A Secret Revealed is a five piece German post-metal band from Würzburg formed in early 2012. Having shared the stage with bands like Der Weg Einer Freiheit, Oathbreaker and Downfall of Gaia, the band wanted to live up to the personal notions of an atmospheric, melancholic and melodious mix of music – a mix that should work on record as well as live. Mixing post-metal with elements of black metal and hardcore, the band released their debut EP “Lay My Memory to Rest” in 2012. It took 3 years for the guys to release their debut album “The Bleakness” via Bastardized Recordings, but the wait proved well worth it and was well received by fans and critics alike. The following year, A Secret Revealed parted ways with vocalist Paul Motz, and recruited Michael Heim (ex- Necrotted / Ex-Guiding-Light-Demise) to solidify their line-up, debuting the first single with Michael in 2017. Fans have been anxiously awaiting a new album since the new single, but thankfully don’t have to wait much longer: their sophomore album “Sacrifices” is due out January 25th via Lifeforce records. Recently I had the chance to interview the band, with vocalist Michael and guitarists Raif and Lukas graciously answering my questions about the origin of the band name, why they stuck to the post-metal genre, favorite touring memories and a handful of other topics which you can read about below.
With “Sacrifices”, the band pushes their sound even further and produces one of the best post-metal albums I’ve had the pleasure of listening to in years. Filled with thick and beautiful atmosphere throughout, much of which can be attributed to Jonny Renshaw of Bandit Studios/Devil Sold His Soul mixing and mastering the album. “Sacrifices” grips you from its opening moments and does not let go until long after you finish the album. While it might take a few listens to fully appreciate every intricacy and new thing the band tries, the journey is worth it many times over and will resonate in your memory for a long time to come. It may be a January release, but I’m calling it now that it will make end of year lists due to how truly fantastic this record is. Do yourself a favor and listen when it releases, you won’t regret it. Support the guys by giving them a like on Facebook and pre-order Sacrifices in physical or digital format from Bandcamp.
Where did the name of the band originate from? Is there meaning behind it at all?The name A SECRET REVEALED is actually the result of a long search for an expression of what the band is trying to transmit to the audience. It describes that every human has at least one secret in its mind that stays unknown to everyone else.
What have you all been up to since the release of your last album?
We worked hard on getting our dedication to the limit. Whether it’s about writing new and better songs or playing shows all over Germany. It’s not always easy between having families and full-time jobs.
What made you all decide on sticking with the post-metal genre? Did you ever experiment with other genres before deciding on the aforementioned?
We’ve never had the intention of becoming a post-metal band from scratch. It was more like a progress while we were about to play riffs and beats that came to our heads. All of us have been playing in several bands before, just like Death Metal, Thrash Metal or even Pop-Punk bands. Every single one of us is bringing his personal influences into the songwriting process. We are all the same opinion that music is about emotions and playing sad melodies is what we like the most.
There are a lot of bands playing similar music, what do you feel separates you from your contemporaries?
We think it could be the natural-happened mix of genres (at least to us). On „SACRIFICES“ we have songs that could fit onto a Hardcore record and some that would fit onto a Black Metal album, all having the same oppressive atmosphere – and they all feel like they’re from the same mold. All in all we’re not trying to be different on purpose – we’re writing the music that feels right to us. Having an open mind and letting ourselves be driven by the ideas and emotions of the songs or our surroundings is probably the most important thing to us.
Conceptually, what are you trying to convey with the lyrics on this album? Are there any reoccurring themes or meanings?
Every single song is part of a bigger picture and together they tell a connected story. Content-wise we deal with the persons and things in life you must leave behind, if you want to achieve your individual aims. The album title ‘SACRIFICES’ symbolized all the pain that can evolve from these decisions.
About how long would you say you spent on writing the album?
The writing process has already began straight after the release of our debut album ‚THE BLEAKNESS‘. Due to a line up change at the vocalist position we had the opportunity to give the songs more effectiveness and variety which was a little bit time-consuming. All in all it was something about one and a half year without pre-productions and studio time.
What does Michael bring to the table that your previous vocalist was not able to? How has the reaction with fans been since the line up change?
Michael is a big enrichment for the band. His range of voice and the way he interprets our songs is important for the overall result. His longtime experience as a frontman in different bands was also a deciding factor for us. Our fans were positive all over – whether be it personal feedback or via comments on social media. Sure, there will always be some people who like the old A SECRET REVEALED sound more, but for us as a band it feels better now.
Who would you say your biggest influences are?
This one isn’t easy to answer because there are a lot of bands from different genres which had influences on us over the years. But to name some which influenced us the most within the Rock/Metal genre its bands like Cult of Luna, Devil Sold His Soul, Architects or Fjørt.
What albums were you listening to while writng/recording the album?
There were many records and the first which came into our minds are the latest outputs of Oathbreaker, End, Thy Art is Murder, Dool, Der Weg Einer Freiheit, Solstafr or Architects. They definitely were rotating heavily in our players while we wrote „SACRIFICES“.
Any major albums youʼre looking forward to that come out this upcoming year?
The new Slipknot album could be interesting and Devil Sold His Soul are recording a new album right now. Probably it will be released in 2019 which would be sick.
Who did you work with as a producer? What kind of experience did you have?
We didn’t really had a producer for „„SACRIFICES“ but we collaborated closely with Nikita Kamprad as our general recording engineer (Ghost City Recordings & head of Der Weg Einer Freiheit) for the second time. Nikita is a friend of the band for years now and his charming being and passion for music made us feel in good hands again. It’s always a pleasure for us and not irrelevant for the sound of the band. Jonny Renshaw (Bandit Studious & Devil Sold His Soul) was the one responsible for the mix & master. We really liked his powerful, dynamic and authentic releases so far.
Whatʼs it been like working with Lifeforce records?
It is simply a banger for us. The knowledge and expertse of the Lifeforce crew is absolutley amazing. We get so much support and trust from them which confrms our efort and sweat over the last years as a band. We’re so excited what the future will bring and we hope to reach a longtme lovestory with the label. Thanks to Stefan for the chance and the energy he puts in us.
Any big plans for tours to support the release? Hopefully the United States!!
If there will be an offer to play the United States we won’t say no! Other than that, there is no bigger tour planned so far, but we’re trying to play the shit out of us and hope to see a lot of familiar and new faces out there at the clubs.
Speaking of touring, what are some of your favorite touring or show memories? Anything ever happen that resonates with you the most? Does not necessarily need to be a positive experience.
For us as a small band it’s still the most beautiful thing to come to a show with no expectations and the audience is having a blast. When people come to you after the show, hugging and telling you how awesome it was and how you’ve touched their feelings is probably the coolest thing ever. One time there were two fans who traveled 200 km by train to see us play live.
If you had the opportunity to tour with 3 bands, past or present, who would you tour with?
Tough one (under the consideration that all of us have a slightly different taste in music)
– Fjørt
– Cult Of Luna
– Architects
Is there anything youʼd like to say your current or future fan base?
We’d like to give a big „THANK YOU“ to everyone who has supported us in any kind of way over the last years! Seeing people listening and liking our stuff is the biggest motivation for us! On 25th January 2019 we will release „SACRIFICES“ via Lifeforce Records – give it a listen folks!
