Poland’s one-man, one-woman (and thus, probably Church approved) blackened frost-treaders Mornië Utúlië offer one of those perfect blends of intent, image and music. Calling a black metal record Sny (Polish for “dreams” and, coincidentally – thanks Google Translate – Afrikaans for “cuts”) and draping the cover in a field of stars certainly sets up expectations that this might be a toothless, undistorted bliss-out, but Mornië Utúlië’s adventures into the void turn out to be way more Darkspace roar than Alcest sigh. Like the subtle merging of Nosferatu and nebula on the cover, Mornië Utúlië throttle up the terror in in their yawning darkness and never settle for mere atmospheric meandering.
We asked Bartosz Brożek, the man behind the music, about his journey and his newest creation, so you can read all about it here while you stab through the cosmos with Sny and a video for the late-album cut “W Nocy Płynie Chłodny Wiatr” featuring gal-vocalist Ewa Kleszcz. If you dig, be sure to head over to the Mornië Utúlië’s Facebook site or Bandcamp page, where the album lives.
Live long, prosper, eat the weak and fear your dreams!
Who makes Mornië Utúlië? When and how did the project start?
Mornië Utúlië was created back in March 2013 only by me – Bartosz Brożek. I was only 20 and I saw that I had to create my first music project, to put my emotions and creativity into the music. I didn’t want to involve more members, in those days it was very personal project. But in 2015 I asked Ewa Kleszcz, female vocalist of heavy metal band Crimson Valley from Wrocław, to put some vocals on one of the songs. She did it so great, creating great atmosphere, that I think we will continue our cooperation in the future.
What background did you have before starting Mornië Utúlië?
I started my journey with music when I was 14. I had a teacher who taught me to play accordion. I played this instrument for something like a one and half years, then I started to playing keyboard (I had another teacher), which was a fantastic thing for me, because it is very inspirational instrument. Both teachers were with me no more than 2 months – mainly I was autodidact. At age of 17 I knew, that I must convince my mom to buy me a guitar.
When I finally got my new instrument I started to composing my first tracks – that how it’s started.
The title of the album, Sny, and the star-field art you used are an interesting pair. Can you tell us about what makes these things representative of your music?
The title, in English, means “Dreams”. I chose that title, because some of the poems which I wrote and use for the lyrics of the album was inspired by my dreams and some creepy stories which happened to me in the past. When I was thinking of this art, I knew that it must be dreamy and mysterious. I chose to combine face of Nosferatu and M16 Eagle Nebula to create very dense and dark atmosphere, describing my music in best possible way. Also there is song called “W Nocy Płynie Chłodny Wiatr”, which was inspired by Nosferatu (from Nosferatu the Vampyre from 1979).
How do you write Mornië Utúlië songs? Do they start on keyboard or guitar?
They start in my head. It may sound strange, but melodies just coming to my head in many different situations (for example I can fortuitously wake up at 3 A.M., take my guitar and start playing in somnolent mood), I hear them and then I trying to play them on my guitar. Then I am using Guitar Pro to write melodies and composing music. When I feel that everything is ready and it sounds great on Guitar Pro – I’m starting to record it.
Is there other music like yours that inspired you to work on these songs?
I was inspired by bands like my favorite Emperor (which was the best black metal band that ever existed in my opinion) and Anathema (mainly by their early records, I love their approach to music and the great, melancholic atmosphere they created). But overall I have to say that if I hadn’t discovered Elderwind, some things on album could sound different. Also vocals have been inspired by Burzum’s early works.
What is the local music scene like where you live?
Right now I live in Rzeszów, a medium-sized Polish city in Podkarpackie Voivodeship [“province”]. The local scene is great; when it comes to a local metal music scene we have a few amazing bands, like From Afar and famous Decapitated from Krosno for example. When it comes to black metal homemade projects in Poland, there are a many of them, like Ravendark, paying tribute to old, raw black metal, Hellveto, Nagual, Srogość or Nasatanada with atmospheric black metal influences. Anyway, the Polish black metal scene is in my opinion one of the strongest and best in the world.
How do you think the dream-like approach to the music works with the harsh vocals?
When it comes to atmospheric black metal – I think it works great. A lot of musicians using keyboards or reverb to create dreamy atmosphere, so do I. That type of mix creates a feeling of overwhelming beauty, feeling of walking through the dreams… and nightmares.
How did you record the album?
I recorded my album in my home in Rzeszów. Everything you hear is homemade and was recorded only by me and Ewa Kleszcz (she put her vocals on song “W Nocy Płynie Chłodny Wiatr” with her brother, sound engineer Adam Kleszcz). I did not have money for professional studio or to hire professional musicians, so we had to do it on our own. I used seven string Ibanez S7420, Line POD 6 GX and very bad microphone to record my vocals.
How closely do you feel the finished album matches your original vision?
I always have a general idea of how it could look like before composing, a main concept and colors to “paint” my music. Just like a painter who is staying in front of his blank canvas, seeing at the beginning everything only in his head. I think I caught main concept from original vision in 100% and if I had to record my album once again – there would be nothing to change.
What goals do you have for Mornië Utúlië in the near future?
Now that album Sny is finished, the main goal is to spread out my music around the world, so more people could listen to it. The next plan is to sign a contract with one of the record labels. But main way is always the same – to creating music from my heart and soul. To express beautiful emotions, very dark and deep…
