Premiere: The Veils Share Acoustic Version Of 'In the Nightfall' (+ Interview)

Poised to release new EP Swimming With The Crocodiles tomorrow, London-based outfit The Veils are lifting the lid off a gorgeous acoustic rendition of their song 'In The Nightfall'. The five-track EP, which is coming out via Nettwerk Records, is comprised of stripped-back versions of cuts from their latest album Total Depravity, as well as a special cover of David Bowie's 2013 cut 'Where Are We Now' - all of which were laid down across Roundhead Studios and The Lab in Auckland.

Take a listen to the haunting  'In The Nightfall' while you read our interview with frontman Finn Andrews, who discusses the band's recent appearance Twin Peaks, working with David Lynch, and the oft-harrowing recording of Total Depravity below.... 

How did if feel being asked to appear at the Roadhouse in 2017’s revival of David Lynch’s groundbreaking series Twin Peaks?

I literally did a little dance. It wasn't so much being in it, but getting those words of encouragement from David really meant a lot. He's been an idol of mine for so long.

Music seems to be an incredibly important part of Lynch's work, would you agree? How do you think it contributes to his filmscapes?

Oh yes of course, it's impossible to imagine the great Lynch scenes without the sound. The sound of the worms under the ground in Blue Velvet, or the backwards-speak of the Black Lodge, or This Mortal Coil playing over the sex scene in Lost Highway.

You joined an impressive list of musicians - Nine Inch Nails, Sharon Van Etten, Au Revoir Simone, the Chromatics and Lissie - did that put more pressure on the band to perform well?

Oh sure, there were a lot of factors spurring us on really. We'd just had a really shitty few months as a band; our album was taking forever to finish and we were running out of money, our drummer had quit, nothing was going our way at all, so when I got up on that stage in The Roadhouse I made a conscious decision to funnel all that frustration into the performance. I just stared at David the whole time and howled like a mad man.

And why the choice to perform 'Axolotl'?

That was just the song David chose.

Tell me a little bit about the writing/recording process for your latest album Total Depravity?

It wasn't an easy album to make - it felt very uphill for about three years. El-P helped it along, but I was still trying to organise lots of different people all over the world who were helping us with it, almost none of whom were getting paid very much so we had to always fit around their schedules. I had some of the darkest moments of my life making it, but it has provided some of the best experiences since it was finished so I guess it all balanced out eventually.

And in particular, the fact that some of the album was recorded at Lynch's home studio in LA. How did that come about?

Yeah that was a real treat. I met Dean Hurley [ed: read our recent interview with Dean Hurley here]  while I was in LA, and he just invited me over to David's to work on a song. He has a huge projector screen in his studio so we were watching 2001: A Space Odyssey with the sound down while we were recording, with all these amazing Lynch paintings hanging all over the place. That was a surreal day.

What was David Lynch like to work with?

He was everything I'd hoped, honestly. You never know with people at that level of genius, I was pretty apprehensive before I met him, what if he's an arsehole? But he was such a sincere, humble man. It was immensely gratifying to see.

There were a number of people involved, from co-producing, and various studios. Do you think this shaped or influenced the album at all?

I think my level of exhaustion and frustration at times certainly bled into the vocal takes. I sound pretty unhinged at times on there and that was coming from a very genuine place.

This Friday see the release of Swimming With The Crocodiles EP - beautiful, haunting, acoustic versions of songs from Total Depravity. What made you decide to re-record these songs and release this EP?

Yeah, I guess I just liked the sound of the songs in their stripped back state and thought it was a complimentary piece to the album. Reb Fountain is singing backup on a couple of them too and I really loved what her voice brought to it.

The EP also includes a moving cover of David Bowie’s 'Where Are We Now?', which was recorded at Roundhead Studios here in Auckland. What was the motivation to include this track?

That was the song I listened to immediately after I found out he had passed away - it's intended as a little tribute to him I guess.

Whats next for The Veils?

We're on tour through the UK and Germany at the moment, then I'm off to make record on my own for a change. I've no idea what I'm doing for it yet, but it's the beginning of another exciting few years.

Swimming With The Crocodiles EP is out tomorrow via Nettwerk Records. Head over here for more information. 

And head over here to order Twin Peaks (Music From The Limited Event Series) soundtrack which is out tomorrow via Rhino.


Interview by Ren Kirk