Failed Attempts (January 2013 – February 2013)

I first announced that I would be working on a fifth Vision Éternel EP on January 20th of 2013, only two days after Amorine Dallançon left me. Our relationship was short, only beginning on October 25th of 2012, and flourishing for a brief three months. But she was sincere and deep in my heart. It was also the first time that I was in love since Laura. It therefore felt appropriate that I resume Vision Éternel, although I had stated on a few occasions that I felt like little was left to say after “The Last Great Torch Song”.

On February 10th of 2013 I decided to re-record the song that I collaborated on with Éphémère, “Rievocando Quella Notte”. I had attempted to record this song on multiple occasions since 2010, but was never able to do it properly. Due to poor recording equipment, I was plagued with bad sound quality and software problems and I could never get the sound that I was looking for. When attempting to record this song that night, I once again ran into recording problems. I was only able to record using the left sound channel. But I still managed to record two takes of it.

During that same night, the plan I came up with was to continue along the same direction which I had taken for “The Last Great Torch Song”; having a guest musician on nearly every song. With that in mind, I also considered using the at-the-time unreleased Citadel Swamp song, “Dead August Leaves”, on the new Vision Éternel EP. The plan was also to have a seven-song album, spelling out Amorine. Having previously failed to write a six-song album for Leonie in 2009, and a seven-song album for Carolyn in 2009, I already felt that this was an unattainable goal.

For whatever third song I was going to compose, I was already considering Dune Fougie, who had been brought to my attention by a friend, Mathilde Perrier. I would have asked her to record a spoken word one of the songs. But my plans were quickly abandoned as I faced the familiar challenge: the lack of decent recording equipment. I would not record anything else for nearly a year. It wasn’t until February of 2014, at which time I finally purchased an external sound card, that I resumed composing and recording music again. But by then the plan for the fifth Vision Éternel EP was abandoned.

Soundtrack Proposition (August 2014 – November 2014)

August 16, start composing music and recording studio demos
start recording at 2:52 AM
demo 1: 3:03 AM. figuring notes. first sign of main build up.
3:07 AM take picture of new tuning with capo of song being composed
demo 2: 3:17 AM. playing around with early intro picking [piece 1], final build up [piece 6o/7], playing around with Piece 3o/2 and doing the ebow intro [Piece 1].
demo 3: 3:39 AM. Ebow intro, picking intro, most of the buildup for Piece 6o/7.
demo 4: 3:54 PM. More or less a full demo of Piecea No. 1, 2o, 3o/2 and 6o/7.
[Piece No. 6o/7 written that day]
[Piece No. 1 written that day]
[Piece No. 3o/2 written that day]
[Piece No. 2o written that day]

On August 31st of 2014, Bradley James Palko sent me a message on Facebook. We had first collaborated in the summer of 2010 when I had sent him a Vision Éternel song for his compilation “Great Messengers”, released on his record label Dedicated Records. Since then, Bradley had approached me with various project ideas, which all fell through one after the other. To start with, in 2011, he created a Facebook page promoting the “Great Messengers” compilation as a soon to be re-released three-CD boxed set. Instead, Bradley deleted the compilation from all digital sources, rendering it even harder to find. In early 2012 we discussed his moving to Montreal, offering him an extra room I had in my apartment as a roommate, after his wife had kicked him out. Instead, he deleted his Facebook account (including the “Great Messengers” page) and disappeared for six months.

In October of 2012, he resurfaced, asking me to contribute a song to a follow-up compilation to “Great Messengers”. This time he planned to design and create the artwork himself, adding lyrics and written compositions in the booklet and recording spoken word vocals over the tracks that artists were to send in. He got so worked up with this idea that he planned to start an all new record label, opting not to resume the name of his previous label, Dedicated Records. But by the end of the month, he had given up this project too.

So when he messaged me with a new proposal in late August of 2014, I took it with a grain of salt. And I made sure to have a plan B ready in case he vanished again. But as always, I was very willing to help out as much as I could. He explained his new pipe dream; he was flying over to Iceland in October to attend the Iceland Airwaves Festival and while there planned to make three short films. His plan was to use the free filming equipment, which the festival was providing him to film the bands’ performances on location, to make his own project.

I was asked to compose the soundtrack to one of these three films. Garry Brents and Jun Minowa were asked to compose the soundtracks to the other two films. At the time, Bradley had none of the scripts written. He only had several ideas and mentioned that he was already suffering from writers’ block. He was flying out on October 8th and spending three months in Iceland, where he claimed the rest of the scripts would be written and that he would likely continue writing as he was filming. It already seemed extremely unprofessional. He wanted my finished soundtrack, ready for post-production, by early January of 2015. He had also promised to send me pre-production footage in order to help me with influences and mood.

September 6, record phone demo of newly composed piece for Piece No 5o/6.
[Piece No. 5o/6 written that day]

September 7, record phone demo of Piece No. 6o/7 guitar dubs/leads.

September 7, 4:01 AM. film video of newly written song Piece No. 5o/6

On September 7th, I messaged Bradley, letting him know that I had begun composing the soundtrack. I had been playing my guitar Mina in G#G#C#F#A#D# tunning, with a capo on the second fret, as early as August 16th, and came up with a really amazing build up which I promptly demoed and kept for the soundtrack. The new demos were labeled under “Season of the Dead”, as I was just finishing up the biography of Dead Season. I was incredibly influenced by Clint Mansell’s “Moon” soundtrack. In fact, while demoing the writing process through out August and September, I told Rain that I felt like I was copying him. But with the motivation that I had, I told Bradley that I would probably have the soundtrack finished before he even started the filming.

September 23, record phone demo of soundtrack mostly composed and Piece No. 4o/5 for the first time as part of the buildup.
[Piece No. 1, 3o/2, 5o/6 and 6o/7 already written]
[Piece No. 4o/5 written that day]

I asked to know what the plot of the film would be, in order to help me set the proper mood of the songs, and his reply was that he had made no progress on the scripts whatsoever. He did however mention that he had created a donation-based fundraiser page, where he asked people to donate money. Surprisingly the money he was asking for was not to film the movies, but instead for him to extend his travel to Iceland and to then couch-surf his way across Europe. He also explained that he planned to start a second fundraiser, in order to collect additional money for the short films. Unsurprisingly, not a single person donated to the three thousand dollars he was attempting to raise for his personal vacation.

October 4, recording ebow and lead guitar for Piece No. 1, recording main guitar intro for Piece No. 3o/2, recording guitar for Piece No. 2o, recording main guitar for Piece No. 3o/2, recording guitar and bass for Piece No. 4o/5, recording guitar for Piece No. 5o/6, recording rhythm, lead and overdub guitar and bass for Piece No. 6o/7
recording rhythm guitar on all 6 songs original songs

October 5, recording guitar overdubs and bass for Piece No. 5o/6
[mixing Piece No. 5o/6]

On October 4th I started recording the soundtrack. I recorded nearly all of the rhythm guitars to six songs. On October 5th, I sent a Bradley a message, wishing him luck on his upcoming flight. As I had already recorded most of the six songs that were going to be for the soundtrack, I asked him if he could send me some pictures of Iceland in order to help me mixing the proper mood for the soundtrack, regardless of theme, just as an initial starting point. Suddenly, he was no longer flying over on the 8th, but on the 20th, and to no great surprise, he had not progressed on the scripts.

