Interview: Labyrinthus Stellarum

Photo by Morenoirenoise 

Some of my favorite movies and books are Blade Runner, Inception, and numerous other science fiction works that take you to another time and place. For me, science fiction has been a way to not only examine life from outside the everyday life here on Earth, but also to explore the spiritual essence of what it is to be human.

Labyrinthus Stellarum, a science fiction infused black metal act out of Ukraine, immediately caught my attention when I heard them for the first time. Their blend of electronic music fused with atmospheric black metal was both magical and other-worldy, taking me to a place that only good science fiction tales can accomplish.

Blacforje is honored to have connected with the guys in Labyrinthus Stellarum to discuss their music, their ethos, and what influences them as artists.

Thanks so much for joining Blacforje to talk about your music! You guys are based in Odesa, Ukraine. Is that right?

Yes, two of three Labyrinthus Stellarum members are from Odesa. Alexander Kostetskyi is from Chernomorsk. Since the beginning of the war, Misha Andronati lives in Munich, Germany.

Your debut album Tales of the Void was released back in March. I have a lot of questions to ask about the record, but before I do, how has the reception been so far?

The album was very warmly received by the audience of the Black Metal Promotion channel, via which we released it.

‘Tales of the Void’ by Labyrinthus Stellarum 

From my view as a listener, the obvious thematic elements in the lyrics and music are space, eternity, and mythology. From your vantage point as the artists, what inspired this album lyrically and sonically?

When we were just starting to think about the lyrical concept, we accidently stumbled upon my drawing of 2018, which in the end became the foundation of our cover art and decided to sing about the creatures depicted on the drawing. We also have always been big fans of science fiction, especially space-themed.

As for the musical part, the main idea was to create something that would have cold black metal atmosphere but still be very melodic and synth-driven.

Any significance to the three eyes on the album artwork, or did you just think it was super cool? Maybe both.

Like we already said, it was just a drawing, made even before we started making music. We’d really like to say that these three creatures symbolize each of the members of the band, but this idea came to us when the album was already released, so in the beginning we just liked the picture.

If alien life exists outside of Earth, do you think they would give you an award for Intergalactic Black Metal Album of 2023?

This definitely would be a difficult competition. As there are such albums as Arrival by Mesarthim, Ayla by Blitzar IV, and Annihilation for Esoteric Nascency by Celestial Annihilator. So these aliens would have a tough time deciding which one is the best!

I ask this of every band, as I find it intriguing to delve into the artist’s worldview. What role (if any) does spirituality or philosophy play in your lives? Some people we interview consider themselves atheist or agnostic, so spirituality may not be your thing. However, it’s cool knowing more about you philosophically, if you’re open to sharing a little.

Music is our religion and our philosophy!

Photo by Kirai Gigs

What bands and artists have influenced Labyrinthus Stellarum?

Once Alexander Kostetskyi came to me and said, “Let’s make an album in style of Lustre”. And I agreed. That’s how it started. So, obviously, Lustre was one of the most important influences for us. Also we got inspired by other atmospheric black metal bands like Mesarthim, Windveill, and Eldamar, but also classical heavy metal bands like Iron Maiden or Rage and even electronic music artists like Jean-Michel Jarre.

Are you a live show band? If so, any chance you’ll make it over to the U.S. sometime?

Initially we didn’t plan to play shows at all, but then we got an offer we couldn't refuse to support Nokturnal Mortum on their only show in Ukraine for 2023 in Kyiv. So now we are a live show band. August 19th, we played a show in our hometown. Now we are preparing for the concert with White Ward, Mørtüi Vūltus, and Agruss.

Unfortunately, while the war goes on, we cannot play shows outside our country. But we all hope that the war would end soon, and then we’d really love to play shows in the U.S. and lots of other countries.

Last question: how can fans, new and old alike, best support you?

The best way to support us is to support our country in this terrible time.

You can follow Labyrinthus Stellarum on Bandcamp, Instagram, and Facebook.