Negative Plane IX
2025-01-16
by Niklas Göransson
After the monumental effort of Stained Glass Revelations, Negative Plane drifted into a creative limbo. Exhausted and uninspired, Nameless Void and Bestial Devotion turned to other pursuits, awaiting the spark to reignite their creative hunger.
NAMELESS VOID: Making a NEGATIVE PLANE album drains us completely: labouring over the writing, hunting for the perfect parts, and then listening to the same tracks a thousand times during mixing. It’s mentally exhausting – every ounce of energy is consumed.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: We put an enormous amount of work into “Stained Glass Revelations” – dealing with all the usual frustrations that accompany writing, recording, and mixing. By the end, Ed and I were exhausted and had to step back for a while.
NAMELESS VOID: The post-album lull lasted much longer than the one after our debut. We spent several years trying out different ideas, but nothing seemed to click. I felt boxed in creatively, and the burnout reached a point where it just wasn’t exciting anymore.
In the wake of their 2011 album, “Stained Glass Revelations”, NEGATIVE PLANE found themselves uncertain about the band’s direction. Despite efforts to work on new material, progress felt stagnant.
Meanwhile, in 2011, The Ajna Offensive issued a self-titled mini-LP with Bestial Devotion’s solo project, FUNEREAL PRESENCE. Nameless Void joined a doom band called OCCULTATION and released the debut album “Three & Seven” on Profound Lore and Invictus Productions in April 2012.
NAMELESS VOID: Honestly, I was only supposed to help out in that band but ended up liking it, so I stuck around. OCCULTATION felt like a completely different beast – writing riffs and songs came much easier. With NEGATIVE PLANE, everything had to meet a far stricter standard.
In May 2012, the month after OCCULTATION’s “Three & Seven” was released, NEGATIVE PLANE appeared on a split seven-inch with none other than ROTTING CHRIST, issued by Malört Förlag.
NAMELESS VOID: Some friend of Timo Ketola had written a book about sex with demons. As far as we understood, it was supposed to include a compilation of bands contributing instrumental, experimental tracks. I thought, ‘Alright, a soundtrack is kind of cool. We’re in.’
BESTIAL DEVOTION: The original concept sounded noble. I figured it was a nice extension of the experimental direction on “Stained Glass Revelations”. I mean, we even used field recordings – I went out with a mic to capture dogs barking during a thunderstorm and then mixed them in.
NAMELESS VOID: We already had an instrumental piece, “The Chasm Depths”, recorded at Trax East while testing out the studio. Since the track felt too similar to another song on “Stained Glass Revelations”, we decided to shelve it. Later, Matthias suggested, ‘Hey, why not master that one for the compilation?’ I figured, ‘Okay, sure’, and didn’t think too much about it.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: The author seemed like a great guy, and we’d discussed how the contributions shouldn’t be the usual fare from the participating bands but something more experimental to fit the concept better. That’s why we picked “The Chasm Depths”. What happened next… honestly, I don’t remember the exact timeline.
NAMELESS VOID: Months later, I start getting strange messages: ‘Hey, do you have a copy of that ROTTING CHRIST seven-inch?’ I’m like, ‘What are you talking about?’ ‘Yeah, I wanted to get your split, but it’s already sold out.’ Now I’m really confused, ‘I think you’ve got us mixed up with someone else. We haven’t done a split.’ Then, we received less-than-amused emails from Darragh and Tyler.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Oh, right, I forgot that entire part. I got PTSD from this shit – my memory had smoothed it over. Now all the drama’s flooding back.
NAMELESS VOID: They were absolutely furious: ‘What the hell? Why didn’t you tell us about this?’ Matthias and I felt awful. After some digging, we found out that the guy running the project never finished the compilation because only ROTTING CHRIST and NEGATIVE PLANE submitted tracks. So, he decided to release it as an EP instead – separate from the book.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: I do like “The Chasm Depths” – for an ‘experimental compilation’, it made sense. But framed as an exclusive NEGATIVE PLANE song on a split with ROTTING CHRIST? That’s a different story. Imagine if MORTUARY DRAPE, at their peak, put out a seven-inch. You’d buy it expecting a metal track, only to find it’s just an instrumental interlude. I’d lose my fucking mind.
NAMELESS VOID: The price was ridiculous, too – especially considering the modest playing time. Our track ran about two and a half minutes, ROTTING CHRIST’s wasn’t much longer, and the EP cost $14. For 2012, that felt absurd.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Are you serious? Fourteen bucks for a seven-inch? My sincere apologies to anyone who paid money for our two-and-a-half-minute track.
