INTERVIEW: Final Coil

FINAL COIL: Richard Awdry - Jola Stiles - Phil Stiles

About a week ago I made a new aquaintance, both band and genre wise. I have to be honest and admit that the term post rock never really appealed to me, but when the promo kit from Leicester based Final Coil arrived in my inbox I got very curious for a number of reasons.
The first thing I noticed was that this band actually had taken their time to form a decent press kit, which allows the writers and reviewers to actually know a thing or two about the ensemble they are about to listen to. The other thing that caught my attention was obviously the music, and I ended up rewarding the album a full score.
This of course calls for a deeper dig into what Final Coil is all about, and guitarist and frontman Phil Stiles was kind enough to set aside time for a little chat.

SN:
Could you first of all tell me a little about your band? Who are in the band, and when did you form? What are your inspirations and influences that made you the band you are today?

STILES:
Final Coil initially formed back in 2002 when I was at university in Leicester. It wasn’t really a band; it was a name given over to the music I made to satisfy my own creative impulses and I am not sure I ever really had any expectations for it.

However, I was lucky because I was very quickly introduced, via a mutual friend, to Rich (Awdry), who has similarly eclectic tastes to me, and we started to work on material together. Things went on hold when I travelled off to Poland for four years or so, but we kept coming back to the music whenever we hooked up and, when I finally moved to Leicester full-time in 2008, we took the long-put-off opportunity to create a full-time band. In that we were greatly helped by Jola joining on bass and it left us only with the challenge of finding a drummer open-minded enough to embrace the challenges that we like to throw up.

The initial band was very much influenced by the alternative rock scene, with bands such as Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden very much at the forefront of our thinking when it came to arrangement and, more importantly, performance. It was the passion that those bands had that inspired us the most and that vital energy is something that is important to us whenever we take to the stage. However, despite having a strong set of influences from those bands, we never set out to be an alternative rock band and, with our tastes ranging from noise rock and black metal to jazz and electronica, we incorporated myriad elements into our music, even from the earliest days. I think that for all us, the notion of being constrained to a particular genre was pretty much the antithesis of what we wanted to achieve.

Like most bands, it took us a while to find our feet. Early shows were pretty punk in their delivery – the songs churned out at light speed as strings snapped and equipment broke down – and it took us a while to stabilise the line up too; but once we did, things started to happen at a much faster pace.

We did three EPs in pretty quick succession: Live with doubt, which was pretty heavy; Somnambulant, which was a self-produced acoustic EP of which I’m still very proud and Closed to the Light which was, arguably, the first record to really show where our ambitions lay. Even with the EPs it was important to me to make them flow so that the listener would be drawn into our strange musical world and it was Closed to the light, that started to pick up reviews and, eventually, attention from WormHoleDeath, who signed us off the back of it.

That led to us heading out to Italy to record Persistence of Memory, our debut and from there, we’ve been working really hard to spread the word, play shows and develop our sound still further. It’s difficult to condense so much history into something that won’t send your readers to sleep (assuming I haven’t already), but the experience of recording in Italy, in the hills of Parma, was nothing short of astounding. I think the location, and simply the act of travelling so far to get there, really helped us to focus on the record, free from everyday concerns, and that fed very much into both records having a very unique atmosphere.

Album cover image, "The World We Left Behind For Others"

SN:
I would describe your music as rather dark and atmospheric rock/metal, but how would you describe it? What are your ideologies with the music you make?

STILES:
I like the fact that you picked up on the atmospheric angle. I love heavy music, I always have, but the music that has always resonated the strongest with me is the music that takes th listener out of themselves for a time – music that is somehow otherworldly. Bands like Katatonia, Isis, Opeth, Cult of Luna (whose Magnus Lindberg mastered our debut), Anathema – they’re all either heavy bands, or they have been, yet they’re known for crafting these immaculately textured records that have real depth and that’s one of the reasons I keep returning to their albums.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing on this earth like the visceral thrill of a really great heavy riff, but I like to try to temper that side of our music with elements that are more nuanced - that way (I hope) the records continue to reveal themselves long after the initial impact has worn off.

Otherwise, I try not to describe our music in genre terms for the reasons I mentioned above. As we have such eclectic tastes, I’d like to think nothing is off the table when it comes to composing. Certainly on the new record we cover a wide range of ground from heavy tracks like The Last Battle, via instrumental ambiance on Take me for a walk to rather more epic, emotionally-driven material on Imaginary Trip, and that all comes from allowing the music and the narrative to develop together and drive each other.

