彼岸教皇 - 英国Avant-garde Post-Black / Doom Metal / Dark Ambient / Jazz乐队Five The Hierophant专访

Volcano Magazine
11 minutes ago
12 min read

如果说有哪支乐队听起来像是泥浆于爵士的融合，而现场却又像是黑暗而严肃的神秘仪式，那绝对是来自伦敦的Five the Hierophant。组建于2014年的英国后金属乐队Five the Hierophant作为这种冷冽先锋的代表乐队，以萨克斯+先锋金属的结合在这个风格中收获了大量乐迷和媒体的关注。就在7月10号，乐队将在北京开启他们的中国巡演第一站。同样参与这次巡演并促成这次演出的是来自上海的An Corporation——一年前，两支乐队因同在比利时Dunk Fest上演出而相识。出于对纯器乐共同的热爱，两支乐队的成员们在演出后一直保持着联系。而就在今年，An Corporation也将这支他们在Dunk Fest上最爱的乐队带来了中国。在巡演前夕我们通过乐队主办方与Five the Hierophant的创始成员——吉他手Kali进行了这次采访。Kali向我们分享了Five the Hierophant的音乐理念以及对这次中国巡演的期待。

（V: 代表笔者 K: 代表Kali）

If there’s one band that sounds like a fusion of sludge and jazz, yet whose live performances feel like dark, solemn, and mysterious rituals, it’s definitely London-based Five the Hierophant. Formed in 2014, this British post-metal band stands as a leading representative of this cold, avant-garde genre, having garnered significant attention from fans and the media alike through their unique blend of saxophone and avant-garde metal. On July 10, the band will kick off the first stop of their China tour in Beijing. Also participating in this tour and helping to make this show happen is Shanghai-based An Corporation，the two bands met a year ago while performing together at Belgium’s Dunk Fest. Driven by a shared love for purely instrumental music, the members of both bands have stayed in touch ever since. And this year, An Corporation has brought their favorite band from Dunk Fest to China. On the eve of the tour, we conducted this interview with Kali, the founding guitarist of Five the Hierophant, through the tour organizers. Kali shared with us Five the Hierophant’s musical philosophy and his expectations for this China tour.

(V: Author; K: Kali)

采访对象：Kali（Five The Hierophant乐队吉他手）

采访时间：2026.07.06

V:首先非常感谢Five the Hierophant接受这次采访，向乐队的所有人问好。Five the Hierophant成立于2014年，是一支已经在金属界立足超过十年的乐队。可以介绍一下乐队是如何成立的吗？乐队的各位成员们是怎样认识的？

First of all, thank you very much to Five the Hierophant for agreeing to this interview, and greetings to everyone in the band. Formed in 2014, Five the Hierophant is a band that has established itself in the metal scene over the past decade. Could you tell us how the band was formed and how the members met?

K: 嘿，很高兴能与你及各位读者交流。这支乐队是由我（Kali）和 Chris 共同组建的。说来你可能不信，多年前我们曾在伦敦的一家纹身店共事过。起初，我们只是进行一些声音与创意的即兴碰撞，但很快这些尝试便有了实质性的雏形，随后贝斯手Mitch也加入了进来。乐队就像滚雪球一样发展了起来，因为我们从一开始就确信，那种恰到好处的氛围与能量已经具备了。

Hey, Its my pleasure talking to you and the readers. The band was formed by me (Kali) and Chris. Believe it or not, we used to work together in tattoo studio here in London together, many years ago. What initially was nothing more than a free form jam of sounds and ideas, started taking very real form soon, and we added bassplayer Mitch. It started snowballing from there very quickly, as we knew the right atmosphere and right energy was there from the start.

V: Five the Hierophant这个名字充满了神秘的气息，这个名字代表着什么？为什么乐队会选择这个名字？

The name 'Five the Hierophant' is full of a mysterious aura. What does this name represent? Why did the band choose this name?

