Four years have lapsed since the Croatian stoner act, Stonebride, has released a new album. Following two successful LPs and several tours, the guys needed some time off to sort out their lives and decide what directions should follow next. So, they took it easy for a while and worked on new material at a slower, but steady pace. Nevertheless, 2014 was a busy year for the band, as they finished and revealed their 3rd studio effort, Heavy Envelope, while touring all around Europe to promote it. Since they are one of the coolest groups in the genre, I wanted to talk more with them about several subjects. I managed to include my interview in their schedule and drummer Steps found the time to answer my questions:

It’s been a while since you guys have released new material! What happened during these 4 years?

A lot of things. There was no break/pause, it’s just we took a slower pace than usual :), kidding. Band members were busy with their personal lives and work obligations, especially during 2010-2012. A month long tour took place in 2010, right before the beginning of summer. There were serious recapitulations of what we wanted to do as a band in the future and how to move forward with all things necessary to keep what we have in the long run. We didn’t stop doing rehearsals or crafting ideas. It was only a matter of adjusting the schedule that fits to all of us. There were select shows/short touring we did in that time frame, but the main focus was carving out new songs that ended up being on our new album.

Let’s talk about your 3rd studio effort, Heavy Envelope. How did the album take shape? Describe us the writing process.

We took it easy. No rush, no deadlines. Most of the songs started taking shape as early as 2011. It was about finding the sweet spot for the ideas developing at that time. We left blueprints for the new record during those rehearsals which didn’t end up being full songs. They needed to sink in/be developed a little more for the future recordings. Of course, we didn’t plan every aspect of how the final results were gonna turn out for Heavy Envelope. Some things happened really organic and natural (as always). The main focus was on getting the arrangements right, being satisfied with the song structures, certain details and overall sound of the band at this point. We had a pretty good idea of what we wanted out of the whole thing as a final result. As if someone else is playing and you’re listening exactly what you wanted to hear.

Your previous LP, Summon The Waves was an expansive, hour-long jam with sharp edges, while Heavy Envelope is more immediate and only half the length. Was it a conscious decision to leave it shorter or did you just decide at a certain point that is enough?

It wasn’t a conscious decision. Naturally, songs progressed as we were making them. Some parts you leave, some you expand and some come out on the spot. We did whatever we felt was best for the song and lyrics that accompany it. We didn’t limit ourselves with the songs’ length in any way.

Lately, more and more acts tend to leave their LPs under 40 minutes. Is it because of the shortening attention span of the listener? What is our opinion? (For example, I feel Summon The Waves needs those 60 minutes to truly create its own atmosphere and feel like a complete journey. On the other hand, Heavy Envelope sounds just enough at only 32 minutes and makes me want to come back at it again and again)

I think so. These times are moving so fast that people can’t afford (unfortunately) to soak in the music, let themselves go deep, enjoy it without distraction. I mean, there are examples of the opposite, but we/they have become a minority. Attention span has shortened drastically in general. Too many options, lost connections of feeling music on a physical level, not enough time/money and a general lethargy of not being able to move further from the comfort of your couch/computer/kitchen zone. Streaming services, illegal downloads, song-per-song possibilities of listening/purchasing, the final satisfaction is just a few mouse clicks away. Music has become a soundtrack running in the background while doing what is expected from you to get by through the day.

If it makes you going back at it, that’s it! We did our job. We made you listen to it more than once. That means the source of information needs to be absorbed multiple times, musically and lyrically. These parameters make a great record. It’s not a pretentious thing to say that, it’s being aware of your own capabilities to be even better with the future songwriting process. Heavy Envelope is as long as it should be, no more, no less. It came very naturally for us. The songs themselves made that possible. No calculations were involved whatsoever. Each song has its own vibe, story and message.

What’s the meaning behind the title of your new album? What were some of the influences that helped shape Heavy Envelope?

Wow, that’s the first time anyone is actually interested in this kind of stuff! If I tell you the meaning, then all the magic will be gone 😉 With every record we did, titles meant something individually to all the band members. The same thing is with Heavy Envelope. There’s a general idea behind the meaning but I leave that to the listeners to decide for themselves. Life itself helped shaping the album, I can tell you that. Too many challenges, emotional turmoil, not being able to fully express yourself, make progress in aspects needed to function on a higher scale, being a better person to someone even though he/she’s an asshole, etc. All the ‘Heavy’ subjects, you know. Of course, there’s an ‘Envelope’ side to it…

Also, the artwork seems very different from your previous two albums, looking more like an ’80s post-punk/experimental music cover. Who designed it? Is it purely abstract or do those elements have a certain meaning?