When you say ideology, the one core principal is that we make the music that we want to hear. We’ve never played covers; we’ve never tried to fit into any one particular niche and we’ve always written what we feel to be right at the time. I can’t imagine doing it any other way, not least because I view music as something very pure and the second you try to fake it, your listeners just know. I can’t remember who it was, but I read an interview recently where the artist was saying that you’ve got to stand behind what you put on an album 100% because it’s going to be out there for a long time and if you don’t believe in it, then it’ll hang around your neck like a millstone. I love what we do, and I passionately believe in it and I can’t imagine trying to write to what someone else’s perception of the band might be – that would be horrible. You have to be true to yourself and, if you’re very lucky, people may join you on your journey. 

SN:
What is the meaning behind the FINAL COIL name? What made you choose that particular name for your project?

STILES:
As I said earlier, the band was initially conceived when I was at University studying literature and politics. I love reading, I always have, and literature has always been a big influence on me, so it made sense to turn to it when searching for a name.

The name Final Coil comes from two places, actually. The first is Shakespeare who, in a particularly famous soliloquy (yep – that one), writes of “this mortal coil”. It’s a well-known quote and, of course, there’s already a band called This Mortal Coil, but it’s a strong metaphor. The second element from which I drew inspiration was Dante’s Inferno. In the text, Dante is guided through the different levels of Hell by the poet, Virgil. As they progress down through the depths, the sins become more severe and the punishments correspondingly more horrific. Dante’s work, even in translation, is a beautifully written triumph of the imagination and it had a great influence on me. So, with no great flourish, combine the two and you get (the) Final Coil. Given that our lyrical themes deal with mortality, communication; sin and redemption; society and loss; the name seemed fitting and, at the same time, suitably oblique.

Richard Awdry - lead guitarist in FINAL COIL

SN:
How do you write material? Can you describe the typical creative process in FINAL COIL, if any?

STILES:
The bulk of the material is written by me. It’s very often the case that I hear the songs in a fairly complete form in my head, often in response to some external stimulus like an event or book, so when I sit down at the computer, I’m usually working from a pretty complete idea. I work with Ableton, which is a great way of sketching out the different elements of a song simply, before getting to the arrangement stage. I generally lay down a scratch guitar, drums and vocals first and then layer whatever other elements are needed (such as piano, synth, bass and harmonies) over the top.

However, all that’s just the start. I’ll usually revisit a track three or four times before it makes it to the band for consideration (and there are an awful lot of tracks that never make it that far) because the initial demo is usually the result of my feeling my way through the piece and I’m rarely happy with the initial recordings I make. Once I feel comfortable enough to share something, the band start to work on developing it around their own skills – especially Rich for whom I usually leave space for soloing, or a scratch guide – and then we work on re-recording those elements that have changed. It’s a pretty involved process with some tracks changing more than others as we feel our way through them. Rich and I work particularly closely together, and it’s often the case that, aside from his always-innovative lead guitars, he’ll bring additional vocal harmonies to the table – that was certainly the case on Corruption – and numerous other elements too. 

Our first album, Persistence of Memory, was culled from an initial twenty tracks (with two pieces produced by Rich, who similarly records complete pieces before sharing them with the band); but with The World We Left Behind For Others, I wrote the tracks directly around a theme, so the band were actually presented with a complete album demo rather than with the tracks piecemeal. I actually think that approach worked better in terms of creating a flowing piece of music and I think a good deal of the cohesion within the album came from that.

Phil and Jola Stiles, guitars/vocals and bass respectively

SN:
"The World We Left Behind for Others" is a concept album. I deliberately did not dig too deep into it in my review, since I didn't have the booklet to complement the story, but the music is very dark and dramatic on its own, and judging from the info that came with the press kit it must have been quite a vast subject to explore. Could you elaborate more about the concept, and the story you are telling on the album?

STILES:
Well, the narrative is both personal and universal and it’s very much tied in with the social changes that have been occurring since the end of the last World War and which appear to have come to fruition in the form of a resurgent nationalism that is incredibly disheartening to see.