K: 这个名字本身源自塔罗牌。第五张牌就是“教皇”（The Hierophant）。“教皇”是古希腊语中对埃琉西斯秘仪中大祭司的称谓。这个名字字面意思是“引领你走向神圣之人”，或者说“揭示神圣之人”。因此，本质上这是一个萨满式的人物，充当此岸与彼岸之间的桥梁。音乐的作用，至少在某种程度上，正是为了促成从“此处”到“彼处”的过渡。而我认为，我们的使命就是创作这样的音乐，让你得以一窥彼岸的音乐。但这并非超验意义上的。我在此完全不是在谈论宗教体验。我是一个激进的无神论者。但这其中并不存在矛盾。我认为这种体验中没有任何超验的成分，因为它完全基于身心反应以及大脑中化学物质的平衡或失衡。我可能有些跑题了，但希望我能在一定程度上回答了你的问题。

The name itself comes from a tarot card. Card number five is The Hierophant. The Hierophant is an ancient greek name for a hight priest in Eleusinian mysteries. The name literally means the one who brings you to the holy, or the one who reveals the sacred. So essentialy a shamanic figure acting as a bridge between here and the other side. It is the role of music, at least to some degree to facilitate that transition from there to 'there'. And I think it is our place to create that music, that gives you a glimpse of the other side. But not in a transcendental sense. Im not talking here about the religious experience at all. I am a militant atheist. But there is no contradiction here. I think there is nothing transcendental in this experience as its all based on psychosomatic responses and chemical balance/imbalance in the brain. I’m getting ahead of myself here, but I hope i answered your question to some degree.

V: 你们的音乐有着非常鲜明的阴郁气质，沉重的不和谐riff推进歌曲的重要元素。在你们形成自己风格的路上，对你们影响最大的乐队、音乐家或者音乐家都有哪些？

Your music possesses a distinctively gloomy atmosphere, driven by heavy, dissonant riffs. Which bands or musicians have most significantly influenced you as you developed your own style?

K: 就Five The Hierophant而言，很难说哪些乐队直接影响了我。我更愿意说，这种风格是我们所有人多年经验的自然演变，随后我们将其融合成了一种独特的风格。如果你问我作为吉他手早期受到哪些乐队的影响，我会说早期黑金属乐队，比如Necromantia、Rotting Christ、Mystifier、Samael，还有早期Sodom、Kreator、Judas Priest等乐队。这些都是我成长过程中听的音乐。虽然与Five The Hierophant的风格并不太相似，但对我的音乐个性产生了巨大的影响。

In regard to Five The Hierophant it would be hard to say which bands influence me directly. I would rather say this style if a natural evolution of the many years of experience we all had, and then we collided to mix them into one thing. If you asked me what bands influenced me early on as a guitar player I would say early black metal like Necromantia, Rotting Christ, Mystifier, Samael, but also bands like early Sodom, Kreator, Judas priest. The stuff I was listening to growing up. Not very similar to 5TH style, but had great impact on my music personality.

V: 萨克斯演奏是Five the Hierophant最别具一格的特点之一。在你们的歌曲中，萨克斯的旋律是点缀歌曲情绪的重要部分。在作曲的过程中，编写这些长而富有变化的萨克斯部分时你认为最难的地方是什么？

The saxophone playing is one of Five the Hierophant’s most distinctive features; the saxophone melodies play a crucial role in shaping the mood of your songs. What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of composing these long, dynamic saxophone parts?

K: 嗯，这个问题应该由萨克斯手Jon来回答。那部分的编曲是他负责的。Jon现在已经离开了乐队，由Natasha接替了他的位置，所以我们永远无法得知答案了。

Well that would be a question for Jon, the sax player to answer. He was responsible for that layer. Jon has now left the band and was replaced by Natasha, so we will never know the answer to that.

