It takes a Village, People – Behind the Scenes at the ABYSS OF HEL video shoot

Zur deutschen Version geht es hier.

Find the video here. Maybe read the article beforehand though 😉

Fancy a little time travel? It’s time to go back to October 2023, somewhere in Saxony-Anhalt. There is a barn surrounded by fields. In front of this barn is a gravel path framed by a slightly hilly meadow. On this cloudy fall day, around twenty people gather there with one goal: to make a music video today! You can find out which song it’s about, which band was here and what we experienced in the article below.

But first I would like to say thank you again! First of all, thanks to lightinmirror.de, who, as always, delivered something simply out of this world! Thanks also to Daniel, who communicated his vision so clearly and wanted us to be part of it. It’s always like an inner cherry eating with you! [Germans: If you know, you know!]

The day started as unspectacularly as it was normal does: get up early, have breakfast, get dressed and off we go. Let me tell you, anyone who forces me to get up earlier than 18:00 on a weekend either has a death wish or a cool idea to inspire me. In this case, Daniel, frontman and creator of the band ABYSS OF HEL, probably had both. The day of the shoot had already been preceded by several conversations in which Daniel described to me in detail what he had in mind and some organizational matters had also been discussed in the corresponding WhatsApp group. 

The song, Into The Abyss, comes from the band’s debut album of the same name and had already been shared within the group in advance to ensure good preparation.

Packed with a plan and all the equipment we could possibly need, we set off. After all, the start was at 9:00 AM (I told you: death wish)! When we arrived at the location, we quickly realized that this was going to be really good. Apart from his musical comrades-in-arms, an incredible number of supporters had turned up to participate in the video. I don’t know if you agree, but there’s nothing more valuable than a group of people who are willing to sacrifice their well-earned free time to support your artistic ideas. So much solidarity and sacrifice is truly heart-warming! It almost made up for the fact that drummer Rustam was unfortunately ill and therefore unable to attend.

But the rest of the band, consisting of guitarist Robin and keyboarder Diana, were of course present. For the band, the day was certainly as exciting as it was a little worrying. It can never be routine to lift a project like this out of the rehearsal room and into the real world and then, with the support of friends and family, shoot a video like this. Even if you keep the monetary costs low, the social and psychological costs are enormous. What if the video doesn’t turn out well? What if everyone suddenly doesn’t want to do it anymore? Will the end result look the way you want it to? What if the corpse paint suddenly peels off? These are real and justified fears that you have when you embark on a shoot like this. Initial restraint is absolutely justified. Once everything had gotten into the groove, things looked completely different again!

At this point, readers will naturally ask themselves why you need twenty people plus a band plus a camera crew plus a photographer plus a blogger if all you need to show in a video is the band playing their instruments with varying degrees of talent. The answer is easy to explain: in order to stage a kind of busy scene, the people present were to walk in front of and behind Daniel. The camera was set up so that he was the visual focal point and therefore appeared as if he had nothing to do with what was happening around him. Only the members of the band would interact with him, even though he would show no reaction. Two different versions were then filmed: One in which the band could be seen “normally” and one in which they wore make-up. Each version was shot several times in order to have enough material.

It was particularly difficult that all participants had to start running at different times. These times were initially based on the clicks in the song and then on when the person who came before you in the sequence started running. During a production, you can switch a kind of metronome into the recording so that the person being recorded knows when their cue is coming. These beats – widely referred to as “clicks” – were also heard on the day and served as an acoustic orientation for the performers. 

Anyone who thinks that this will be a piece of cake is very much mistaken! What looks so simple and professional in the video actually required some practice and a certain number of practice runs. A successful run not only involved counting the clicks correctly, but also accurately following the previous runner. For my part, I was glad that I was entrusted with operating the film clapperboard! This was completely in line with my skill level!

But why all this? In ABYSS OF HEL, catatonic contemplations of the individual meet a harsh Metal background. The images of people walking around are absolutely appropriate for depicting the individual on his path of suffering to redemption. It is, so to speak, the depiction of the world of the average Joe, in which the individual person cannot stand out at all. It is only at the moment when the individual decides in favor of their own individuality, and thus also in favor of all worldly suffering, that the inner struggle becomes noticeable. The band has done an outstanding job of portraying this here, as there are only isolated actions in the sequences just described, but no interactions. Added to this is the contrast created by the fact that the individual scenes were also shot with and without make-up. 

At this point, I have to admit that this day made a long-cherished dream come true for me: I’ve wanted to paint people randomly with black paint for a long time, but I’ve never had the opportunity. But the band couldn’t run away as fast as I had the paintbrush in my hand! Did it look good? I have no idea. Did I paint myself godlessly by mistake? Of course I did! Would I do it again? Definitely! Thanks for that! Book me as your make-up artist!

When you watch the video, please keep the following in mind: the music (or art in general) that you consume every day is a privilege. It is created from the lifeblood of all those who contribute in their own way: from the extras in the video to the camera team to the mom who simply cooked the best chili ever and brought it over for lunch! They are all part of a lengthy creative process that ultimately resulted in this comparatively short video. 

Thank you for letting us be part of this day and somehow also of the video. These were certainly not the last words about ABYSS OF HEL! 

Find the video here.