October 13
4:32 to 4:39 AM Recording eBow for Piece No. 1,
4:55 AM recording bass for Piece No. 4o/5 or Piece No. 1,
5:25 recording bass unused rhythm bass for Piece No. 1
5:33 recording bass unused rhythm bass for Piece No. 1

5:45 AM recording bass for Piece No. 1 (adding bass line to the end of Piece No. 1 that hints back at the end of Absolute Togetherness)
5:24 PM. Picture of studio setup recording/mixing.
6:42 PM recording bass for Piece No. 2o, 7:06 PM recording bass for Piece No. 3o/2, 7:16 PM Recording guitar leads and overdubs, ebow and bass for Piece No. 3o/2

October 14 (night of 13-14), recording bass for Piece No. 6o/7.

I spent all of October 13th (the night of October 12th) and 14th recording the bass tracks, additional rhythm guitars and lead guitars and ebow overdubs over the six songs. Then on October 29th, I resumed work on the final song and added an extended ending (which is common on all Vision Éternel releases).

October 29, start mixing.

October 30, recording guitar overdubs and leads for Piece No. 6o/7. recording main guitar for extended portion of Piece No. 6o/7. recording ebow for Piece No. 6o/7. More ebow for Piece No. 4o/5. Recording main guitar for Piece No. 1. Recording guitar overdubs and ebow for Piece No. 5o/6.

October 31, export Preview 1

November 9, end of work on “soundtrack version”

It took a whole month for me to finally hear back from Bradley, and it was by my own inquiring. On November 9th I asked him about the progress of the short films and what his plans where. It was then revealed to me that he had abandoned the short films project and that he was coming home immediately after the festival. That was it for me. I had once again offered to help out someone in the music industry, for free, and he had once again flaked out, as I had predicted.

I later told him “Listen you pipe-dreaming asshole, you’re lucky I didn’t mention your name in there, after leading me on and wasting my time the way you did.”

Vision Eternel Extended Play (November 2015 – February 2015)

So plan B came into action. I had decided ahead of time that, because I liked these new songs so much, weather he was using them or not, I would release them as a new Vision Éternel EP. During the composing phase of the soundtrack, it had been incredibly difficult for me to choose how I would credit myself as the “composer” in the short films. I felt uncertain about finally crediting myself, under my own name, yet at the same time felt that using a band name would have been too amateurish. I then came to the conclusion that the soundtrack in the short film would be credited as “Music composed by Alexandre Julien”, but that I would release the soundtrack under the name of “Vision Éternel”, as a new album, because the music felt so comfortable under that banner.

Back on October 29th I had reached out to my best friend Jeremy Roux to design the artwork for the new album. By then I had already decided that this music would be released in a form or another no matter what happened. At first I was completely lost and knew not what to suggest as ideas or influences for the new design. On top of this, the soundtrack wasn’t completely finished and I didn’t want the unmixed release to influence the design. Just a few weeks prior, Phil Altobelli had introduced me to Tycho’s electronic ambient album “Awake”, and the artwork caught my interest. It reminded me of Omegas’ album “Blasts of Lunacy” and countless others who were using minimal geometric shapes with different colors. It was simple, clean and effective. I knew that it seemed like a trend but I wanted something similar for the new release. When I showed those artworks to Jeremy, he mentioned that he had always wanted to attempt to make one of that kind. We then agreed to have the layout ready for January 15th of 2015, my 27th birthday, so that I would have a full month’s time to lay out a promotion.

That same night he started working on a first design. But it didn’t fit what I wanted and I was also not a fan of the new logo he created. So this design was scrapped.

As soon as plan B was proposed in my mind, which was as soon as Bradley contacted me to work with him, I started thinking of different formats to distribute this new release. For quite some time now, I had been looking at cassette tape prices but always found them too expensive to make in small batches. I knew that I would never be able to sell them at the price they would come to, on top of the cost of shipping. It was on November 16th that I got the idea to co-release it with another record label. Abandonment Records had just gotten back to me, months too late, agreeing to release the Soufferance album “Memories of a City”. But I had since released it myself through Abridged Pause Recordings and decided to send him the final song of the album for him to consider releasing this instead. On November 16th, Nikolay Mitev agreed to co-release the album with me, with a plan to have it out by late February/early March of 2015. That was perfect for me.

I immediately contacted my old friend Adam Kennedy, with whom I had gone to audio production school back in 2007. Adam had briefly been a member in Vision Éternel and he later mastered a few of the Abridged Pause Recordings releases, including the Vision Éternel EP “Abondance de perils”. I reached out to him again to master the new album, hoping to have a fuller sound and he agreed. I was also considering to have two mixed; one for the digital release, one for the cassette tape release.

Everything was lining up perfectly and I thought that I should also set up a new photoshoot and film some footage for a music video. But without the proper equipment, I didn’t know who to ask. On November 18th, 20th, 27th and 31st I continued recording overdubs and also re-recording a couple of songs, as I didn’t like the way they came out in the first place. Additionally, I composed two new songs, combined two old ones together, and dropped an old one, marking a dividing line between the new EP and what the soundtrack was going to be.

November 18, 4:34 AM re-recording main guitar, ending strum guitar, ebow and bass for Piece No. 5o/6, 6:31 AM recording studio demo of Piece No. 7o/3, 6:42 AM recording intro strumming and tremolo guitar and bass for intro for Piece No. 7o/3
[Piece No. 7o/3 written that day]

November 20, recording strumming guitar, final big strum, and outro guitar, as well as bass for Piece No. 7o/3.

November 20, export Preview 2
between Preview 1 and Preview 2 Piece No. 4o/5 gets 8 seconds shorter (bass ending gets faded out).
between Preview 1 and Preview 2 Piece No. 5o/6 gets 20 seconds shorter (re-recorded).
between Preview 1 and Preview 2 Piece No. 7o/3 gets added.

November 27, 4:24 PM recording new intro and main guitar for Piece No. 3o/2.

On November 28th, Jeremy sent me a second idea he had been working on, but this one steered even further from the influences I had pointed to and this one too was dropped.

November 30, 11:15 PM recording guitar and bass for Piece No. 8o/4.
[Piece No. 8o/4 written that day]

December 1, 12:35 AM recording lead guitar overdubs for Piece No. 7o/3, recording bass and ebow for Piece No. 3o/2.

December 1, export Preview 3
between Preview 2 and Preview 3 Piece No. 1 gets 15 seconds shorter (quicker fade of reverb/echoe).
between Preview 2 and Preview 3 Piece No. 2o gets dropped.
between Preview 2 and 3 Piece No. 3o/2 gets 5 seconds shorter (fully re-recorded)
between Preview 2 and Preview 3 Piece No. 7o/3 gets 14 seconds longer (added a 4th bar to the main buildup because original recording only had 3).
between Preview 2 and Preview 3 Piece No. 8o/4 gets added.

All through November I struggled to find an album title. I came up with “From Eternal Hearts To Dusk”, “For Eternal Hearts Bring Dusk”, “From Eternal Hearts, Forever”, “From Eternal Hearts of Misery”, “From Eternal Hearts of Passion”, “From Eternal Hearts to Destiny”, “From Eternal Hearts of my Past”, “From Eternal Hearts of Loneliness”, “From Eternal Hearts of Dedication”, “From Forgotten Hearts”, “The Forgotten Hearts Club”, “From These Forgotten Hearts” and “From Hopeless Forgotten Hearts”. On December 4th I came up a name that I finally liked; “Echoes From Forgotten Hearts”. I then emailed Nikolay again to figure out what the plan was.