We wanted change, something new and to move away from the stuff we did so far. Reset time. For artwork we turned to a very talented artist, her name is Dunja Janković. She’s also from Croatia. Dunja is quite forward thinking with her expression. Check her out. There is a lot of crazy, different art she does. Mostly is abstract but if you dig deeper, it makes sense, kind of, hehe. The maze is pretty interesting. There’s no way out! Visual design of the record was handled by Mak Kurtović.

You recently completed a string of shows around Central Europe and the Balkans. When and where can we see you live in the near future?

This whole year has been exciting and inspiring. We’ve managed to do everything we set as our goals. The tour was great. Fun times, good food, met new friends, playing, devouring stages and a lot of driving. We have 2 gigs confirmed in Austria for January. More gigs will follow throughout the year. Go with the flow, see what happens. Keep promoting the Envelope on every level available and hopefully enter the studio again to start record new material.

Are there any bands you would love to tour with?

Sure! I don’t know where to start so let’s leave this one open. This whole touring side of the story has become more harder to do than ever. Competition is huge. A lot of shit bands getting undeserved attention combined with paid advertising and a lot of extraordinary bands going under the radar. If you swim hard enough people will notice, in time. It all comes down to what do YOU want as a band? What goals are you set to fulfill? Where’s the beginning and the end? How much effort you put into it, the results will be twice time bigger or not.

What are some of the weirdest/craziest tour memories?

There were more than few in the past, but it would take forever to describe them all. It’s so typical for us, because one thing always leads to another. Karma, universe, hangovers, you name it, we had it coming every time. But it always ended up with a big smile on our faces and a new story to tell. Let’s say that more than once we had a peak inside various police facilities. Nothing serious, nothing big, just good old detention time/delay on the road because of mostly legal substance use. Been tested for drugs multiple times on highways. Been forcefully put to piss test even though no one had the urge to do it. But they (police/customs) have a lot of time on their hands so they handle you a bottle of water and wait, hahaha! While waiting to piss, another band member starts vomiting because of a panic attack, while police was staring at us with a certain disbelief on their face just waiting for us to make the wrong move.

One time we drank 2 litres of a pretty potent schnapps (Šljivovica) in the van on our way from Zagreb to München. Needles to say that was one hell of a gig! Pretty intense debauchery happened that night.

Oh, one time we drove straight from Zagreb to Athens (Greece), 20 hours straight and played a gig the same night! It was beyond amazing! I had a serious back pain/stuck nerve, dead tired, but all the ache went away when we hit the stage. One time, somewhere in Switzerland, these 2 guys from Hungary I think, started being unpleasant to us. Not cool, weird talk on about how we deserve to be killed or whatever for God knows which reason. They were probably on some bad acid trip, who knows. Anyway, as the night went on 2 of our band members took the matter into their own hands. They put on their happy, drunk, fake gay identities and started to tease them. Various ways of sweet, smooth talk and sex scenarios were presented to those bad boy Hungarians, tempting them to make a move. Let’s just say those bad killers turned into silent lambs and ran into the dawn, hahahahhahaa!

What are some of your favorite acts today? In your opinion, which are some of the best 2014 records?

Somehow we started regressing, going back to bands/records we enjoyed listening when we were growing up, finding what suits us best. We find common ground on some artists, but more often we don’t. Each member has its own favorites or keeps discovering new ones, no matter the genre or music style. I can say 2014 was very fruitful for international and domestic (sub)genres. New albums by Indian, YOB, Earth, WovenHand, Crowbar, Mark Lanegan Band, The Bug, Nina Romić, Luxus Lord, Seven That Spells, Them Moose Rush, Rens Argoa, Melvins, Obake, Godflesh, Aphex Twin, Nicki Minaj, Scott Walker & Sunn O))), Laibach, Bohren & Der Club Of Gore, Baptists, Old Man Gloom, Electric Wizard, Swans, The Black Keys, Mastodon, Today Is The Day, Brant Bjork And The Low Desert Punk Band etc. are all great!

Sputnik’s review of Heavy Envelope

Stream and purchase Heavy Envelope at the links below:

http://stonebride.bandcamp.com/

https://www.youtube.com/user/Stonebrighter

http://www.pdv.com.hr/store/katalog/merchandise

http://www.pdv.com.hr/store/stonebride-heavy-envelope-cd

https://www.facebook.com/stonebrideband