V: 你们的现场最令人惊叹的特点之一是乐队成员们之间默契的配合，这对于一个纯器乐的乐队来说让人印象深刻，而且你们的音乐非常复杂。在演出的时候，你们是否感觉把你们的音乐在现场呈现出来很有挑战性？

One of the most amazing aspects of your live shows is the seamless rapport among the band members—something particularly impressive for an all-instrumental band, given the complexity of your music. Do you find it challenging to bring your music to life on stage?

K: 完全不会。首先，我们的音乐其实相当简单，通常曲目本身并不复杂，只是随着演奏的进行而不断演变和变化。在舞台上，我们能够达到相当好的和谐与流畅感，这完全得益于大量的排练。唯一需要考虑的是如何在舞台上呈现出理想的音效，一旦做到这一点，我们就能轻松地沉浸其中，仿佛进入一种催眠状态。

Not at all. In the first place, our music is pretty simple really, usually the compositions are not very complex, they just evolve and mutate as we go. On stage we managed to get a pretty good degree of harmony and flow, and its just a result of playing a lot. The only question if acheiving good sound on stage, once we get that we can easily drift away into hypnosis.

V: 你们有许多长度超过十分钟的歌曲，并且这些歌曲都有相当丰富且引人入胜的变化。在创作时，你们会怎样记录想放在歌曲里的灵感？

You have many songs that exceed ten minutes in length, featuring rich and captivating dynamic shifts. When composing, how do you capture the ideas and inspirations you want to incorporate into the music?

K: 其中一部分源于即兴创作，就是在排练室里即兴演奏出一些想法。但大部分时候，是我在吉他上不断重复和变奏那些旋律片段和即兴段落，手机里存着数百段这样的短录音。然后，这些素材被投入“熔炉”中，我们将其塑造成这些长篇作品。从局外人的角度来看，这很难想象，对我来说也很难解释清楚。它就是自然而然地发生了。

Some of it comes out of improvisation, jamming some ideas out in the room. But mostly its endless repetition and variation of ideas and riffs that I bring on guitar, having hundreds of little recordings on my phone. Then these ideas are thrown into the cauldron and we mold them into these long compositions. Its pretty difficult to imagine from the perspective of outsider, and also difficult to explain for me. It just happens.

V: 你们的现场演出总是充满了仪式感，许多乐迷对你们的评价是“Five the Hierophant的现场像是成员们在用各种不同寻常的乐器进行着某种庄严的仪式”。现场演出时的这些仪式对你们来说意味着什么？在演出开始前，你们会做哪些准备来进入演出状态吗？

Your live performances are always imbued with a sense of ritual; many fans describe the experience as the band members performing a solemn rite using an array of unconventional instruments. What do these rituals mean to you? Do you engage in any specific preparations before a show to get into the right mindset for the performance?

K: 正如我之前提到的，音乐家的角色在某种程度上类似于现代萨满——当然，这是从象征性的原型意义上来说的。舞台表现力与音乐同样重要。我们使用的乐器包括藏族号角和铃铛，它们为演出增添了仪式感。我们还会使用乳香。这些都是各种仪式和教派中常见的戏剧化元素，我们运用它们是为了达到类似的效果，但目的却截然相反。

Like I mentioned, the role of musician is to a degree a role of a modern shaman, in a symbolic archetypal sense of course. The stage presence is equally as important as music. The instruments we use are tibetan trumpets and bells. They contribute to the ritualistic feel. We also use frankincense, These are all theatrics that are well known from various rituals and cults and we use them for similar effect but opposite purpose.

V: 可以介绍一下这次巡演的歌单吗？当你们去从未去过的地方演出的时候，一般会如何安排演出歌单？

Could you tell us a bit about the setlist for this tour? When you perform in places you have never been to before, how do you usually arrange the setlist?