December 4, 7:25 P.M. to 9:45 P.M.
7:29 recording guitar overdub tracks for Piece No. 4o/5 (added longer ending)
8:30 – 8:37 recording eBow for ???, (most likely unused ebow for main part of Piece No 7o/3, can’t understand why I didn’t use them)
8:52 – 8:53 recording eBow for Piece No 7o/3,
8:56 recording guitar overdubs for ???, (possibly unused extra guitar for ending of  7o/3)
9:06 – 9:12 recording new intro guitar part for Piece No. 3o/2,
9:18 – 9:28 recording bass for Piece No. 3o/2,
9:43 – 9:45 recording guitar leads for Piece No. 3o/2
becomes the third version of Pièce N. 3o/2

December 4, export Preview 4
between Preview 3 and Preview 4 Piece No. 3o/2 has a new intro written and recorded.

December 5, 4:43 PM recording main guitar, bass and ebow for Piece No. 5o/6.

December 5, export Preview 5
between Preview 4 and Preview 5 Piece No. 5o/6 gets 20 seconds longer (re-recorded).
between Preview 4 and Preview 5 Piece No. 8o/4 gets 6 seconds longer (longer fade of reverb/echoe).

December 8, lots of time spent on editing and mixing Piece No. 7o/3.

December 14, export Preview 6
[Pieces No. 8o/4, 4o/5 and 5o/6 were exported on December 8th ~3 AM]
[Pieces No. 1, 7o/3 and 6o/7 were exported on December 14th ~6 PM]
[Pice No. 3o/2 was exported on December 18th 4:33 AM]
between Preview 5 and Preview 6 Piece No. 3o/2 gets 2 seconds longer (at least intro is written and re-recorded, maybe more?)

December 18, recording new guitar and bass intro for Piece No. 3o/2, recording tremolo guitar leads for Piece No. 7o/3.

December 18, 7:46 PM export Preview 7

December 18th marked the last day of recording the album. Most of December was spent mixing. Throughout the past month, I had compiled different mixes of the album:

1. Preview 1 was compiled from October 29th to the 31st.
2. Preview 2 was compiled on November 20th.
3. Preview 3 was compiled from November 30th to December 1st.
4. Preview 4 was compiled on December 4th.
5. Preview 5 was compiled on December 5th.
6. Preview 6 was compiled from December 8th to the 14th with one song exported on the 18th AM.
7. Preview 7 was compiled on December 18th PM.

December 23, wrap up session, decide that Preview 7 from December 18 is good to go.

8 songs were composed during the soundtrack/ep session.
6 for the soundtrack.
2.5 for the ep (3, 4 and new intro for 2).
1 song (2o) was dropped for the EP.

 

Notes on the composing and recording of the release

 

Piece No. 1
Guitar October 4-30
Bass October 13
eBow October 4

Piece No. 2o
Guitar October 4
Bass October 13
eBow [none]

Piece No. 3o/2 (first unused version from soundtrack)
Guitar October 4-13
Bass October 13
eBow October 13

Piece No. 3o/2 (second unused version)
Guitar November 27
Bass December 1
eBow December 1 (possibly some parts kept from October 13)

Piece No. 3o/2 (third unused version, fully re-recorded)
Guitar December 4
Bass December 4
eBow October 13/December 4

Piece No. 3o/2 (fourth version, with new intro and rest from third version)
Guitar December 4-18
Bass December 4-December 18
eBow October 13/December 1

Piece No. 4o/5
Guitar October 4-December 4
Bass October 13
eBow October 30

Piece No. 5o/6 (first unused version from soundtrack)
Guitar October 4-30
Bass October 4
eBow October 30

Piece No. 5o/6 (second unused version)
Guitar November 18
Bass November 18
eBow November 18

Piece No. 5o/6 (third version used on release)
Guitar December 5
Bass December 5
eBow December 5

Piece No. 6o/7
Guitar October 4-November 18
Bass October 4-14
eBow October 30

Piece No. 7o/3
Guitar November 18-December 18
Bass November 18-20
eBow November 20-December 4

Piece No. 8o/4
Guitar November 30
Bass November 30
eBow November 30

 

It was the seventh attempt that I finally felt satisfied with. I decided to sit on the songs for about a week, to give my ears a break and let it sit before being sure. By December 23rd, I decided that all the bad songs had been replaced or re-recorded and all the rough parts had been sanded down to a smooth listening experience. On the 24th I sent off the final mix to Adam for the mastering. I was using Ableton Live Suite 9.1 but Adam was still running on 8. So he couldn’t open my studio files and we took until January 5th of 2015 for him to have the new version up and running.

Adam started working on “Piece No. Un” on January 7th and sent it to me later that day. But it sounded like a completely different song. The original was uplifting, smooth and calm, and after Adam re-mixed it, it sounded drony, abstract and very close to what Soufferance would have done with the song. He went back to work right away and again I was dissatisfied with the second mix he sent me that evening. A third attempt came through on January 11th, but it became apparent at this point that maybe I didn’t need anyone else to add anything to it, and that I was truly satisfied with my own production.

Meanwhile, back on January 7th, Jeremy had sent me a preview of the third design he was working on. This time it felt like he was on the right track but the colors were still far from what I wanted. I was hoping to have the finished artwork in by January 15th but at the same time, it became apparent that Abandonment Records had (appropriately enough) abandoned me on the project. I had originally put aside two hundred dollars in December of 2014, money that I had forced myself not use during Christmas or Rain’s upcoming birthday in February. I was hoping that it would afford both the price of mastering the album as well as my part of the production cost to make the tapes.

With mastering out of the picture, I was a little richer. But I had already advanced almost half of my reserved amount towards shipping of flyers and pictures for the Chokehold biography book and on Brandied In Bed cherries as New Years gifts. When the Chokehold book fell through, A389 Records never reimbursed my expenses. On top of this, Rain really wanted a new camera for her birthday and my priority was to get her what she wanted. At this point, with what I had already spent on the Chokehold book, and Abandonment dropping out, there was no way that I could afford the production of twenty to fifty cassette tapes on my own and be expected to sell enough of them, at a fair price, and make the money back. I also thought that if Rain had a great camera, then it would benefit me as well since I wouldn’t have to rely on Jeremy for all my photo shoots and music videos. But my goal was to make her happy.

For the new album’s track listing and song titles, I knew it had to be conceptual, as was the norm of all Vision Éternel releases. Back in the autumn of 2014, I came up with the idea to call each song a “Piece”, but spelled in French, as “Pièce”. Followed by the number it held in the album, but spelled in French once again. However when spoken out loud, the names of the songs were to be pronounced with an English accent. As if an anglophone was terrible at speaking French but was making a generous attempt.

Because these were conceptual pieces for a soundtrack in the first place, I thought that perhaps I should give them movement names. But I quickly realized that it wouldn’t work as well as I thought. This was as far as I got:

1. Pièce Un: Ouverture
2. Pièce Deux: Préface
3. Pièce Trois:
4. Pièce Quatre: Interlude
5. Pièce Cinq:
6. Pièce Six: La Tension
7. Pièce Sept: Épilogue

On February 2nd I found out why Abandonment flaked out on the Vision Éternel tape. He announced his new cassette tape release, a split between Mytrip and TCH, limited to twenty-two copies. It wasn’t the first time that Mytrip had “stolen my spotlight” and I was very bitter about it.

