But the charm of our collective is that I can call Zwotte Kring my home. Like-minded people, everyone with a vision of their own and a skill of their own. To be a part of this group of people and ideas suits me well, we can learn from one another and share our critiques with one another.
On our Zwotte Kring platform we interview people who we find interesting and appreciate for their commitment to the scene. Today we pay attention to Daan, the newest member of Zwotte Kring
1. Can you introduce yourself?
I’m Daan Bleumink, 31 years old and I have been writing music in the black-and death metal style for about 17 years now.
I started as a guitarist and fairly soon after I picked up the drums. The only thing which has always interested me was creating fast-paced and dark music. Being able to express myself and immerse myself in music was the main reason I became versed in multiple instruments.
A few of my current favourite bands and influences are: 1349, Hate Forest, Thy Darkened Shade, Golgothan Remains, Belphegor, and so many more, it would be impossible to name them all.
2. How did you end up in black metal?
Ever since I was young I was thrashing along to Rammstein, but when I got a little bit older the urge to discover harder and faster music took over.
It was through Beavis and Butt-head that I found these extremes. During these episodes they tore into music videos and one of those clips was Heartwork by Carcass. I instantly fell in love with the fast-paced drums and the ripping guitars. From there on out I’ve spent years devouring everything by Carcass, especially ‘Symphonies Of Sickness’ is a record I still enjoy very much after all this time.
During a class (second year in highschool) I was so bored that I was just mindlessly scrolling through Youtube, and that’s when I came across One By One from Immortal. Man, that’s where a whole other world opened up for me. The sonic violence, the whole image… the drums! Just incredible.
Ever since that moment I dove into the realms of black metal, and haven’t left. So much so that I don’t listen to anything else but black, death and all crossover genres between.
3. Your style fits the one we call 2nd wave black metal, if I’m correct. Both the Scandinavian style as the more primitive and raw Slavic styles. Besides that you currently experiment in the down-tuned cavernous blackened death metal. What –as a musician and listener– is it you look for in extreme metal exactly?
Dark, poisonous sounds accompanied by thunderous drums. I can’t exactly place my finger on it, but certain tones and frequencies resonate well within me. The flow of the music is also very important to me. Riffs have to flow into one another properly, drums have to powerfully accentuate certain moments and the entirety of a song has to convey a specific energy to me. Melody is quite optional, because I can easily listen to bands like Brodequin or Defeated Sanity all day.
4. You play multiple instruments, did you take classes for this or are you self-taught?
When I was 14 I started playing the guitar. I took one year of private classes and pretty much only practiced techniques that would allow me to play music from bands like Death, Immortal and Mayhem through tabs. My guitar was practically glued to my hands and I averaged about 6 hours a day on practice and playing. From the very start I also began to create my own music.
During those times I made use of a drumming-pc, but my true desire was being able to create everything myself. That’s where I acquired a cheap electronic drum kit and began playing. My itch wasn’t truly scratched through, because I missed the bombastic sound of a proper drum kit, so eventually I purchased one for myself. Alongside that I gathered some cheap microphones and mixing equipment and that’s where I delved into the world of recording and mixing music.
It was quite a journey of falling and crawling back up and I taught myself a fair few things, mainly because I never took lessons. I just watched my idols (Frost, Dominator, Bloodhammer) and tried things for myself. Having fun was the biggest factor!
Because the tracks that I wrote sounded empty, I took up bass guitar as well. I started off by quite simply playing lower bass lines along to the guitars, but by now I’ve realised that the bass guitar can make or break a track. Nowadays I spend a lot of time creating solid bass lines that accentuate the structure of a song rather than merely filling up empty space.
5. You are known as the drummer from Hellevaerder. This band comes across as quite unique to me. The music is melodic, but not too polished, and has interesting bass lines, memorable compositions and a fantastic front woman. The live performance is very strong: the band dressed in black, and Miranda all in white. Can you tell us something about Hellevaerder?
Hellevaerder tells our life stories, with an extra touch of darkness. The so-called ‘call of the void’, the attractive force of darkness. And the opposite of this; the fear of taking the leap, the pull to the light. This duality of forces is a recurring theme in our music.
About 95% of the music and lyrics were previously written by me, with the other band members giving it their final touches. However this dynamic has changed quite a bit since this year. We now have a stable and complete lineup with incredibly talented and intelligent musicians who have a lot to offer. Because of this, our upcoming record will be the first one on which every member has individually contributed to the writing process. We are all facing the same direction now, and with our theme and image established, this was the right moment to fully cooperate on this album. And we all grasped this moment, together.
Celebrate life, worship death!
6. How did the band originate, what was your goal, and what lies in the future?
As I’ve mentioned previously, I had been writing my own music for quite some time now. This is where ‘Throne Of Time’ (ToT) came into existence. After a few shows and ideas for a new record I wrote two songs: ‘Langs eindeloze paden’ and ‘Heksensabbat’.
The lyrics were in Dutch and written by my good friend and artist A.A.W.R. — However at that time ToT’s guitarist-and frontman wasn’t interested in black metal sung in Dutch, but his girlfriend at the time sure was.
Miranda Visser, what a voice!
After she heard these tracks she was instantly excited, and because ToT suffered from differences in what our goals with this band were, we decided to create a new group with a second guitarist, and the bassist from ToT. A.A.W.R. and myself were picking our brains for a very long time on what the band should be called… until she suddenly shouted, ‘Hellevaerder!’
Our goal has always been very clear: to create filthy Dutch black metal. Loud, fast, and mean. Until this day this goal has been met, and we will continue doing so.