It’s actually over three minutes with the spoken-word intro.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: There’s a fucking spoken-word intro?
NAMELESS VOID: You don’t remember? Let me chime in here: they added it without asking. When sending in our track, we explicitly said, ‘Don’t add or change anything.’ But he ignored us and slapped on this dumb talking – it’s so corny, you can’t even take the song seriously.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: I retract anything remotely diplomatic I said because fuck that. The moment I got my hands on the physical seven-inches, I threw the entire box into a closet in a fit of rage. I’ve never listened to it, which explains why I didn’t know about the intro.
It’s on YouTube – shall we give it a listen?
NAMELESS VOID: Oh no, please don’t do that. I heard it once, and that was quite enough.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Actually, I’m curious now.
NAMELESS VOID: Oh my God. I need another beer. Matthias, you want one?
BESTIAL DEVOTION: I already have one; I don’t drink that fast.
NAMELESS VOID: <laughs> Well, I do. But seriously, are we really doing this? Are we gonna subject ourselves to that piece of shit?
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Yes! Play it on your phone so it sounds even shittier.
NAMELESS VOID: Alright, here it is on YouTube. Let’s get through the ads first…
BESTIAL DEVOTION: There’s an Expedia ad.
NAMELESS VOID: That’s still better than the intro. I’d rather listen to an Expedia ad.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Okay, here we go… <cackling> Did he do this seriously? It sounds like an ENSLAVED “Frost” intro – except nowhere near as cool.
NAMELESS VOID: We don’t speak Swedish, obviously. What’s he saying?
I believe he’s reading an old incantation from his source material.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Right, but it completely clashes with the song’s tempo. He’s speaking at this super-fast pace while the music is quite mellow. That’s even more offensive. Whatever track we submit is the track – I don’t condone anyone altering our music. I can’t believe this shit is online for everyone to hear. That’s awful.
NAMELESS VOID: At least they’re not paying fourteen bucks for it! Back then, we told people, ‘Don’t buy the EP – download it instead.’
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Oh, that’s right. We made a statement on the Ajna site: ‘Don’t buy this. It sucks.’ But by then, it was already out. If any of your readers bought one and thought, ‘These guys are on crack’ – fair enough. At the end of the day, if your logo is on something, you’re the one who’s responsible.
I remember when it came out. The lineup sounded promising, especially after seeing ROTTING CHRIST perform an old-school set at Hell’s Pleasure the year before. But goddamn, their contribution is atrocious.
NAMELESS VOID: I’ll keep my thoughts on that to myself. But I will say, at least our piece worked as a soundtrack. Their track made zero sense for a score. I don’t know – I’m not sitting there headbanging to “Fallen Angel of Doom” (BLASPHEMY) while immersing myself in a book. Some music complements reading – it’s relaxing – but metal songs? Not so much.
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In December 2012, NEGATIVE PLANE embarked on a US tour with labelmates VOMITOR, marking the latter’s American debut.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: I’ve been a fan since their demo days. I bought the tapes, then snapped up “Bleeding the Priest” as soon as it came out – fantastic stuff. I’ve always loved VOMITOR, so touring with them was awesome. We got along really well.
NAMELESS VOID: I first met Rob (VOMITOR) at Hole in the Sky in Norway, and we clicked right away. It might seem like an unlikely pairing, but hanging out felt so natural. He talks about guitar stuff in this caveman-like language we all understood perfectly – it’s the same way Matthias and I explain riffs to each other.
Knowing the personalities involved, the old song “Sleepless Nights” comes to mind.
NAMELESS VOID: Yes! <laughs> Let me tell you about the wildest guy on that tour – Chris (Horror Illogium) from PORTAL, who played lead guitar for them. He mostly rode in our van while the other VOMITOR guys took the second. We wanted to listen to stuff like KILLING JOKE, and Rob wasn’t as into that.
The final date took place in New York. A Brooklyn Vegan review, written by a local who’d seen NEGATIVE PLANE multiple times, called it their most impressive set yet, highlighting how much the band’s performance benefitted from playing consecutive shows on tour.
NAMELESS VOID: That’s true. Playing live introduces so many variables – different equipment, acoustics, and environments. It takes time to adapt, especially when you’re used to a specific rehearsal setup. By the time the tour reached New York, we all felt completely in our element. Plus, this was NEGATIVE PLANE’s first outing with two guitars, which made a huge difference.
