Sunday 3 September 2017

An Interview With LOWFLYINGHAWKS

LowFlyingHawks released their debut album Kōfuku back in 2016. it's a very harsh and desolate drone based album. It won some major praise within the Doom/Sludge Metal community. The band comprises of core duo – EHA and AAL. Though they were helped by Dale Crower and Trevor Nunn of The Melvins providing Drum and Bass duties on their debut album.

Now, the band have just released their 2nd album – Genkaku – which sees the band team up with Dale Crower and Trevor Nunn once again. This time the band have managed to include KING BUZZO to provide vocals on two of the albums finest tracks. With Toshi Kasai producing the album yet again. This is still LowFlyingHawks show and they've managed to create one of the finest and heaviest records of the year.

I recently caught up with the band where we discussed the new album, The Melvins and future touring plans.

Hi guys. Thanks for doing this interview. How are things with you today.

Hi Steve, all great! Thanks for the great review!

Can you give a brief history of how the band came together and where it is today.

Yes, we’ve been playing on and off for 25 years and a 3 years ago we decided to start this band, we started writing songs and ideas and finally a couple of years ago we decided to record

Congrats on your brilliant new album – Genkaku. What can people expect with this new album.

Thanks a lot! People should expect a more psychedelic and hallucinatory experience and overall a more straightforward riff based record.


It’s a very different album compared to your debut album. As I stated in my review. This album is more riff based compared to the heavier drone styles of your debut album. Was that the plan to record something different.

Yes totally, we have this idea of a trilogy, lets call it the Japanese trilogy, loosely based on the myth of sisyphus, so Kofuku was a more soothing and drone shoegazey album, Genkaku is more straightforward and hallucinatory and the third will tie and round the whole concept, it’s definitely going to clarify the whole meaning, we’ve got an EP in between that's about to enter the mixing phase that compliments the whole things well.

Was this a harder album to write and record for compared to your debut album.

Both of them have been hard on their own terms, a lot of emotion and dedication has been put into them, they’re very personal albums and going in and doing all this insight can be very hard and also very soothing, but we enjoy it very much.

You’re working with The Melvins on this album again. Dale Crover and Trevor Dunn helping out with the instrumental work. And the legendary King Buzzo appearing on Smile and Space Wizard. Plus Toshi Kasai producing the album. How did you manage to convince The Melvins and Toshi to work with you on both albums.

They like what we do and I guess they enjoy playing on the albums as well, it’s something very magical the way this all happens, really there's this energy happening all the time that's very inspiring and super powerful.

What has been the overall experience been like working with legendary artists such as that over the course of the last two albums.

It has been a very humbling and powerful experience, we absolutely admire and respect them and we’re very grateful to have been part of this.

Were you worried before you released your debut album that LFH would be seen as another spin-off band from The Melvins. Where that is furthest from the truth.

No, not at all, our style has always been very different from the Melvins even though we’ve been heavily influenced by them (Who isn’t!!), were definitely never worried something like that would happen.


King Buzzo lends his awesome vocals on Smile and Space Wizard. Did King Buzzo write the lyrics for those two songs. Or was it a joint effort.

His vocals are amazing! He wrote the lyrics for the parts he sings.

You’re debut album surprised a lot of people within the Doom/Sludge Metal community when it was released almost two years ago. Did the attention the album received surprise you in anyway.

We’ve never expected anything to happen, we truly play music as a form of expression and we’ve never expected anything, it has surprised us for sure and we’re very happy people are reacting to the music.

Genkaku has been receiving it’s fair share of excellent reviews already. Has that surprised you as well.

We’re very happy people are reacting to Genkaku and it’s very humbling to know people like it.

Are there any plans for LFH to perform live gigs in the future. Or is this not possible this moment in time.

We’d love to play some very special shows in the near future, definitely not in this moment in time but soon.

Magnetic Eye Records are releasing your album yet again. How did you sign to them.

A friend, Richard Jones introduced us to them, they liked what they heard and they wanted to put it out so we partnered up and here we are.


Was it an easy decision for the label to release Genkaku. Did you have offers from other labels.

We’ve never looked outside, we’re very happy here, Mike and Jadd are great!

It seems LFH keeps a low profile. Is there a specific reason behind this.

Yes, we like to concentrate on the music and the artwork, so we keep everything else in the dark so it doesn’t grab any attention away from the music

Are you part of any other bands apart from LFH. If so, can you tell us what other bands you’re members of.

Yes! We wouldn’t like to mix them with LFH so it’s better for that to be that and this to be this :)

Before you go, do you have anything to say to your fans.

We would like to thank all the people who support and listen to our music, great stuff ahead!

All the best with your new album. It’s one of my favourite albums of the year.

Thanks a lot Steve!

Words by Steve Howe and LowFlyingHawks

Thanks to LowFlyingHawks for doing this interview. Thanks to Andy Turner for arranging the interview. Genkaku is now available to buy on CD/DD/Vinyl from Magnetic Eye Records.

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