Inheritor - Maldoror

Words by Tom F-H. Photography by Natasha Koziarksa.

Maldoror – Inheritor’s latest noisy work of musical philosophy – is a metalcore anthem for those who are angry in a contemplative kind of way. Inheritor combine hard-hitting metal with intense lyrical meaning, and Maldoror – titled after a French gothic-esque horror book of songs – is a prime example of this.

Vocalist Tye Jozefowicz is a reader, writer, traveller and screamer, and bandmates Rob Arkle (guitar) and Jack Hendy (drums) bring the instrumental force behind his lyrics. Maldoror was also written by Ethan Mumby-Green and produced by Ieuan Jones of Artio (of which Arkle is also a member).

The song starts off with a creepy, brooding intro that explodes into a driving verse, and later a melodic chorus, which is almost now a signature structure of Inheritor’s. Things get a bit less conventional, however, as a dissonant breakdown follows the chorus, and then (my favourite part) a bridge section that features Jozefowics’s pleading lyrics, drowned in modulation and desperation. Maldoror switches between sections quickly, leaving nothing for show, and keeping the listener on their toes. The song isn’t long, either, but to-the-point and effective.

“Forth from the penumbra I will pull thee, to bask in the shadow of nihility.”

Jozefowicz frequently states the importance of Les Chants de Maldoror – the novel that heavily inspired the lyricist to write the song. Jozefowicz is open about his love for all things creepy and horror, and it is therefore no surprise that Inheritor has written a song anchored in the depths of such a classic. As a lyricist, he is heavily critical of many traditional concepts – concepts that could be considered aligned with divinity - and his high-energy persona extends from Inheritor’s music and performance into outside life, where Jozefowicz passionately shares his vitality for both the arts and alternative philosophy. Backed up by his tight and professional band, they are a force of nature.

What does this song mean to you as musicians?

“This song is us pushing the heavier and more extreme side of things along with implementing sinister shades and a menacing playground of nuance. It's the crushing and aggressive elements people can expect from us and the atmospheric tones but with an extreme metal influence and darker edge. The song itself is one of the heaviest and most confrontational we've written in sonic terms and the details and intricacies we've played around with have allowed us to create an eerie soundscape of uneasiness (props to Ieuan Jones, the ambience king) in tandem with the viciousness of the main body of what makes up Maldoror.

In a symbolic sense, the song is representative of us getting back on track and beginning to strive again, we're hungrier than ever and what better way for us to come back swinging than to the streamlined nastiness of this overdue release as the soundtrack.”

Where do you think the song fits within the Leeds music scene? Do you want to inspire others, or set yourselves apart?

“We don't overthink our impact on the scene. We know who we are as a live act as well as a studio band and mainly look to outdo and please ourselves before anyone else. If anyone can take anything from us to implement and improve their own craft that's great and shows we're doing our art in a way that's translatable and relatable - that's how we all start creating music in the first place.

However, love our fellow artists as we may; there's always that mean antihero streak running through INHERITOR that is out for blood and makes us come to take heads at shows and when creating new noise.

I personally feel a lot of things from the 2000s and early 2010s are making a comeback and we have a lot of that in our sound.”

What comes first, the lyrics, theme or music?

“Music is the medium and vessel everything else travels in. Procedurally speaking, every song we create is different and processes vary, but the general framework looks something along the lines of this:

Instrumental ideas come together organically or are maybe inspired by something, e.g. Rob watches a horror movie and feels particularly wicked so picks up his guitar or maybe has a melodic buzz after some nostalgia listening etc.

I get a feel for the attitude, mood and type of song we are building and will pick my theme and lyrical concepts and choice of words and writing style accordingly. The same goes for subsequent vocal parts and the vocal delivery.

The theme usually exists beforehand and is brought to fruition when we have the music to fit it. Hence with Maldoror being an evil-sounding darker and aggressive instrumental, I thought more extreme vocals and the lyrical concept would fit well.”

Where do you see this track – and future tracks – taking you?

“Hopefully this song reaches new ears and audiences as you hope for with any and each release. We've got the chorus, we've got the breakdowns and mosh sections, but there's an old school and extreme sentiment in Maldoror I hope builds bridges with more 'elitist' or traditional metal fans.

Regardless of how much further this song propels us, it is another piece of art in our oeuvre and another weapon for the live arsenal and personally; we're quite content with that. With future tracks the idea is very much the same; bring in new ideas and incorporate elements from relative styles whilst maintaining our solid identity and core. I think many artists these days play off their strengths and are blending styles to reach the widest scope of potential listeners, and why wouldn't you? The trickle-down impact of music and cross pollination of genres is in full force more than ever.”

Who is this song for?

“We're getting into the realms of symbolism again here as well as the literal. This song is for us as a band - as the creators and artists - doing what we love with people we love. This song is for our current listeners and friends and any new listeners who will discover us through it, and finally, future listeners who retroactively find us.

I really can't finish this interview without giving credit to and mentioning the titular and conceptual source material. This song is a special tribute and paean to the author Isidore Ducasse and his work Les Chants de Maldoror. I dedicate it to the book itself as a piece of art and literature as it is just so rich with inspiration and really an entity unto itself. I really resonated with the book before I even delved into it and upon reading it knew I had to write a song about it. I hope we did [the author] proud.

He also died on my birthday (many years ago) and we are both aged (were aged) 24 when publishing our respective Maldorors, so to top it all off we've got some creepy fated date parallels as a boon to this already weird release. Thanks for your time, Tom, and I hope everyone likes the new tune! A huge thanks to everyone who works with us and makes all this possible.”

Some time after Jozefowicz sent me these interview answers, he told me a story of how he had ventured on a pilgrimage to Montolieu - The Village of Books in the south of France – a location home to many creatives, and a lot of bookshops. Here, he purchased a French copy of Maldoror.

You can listen to Maldoror by Inheritor after its release on the 27th May. What the band describes as a ‘cathartic seizure that any concertgoer will not be disappointed by’ can be enjoyed on streaming services, and live, when Inheritor hit up the Leeds live scene with their new arsenal of tunes. Follow them on Instagram and Facebook to find out more.

Words by Tom F-H. Photography by Natasha Koziarksa.