to understand and awake the undeclared abilities of human subconscious.
For that reason , his work have influenced all those esoteric movements that you mention.
I appreciate his work cause it concerns the discovery of the higher self.

When we talk about tantrism I think many associate it with magic sex etc. etc,
Do you think the meaning of this word is properly conceived? (Tantric)

The word Tantric express the esoteric traditions as system of Hinduism and Buddhism.
In India Tantric mythology talks about a dancer, Shiva, and his snake, Shakti. They create the Universe. The idea is to raise the Kundalini in the spine (the snake) up to the crown chakra (the dancer) and to unite them.
The snake coils around the dancer's legs,body,genitals, and chest,licking the dancer's face.
All that symbolism is an esoteric method to get energy for magical purposes and many people practice it with sex magic.

Do you practice any type of spiritual discipline beside making music ?

All my esoteric methods deal with esence of man, his instincts, his needs and desires.
My esoteric rituals guide me into the desired state of mind in order to get wisdom, mental strength and self-realisation.
I had used Bone instruments in the some or the previous releases and propably we will do it again
in the future recordings.We prepared ourselves to enter the desired state of mind to concieve our visions and emotions through music...

Any final message ;)

I would like to thank you about this interesting interview.
Keep the Runes alive ...