On February 9th, Jeremy finally sent me the finished artwork. I was blown away by how awesome it turned out. It was amazing! He also sent me an extended version of the artwork to use as a wallpaper. For the font, I used Blueberry Pie, but because I didn’t like the “V” the font offered, I used the “V” from E-Square, a font that I found to be similar enough. Neither font had the accent of the “E”, so I took the apostrophe from Blueberry Pie and narrowed it in the shape of an accent.

The album was released just a few days later on Valentine’s Day. It was the third time that I was successfully able to pull that off for Vision Éternel, after “Seul dans l’obsession” in 2007 and “An Anthology of Past Misfortunes” in 2009.

On February 28th, I had another phase of wishing my music was more available. I wanted more people to know about it. I wanted some recognition. I wanted record labels to be asking me to release my music for a change. I was sick of feeling like I still had to sell myself after all these years of releasing music.

After venting out, I got the idea to maybe do a small home-pressing of the new EP on CD. I thought about getting grey cardboard paper and printing the artwork on it, front and back, and have it in a 7″ styled jacket. I thought about either gluing the edges together and leaving it as a cardboard release, or to get plastic slipcases to keep them in. I thought that I could make them as I needed them, only printing out five at a time. At the same time I thought about doing a reissue like this of all the Vision Éternel EP’s. And that if they were in the plastic slipcase, they could easily fit in the boxes that I had initially purchased for Soufferance “Tristesse” boxed set.

1. Pièce No. Un
2. Pièce No. Deux
3. Pièce No. Trois
4. Pièce No. Quatre
5. Pièce No. Cinq
6. Pièce No. Six
7. Pièce No. Sept

Credits:
All music composed and performed by Vision Éternel
Vision Éternel is the creation of Alexandre Julien
Music recorded from October 4th 2014 to December 18th 2014 at Mortified Studios
Produced at the same studio from October 29th 2014 to December 23rd 2014
Artwork by Jeremy Roux
APR11 – February 14th 2015
All songs released exclusively registered to Abridged Pause Publishing
Echoes From Forgotten Hearts is dedicated to Rain Frances

 

Feather Witch Cassette Plans (December 2015)

feather witch
cory from halo was supposed to be a co-owner and was going to design a new layout for a box holding the tape.
jon rosenthal’s gf was then going to do it.

always stalling, never even contacted garry.

december 30th, called me drunk to tell me stop wearing a fedora and that’s why peter hated me.

 

FB:

April 11, 2012
Alexandre Julien
4/11, 11:50am
Alexandre Julien
Hey! first off thanks for liking my band Soufferance! How did you come across it?
I checked out your label, Broken Limbs, and I really love the atmospheric types of black metal you guys release and carry! I’ll be listening to more of your releases in the coming hours on your bandcamp page. I also saw that you were distributing one of the Black Autumn albums (one of my favorite bands), so thanks for supporting him!
Alex
Facebook User
4/11, 1:04pm
Facebook User
I actually came across Soufferance through the AP website, and i’m also a fan of vision eternel. They have some great releases, and i checked out all your stuff, right up my alley! I’m so glad you enjoy our releases, wait til you see what we have planned this spring/summer smile emoticon i’d be happy to distro your albums and link your bandcamp on ours if you’d like!
Alexandre Julien
4/11, 1:09pm
Alexandre Julien
That would be awesome! However my personal copies of the Soufferance albums are sold out. You should contact Valse Sinistre Productions for the album “Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the Mind”. All the other ones are sold out, as far as I know! I have a couple of new Soufferance albums coming out this year, and will be sure to let you know as soon as they are out so you can contact those labels to distribute them!
As far as Vision Eternel goes, only two releases ever had physical merch created for them, and both are completely sold out and practically impossible to find. I hope some day to find a label to get the EPs out on 7″s!
Alex
December 5, 2015
Alexandre Julien
12/5, 10:10am
Alexandre Julien
Hello Bariann. We’ve only briefly spoken a few years ago and I see that you work with/for The Black Birch. I’m still running Abridged Pause Recordings and I still have my solo projects Vision Éternel and Soufferance so I wanted to renew our friendship so you didn’t think I’d be a stranger when if I send you guys news of my new releases. Are you working with any specific record label at the moment?
December 16, 2015
Facebook User
12/16, 6:01pm
Facebook User
Mainly just halo of flies but I would love to hear what you’re working on
Alexandre Julien
12/16, 6:01pm
Alexandre Julien
I have a few things in the works right now. Are you more into the ambient or metal stuff?
Wow you write for About.com too! Congrats!!!
December 17, 2015
Facebook User
12/17, 6:29pm
Facebook User
thanks! i just got a gig there doing their social media
i actually am all over the map taste wise
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:30pm
Alexandre Julien
Well if I may suggest my latest ambient release: https://visioneternel.bandcamp.com/album/echoes-from-forgotten-hearts

