Utter Trash--Somnus

Of Dreams and Darkness

An interview with Scott Hilberg of Somnus

By Bob Ignizio

In the crowded world of extreme metal, only a handful of bands really stand out. Somnus are one of those who do. The band crafts songs of imagination and atmosphere that actually stay with you once the mosh pit dies down. While their dark soundscapes find the band frequently labeled as black metal, they defy such easy categorization. Elements of that style are there to be sure, but for the most part they steer clear of the clichéd blast beats and mix in influences from goth, doom and progressive metal. With regards to any perceptions the band might be Satanic, Somnus’ vocalist/guitarist Scott Hilberg doesn’t mince words. “None of us are into that, it’s kind of garbage to me. All you’re doing is opposing something else. Without Christianity, you wouldn’t have Satanism. It’s about paganism. We’re definitely heavily influenced by that.”

“I started the band,” says Scott. “I used to be in a band called Odious Sanction. I was away from that project for about 2 years, and I knew Eric (Rueschman) from a band he was in called Sin Eater. I ran in to him at a show one day and asked him if he’d be interested in getting together. It took us a while until we finally got a steady line-up. That was when we found Lou (Spencer), our original bass player. Right after we found Lou we got our first drummer Scott Shetler, and then Rhiannon (keyboards and vocals). Then we just started writing our own material and a couple months later played our first show. The name of the band came from Eric. It comes from Roman mythology; it’s the name of the god of sleep and dreams. All of our lyrics pretty much relate to mythology, so we just found that name to be appropriate. ”

That line-up recorded the ‘To Return the Crimson Skies’ demo in 1997 before drummer Scott Shetler was replaced by Chris Stolle (ex Thanatopsis). In 2000 the band released its first CD on Root of All Evil Records called ‘Awakening the Crown’. Lou and Eric later exited the band, and were replaced by Dennis Downey (guitar) and Steve Rolf (bass). With regards to the current line-up, Scott said, “I would say that the guitar work has improved. There’s better riffs on the new album. It was the step that we needed to take. I think the current line-up is the strongest we’ve ever had.” One thing I was curious about was how the typically male dominated metal audience reacts to a female (keyboard player and vocalist Rhiannon) being in the band. “I think most people are accepting of it, but she’s had times where people have asked her things like if she writes her own parts. On the first CD, a lot of the music was written by me and Rhiannon, she does a lot of writing.”

June of this year saw the release of the band’s second full length CD, ‘Through Creation’s End’. “The title for the CD was taken from the lyrics to “Gate of Wolves”, Scott explains. “I think with the artwork and title together you can just stare at the cover and think and get a lot out of it. It’s not like we think it’s the end of the world but it is kind of interesting when you look at the times. It does seem like we’re on the brink of some change, some interesting change. But really, it’s more from the whole fantasy thing. I enjoy bands where I get to think about what they’re saying in their songs, and that’s the same thing that’s going on with us. There was nothing better than coming home from high school and just staring at the cover of an Iron Maiden tape, looking at the lyrics, looking at the title, and just going into your own little world and absorbing what they must have been thinking about.”

Of course, no matter how good your album might be the only way to really win over metal fans is by playing live. Although the group plays plenty of shows around their home base of Cleveland, they also take their show on the road. When I spoke with Scott, the band had just returned from a gig in Kentucky, and prior to that they played the 2002 Milwaukee Metal Fest. “It’s a lot of fun. We look forward to it every year,” Scott says regarding the annual event which they’ve played every year since 1998. “This year was a little disappointing. We weren’t on the schedule when we checked in, but we got things straightened out. We ended up having a decent crowd. The past years have been great, though. I always encourage my friends in other band to try and get on and play it. I think it’s helped us out a lot, really helped us get out to a lot of people.”

Although Somnus’ style of music has been somewhat of an underground thing up to now, I asked Scott if he thought the recent signing of Cradle of Filth to Sony records might signal a wider acceptance of dark, extreme metal. “I would think that would definitely help bands like us make it out to the masses. I find it cool; other people are probably not too fond of the trend. If we stay at this level, I guess that’s fine. But sure, I’d like to see it go as far as it can go. I have no objections to that. Some people are so “true” as they call it that they couldn’t bear to be popular. I grew up on KISS. I would love to be like KISS or Iron Maiden. There’s lots of things in my head, lots of ideas I’d like to do but unfortunately they take money.” Hopefully, with the god of dreams in his band’s corner, it won’t be long until Scott’s ideas become reality. Visit Somnus' website here.