To kick things off: Tell our audience a bit about the origin story of your Band.
This originally started as a solo project. I released our debut November last year, and then me and Chad Bernatchez of Voidchaser started talking about doing vocals on some of the tracks. It spiraled from there and we ended up reimagining the entire album with hundreds of harmony layers and plans for live performance. There isn’t a very exciting story behind it all, other than 2 people who liked each other’s music and work very well together. Our lineup has expanded but we’re not quite ready to talk about that yet.
1.) If you had to describe the sound of your Band to someone who hasn’t heard you yet: What would you say?
It’s cinematic, spacey prog. I’ve been told our sound is unique and has a specific character, but it’s kind of all over the place. If I feel like writing an orchestral piece I will, then follow it up with some death metal or more classic prog. Whatever the scene dictates. The constants are vast vocal harmonies, intricate guitar parts, and mostly sci-fi themes.
2.) How has the songwriting evolved with the band over the years? What does that process look like for you lately?
It was originally very much guitar in hand, write a bunch of riffs and then try to shape a song after. This can actually be heard in our earliest tracks, with more improvised guitar solos and a less mechanical feel to them. This quickly turned into more of a process of thinking about what each section is meant to say instrumentally. To facilitate this most of the writing started happening entirely in midi, and then recorded after. The addition of midi as a writing tool allowed for a much more focused and experimental style, which I very much enjoyed and continue to utilize. For Primordial Reverie Ascendant, Chad wrote all the lyrics and vocal arrangements. I provided concepts and what each scene was meant to represent, and then he took creative liberty to expand upon that framework. For our future releases things will be much more collaborative. Since we live in different countries, we do a remote call usually once a week, and bounce ideas off each other.3
3.) What was the inspiration for your band name? What meaning does it have behind it?
Me and my wife spent a lot of time trying to come up with something unique. We quickly realized there is no such thing, every single word and combination has been used at this point. I finally came upon Cepheid Variable, and was excited to have an astronomical term that hadn’t been associated with a band prior. Then I found an EDM artist using this name. It was very important to me that whatever we came up with was unique to this project, so my wife happened upon Cepheidae. A family of jellyfish. So now it’s a play on words. Also our overarching universal story is about a parasitic space jellyfish, so that fits.
4.) What are some of the recurring themes or messages you find yourself exploring in your lyrics?
The biggest theme on this album is disillusionment. The idea that running away to somewhere new is going to somehow fix all your problems. However on a more positive note it’s also about putting your soul into a passion to give it life. This is metaphorical to the creation of music. While our characters motives are flawed, she pursues her dreams with absolute intensity. In her case to a not so happy ending.
5.) What is one song you’ve written that you feel captures the absolute core identity of the band?
I think the audience for this type of music is pretty knowledgeable of the music itself and what they like. The industry however works much the same way as it does for all genres, and that is something most people aren’t familiar with. If you’ve found a new band, it’s because they’ve put a lot of time, effort, and money into getting seen. The reason this matters is because people tend to be more accepting of promotion for established artists.
6.) Do you find your energy translates better in an intimate club style venue or a massive festival setting?
Either is suitable, it’s more about the audience. This music, while fast paced, is all over the place in it’s tone and pacing. It’s more important that the audience is expecting this type of music rather than the venue itself. I think the most suitable venue is more a theater hall.
7.) Which show performance stands out as your all time favorite? is there a specific reason?
We our still preparing for our live debut. So instead I will mention my favorite show I attended was Wintersun, it was just incredibly entertaining and an extremely powerful performance.
8.) Which Artists or Band inspired you to be in a Band?
It started with Iron Maiden, Led Zeppelin, and every classic rock band you can think of. What really got things moving though was when I started hearing bands like Dream Theater.
9.) If you could sit down and collaborate with any Artist or Band right now, who would be at the top of your list and Why?
Charlie Griffiths, and Jason Richardson. Charlie because he’s an awesome guy and I adore everything he writes. And Jason because my guitar instructor Matthew Mills taught him and tells great stories. Oh and he’s one of the top technical guitarists of our time.
10.) What’s the current Pulse of the Metal Scene from your perspective?
I think we’re in a spot where some of the best music is available, and playing abilities have exceeded what anyone thought possible. At the same time I think we’re in a pretty bad spot with AI music, and how we consume music as a whole. That being said I’ve found a great community within the prog genre, and think it has some of the most enthusiastic fans and musicians out there.
11.) Are there any endorsements or gear brands you’re currently working with that you’d like to shout out?
Aristides Guitars for their excellent instruments.
12.) What does your tour calendar look like? Any big shows or festivals we should be made aware of?
This is currently a studio project, however we are preparing for live performance and have pitched to festivals.
13.) What is your very first Metal album you ever bought ?
Scenes From a Memory
14.) What was the very first metal concert you ever went to?
Iron Maiden
15.) Where’s the best place for fans to keep up with you and dive into your community online?
LINKTREE
ryankoepke@cepheidaevariable.com