Echoes From Forgotten Hearts, by Vision Éternel
7 track album
visioneternel.bandcamp.com
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:31pm
Alexandre Julien
I know you were a fan of Soufferance when we first started talking. Vision Éternel is more melodic though
Facebook User
12/17, 6:31pm
Facebook User
oh i like this already
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:32pm
Alexandre Julien
Wow thank you. And you havent even heard the best songs yet (3 & 7)
Facebook User
12/17, 6:33pm
Facebook User
any label interest?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:37pm
Alexandre Julien
I never really looked for any for Vision Éternel. Ever since I started in 2007 I’ve always just planned to self-release them through my own record labels, Mortification Records (2007-2008) and Abridged Pause Recordings (2008 to now). There was a Japanese record label that contacted me in 2009 to release a compilation over there, and some labels approached me for compilation appearances, but that’s been it. I always felt I liked the control of “owning” Vision Éternel’s destiny haha. And to be honest, I could never find any label that would think that music would fit on their roster.
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:38pm
Alexandre Julien
I suppose if a label was interested I would strongly consider it though
Facebook User
12/17, 6:45pm
Facebook User
i mentioned it because me and ory from halo of flies splintered off because i always wanted a tape label to release tuff like this
now i’m on 3!
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:46pm
Alexandre Julien
I would love Vision Éternel on tape! It would be great on 7″ too, since all the releases are always 10-15 minute EPs
Facebook User
12/17, 6:47pm
Facebook User
vinyl would be probably petes domain with broken limbs
what i usually suggest is an initial digitla/tape release
and then a followup 7″
and then the debut LP
if that makes sense
i love this
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:48pm
Alexandre Julien
Ya for sure. Broken Limbs kinda turned me down a couple of times already. Not sure if it was for Vision Éternel or Soufferance though.
Facebook User
12/17, 6:49pm
Facebook User
i feel bad for pete his schedule is insane and he has about 8 records stuck at the pressing plant
since about a year ago
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:49pm
Alexandre Julien
I’ve been friends with Garry Brents for almost ten years though so I know he treats Cara Neir really well
Facebook User
12/17, 6:49pm
Facebook User
love garry
one of garrys albums is one of the ones stuck since august
i know pete has been scared to take anything else on because of it
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:49pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m actually releasing a new exclusive Cara Neir song on an upcoming Abridged Pause Recordigns compilation in Feb/March
Facebook User
12/17, 6:49pm
Facebook User
nice!
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:50pm
Alexandre Julien
I was expecting them to send me a typical grindcore song that I’m used to from them and they sent me a super mellow track! It’s very original
Facebook User
12/17, 6:50pm
Facebook User
have you heard garrys other bands?
like shoegaze stuff
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:50pm
Alexandre Julien
Well I met him through Parabstruse in 2008 I think
He did Wavre for a while a few years ago but nothing came out of that
Facebook User
12/17, 6:51pm
Facebook User
i liked those guys
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:51pm
Alexandre Julien
I remember Bunrage too
Facebook User
12/17, 6:51pm
Facebook User
i don’t even know that one
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:51pm
Alexandre Julien
And Seemen Acorss Lips was “way back when”
Facebook User
12/17, 6:51pm
Facebook User
lmao that one i know
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:51pm
Alexandre Julien
Which one don’t you know?
Facebook User
12/17, 6:51pm
Facebook User
what was the one with the girl
burnrage
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:51pm
Alexandre Julien
Wavre was with the girl
they took pictures in the park
Facebook User
12/17, 6:51pm
Facebook User
oh ok
yes
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:52pm
Alexandre Julien
Bunrage I gotta tell you I don’t even remember what it sounded like.
He had a few releases though
Facebook User
12/17, 6:52pm
Facebook User
garry has 100000 releases i love it
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:52pm
Alexandre Julien
Garry actually played keyboards on one Vision Éternel song and mastered the same EP that was on
Facebook User
12/17, 6:52pm
Facebook User
where does he find the time
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:53pm
Alexandre Julien
But please, wait until you finish Echoes from Forgotten Hearts before listening to it
Ya I don’t know… Plus he’s a studio producer full time now
Facebook User
12/17, 6:53pm
Facebook User
wow you guys have a lot of releases
8 or 9?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:55pm
Alexandre Julien
Who’s “you guys”?
Vision Éternel?
Facebook User
12/17, 6:56pm
Facebook User
yes
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:56pm
Alexandre Julien
Oh no not that many. 5 EPs
Seul Dans L’obsession (2007)
Un Automne en Solitude (2008)
Abondance de Peilrs (2010)
The Last Great Torch Song (2012)
Echoes from Forgotten Hearts (2015)
Facebook User
12/17, 6:57pm
Facebook User
is this just you?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:57pm
Alexandre Julien
Then there was the Japanese compilation “An Anthology of Past Misfortunes” in 2009, which is just the first two EPs compiled with 3 bonus songs.
Anything else are compilation appearances.
Yes it’s just me.
The Last Great Torch Song however has 4 guests through out the songs.
Facebook User
12/17, 6:58pm
Facebook User
jealous
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 6:58pm
Alexandre Julien
haha jealous of what?
Facebook User
12/17, 6:59pm
Facebook User
that you can do that!
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:00pm
Alexandre Julien
make this type of music?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:00pm
Facebook User
make music in general
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:01pm
Alexandre Julien
oh well that’s a big compliment. thank you so much!
Facebook User
12/17, 7:04pm
Facebook User
np i mean it
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:04pm
Alexandre Julien
you think this would fit in Broken Limbs?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:07pm
Facebook User
this would be the first physical release yes?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:08pm
Alexandre Julien
Well, not really. The first EP had a limited CD-r in 2007 that I burnt myself. And the Japanese compilation was released on CD, 100 copies with a full booklet and a separate poster.
Facebook User
12/17, 7:08pm
Facebook User
hmm
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:08pm
Alexandre Julien
And at the moment I’m working on a boxset
Facebook User
12/17, 7:08pm
Facebook User
ok well my tape label is basically part of broken limbs
even though its brand new
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:09pm
Alexandre Julien
ohhh
whats the name of your label?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:09pm
Facebook User
and it comes with my PR & everything
feather witch
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:09pm
Alexandre Julien
let me look that up!
Facebook User
12/17, 7:09pm
Facebook User
oh no thats embarassing
theres not much to look up
me and cory haven’t found the right release yet
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:09pm
Alexandre Julien
hah don’t worry
give me the links so i can check it out and like your pages and stuff
Facebook User
12/17, 7:10pm
Facebook User
pete usually doesn’t release anything uless it has a physical record out first
https://www.facebook.com/featherwitch666/?fref=tsi
i haven’t done anythign to it yet i’ve kept it secret
but cory is a powerhouse
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:11pm
Alexandre Julien
Hmm I’m confused. You and Cory from Halo of Flies are doing Feather Witch, but it’s a sub-label of Broken Limbs?
Is Cory part of Broken Limbs too or something?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:11pm
Facebook User
he owns halo of flies
yea
petes not super supportive lol
but cory owes me with this years cloud rsat release getting in rolling stone etc
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:12pm
Alexandre Julien
Oh Pete also owns Halo of Flies?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:13pm
Facebook User
no him and cory are just good friends
i do PR for halo fo flies
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:13pm
Alexandre Julien
okay I get it haha
Facebook User
12/17, 7:13pm
Facebook User
sorry i didn’t mean to confuse you
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:13pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m a bit of a record label nerd
I’m just obsessed with knowing who owns and runs what
Facebook User
12/17, 7:13pm
Facebook User
no its totally ok
same
i’ve seen pete have to turn down a lot of good stuff because he has records stuck in production
and i wanted to help
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:14pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m the same with movie studios. I like knowing which actors/producers/directors started which studios
Ya back in 2010 you wanted Soufferance to get on Broken Limbs.