The catalyst was the death of my Grandmother, Stella, who passed away at the wonderful age of 101 back in 2017. She was a very musical woman, very strong, very independent and also very tight-lipped about her past. When we were tidying her things, we found some letters that she had kept which, without wishing to go into detail, reflected both the patriarchal mindset of that period and the refusal to acknowledge the devastating toll the PTSD of returning soldiers took on their families. From that, I tried to construct a narrative wherein, looking at the world through both her eyes and those of my grandfather, I tried to make sense of how society could have become bifurcated to the point that we are now engaged in a battle of extremes, nominally around Brexit, but actually embodying a far greater struggle - between a mistaken nostalgia and progress - the roots of which lie in the horrors of our colonial past.

I never thought that, as I got older, the racism and rampant neo-liberalism that typified the early eighties would return in so virulent a form but, no one could have anticipated how the developments of social media would drive people to become so insular in their opinions. To return to the themes of persistence of Memory for a moment, part of the problem does lie in communication. Where discussion of those elements which cause discomfort was once frowned upon, social media has caused a contradictory situation where people say a lot without ever really listening to others, and the results of this constant noise are as damaging as silence. With so many people nursing so many grievances, there’s this clamour to be heard that is drowning out rational discussion and debate and that’s the point I was trying to make on this record.

I’ve always believed that a greater understanding of how we got to where we are, can help to lead to a greater understanding of where we need to go; and although the view point may be seen through the eyes of one small family, the themes, I think, must resonate with a lot of people.

SN:
You've signed with the American WormHoleDeath Records. When did you sign with them? How do you feel they have cared for the band?

STILES:
We signed with WHD very soon after releasing our Closed to the Light EP. It was one of those pinch-yourself-and-wake-up moments and, when I got the initial email, I was convinced it was a hoax. Nonetheless, after I did some background checking, we realised it was the real thing, so we submitted our work for consideration and the label took us on.

Certainly, we’ve been treated very well. WHD is an independent label, but it doesn’t make promises it can’t keep and it leaves artistic control in the hands of the artist which, as you might have already guessed, is essential. Let’s face it, how many other labels would allow their bands to go off and produce an hour-long concept album covering fifty years of history?! I think that, as much as anything else, it is incredibly hard to make yourself heard – there’s so, so much great music out there, and having a record label backing you really helps you to reach a wider audience than would otherwise be possible. I know that there are thousands of fantastic bands – talented, driven, passionate – but, without some help, they’re liable to find it hard to reach an audience without a great deal of luck. While it’s true that the internet provides the tools to strike out on your own, there’s very much a case of getting people to see the wood for the trees. We’re lucky because working with WHD allows us to concentrate on playing in the band, and they take care of the business side of things, which is ideal!

SN:
It has been less than two years since you released your debut, "Persistence of Memory". I must admit I have not had time to sit down and listen to it yet, I'm afraid. Do you find there is any change in you between the two?

STILES:
I don’t know if I’d say change because that implies a sudden transition. I’d say that we evolved significantly from the first record to the second, and that the evolution was both in terms of playing ability (not least aided by our being joined by drummer Barry French for the recording) and composition.

In my view, the second record, fired by the concept, was a much more coherent piece of music with thematic links that helped to create a very atmospheric piece of work. As a result, it became necessary to move away from a verse-chorus-verse structure towards pieces with a greater ebb and flow and that’s where I think the main advances took place. On the whole, I think this is a more ambitious record than our debut and we’re all very proud of it.

I guess a part of it is that we all love a challenge. No one in this band wants to simply repeat what we’ve done before, and we tried a lot of things on this album that we’ve not done before to achieve the sounds that we wanted. I’ve never played slide guitar before, for example, but it seemed natural to put slide onto certain tracks because it’s such an emotive sound. Rich put his ebow to good use, but he also used a cello bow on a number of tracks (something I think he’s been itching to try for years!) whilst Jola got to do a harmonised bass solo. Barry, who was very new to the band at that time, turned up with 27 different cymbals, just to get the tonal palette he needed - we were stunned! I think everyone tried something that was out of the ordinary and it’s those challenges that help to keep things fresh and exciting within a band.

SN:
Will you be touring to support the album? Where will people be able to catch the FINAL COIL experience?

STILES:
We’ve been working so hard on getting all the pieces together for the album release, that we haven’t yet had the chance to put together tour dates, but that’s something that is very much on the agenda. That said, we do have a very special date in Camden supporting the amazing Shonen Knife (July 18th), and that’s going to be a great opportunity for us to try out some of the more diverse material across the albums that we’ve released. We have had a few issues – our drummer was quite ill for a time – so, although live dates are absolutely a priority, we’ve had to wait until everyone’s healthy to be able to get out there.

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