Interview: AIWAZ

Note: This interview originally appeared on the Epic Metal Blog (March 2024).

Most of you will know Arkadius Kurek as the charismatic frontman of doom masters Wheel from my home town of Dortmund. In this interview, however, the focus is not on this band, but on AIWAZ - an extremely promising new project in which the singer has created a superb debut album with his musical partner Timo.

André: Hello Arkadius, thank you very much for taking the time for this blog. Which was the last album you listened to before this interview?

Arkadius: I believe the last albums I consciously listened to were those by Thronehammer and Stygian Crown. What had been on heavy rotation for me for quite some time was the latest album by Venus Principle.

André: Have there been any albums released this year that have particularly impressed you?

Arkadius: The two mentioned above were quite enjoyable.

André: Are you a passionate vinyl collector? Or do you not care about the format?

Arkadius: To be honest, my collection of LPs or CDs is rather modest. I only have a few records from the 80s, such as Sabbat's Dreamweaver, Celtic Frost's To Mega Therion, and a few others. My CD collection also consists of just a few bands, including Type O Negative, Queensrÿche, Marillion, Fish (the former singer of Marillion), Dead Can Dance, Loreena McKennitt, Solitude Aeturnus, King Diamond, Life Of Agony, and Nevermore.

André: Fortunately, there is new music from you - you wrote beforehand that you started working on your AIWAZ project seven years ago. How did the idea come about? And what does the name mean?

Arkadius: AIWAZ is the spirit that Aleister Crowley purportedly dictated The Book of the Law or Liber AL vel Legis. A fascinating story. The project began seven years ago when I took a break from Wheel. I needed a new creative challenge where I could implement musical, lyrical, and artistic ideas without restriction. I called Timo after my departure from Wheel, who, incidentally, played on the first Wheel demo, and asked him if he would like to make music with me. He already had some really cool ideas back then, and I thought it was the opportunity to try something new and exciting. He agreed immediately and had written even more beautiful music in the meantime, so that after a year we already had six pieces finished. Since Timo had a studio in his basement, the work was very pleasant, and we had about 10 pieces finished in no time. But we also didn't set any time limits because we just wanted to release a product with which we were 100 percent satisfied. When we were finished, we contacted Dennis Koehne, who helped us a lot with the production and was also responsible for mixing and mastering. All in all, it was a super relaxed and creative time that we spent together. Timo is an incredibly creative person, and it's a lot of fun to work with him because we try out many things to achieve a good result.

André: How do you categorize yourselves stylistically? The title of your debut DARRKH It Is is quite programmatic: the music is indeed very dark, but above all intense and highly emotional.

Arkadius: The music is indeed very dark because it emerged during a very dark time for me personally. The album is very personal. Thematically, it mainly deals with loss on various levels (friendship, death, or love).

André: I think you're the best metal singer in Germany - you reach me on an emotional level that very few artists manage, especially live. This is also due to the great, distinctive vocal lines that can be found on your albums. How does the songwriting process actually work? Do these vocal lines come about first and then the rest of the tracks?

Arkadius: Thank you first of all for the compliment, BUT I am certainly not the best German metal singer. I believe what sets me apart from many others is the fact that I always sing about something that personally affects me. And perhaps I have the talent to convey these emotions to the listener so that they can identify with the mood and understand in what emotional state I wrote the lyrics and vocal lines. The songs usually come about in such a way that Timo has already composed everything and sends me a finished song. Then I see which parts are suitable for singing, develop the vocal lines, and write the lyrics. As a final step, we arrange the song as needed, lengthen or shorten parts, and add instruments until we are both satisfied with the result.

André: Is there a singer who has particularly influenced you?

Arkadius: There are certainly some: Geoff Tate, Rob Lowe, Fish (Marillion), Freddie Mercury, King Diamond, Warrel Dane, and even Steve Hogarth.

André: What experiences inspire you in terms of the lyrics? Are they primarily personal experiences that you channel?

Arkadius: Most of the time, they are personal experiences that I process in my lyrics. It's a kind of therapy. In between, however, there are also fictional themes that I try to process lyrically.

André: DARRKH It Is is a fantastic album that the classic Hammer of Doom fan base, for example, will love. Of course I'm hoping for a physical release. How are things looking in that regard?

Arkadius: We are currently looking for a label to release the record. I would hope that someone is interested and gives us the chance to share our vision with others. [Update: Darrkh... It Is! has meanwhile been released by Hammerheart – luckily!]

André: Are you also planning to perform live this year?

Arkadius: Since I've just become a father and Timo is about to become a father for the second time, live activities are currently challenging, BUT who knows. It would certainly be an interesting experience.

André: Arkadius, thank you for the interview! First of all, I wish you and Timo all the best on a personal level. I very much hope that the quality of your music will be recognised by a suitable label and that the world will be able to listen to your songs.

Bonus: My friend Aidan, with whom I once founded the Epic Metal Blog, wrote the following about Arkadius' vocals in 2021, in relation to Wheel's performance at Keep it True Rising:

Wheel and especially vocalist Arkadius Kurek are masters of emotion and combined with their untamable passion they couldn't be held back anymore which perfectly suited the following song “Icarus". In its truly legendary chorus Arkadius enchanted the crowd with an extremely powerful and emotional vocal performance I up to this point only knew from Warrel Dane! I am now sure to say that Arkadius is the greatest doom singer Germany currently has to offer - I don't think that I have to point out that his performance on Preserved in Time outshined all other doom records of the past couple of years! Only rarely have I seen talent being crowned with so much dedication, passion and emotion! Combined with his stage presence, his distinct gesticulation and a dark hood emphasising his corresponding countenance further intensified the performance. Fittingly the next song was “After All" which the band dedicated to “all those, who didn't make it this year". One could have thought that he sang his soul out, yet he was about to prove us wrong. “She Left in Silence" and the already mentioned “Mills of God", two darker and very doomy songs climatically led up to the ultimate highlight of the performance, the last two songs “Hero of the Weak" and finally “Aeon of Darkness". And this undoubtedly was the definite culmination, a pinnacle of unparalleled emotion and passion.

AIWAZ on Bandcamp: Click here.