The VALLORCH tale is told to Sword Chant
I interviewed Leo from VALLORCH regarding their second album out now, and the band itself.
01. Hi Leo ! VALLORCH comes from Italy… How’s the Folk Metal scene over there ?
Hey there, Sword Chant people! It’s a pleasure to be here.
Of course, the Italian Folk Metal scene is awesome: There are a lot of bands with a great potential, and we had the pleasure to play with a lot of them. They’re all really nice people, too! It’s very active and electrifying, and it’s an honour for us to be a part of it.
02. I think the band name comes from a Cimbrian village in Italy... Are your lyrics connected in one way or another to the Cimbrian language or village ?
Yes, we have had our share of Venetian tradition in the first album (The “Anguana” is a traditional Venetian creature, and “Endless Hunt” was inspired by the legends surrounding Theoderic the Great), but we decided to firmly turn things around with “Until Our Tale Is Told”.
All of the Lyrics are strictly connected with the Asiago and Cansiglio plateaus, home of the Cimbri, a small population of unknown origins who speaks a Germanic language. I, for example, got to grow up there and witness its culture, which is deeply connected to the rural mountain life. Almost all of the songs are relatable to this population in one way or another. Unspoken Echoes talks about the horrors these places had to face during World War I, while Ais Un Snea was inspired by a traditional song. Again, the roots of Slèrach and Tanzerloch can be found in local legends and tales. So yes, we were deeply inspired by Cimbrian culture; with its tales, history and local folklore.
03. Why have you chosen Cimbrian ?
It was a natural process: my bandmates gave me the privilege of writing the lyrics for the second album, and I wanted to further explore the habits, beliefs and customs of my people. The whole point of folk metal is to spread your message celebrating your own tradition, and nothing felt more fitting than Cimbrian, given our origins.
04. Three years ago was released your debut album and previously was your first EP. Have you got positive comments and good sales ?
We were pleasantly surprised by the initial success of our EP, and still are deeply grateful for the interest those two works sparked in the folk metal community. The reviews were mostly positive, and we managed to sell well.
We sincerely hope this album will receive the same treatment, and we’re eager to know what the fans and critics think about it.
05. The second album of the band which is entitled “Until Our Tale Is Told” is now available on Bandcamp. Are you happy of the final result ?
Extremely happy! This feels like a big step to us. We managed to evolve a little, in our own way, and we had the time to carefully examine and develop every song in UOTIT. We sincerely thank Wanna Rock Studios for all of their patience: their help was crucial in finding the sound we were looking for.
06. Is it a concept album ?
There’s an underlying theme in all of the songs. Most of them come from Cimbrian tradition and tales, with a modern twist and interpretation. Their message isn’t totally clear, to leave space for personal interpretation, which I think is something music excels at! We stride through legends and Literature from Cimbrian authors and explore their message, giving our own interpretation. Each and every song fits one of the ages of Man.
We chose seven phases of a man’s life, each represented by a specific age.
There’s the child, the adolescent, the indestructible, the soldier, the mourner, the father, and the old man. Some of these are obvious stages of a person’s lifecycle, but I guess I should go into detail of “the indestructible”, “the supercilious” “the soldier”, “the mourner” and “the father”.
The indestructible is youth at its finest: when you’re filled with ideas and want to take over the world; a young man with many project and willing to do anything to get to his goals, and achieve something you will be remembered for.
The soldier is the young man facing with responsibilities, and whose life has now to reach compromises and is forced to deal with the complications of life.
The mourner is the one who has to deal with a loss of a loved one, and realises life’s true problems. The only thing that cannot be solved is death itself.
The father is the man who experienced a rebirth with his own son or daughter, and recognizes that his own priorities are now his own offspring, connecting the different lifecycles.
I won’t spoil which are which though, so listen carefully to the lyrics to find out!
07. Can you describe the artwork ?
The eagle and the owl are the two sacred animals embodied in the fictional Book “Altar Khnotto” by Edoardo Bertizzolo. The book was inspired by a real stone located in the Asiago plateau, around which rose many legends and stories. The author summarised those his grandparents used to tell him, and wrote the book we were talking about.
In its pages, we find out all about the pagan and rural Cimbri, who used to worship their own deity. The sacred eagle and the sacred owl used to feast on the sacrifice placed on the “Altar Khnotto” (the ancient stone), and represented the day (good omen) or the night (bad omen). In our own interpretation, they represent the day and the night fighting each other, as the time passing through the ages of mankind.
08. Musically speaking, how does it sound, comparing with your previous work ?
We think it’s more aggressive. We worked a lot on the rhythmic section, and we put a little more “metal” in folk metal, as well as exploring different territories. We experimented a lot, and it’s difficult to describe in detail, as we feel like our songs are our children. We cannot wait to see what critics will have to say!
09. Can you tell us the VALLORCH tale ?
I can sing it! (Laughs)
Once upon a time, in a place blessed and sublime
Seven bold heroes gathered to set a pantomime
Tales of forgotten cultures, and dying folks, alas!
They promised to themselves that though the days might pass
The stories of their forefathers on themselves they would have worn
And so the music-filled, eternal Vallorch tale was born.
10. You were invited to join another tale for short time and took part of the AFTERGOD adventure for their demo track “Para Bellum”. How everything happened for this song ?
I was first contacted by Marzio, their bassist, who’s a dear friend of mine. They were going through many lineup changes, and asked me to do some vocals for a new song of theirs. Of course I was excited and went for it immediately! I met the whole band and received instructions on how they wanted it to sound like, as well as lyrics. They were the coolest guys ever, and the recording sessions went very smoothly. It was a really pleasant experience I’ll never forget. I recommend everybody to listen to these guys, they’re awesome!
11. Can we find some guests on "Until Our Tale Is Told" album ?
Sadly, no, we talked about some special guests, but we ended up doing all of the parts on our own.
12. Do you plan a tour soon ?
We’d love to come back and tour Europe again, and probably will at some point in the future. Sadly, nothing’s settled right now, so be sure to check our facebook page for news!
13. Let’s end this interview with this last question: what is your favourite ice cream on tour ? :- )
Hahahahahah, this is a nice one! I don’t know, we’re seven and never got to actually eat ice cream on tour… But we’re not picky, we’ll gladly eat any kind of ice cream, we’re always eager to eat sweets and treats ;)
Thanks for the interview, Leo! : )
Thank you Krissy, It has been a pleasure! And thanks to those who read it until the very end, we love you and cannot thank you enough for your interest and support!
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