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MELODY LANE: First of all, also if it can sound a bit expected…Can you tell us where does the name WYTHERSAKE come from?
GABRIEL LUIS:  The name is an old term for a Renegade or Apostate. A lot of the songs and lyrical content was written prior to a name being decided on and it just worked out that the name ended up going hand in hand with the material and ultimately the debut album.

MELODY LANE: The line-up of the band is confirmed, is it the same from the beginning of the band…or have you had changes in the last years? Can you tell us anything about the roots of WYTHERSAKE? And where the band was born?
GABRIEL LUIS: The band was started by Daniel and I (Gabriel) at the end of 2016, we felt like we were both ready to move on from the projects we had been involved with prior and that we needed to find individuals with similar drive and goals in mind. So, from there we released some singles from the material that was written and used that as a way to find the right guys to not only complete the lineup, but also contribute and enhance Wythersake beyond what Daniel and I started. We rounded everything out with James and Cody.

MELODY LANE: Can you list us 3 songs, from  WYTHERSAKE ‘s discography (including new material), that can define the sound of the band … 3 songs that can help our readers to know WYTHERSAKE at the best.
GABRIEL LUIS: I guess I would start with the first single we ever released – Quell the Tongues of Flame. It helped set the tone sonically. Numinous is another single we released as well prior to the album – That was originally supposed to go on the album but we released it around when the pandemic hit and it was the first song to also feature contributions from James so it is a pretty important track for us in terms of setting a tone as well. And then if I had to pick one off the album to just wrap everything all up it would be Through Ritual We Manifest – It is every element of the album packed into one track.

MELODY LANE: Tell us something about the creative process of your music. Is there a main composer or we can talk about a team work? The songs come from ideas of a single member and then the band works on these ideas in the studio jamming together, or your songs are written in the studio and all the members compose together?
GABRIEL LUIS:  Since it was just Daniel and I at the beginning I composed all the material and then would send Daniel the demos. We would then re-work transitions and accents with the drums or try different drum lines when we would get together – allowing him to write his own parts to the songs while still maintaining the initial idea. I always have the song completely finished with lyrics prior to sending as well to give him ideas to go off – creating accents with the drums depending on the guitar or vocal lines. Now with James it is more of a co-writing effort on some songs, and some songs it might be I just need him to write a solo or vice versa – he will have something completed and will have me add lyrics and a solo.

MELODY LANE:  Can you tell us something about contents and messages of your last album ? …Can you tell us anything about the whole concept of Antiquity? And plese tell us where does this title come from?
GABRIEL LUIS:  The album has an iconoclastic and luciferian theme to it from a personal level. The album title is loosely based on the time period and the ancient mystery religions.

MELODY LANE:  …After time, are you totally satisfied with your choices about sound and the writing of your previous SINGLES? If you could… would you change anything? What did you focus on to make the sound better and perfectly consistent with the musical ideas you had in mind?
GABRIEL LUIS:  Since I do all the engineering, there is always something I would do differently since that is something that should be looked at through a lens of always improving with. Most of our songs for the most part do not change structurally or lyrically from the demos – they just get re-recorded with the proper drum parts etc. I like to finish things and move on – so I don’t really dwell on something I put out or what people might think about. You won't get anything done that way. Someday I wouldn’t mind re-recording all the first singles and releasing them together as an EP – That would be the only time I may change something as far as those go.  

MELODY LANE:  So apart from the covid/pandemic situation…will you tour in the next future? Have you already a touring schedule? Any chance for us to see  WYTHERSAKE playing live here in Europe/Italy in the next months/year?
GABRIEL LUIS:   We really do not know – IF we tour it needs to make sense to do it. It might be more realistic for us to do festivals and things of that sort. It all depends on how well the album does hopefully and if a promoter wants to bring us out.

MELODY LANE: Could you tell us two bands, from the actual international scene, you’d like WYTHERSAKE to tour with?... Two bands that would represent a perfect line-up for WYTHERSAKE to play with. And why these bands?
GABRIEL LUIS:  Hypocrisy and Dimmu Borgir -  That’s just the first two that came to mind for me personally. Theres a lot – pretty much any band we are fans of we would love to tour with. I would love to tour with Paradise Lost for instance or at least be part of something they are on.

MELODY LANE: We know that ‘to define is to limit’… but how do you define  WYTHERSAKE sound? Are you a  BLACK METAL band…a BLACKENED DEATH METAL band… A  SYMPHONIC BLACK METAL…Or…?
GABRIEL LUIS:  We are a Rock N Roll band from the USA, haha! On a serious note, we prefer to just let the listeners describe us. It gets pretty interesting to hear the descriptions.

MELODY LANE: Which musicians are/have been your main musical inspirations? And which are your favorite bands nowadays?
GABRIEL LUIS:  It changes – depends on my mood. From a technical standpoint I would say the Amott Brothers (Arch Enemy) Jeff Loomis and Michael Romeo. I don’t have a favorite band really since it changes but im currently listening to ...And Oceans and Agathodaimon.

MELODY LANE: As a musician, what has been your biggest achievement to date and what do you want to achieve in the near future?
GABRIEL LUIS:  Getting the debut album completed and then being able to release it with label support. When I started Wythersake with Daniel my 5-year goal was to have a record done and released by someone. Mission accomplished – but the grind just gets more intense from here and we are excited about it.

MELODY LANE: Until today...What was the most important concert for  WYTHERSAKE career? And why?
GABRIEL LUIS:  Wythersake has not performed live yet – the pandemic sidelined that for us. The most important one will probably be our first one at this moment.

MELODY LANE: In the end…A message from you to all MELODY LANE readers.
GABRIEL LUIS:  Thank you, Melody Lane, for this opportunity to discuss the band and album – Please check us out (@Wythersake) on all social media platforms, give us a like or follow – drop us a message! 

WEB: https://www.facebook.com/wythersake

ARTICLE BY: MIKE MATTY