Photo Credit: Stephanie Cabral
Earlier this month, dark melodic metallers Witherfall released their highly anticipated third album Curse Of Autumn. The band revealed a series of singles ahead of the album, teaming up with renowned director Zev Deans (Ghost, Chelsea Wolfe, Denzel Curry, St. Vincent) for the As I Lie Awake video. Intrigued to find out more, we caught up with vocalist/keyboardist Joseph Michael and guitarist Jake Dreyer to discuss the song’s theme, stories from behind the scenes and more.
Can you give us your quick elevator pitch on this track? Why does this one standout for you?
Jake: Upon first writing As I Lie Awake we knew that this song was very strong, It is heavy yet very melodic and showcases everyone’s performances.
Joseph Michael: This has probably the “stickiest” chorus and the most relatable subject matter. As I Lie Awake is about the anxiety of rethinking and pondering the consequences of life’s choices… We just, in true Witherfall form, take the idea to its logical extreme.
How did you tackle the writing process for the song? Was there anything unique about this track compared to your usual/previous approach?
J: This one came pretty quick to us. I had the intro and verse riff and sent it to Joseph over a voice memo, he told me that he had some melodies for it. Then when we got together we arranged the composition. It really happened over the course of one night of our writing sessions. The neighbour below my apartment was not happy at all.
JM: Yeah this was sent over as a couple of rough ideas. The acoustic interlude melody was originally the intro in Jake’s recording. I took his scratch and re-arranged it in Pro-Tools. I made that the chorus and we simplified the chordal outline. It was an accidental key change from the verse but it worked so well it stayed. A lot of our songs start that way. Jake will send a few riffs and I will arrange or change some chords. We then get together and make the complete arrangements.
Can you tell us how the song’s theme came about?
JM: Well, Anxiety and self contemplation is a typical theme for us. The nautical analogy is almost biblical.
Tell us about the video, do the themes of the single transfer to the video?
JM: That was all Zev Deans. He told us he really wanted to do an old school METAL video with lesbians and vampires…lol The Lost Boys theme was totally his.
Do you have any behind the scenes stories from the video shoot?
J: We shot the bar scene at legendary Duffs in Brooklyn. We just turned it into a party in the middle of the afternoon with the band and crew. All the bottles of wine that were props was consumed in an hour.
JM: Yeah, well as much of a party as you can have during COVID. I must say Zev Deans and Brendan (McGowan) are quite the provocateurs. The main actresses in the bar scene will actually star in the next video, Tempest.
Anything else you’d like to add for our readers?
J: As I Lie Awake is just one track off our new album Curse of Autumn, every song is a different journey. It is a wild ride.
JM: Yes and pick up some of our wine HERE and make sure to listen to the album from start to finish.
Witherfall‘s latest album Curse Of Autumn is out now via Century Media Records, available to stream or purchase HERE. The Curse Of Autumn vinyl will be available in the US from 2nd April 2021.