The year before, Diabolic Gulgalta, or Diego, moved to second guitar, while Thammuz stepped in on bass. However, passport issues prevented Diego from travelling abroad, forcing NEGATIVE PLANE to play as a trio overseas.
In the meantime, Nameless Void began collaborating with CULTES DES GHOULES, a black metal band from Poland.
NAMELESS VOID: Some Polish friends of ours in upstate New York know another Polish metalhead in Chicago named Artur. I’m not sure if he knew Marek (Mark of the Devil), Łukasz (Machine), or both – but he had a connection with them somehow. That’s how they got my email and reached out to me.
Were you already familiar with the band?
NAMELESS VOID: I’d heard their debut album, “Häxan…”, and the “Spectres Over Transylvania” mini-CD and absolutely loved them. The songs were so long, filled with these strange, unconventional sections – everything about the band was unique. It reminded me of the feelings I had when I first discovered NECROMANTIA.
At the time, CULTES DES GHOULES needed keyboard arrangements for two songs on their upcoming album and felt Nameless Void was the ideal collaborator. After introducing the band and its concepts via email, they invited him to contribute.
NAMELESS VOID: At first, it felt strange since I’d never done a long-distance recording. I thought, ‘Ah, I don’t know how this is gonna work’, but it did – although finishing my parts took longer than necessary. A few months later, when NEGATIVE PLANE played in Prague, I finally met Marek and his brother, and we got along really, really well.
CULTES DES GHOULES’ second album, “Henbane, …or Sonic Compendium of the Black Arts”, was released by Under the Sign of Garazel Productions in January 2013. Six months later, NEGATIVE PLANE returned to Europe to perform at Prague Death Mass in the Czech Republic.
NAMELESS VOID: While wandering through Prague, I was telling Marek how much I love THE DOORS. I also mentioned having grown a bit bored with always playing guitar. I had so much fun as bassist in our old PENTAGRAM cover band, and I really enjoy writing basslines for NEGATIVE PLANE. Sometimes, I can’t even tell if a riff works until I hear it against the bass.
Following the Prague meeting, Nameless Void was invited to take on bass duties for CULTES DES GHOULES.
In March 2014, Sepulchral Voice released “The Archer Takes Aim”, the debut full-length by Bestial Devotion’s black metal solo project, FUNEREAL PRESENCE.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: At some point after “Stained Glass…”, I got the itch again. I’d been collecting bits of those songs for ages; I’d write a piece, leave it, and come back much later. We had that easily accessible rehearsal room and my trusty old sixteen-tracker. So, I started going there, demoing and recording material.
Did “The Archer Takes Aim” become a substitute project while Ed was busy elsewhere?
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Nah, it predated OCCULTATION. I can’t recall exactly when I started… probably some time after “Stained Glass Revelations” because once I finish a recording project, I usually don’t feel like doing anything else for a while. I’m not the type to churn out another album right away. I’m generally content for a bit.
NAMELESS VOID: Same on my end. “Stained Glass…” burned me out, and OCCULTATION happened to be there. I was seeing the main person behind the band, and we lived together. I initially joined just to help out on guitar until she found someone else, but I ended up enjoying the music and contributing riffs.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Then you started writing, and it basically turned into your band.
NAMELESS VOID: Yeah. You know how it is: I’d begin with suggestions like, ‘Maybe the structure should be something like…’ then I’d add, ‘I have a riff which doesn’t work for NEGATIVE PLANE…’ But it was never the case of saying, ‘Okay, now I’m doing this instead of that.’
In October 2014, NEGATIVE PLANE visited Stockholm, Sweden, for a rather messy weekend – splitting their time between the Black Harvest festival and Wolf’s Lair, WATAIN’s rehearsal bunker and bar just a stone’s throw away.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Is that our reputation now? Where’d you hear this?
I was there.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: Right. I’m not gonna lie – I don’t remember everything. I freely admit I drank a lot. I got hammered enough for Erik (WATAIN) to tell me, ‘Matthias, calm down.’ <laughs> And, of course, when you’re drunk, you get all emotional about everything. I kept apologising, like, ‘I’m so sorry for disrespecting your rehearsal room.’ Or bar. Or whatever the hell it was.
NAMELESS VOID: That place was amazing. I really loved it. Great festival, too.
BESTIAL DEVOTION: HEAD OF THE DEMON played, and they’re absolutely brilliant. We’re good friends with them and have hung out several times. That was probably one of the best weekends ever for meeting people – a fucking fantastic trip. So many of our friends were there: Vaz, Darragh, Tyler, Timo, and others.
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