K: 歌单安排将与我们上次欧洲/英国巡演时大致相同。这些曲目横跨了我们所有的专辑，重点放在最新专辑"Apeiron"上。

The setlist will be similar to what we played on out last eu/uk tour. It a crossover through all our albums with emphasis on the last album Apeiron

V: 你们与知名金属厂牌Agonia Records有着长期合作，中国乐迷很熟悉同样来自Agonia Records的Forgotten Tomb和Abigail Williams。你们为什么会选择Agonia Records？

You have a long-standing partnership with the renowned metal label Agonia Records; Chinese fans are very familiar with bands like Forgotten Tomb and Abigail Williams, who are also on the label's roster. What made you choose Agonia Records?

Kali：没错。我们的前两张专辑是由挪威的Dark Essence唱片公司发行的，该公司以发行一些经典Black Metal专辑而闻名。他们确实很棒。至于Agonia，结果却令人大失所望，我们目前正在对他们提起诉讼。他们是小偷和骗子，我呼吁大家抵制他们。

Right. Our first 2 albums were released by Dark Essence records from Norway, well known for some classic black metal releases. Ther are great. As far as Agonia goes, he turned out to be a great dissapointment and we are in the middle of court proceeding against them. The are thieves and liars, and I urge everybody to boycott them.

V: 这次的演出主办是在一年前与你们一同参演比利时dunk!festival的中国乐队An Corporation。你们有着相似的音乐语言，同时又各有独特的声音。可以讲讲你们和An Corporation是怎样认识的吗？这次中国联合巡演又是怎样促成的？

The organizers of this tour are An Corporation, the Chinese band that performed alongside you at Belgium’s dunk!festival a year ago. You share a similar musical language, yet each possesses a unique sound. Could you tell us how you met An Corporation and how this joint tour in China came about?

K: 确实是这样，我们都曾在Dunk fest上演出，演出结束后An Corporation的成员们主动过来和我们交流，大家相谈甚欢，也交换了一些想法。此后我们一直保持联系，现在正启程前往中国！这令人非常兴奋，感觉就像是一次前往异世界的朝圣之旅。我一直对拥有数千年历史、且在大部分时间里都领先欧洲的伟大中华文明着迷。简直太神奇了。在此，我要向An Corporation的各位成员表示感谢，是他们促成了这次巡演，并为此付出了巨大的努力。

Indeed, we played Dunk fest and after the show the An Corporation guys came up and we had a nice conversation and exchanged some ideas. We stayed in touch and now we are on out way to China! this is very excitiong and feels like a pilgrimage to a different world. I was always fascinated by the great Chinese civilisation, thousands of years old, and so far ahead or Europe for most of the time. Absolutely amazing. .I want to express my gratitude here to the An Corporation guys for making this possible and putting all the great work into it.

V: 你们对这次巡演最大的期待是什么？你们希望怎样向没有听过Five the Hierophant的观众诠释你们的音乐理念？

What are you most looking forward to regarding this tour? How do you hope to convey your musical philosophy to audiences who haven't heard Five the Hierophant before?

K: 这将是一次重大的尝试。我们的音乐是纯器乐的，从这个意义上说，它更具普世性。我认为我们都有着一种共同的、源自远古的本能密码，而音乐能够普遍地激活这种密码。让我们拭目以待。除此之外，我非常期待游览这个国家！这些年来我曾广泛游历亚洲，但这将是我第一次造访“中土之国”（中国）。

That will be a big experiment. Our music is instrumental, so in that sense its more universal. I think there is a common atavistic code that we all share and music is universally able to activate that code. We will see. Other than that I so looking forward to see the country! I travelled extensively across Asia over the years but itll be the first time in Middle Kingdom.

V: 再次感谢你们抽出时间参加这次的采访。中国的乐迷们非常期待Five the Hierophant的首次的中国巡演，最后请对中国的乐迷们说点什么吧。

Thank you once again for taking the time for this interview. Chinese music fans are eagerly anticipating Five the Hierophant's debut tour in China; finally, please share a few words with them.

K: 谢谢大家的支持，我非常期待这次巡演！

Thanx for support guys, and Im looking forward to this!