Interviews: Shores Of Null

On this new occasion, we have had the opportunity to interview the Doom Metal band, Shores Of Null from Italy. Check out the interview and follow the band on their FACEBOOK PAGE.

1.Where did you get the idea for the band name, you planned it or came out just like that?

The name came from my fascination with rivers and water streams in general. Water is essential to life and somehow I feel a connection between our music and the sound of water. I knew I wanted the word Shores in the band’s name but Shores Of Null came to my mind during a trip to Budapest, with the Danube in front of me. The Danube is one of the main European rivers and has a particular influence on me that I can’t really explain. The interpretation I give to Shores Of Null is a place without pain, where to start anew, the band itself represented a new starting point for us, in a country - Italy - that is surrounded by water, I think this monicker sincerely represents us.

2.Why did you want to play this genre?

Because after many years of playing other styles of music, I wanted to go back to my roots, and genres like Gothic and Doom Metal have always been part of my DNA. Same for Gabriele, my longtime friend and one of the two guitarists of Shores Of Null. The day he sent me the first demos recorded together with Raffaele I was blown away. Playing music that is melancholic gives me inner peace, I couldn’t see myself singing about happiness and fluffy unicorns.

3. Did you know each other before the band was formed?

I knew Gabriele, Gabbo for the friends. He is a key person in the Rome-metal scene and he used to play in a postcore/death metal band called The Orange Man Theory while I sang in the stoner/doom band Zippo. I’m not from Rome but at that time I was living there because of the University and I got to know Gabbo at some local shows and eventually, our bands ended up on the same label, Subsound Records. That’s when we really got to know each other, especially playing tours together, tours in which we realized we had something in common on a deeper level musically speaking and the idea of a project together crossed our minds for a moment. A few years later, when I had moved back to Pescara already, I got a message from Gabbo saying something like “Hey, I have written these songs with Raffaele and I think you’re the right person to sing on these ones”. I listened to the demos, and as I said I was blown away, that was what I needed.

4. Each band member favourite band?

First of all, we’re all big Maiden fans, so there’s no need to write Iron Maiden multiple times, right? My favourite band of all time is Sentenced, they’ve been extremely important to define who I am. I have a ton of other bands that would end up on a list of favourite bands of mine but if I had to pick just one name I would go with them. Gabbo and Matteo agree with their favourite band being Opeth until ‘Watershed’, considered by both of them as the last album by Mikael Åkerfeldt & Co. Raffaele might be able to change his favorite band at least once a month but if he had the trigger to his head he would say Katatonia without hesitation, but he also loves Pink Floyd very much. Emiliano is the most prog-oriented guy in the band and he is definitely a big Rush fan. Apologies to Death, Type O Negative, Blind Guardian, Enslaved, My Dying Bride, Anathema and Paradise Lost for not having quoted them.

5. Who or what inspires you to write songs?

The music we love and the new bands we discover every once in a while, even the ones we tour with, surely inspire us to write new music. We’re lucky enough not to focus on just one genre so we’re able to blend all the inspiration creating our own sound. Doom and Gothic Metal are clearly the biggest source of inspiration when composing but we’re also attracted by the more melodic deviations of Black and Death Metal. Lyrically speaking could be anything I see, read, watch, experience, but filtered through my eyes and heart and put into words. The upcoming album ‘Beyond The Shores (On Death And Dying)’ is a 38 minute-long suite dealing with the five stages of grief, namely Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. I took inspiration from the studies of the Swiss-American psychiatrist Elisabeth Kübler-Ross and I go through the whole grieving process trying to imagine the point of view of a terminally ill person.

6. Where was your last gig?

Pescara, my hometown, with SednA, in October 2019. Right before that, we spent a couple of weeks on a tour bus with In The Woods, Ereb Altor and Isole, one of the coolest experiences ever.

7. Where would you like to act?

Roadburn Festival, Hellfest and Fire In The Mountains. I’d also like to tour US, Canada and Japan one day.

8. Whom would you like to feature with?

Our new album ‘Beyond The Shores (On Death And Dying)’ features two Doom Metal titans such as Mikko Kotamäki from Swallow The Sun and Thomas A.G. Jensen from Saturnus and we’re all very excited about the turnout. Jonas Renske from Katatonia would be an interesting match for the future, also Emma Ruth Rundle or Chelsea Wolfe.

9. Whom not?

Any artist I’m not a fan of.

10. Any of you has ever suffered from stage fright? Any tip for beginners on how to beat that?

I’ve personally never suffered from stage fright, although I’m a pretty shy guy and always have been. Performing on stage has always made me feel comfortable with myself actually, for me it’s like wearing armor and go into battle, it can be hard at times but in the end, you know you can win. For the beginners, especially for singers, surround yourself with talented musicians and make sure there are no long pauses between the songs, this will help relieve the pressure upon you as a frontman and make you focus on the performance and talk the absolute minimum between the songs. If you’re a shy guy like me, this pace will help you boost your confidence and realize there’s no need to talk too much during the set, people are there for your music and that’s what matters.

11. What bands have inspired you the most?

Amorphis, Katatonia, Opeth, Enslaved, Sentenced, Insomnium, Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, Swallow The Sun, Type 0 Negative, Primordial.

12.What's the weirdest thing a fan has ever asked you for?

I may have signed a boob once. Other than that, we had fans traveling to other countries to see us live, but not really asking us for anything in particular.

13. What do you think of your fans?

All the ones we’ve met are cool.

14. What do you think of our site?

I like very much the sub-genre section and the search by countries. 

15. Something add?

Visit Shoresofnull.com and follow us from there on any platform you like. Don’t forget to check out our new album ‘Beyond The Shores (On Death And Dying)’, out on November 27 via Spikerot Records and thanks if you’ve made it this far.