I always felt Broken Limbs was too high-end for me. Vinyls and all that… like I don’t deserve someone to invest that much money into what I create
Facebook User
12/17, 7:15pm
Facebook User
thats never true
most labels release their friends because of that
or records they know wil lmake money because they’ve seen past success
its hard for someone to drop a few grand on a band that haos never released vinyl if that makes sense
but i think its important to take chances
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:17pm
Alexandre Julien
Ya I mean it’s a bit of a vicious circle… for a band to get really good recognition, you need a nice product, like a tape or a vinyl to promote… but to have someone put that out, the band needs recognition haha
Facebook User
12/17, 7:18pm
Facebook User
as a publicist i could care less about recogniztion
i just want to put stuff out
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:18pm
Alexandre Julien
I mean Vision Éternel has a following of its own and I actually stopped doing promotion for that project in 2012. I pushed so hard for Soufferance and had so many setbacks and record labels come through and bail out… I figured for Vision Éternel the music would speak for itself
Facebook User
12/17, 7:18pm
Facebook User
it does
would you be ok with a tape release to start?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:20pm
Alexandre Julien
That album, Echoes from Forgotten Hearts was supposed to be the soundtrack to a short film by the guy who used to operate Dedicated Records (he put out a compilation in 2010 that had Vision Éternel on it and after that he put out the last Parabstruse EP). But he used the money for a personal vacation to Iceland instead so I decided to not let my music get unreleased, because I really felt it was the best thing I had ever done.
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:20pm
Alexandre Julien
Wow, I would be blown away by a tape release!
Facebook User
12/17, 7:20pm
Facebook User
oh man iceland
really?
i would love to do it
i’m also really into design etc
so i would want to brainstorm on that
let me send this to cory yes?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:21pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m unbelievably honored right now
ya for sure
Facebook User
12/17, 7:21pm
Facebook User
thats great!
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:21pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m a little speechless right now
Facebook User
12/17, 7:21pm
Facebook User
do you want to write down your ideas on packaging./presentation in the meantime? i think he’s eting dinner
you’ve been working so hard you deserve it
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:22pm
Alexandre Julien
Well thank you again
Facebook User
12/17, 7:22pm
Facebook User
of course! i’m very excited
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:22pm
Alexandre Julien
What do you mean ideas of packaging/presentation?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:22pm
Facebook User
this is exactly what i’ve been looking for
i mean usually i use NAC for tape production but i’m not adverse to any kind of special or handmade packaging
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:22pm
Alexandre Julien
Are you interested in releasing Echoes from Forgotten Hearts on tape, or something new?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:23pm
Facebook User
we could do both
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:23pm
Alexandre Julien
Oh you’re loosing me here… What’s NAC?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:23pm
Facebook User
i’ll show you
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:23pm
Alexandre Julien
I’m a tape noob
I mean my first music purchase ever was actually Will Smith’s Big Willie Style on tape… so I was around for them back then, but I don’t really know what’s going on with the new tape pressings haha
Facebook User
12/17, 7:24pm
Facebook User
is this working for you? http://nationalaudiocompany.com/Cassette-Duplication-C14001181.aspx
i have that on cd
idk if its my internet
Facebook User
12/17, 7:24pm
Facebook User
http://nationalaudiocompany.com/Cassette-Duplication-C14001181.aspx
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Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:24pm
Alexandre Julien
My first CD was The Offspring’s Conspiracy of One. I wanted Americana but they bought me the newest album instead
not loading for me either
Facebook User
12/17, 7:25pm
Facebook User
oh heres a new one http://store.crypticcarousel.com/collections/cassette-manufacturing
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Facebook User
12/17, 7:25pm
Facebook User
my first cd was johnny thunders and the heartbreakers and richard hell
how embarassing is that
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:25pm
Alexandre Julien
hahah
Facebook User
12/17, 7:25pm
Facebook User
ok i’m not sure why the NAC website isn’t working
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:26pm
Alexandre Julien
My second CD was Limp Bizkit’s Chocolate Starfish. And I still like them nowadays
okay this new links. What exactly do you want me to look at?
By the way, if you feel like talking over the phone, if that might be easier to communicate for you
Facebook User
12/17, 7:27pm
Facebook User
i’ll have a new phone by tomorrow
i have five dogs
one of them threw up oil on this one
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:27pm
Alexandre Julien
i have 3 dogs and 3 cats
Facebook User
12/17, 7:27pm
Facebook User
you win
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:27pm
Alexandre Julien
no you win, yours cost more
Facebook User
12/17, 7:27pm
Facebook User
upgrade down the drain
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:27pm
Alexandre Julien
haha
how did one throw up oil?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:27pm
Facebook User
basically you pick the shell color, the imprint color ( the color of the text on the shell)
the design is my favorie part
we had thanksgiving cooking oil by the garage
someone left the fence open
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:28pm
Alexandre Julien
Facebook User
12/17, 7:28pm
Facebook User
OMG YOU HAVE HUSKIES
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:28pm
Alexandre Julien
ya
Facebook User
12/17, 7:28pm
Facebook User
i just quit my job at an animal shelter
people killed each other over those
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:28pm
Alexandre Julien
the one on the left is a pure huskie as far as i know. middle is a cocker/pointer mix. on the right its a huskie/lab or german sheperd mix
here the rescues are filled with huskies
they all run away
Facebook User
12/17, 7:29pm
Facebook User
i’m in love
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:29pm
Alexandre Julien
we got all our dogs from rescues
Facebook User
12/17, 7:29pm
Facebook User
people don’t understand that huskies are tough
bless you
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:30pm
Alexandre Julien
actually, ive had my 2 cats since 2010. then this summer and gf and i went to a rescue to get Charlie, the b/w huskie. I’m not kidding here, the next month we got a cat from there, the month after that Jack (middle) and a month after that Marlene (right). 4 months in a row
we’re maxed out right now so we’re safe
Facebook User
12/17, 7:30pm
Facebook User
what rescue?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:30pm
Alexandre Julien
Inspector Canine. They have 3-4 rescues in Quebec
Facebook User
12/17, 7:31pm
Facebook User
i’ve worekd closely with a lot of rescuers and animal rescue publications in that area they’re great
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:31pm
Alexandre Julien
I would have a pack of hsukies if i could… if i had the room and a well fenced in backyard
we’re only renting a house right now (actually its a cottage, since we decided to give up city-life). we don’t want to invest too much into fencing in the backyard we have right now
Facebook User
12/17, 7:32pm
Facebook User
totally understand
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:32pm
Alexandre Julien
I just looked up where you live on Google maps. I was under the impression that you lived in upstate NY. I didn’t know you were right near NYC.
I lived 8 years in Edison, New Jersey
Facebook User
12/17, 7:32pm
Facebook User
i used to live closer in queens
pete came here from the boondocks of ireland
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:33pm
Alexandre Julien
hha
Facebook User
12/17, 7:33pm
Facebook User
oh man new jersey
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:34pm
Alexandre Julien
Okay, so for the tapes. I know the basics of picking the tape color, the jewel case color/style, the tape covers vs the tape printing….
Facebook User
12/17, 7:34pm
Facebook User
i know i’m jumping ahead i just am sick of the same old boring tapes
i love this site http://www.omgvinyl.com/
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:35pm
Alexandre Julien
What kind of ideas do you have to make it more interesting?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:35pm
Facebook User
oh man where do i start
want to see some pretentious shit
Facebook User
12/17, 7:36pm
Facebook User
http://aurisapothecary.org/
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Facebook User
12/17, 7:36pm
Facebook User
http://aurisapothecary.org/releases/
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:37pm
Alexandre Julien
Ya I know them…
Hipsters likely…
Facebook User
12/17, 7:37pm
Facebook User
