Interview by Philippe D’Antares
We have reached Jerry Fielden, the mastermind of the Canadian progressive metal band AraPacis for know more news about the latest release “Consequences of Dreams” out on Femme Metal Records. Enjoy!!!
Hello Jerry! How are you?
Good thank you Phil, just came back on November 15th from the UK where I saw the musical “We Will Rock You” with a special appearance by Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen and two Deep Purple shows!
I see your band, AraPacis, released their 2nd full length album recently. It is called “Consequences of Dreams”, which is a very interesting title in my opinion. So how did the recording process go?
Thank you for your comment on the title! It took a very long time because we had some personnel changes, we had to rerecord the tracks several times. So three years between the first album and this one. The recording itself was fun, especially when it came time to add all the little extras like synths and mandolin. Also the vocals were real fun, Lizzie poured her heart and soul in each song she did.
How would you describe and how this new album sounds?
It is really a series of images and visions that came to me when I was writing the song. It was almost like automatic writing, in a sort of dream state, which is where the title came from.
There is a great song on “Consequences of Dreams” called “The Green Fairy”, I was wondering if you had any absinth stories you would like to share with the readers?
Thanks for that comment too. As for absinthe stories, I’m afraid not. I did read “L’Assomoir” by Emile Zola which is a book about absinthe drinkers in the Second Empire of France under Napoleon III. Excellent book. My friend Bonnie McKannon actually wrote the lyrics to that one when she was 15 and it is more based upon something she wanted to express. It’s not just about absinthe drinking – it’s also about a more personal experience of hers.
You probably get this question all the time, but where does the name AraPacis come from?
AraPacis is based on the Altar of Peace of Ancient Rome (the Ara Pacis is a small temple/altar that still stands to this day in modern Rome), that was built by the emperor Augustus in 9 BCE to commemorate victory and peace with the German tribes at the Northern border of the Empire. A beautiful piece of Roma art really.
What kind of music you listen to these days?
Well I like listening to old school music a lot (Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Jethro Tull), progressive like Rush, King Crimson and Dream Theater, blues rock like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Robin Trower, some metalcore like Straight Line Stitch and Killswitch Engage, doom metal like Candlemass, and Classical like Bach, Beethoven, etc.
Would you say you prefer doing studio work or performing live? Why?
I like them both but would say I like performing live better.
What are your best and worst live experiences?
Best was this last show we did to launch our second album, everything gelled right. Worst, probably last year at Saints where our monitor feed was so bad we couldn’t hear each other and made a lot of mistakes, and one of my guitars went so out of tune it took a few moments to get it back in tune properly. And I had to sing and play during those parts. No fun I tell you!
How would describe the femme metal scene in your hometown, Montreal?
It was very vibrant, but seems to have slowed down some. We have played with some very good FFM bands in the last few years, but some of our friends’ bands have broken up or are just not playing shows. The Agonist is doing well but I can’t think of any others that are really shaking up the scene like a couple of years ago. I think really that the “gimmick” aspect of female fronted metal has died down and that now FFM bands have to compete on an equal footing with their male counterparts. I could be wrong but that’s the impression I get.
Where we can purchase your new album, “Consequences of Dreams”?
You can get it from Amazon.com, HMV.com and directly from us. I’ve also seen it on a variety of European distributors’ sites. Soon it will be on sale at Profusion for our fellow Montrealers and also on iTunes in the near future.
What are your plans for the future?
Well Eric, Lizzie and I have already started writing songs for the next album. We are aiming for an even heavier sound and a more modern production, but we will keep the variety of styles that makes this band what it is.
Thank you very much Jerry for answering our questions, I hope you had as much fun as I did. Any last words for the readers?
Thank you very much for asking them! Yes I always have fun when answering interviews . I’d like to say a big thank you to everybody for reading this, Caz and Denise for signing us and releasing the albums and to all our fans for believing in us and buying our music! And thanks to you Phil and Miriam. All the best everybody!
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