Raum Kingdom interview and talks of their album Monarch

1- Hello and welcome to Metal Music News and Interviews. Our readers are excited to get to know you and your band. Could you give us a brief description of the group? 

Where is the band from?

      Hi, Thanks so much for reaching out and giving us the chance to answer your questions. Raum Kingdom started out with all close friends and lovers of music and playing, in late 2013 after an old band Myself (Andrew, Guitarist) and Dave the Singer which was called 'Killing Lazarus', a sort of experimental Post Rock band ended. We wanted to try our hat at something a little heavier and more intense, so we asked two of our close friends to see if they wanted to join us on the journey. So with that: Mark -(Drums ) Bones -(Bass) RIP who sadly passed away in 2021 and is deeply missed, Dave -(Singer), and myself -(Andrew, Guitars) Raum Kingdom came to be. We are from the East Coast of Ireland, most of us mainly from a town called 'Drogheda' which is 60km North of Dublin.

 

2- Monarch is the band's 2^nd Full full album. How long did it take to compose and record?

      We started rehearsing and songs came together pretty quickly for our first release, Self Titled EP, which we recorded in the same place we rehearsed, Dead Dog Studios, a place which     unfortunately is not active anymore. So it took a couple of months to put the five tracks together, we had some other material of which we didn't put the EP and took a few weekends to put it to tape as we were all involved with the process and enjoying the process. We released 'Everything and Nothing' an LP in 2018, which was a full-blown creative process bomb, and after the passing of our friend and bass player, we had 90% of a new record ready to go. So in his honor, we decided to put it on tape after another one of our good friends, Greg (Bass) said he would step in to do bass. We released 'Monarch' in Mar this year. Took 3 months of Pre-Production, 8 months of writing, and then another 1 and a half years before it was released as the universe had other plans.

3- What musical influences inspire the band's compositions?

      We all like different types and styles, so it can vary a lot between us, so we try to find common ground that we can all agree on. But you can definitely hear that we all agree on music that has a heavy feel, both sonically and emotionally. So balancing the two without falling out of the boat and drowning is the key. 

4- The group started in 2013. Can you tell us how did the members all meet?

I (Andrew) had known Bones the longest, way back in our early teens, late 1990s, we had been playing music when we first met. Later I met Mark through a mutual friend and had done some rehearsals and projects with him, the early 2000s. Again through a mutual friend I met Dave of which we started to play in Killing Lazarus. After that, the time was right for the four of us to start 'Raum Kingdom' in 2013. So a history of 20 years wrapped up in a quick bite-size chunk of a few sentences. Later I met Greg when I started playing bass in a band called Okus. 

5- The new album title is Monarch. Tell us the details about the content 

and a more in-depth meaning to this title?

      Monarch is a journey through redemption and rebirth. Focusing on the cycle of life 'what is above, so as below' The record we hope navigates through passages of existence, love, hate, loss, loneliness, and hope, giving the listener a medication of the soul, to cleanse the emotional palate and move forward. If one person can feel that from it, then we have done our job and happy.

6- Are the current members of this project 'Raum Kingdom'  part of another band or project? Or is everyone dedicated solely to the group? How do you maintain a good balance working together?

      Jeez, we have a lot of things going on, where do I start? Just a disclaimer, all the genre descriptions I'm giving are just loose references. Greg and I play in a Heavy Punk Experimental band called 'Okus', which are currently writing a new album, Also Greg has an ambient drone project called 'Sonic Womb'. Dave the singer has a project of heavy Electro, Drum and Bass if I can call it that, named 'Somber Motion' should be some new material from that over time. Dave and I are part of 3 Piece fast doom lol, a project called 'Hatespace' which might still pop something out over time. Also, Im in another project of Heavy Dungeon Synth called 'RE-EX' which had a release a couple of weeks back.

7- Have you performed any shows in your area? If so, how receptive and supportive are the people of your music?

      Yup, we have played a few shows recently, there is a great scene here in Ireland. We would love to play more and get out more. It's all difficult with all our life circumstances, so hopefully in the future we can and definitely get to the mainland in Europe, as good the people and fans and the scene is here in Ireland, it can be finite.

8- Are there any upcoming shows or tours you can tell us about?

We have nothing in the pipeline yet, we did a release show for 'Monarch' so just recalibrating to see where and what we do next.

9- Thanks for your participation. Finally, what is the best way to get a hold of the group just in case someone wants to book or promote the band? 

Any final words?

Absolutely and thank you for this opportunity. Apologies for the delay. Just hit us up on any of our social media sites, we would be delighted to talk. 

Big thanks to all who support us. Means the world. Support Local bands.

"Behind that wall of noise is an infinite world of harmony"

https://raumkingdom.bandcamp.com/album/monarch

Music and band promotion visit https://grandsounds.net/