http://solynieve.bigcartel.com/
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Facebook User
12/17, 7:38pm
Facebook User
when i worked with yellow eyes they had some coo lidaes
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:38pm
Alexandre Julien
Shameless: I actually emailed them to release Soufferance a couple of years ago… I was desperate haha
Facebook User
12/17, 7:38pm
Facebook User
i meani just like slip covers no plastic
oh god lol
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:38pm
Alexandre Julien
Ya the slipcovers are good too. When those came over CDs back in the 2000’s it meant high production value
Facebook User
12/17, 7:38pm
Facebook User
i can send you some of the BLR tapes
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:38pm
Alexandre Julien
Like all the Marilyn Manson CDs
I am all for the DIY ethics too, if you want to be into the unconventional eras
I would do my share as well if we were to do some handmade stuff
You mean send me by mail?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:41pm
Facebook User
yes
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:42pm
Alexandre Julien
That would be great! I would insist on paying you back for the shipping costs though
Facebook User
12/17, 7:43pm
Facebook User
psh no way
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:43pm
Alexandre Julien
haha
Okay I have some questions/ideas
Facebook User
12/17, 7:43pm
Facebook User
just let me know your address
shoot
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:44pm
Alexandre Julien
How many tapes would you think of pressing? Are you looking to make something more compact, that will cost less to ship to buyers or does size not matter as much, as in making some kind of boxset or something
Facebook User
12/17, 7:44pm
Facebook User
size doesn’t matter to me
i just hate plastic because it breaks
i would do 100-150 for the first run
because once you press it the plant has the master
and they can always repress
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:45pm
Alexandre Julien
Okay that’s a pretty good amount… I’m not used to this… It seems like so many! I’ve been emailing labels that swear by super limited releases, like 33 or 66!
Facebook User
12/17, 7:45pm
Facebook User
oh jesus
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:45pm
Alexandre Julien
Or 12!!!!!
lol
Facebook User
12/17, 7:45pm
Facebook User
also what i usually do is send the band copies as payment for free
WHAT
12?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:45pm
Alexandre Julien
What’s the point if you only have 12
Facebook User
12/17, 7:46pm
Facebook User
to sell them on ebay
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:46pm
Alexandre Julien
ah yes
Facebook User
12/17, 7:46pm
Facebook User
don’t get me started on woodsmoke
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:46pm
Alexandre Julien
Do you think CDs are dead?
Woodsmoke?
Facebook User
12/17, 7:46pm
Facebook User
i don’t know if cds are dead but they should be
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:47pm
Alexandre Julien
lmao
Facebook User
12/17, 7:47pm
Facebook User
are you familiar with the woodsmoke label
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:47pm
Alexandre Julien
no but ill check them out
Facebook User
12/17, 7:47pm
Facebook User
http://www.discogs.com/label/130074-Woodsmoke
look at the prices
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:47pm
Alexandre Julien
WTF!
Facebook User
12/17, 7:47pm
Facebook User
i’m ashamed to have spent $100 on tapes
http://www.discogs.com/sell/list?label_id=130074&ev=lb
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:48pm
Alexandre Julien
And I’ve never heard of any of their bands
Well I’ll tell you, I’m down for whatever for this tape pressing. Like seriously, I’m so honored that you like my music enough to release it, I’ll do whatever I can to make your ideas come to life
Facebook User
12/17, 7:49pm
Facebook User
what are your influences?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:49pm
Alexandre Julien
Ah
Facebook User
12/17, 7:49pm
Facebook User
literature and music both
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:49pm
Alexandre Julien
I love this question
Facebook User
12/17, 7:49pm
Facebook User
good most people hate it!
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:49pm
Alexandre Julien
Oh literature, that’s a new one
Facebook User
12/17, 7:49pm
Facebook User
thats the first thing i ask
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 7:49pm
Alexandre Julien
I’ll add cinematic as well
Facebook User
12/17, 7:50pm
Facebook User
that too!
also if i have to run to eat you can text me 5165329826
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 8:17pm
Alexandre Julien
Okay so literature: I love the lost generation; Hemingway, Fitzgerald, Faulkner, Steinbeck. I love hard boiled detective stories; Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler. When I was a kid my favourite author was Jules Verne. I still love him, and since I am Francophone, I got to read them in French. I think he has most inspired me for projects like Soufferance. If I had to choose literary influences for Vision Éternel it would be poets, Miguel De Cervante and Percy Byshe Shelley.
Music; this is a tough one because there aren’t really any bands that sounded like what I made when I started Vision Éternel in January of 2007. In fact I discovered reverb by accident when recording and only once the debut EP was out, that I started looking for what genre I was actually making. At first I thought I was making ethereal or dreamwave, since I found bands like Love Spirals Downwards. But later I discovered Brian Eno and realized that I had made ambient, and even later that I had some kind of post-rock sounds.
But to be fair there are musical influences. Faith No More has been my favourite band since 2005, so their influence is there, subconsciously somewhere, even if that may be hard to pinpoint. I would even say that Limp Bizkit is influential subconsciously in the same manner, as they were my favourite band prior to discovering Faith No More. If you listen to Wes Borland’s guitar leads and effects, he uses a lot of reverb, and he also uses an eBow, which I love to use for Vision Éternel. The Smashing Pumpkins are also one of my favourite bands, and they use a lot of reverb and eBows.
Other bands that I really like; Castevet (I like both bands of that name, but the emo band from Chicago is in my favourites), Bathory (the viking metal days 1988-1991), Rosesdead (metalcore band from Ontario, very melodic), Boys Night Out (post-hardcore band from Ontario, their concept album “Trainwreck” is a masterpeice), Swans, Clint Mansell (this should have been obvious actually. I feel like “Echoes from Forgotten Hearts” is a “Moon” soundtrack ripoff).
Prior to Vision Éternel existing I was listening to a couple of local bands in New Jersey, Black Sand and Starless Nights, who did post-rock before I even knew that term existed (they were themselves listening to Do Make Say Think, Mono, Sigur Ros, and such). Another local was my friend Eiman Nejad, who is the most talented guitarist in the world. He was most famous for Eliminator, but he was also an early member of Mutiny Within (the band on Roadrunner Records). In 2005-2006 he composed some reverbed solos that I could say were most influential to the creation of Vision Éternel (by accident). You can get an idea of those types of solos if you listen to the song “Prescription for Extinction… Time Enough At Last”. The solo in there is mind blowing, and the very ending is pure Vision Éternel! https://eliminator.bandcamp.com/album/breaking-the-wheel
Bruce Cockburn’s song “Lovers in a Dangerous Time” also has such amazing guitar and Chapman stick tracks in there.
Now for movies… I’m a film buff, self-taught, never went to school for this, it’s always been a passion. My preferences are American cinema of 1930-1960 and French neo noirs from the 1960’s and 1970’s.
Film noirs are my speciality. Alfred Hitchcock is my favourite director. I’m also a big fan of Orson Welles, John Frankenheimer, Henry Hathaway, Anthony Mann, Douglas Sirk, Wes Anderson, Woody Allen, Cameron Crowe, Noah Baumbach, Darren Aronofsky, Jean Pierre Melville, Henri George Clouzot, Jacques Deray, Henri Verneuil. My favourite actor is Burt Lancaster. This paragraph could really be so much longer, but I have to stop myself. I’m very passionate about films. I watch about 3 movies a day.
Kind of all over the place.. Sorry about that. I’m kind of like someone who doesn’t listen to much ambient but makes it haha.
Oh yes I forgot to mention, Vision Éternel albums are always concept albums.
Facebook User
12/17, 9:21pm
Facebook User
Oh I worked with castevet and starlight night that’s awesome!
I remember boys night out
That one song
He fine art of making it out alive?
Do you know woods of ypres
Your list is refreshing
Any poets maudits?
Alexandre Julien
12/17, 10:12pm
Alexandre Julien
Hey just got back from eating. How did you work with Castevet? I got to interview them in 2010, it was fun.
I don’t know Woods of Ypres, do you have a song to suggest in particular? And same for Poets Maudits?
December 18, 2015
Facebook User
12/18, 2:35pm
Facebook User
i know andrew hock pretty well and i worked with woods of ypres and got them with earache
i like your ontario town is a burial ground
poets maudits i woul dstrat with reading baudelaire and rimbaud
December 21, 2015
Alexandre Julien
12/21, 7:13pm
Alexandre Julien
Hey Bari. I don’t know if you got my text earlier. Do you still want to do the Vision Eternel bio tonight?