After a few changes in the lineup we have had a solid foundation for the past few years now. With this lineup we recorded ‘Verloren vertellingen’, and next year our second full-length will be released. Of course we would love to convey this record in a live setting and are aiming to gather some fresh souls to corrupt at these performances.
7. As drummers, we both complain about playing live to each other, where we give it our all until our hands bleed and our vision starts to blur. But afterwards, we can enjoy ourselves a lot. How do you prepare mentally and physically for such a performance?
For years I only drummed during Hellevaerder rehearsals, as I knew these songs by heart. It was just that there wasn’t much improvement in my game, which isn’t all that strange when you only drum about eight times a year.
For a year and a half now I have my own rehearsal space, where I can actually practice playing the drums. I still don’t really practice Hellevaerder all that much, but I can focus on creating and writing new music. I challenge myself to play faster, more technically and diversely which helps me in performing the existing Hellevaerder music. It’s still difficult to play our new music, but as time progresses this also comes more naturally as my skill continues to improve.
My preparation before shows doesn’t consist of very much. On the day itself I am extremely stressed; did I bring all my gear, can I remember the setlist (even though I’ve gone over this a million times in my dreams). Take a deep breath and move on, switch off my brain once I’m behind the kit and try to enjoy the moment of how our musicianship comes together during the show and how I can positively influence our execution on stage. Physically I don’t prepare much at all, I’ll just have a beer and a smoke. Now that I’m getting a bit older I realise that warming up might be needed, however — but for now I can still manage to play a full set without one. I’ve been slowly trying to create a routine for myself where I try to activate my muscles before the first track of the show, and not during it.
8. Is Hellevaerder the only live band in your arsenal? You’re a multi-instrumentalist playing in several solo projects such as Duindwaler, or other projects where you play multiple instruments. Can you lift the veil a little on your other projects?
At the moment, Hellevaerder is indeed my only live-performing band, and as a drummer I’d like to keep it that way for now. I’m open to playing live as a guitarist and vocalist, however. But for now I have to find a balance and the time between all my other projects.
In the first quarter of 2025 a limited release of Throne Of Time will be unveiled, one which will contain both EP’s and several new tracks. This time I recorded, mixed and mastered everything myself, with the exception of a few guest performances by other Hellevaerder members. It’s the closing of a chapter in which we showcase the growth of both musician and human being, in nearly one and a half hours of music.
For my solo-project Duindwaler there’s lots of material lying around, and I’m currently planning to move this band forward. I can assure you that the next release will be an absolute banger, faster and viler than ‘In het Heemskerks duin’.
Together with Hellevaerder guitarist Bas Cuperus, another record is currently in the process of being created. Our writing sessions have reached their end-stage and our goal is to release a full-length in 2025.
Quite recently I was asked to record the drums for a project called ‘Dwalend’, with our very own Gerhans Meulenbeld on guitar. The music and ideas for this endeavour were quite appealing to me and I have since begun to record the drums for this upcoming EP.
Lastly, a record in the death/cavern death style is in the pipeline, however this is something I only work on when I have space and time, so I can’t really say when you’ll hear more about this.
9. What inspires you while writing lyrics?
Life itself, in a few shades darker than actuality, warped images of the brain and mind dragged through a filthy, disgusting black sludge. History is also a very interesting thing, there are so many stories out there to be told.
I write lyrics in the span of a few minutes, if I can find the moment. I’ll play the track a thousand times (which is very much appreciated at home) and write along with pen and paper. The choice of words depends on the flow of the music, but the overall tale that’s being told has to fit, as well. Often there’s an intricate meaning behind those lyrics, but everyone can interpret these for themselves. Besides a few passages here and there I don’t really share our lyrics, because the vocals are an instrument in itself, and these are responsible for conveying the energy. Everyone can decide for themselves what our music means to them. That’s what makes it art.
10. Zwotte Kring is closed off to new members. With an exception we managed to lure you in because we feel such a great connection. How do you view this collective?
Every musician knows a few other musicians. But the charm of our collective is that I can call Zwotte Kring my home. Like-minded people, everyone with a vision of their own and a skill of their own. To be a part of this group of people and ideas suits me well, we can learn from one another and share our critiques with one another. We can improve on what we already know, and do this in a great environment of harsh metal. We can build friendships and really push ourselves while doing so. It’s not simply a group of musicians who happen to be friends, it’s a group of people with the same vision.
Long live Zwotte Kring!
11. Black metal in the Netherlands and Belgium, what’s the state of it, in your opinion?
What these two small countries can provide in terms of such quality is quite bizarre. Especially in the Netherlands the proficiency has grown exponentially, the last few years have unleashed some true diamonds in the rough. The scene remains small, but the love for this genre is immeasurable.
It’s major that a great deal of attention goes out to the more underground bands too. The overall level of quality and skill is very high in my opinion, and it’s only continuing to improve. The only downside is that I don’t have the time to listen to everything, the supply of quality is simply too large.
12. What does the musical future hold for Daan?
As I’ve mentioned earlier, there’s enough in the pipeline. The one new thing for me however is that I have to place my trust in the craft and knowledge of others. Instead of being a ‘jack of all trades’ and focusing completely on my own thing. Writing music, it’s more fulfilling now because I focus on what I actually like.
At the same time that gives me more opportunity to fill my already overflowing agenda. Everyone has their strong sides and to make use of those is what gives music more layers, depth and dimension. A beautiful thing about music is that you’re never done learning.
Interview: Floris