Texts:

 

Somewherecold Records Compact Disc Plans (March 2020 – October 2020)

 

March 9, 2020, Jason Lamoreaux offers to release an Icebox series along with For Farewell Of Nostalgia with any content that I want. I consider using that to re-release Echoes From Forgotten Hearts but opt against it because it would take focus away from the main release.

In September/October 2020, Jason was preparing the releases for Somewherecold Records to put out in 2021 and he gave all current bands signed to the label priority. I reserved to re-release Echoes From Forgotten Hearts on his label in 2021 but pulled out when I dropped out of the label in October 2020. The plan would have been for a double-CD digipak release, with remastered audio and a new artwork, and I was also going to offer the tape release to Geertruida at the same time.

Geertruida Cassette (October 2021 – )

 

On October 2, 2021, I emailed Yannick from Geertruida about re-issuing Echoes From Forgotten Hearts on compact cassette.

”

Hey man, one of the projects that’s been in the works for Vision Eternel is a re-issue of Echoes From Forgotten Hearts. Somewherecold Records wanted to do it after releasing For Farewell Of Nostalgia, but as you know, I didn’t like the direction of the record label (politics/religion/lack of quality artists).

I didn’t want to release it too soon after For Farewell Of Nostalgia because I thought it was bad business. But the album has been out for a year now and my sales have completely stopped for that release. Over the last year, I’ve thought about re-releasing Echoes From Forgotten Hearts as an in-between release, since my next one is still pretty far away. But I would want to treat it in the same way as any other release, with promotion and quality; I don’t want to use it as just a filler.

As you may or may not know, Echoes From Forgotten Hearts was originally composed and recorded as a soundtrack for a short film in 2014. The guy who was making the film never followed through with it, so instead of letting my music go to waste (I was very proud of it), I re-conceptualized the soundtrack into a concept EP. I re-edited it, fully re-mixed it and partly re-recorded it (I think 1 or 2 songs were dropped or merged and a new song was written and recorded).

My idea for the re-issue of Echoes From Forgotten Hearts would be to include the “EP version” on the A side and the previously unreleased “soundtrack version” on on the B side. The sides run about 14 minutes each. I would like to have everything re-mastered (or technically “mastered” since the EP was never mastered in the first place) and have a new artwork and layout designed. I did no promotion for that EP when it came out in 2015, and Vision Eternel had been quiet for 3 years at that point, so very few people have heard it and I think there was just 1 review of it, on The Obelisk.

What do you think of this idea? Is this something you’d like to release on Geertruida?

https://visioneternel.bandcamp.com/album/echoes-from-forgotten-hearts”

He replied October 11, 2021 that he was interested. That same day I reached out to Carl Saff at Saff Mastering to find out what kind of timeframe he had for mastering; to Michael Koelsch at Koelsch Studios to find out if he had any unused artwork already made that I could use for not too much money; and to Alexander Barkov at Frozen Light to find out if he wanted to release the CD version.

October 12, 2021
JJ says he’s too busy to write the liner notes. I approach Caleb Newton to write them.
Yannick proposes a cassette digipak packaging for the release which sounds incredible!
Discovered that I had made a mistake on the dates that I recorded the EP. All of the dates online and in the Abridged Pause Recordings CD say December 8th for the recording date but it’s actually December 18th.
Started to go through all the raw audio files to narrow down composing and recording dates.
Sent an email to Keith Jones at Fruits De Mer Records to see if he wanted to use one of the songs for a Friends Of The Fish Various Artists compilation.
Talking with Yannick about packaging and doing a cardboard slipcase over the cassette case; like Broken Limbs had done for the 3 Krieg tapes. Ironic that I got the idea from that, and that those were sent to me during the original tape discussion in 2015.
At night, started emailing all record labels that had mentioned liking my music when seeking a label for For Farewell Of Nostalgia. Between October 12-14, 2021, I emailed 47 record labels.

October 17, 2021
After not hearing back from Caleb Newton, I messaged Klemen Breznikar and he immediately agreed to write the liner notes.

October 18, 2021
Juris Šilders from Beverina Productions responds that he wants to release the CD version in a digibook format.

October 20, 2021
Heard back from Juris about the release.
Starting coming up with ideas for artwork. Looked up film posters for my favourite films and got the idea of redoing Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights poster. Would include a 1920s art deco font from La Bete Humaine. Also considered doing a painting version of the Riviere Jean Venne, influenced by the album Un Peu D’Innocence by Daniel DeShaime.
Got idea to include business card in the release, like I had done for For Farewell Of Nostalgia, but since the digibook may not have anywhere to hold the card, I thought about adding a perforation hole on the design, and then punching it out once we get them, then using a nice fabric-quality string to attach it and run it through the spine of the book. The business card would also include a download code. Then got the idea of doing it on a postcard, since it might be nicer with the digibook and wouldn’t need to be attached.

October 21, 2021
Starting working on the cover art mockup based on combining two City Lights film poster. The main city background is taken from one of the three original 1931 posters, while the cutout of Charlie Chaplin is taken from the 1950 re-release poster.

October 24, 2021
After a few days struggling with finding a suitable font and where it would be located on the front cover, I got the idea of doing a doing a clear slipcase for the physical releases. The artwork will be nice enough not to want to cover it up. Having a clear slipcase with the text (front and back) would be very classy. For the tape version, it could be made of vellum paper.

October 28, 2021
Heard back from Michael Koelsch that he can’t start on the artwork until the beginning of 2022. After talking with Juris, it looks like the release date will be pushed back to March 14, 2022 to accommodate the artwork and give everyone enough time to do their thing. The release would be getting pressed in Russia and has to ship to Austria, and then I need to get my copies too.

November 22, 2021
Leo died today.
Heard back from Yannick, upgrading the release to 100 copies. Had been debating for some time about the lack of having b-sides on the tape. I didn’t want it to be inferior to the CD version. Got the idea of putting EP and Soundtrack versions on Side A and then adding more b-sides and demos to Side B.

 

 

 

 

Deluxe Edition Liner Note Credits
———————————
[DOUBLE CHCEK DATE FORMATING COMMAS AND ST/ND/RD/TH]

All music composed, arranged and performed by Alexander Julien.
Recorded, produced and mixed by Alexander Julien at Mortified Studios, Saint-Hippolyte-of-Kilkenny, Quebec, Canada from August 16th to December 18th 2014.
*Mastered by Carl Saff at Saff Mastering, Chicago, Illinois, United States on November ??th 2021.

Design concept by Alexander Julien.
Photography by Rain Frances.
*Cover art, inside art (CD), disc art (CD) and cassette art (blue tape) painting illustrated by Michael Koelsch at Koelsch Studios, Huntington Beach, California, United States from January ??th to February ??th 2021.
*Short story booklet art and cassette art (white tape) painting illustrated by Rain Frances at Rain Frances Art, Queens County, New Brunswick, Canada on May 19th 2019 and June 24th 2020.
*Layout designed by Alexander Julien at La Detente Studio, Queens County, New Brunswick, Canada from October 20th 2021 to January ??th 2022.

*Vision Eternel logo illustrated by Christophe Szpajdel, Exeter, England in February 2017.
*Beverina Productions logo designed by ??? in ???.
*Casus Belli Musica logo designed by ??? in ???.
*Underground Alliance logo designed by ??? in ???.
Geertruida logo designed by Yannick Tinbergen and G.J. Engeringh.
*Typography by ???.

*Liner notes written by Klemen Breznikar (It’s Psychedelic Baby! Magazine) between ??? 2021 and Alexander Julien .

Echoes From Forgotten Hearts is dedicated to Rain Frances.
A sincere thank you to Charlie Chaplin for the continuous inspiration.

 

Deluxe Compact Cassette Edition also available through Geertruida.
Deluxe Compact Disc Edition also available through Beverina Productions and Casus Belli Musica.
Digital Edition also available through Geertruida.

*Deluxe Compact Disc Edition released through Beverina Productions (CAT#) and Casus Belli Musica (CAT#), 2022.
*Manufactured by Bison Disc, Winter Park, Florida, United States; Blank Media Printing, Orlando, Florida, United States; and Moo, Lincoln, Rhode Island, United States.
*Distributed through Underground Alliance, ???.
Published by Abridged Pause Publishing, Canada (SOCAN/ASCAP).

*Deluxe Compact Cassette Edition released through Geertruida (TRUI???), 2022.
*Manufactured by Geertruida and CopyNet Print and Sign, Haarlem, The Netherlands; and Moo, Lincoln, Rhode Island, United States.
Published by Abridged Pause Publishing, Canada (SOCAN/ASCAP).

Digital Edition released through Geertruida.

 

VISION ETERNEL ECHOES FROM FORGOTTEN HEARTS